CHICAGO BLUES TOUR™ SPRING 2009 - May 16th

Special Features:

Chicago Blues Fest Preview, Guitar Duel, Harmonica Showdown

Advance Discounts available until April 25th



Blues University® and the City of Chicago invite music fans to preview the Chicago Blues Fest with a busload of blues on Saturday, May 16th when the Chicago Blues Tour™ departs from the “hub” of the tour, Wabash Tap at 1233 S. Wabash St.  The Chicago Blues Tour™ is a “pub crawl” event connecting 7 blues lounges hosting 8 live blues bands and many special musical guests performing all night long.  The tour runs buses on one-hour shuttle routes connecting the participating venues, including classic, historic lounges like Checkerboard Lounge, Rosa’s Lounge, and Lee’s Unleaded Blues, as well as newer blues havens like Rooster’s Palace, Catcher’s Inn and Linda’s Place.  Several performers on the tour are also featured on this year’s Blues Fest, including Li’l Ed & the Blues Imperials, Johnny Drummer & the Starliters, Mz. Peachez, and Killer Ray Allison.



Buses begin shuttling between clubs from 8:30 p.m. until 1:30 a.m.  Tickets ($40) include all transportation and admission charges for a nightlong blues adventure, and are available through www.chicagobluestour.com, the Chicago Blues Tour™ website, or by phone via Ticketweb at 866.468.3401 (credit cards required).  ADVANCE RESERVED discount tickets are available for $30 until April 25th, while supplies last.  Maps, schedules, and an FAQ are also updated frequently at the website. A limited supply of tickets may be available at the door, but advance tickets are strongly recommended, as the tour often sells out.  For further information and ticket availability updates, visit the website or call the toll-free BluesLine , 866-LIVEBLUES (866-548-3258). 



The tour emphasizes off-the-beaten-path, classic lounges, that highlight the wide variety of modern blues talent, from world-renowned veterans like Johnny Drummer, Li’l Ed, and Vance Kelly, to Chicago soul-blues stars like Fantastic L-Roy.  There’s also a Southside Showcase jam session at Catcher’s Lounge featuring a dozen of Chicago’s south side stars, and a “Harmonica Showdown” at Wabash Tap, where Deak Harp will take on all challengers, and a Guitar Duel at Rosa’s Lounge.



The Chicago Blues Tour™ began in 1990 as the West Side Blues Tour and has expanded in scope to include live blues venues throughout Chicago, and has helped promote blues with assistance from the Mayor’s Office of Special Events since 1998. 

 

Spring 2009 Chicago Blues Tour™

PARTICIPATING CLUBS AND PERFORMERS:

For links with more details on clubs and bios of performers, visit this page:

http://www.chicagobluestour.com/bluestour/index.php/category/spring2009/clubs-performers

For downloadable photos of performers, visit this link:

http://www.chicagobluestour.com/bluestour/index.php/press-room



WABASH TAP 1233 S. WABASH, 312-360-9488

(8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)

DEAK HARP BAND with special harmonica guests in a

 “HARMONICA SHOWDOWN”

Including:

• HARPMONSTER,


• OMAR COLEMAN,


• 3rd harmonica player TBA

CATCHER’S INN 901 W. 35TH, 773-869-9411

(8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)

ROBERT PASENKO & THE 35TH STREET BLUES BAND

 SOUTH SIDE SHOWCASE / CHICAGO BLUES FEST PREVIEW:

special guests including: 

Tre', Lady Kat, Floyd Wilson, Reggie Tutt, Mz Peaches, Smilin’ Bobby, Killer Ray Allison, Chuck Crane, Linsey Alexander, Chicago Babe, Ramblin' Rose, Li’l Daddy

ROSA’S LOUNGE 3420 ARMITAGE AVE., 773-342-0452

(continuous music from 8 p.m.)

GUITAR DUEL featuring:

Li’L ED & THE BLUES IMPERIALS

PETE GALANIS

CHECKERBOARD LOUNGE 5201 S. HARPER, 773-684-1472

(9:30 p.m. to 2:00 a.m.)

VANCE KELLY & THE BACKSTREET BLUES BAND

LEE’S UNLEADED BLUES 7401 S. SOUTH CHICAGO, 773-493-3477

(7:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)

JOHNNY DRUMMER & THE STARLITERS with special guests

LINDA’S PLACE 1044 W. 51ST ST., 773-373-2351

(7:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)

FANTASTIC L-ROY & THE BULLETPROOF BAND

ROOSTER’S PALACE 4501 W. MADISON, 773-678-0739

(8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)

TAILDRAGGER & HIS ALL-STAR CHICAGO BLUES BAND

Spring 2009 Chicago Blues Tour™

SPECIAL FEATURES, PERFORMERS & CLUBS

Advance Party & Harmonica Showdown  at Wabash Tap

Both the “busker” street musicians and folk-blues harmonica have a special place in blues history, but many modern practitioners don’t have an understanding of solo blues dynamics like Deak Harp. He’s the rare performer who has a good feel for the rhythmic and storytelling elements of folk blues, and he whoops, howls, taps his foot on a board, and sometimes uses a small kick drum to punctuate songs with percussive sound effects that enrich the narrative.  He cites James Cotton as a mentor, and the heavy Delta tone of his playing makes that connection clear, although his solo performances are reminiscent of Detroit’s Dr. Isaiah Ross.  This is a rare opportunity to see the blues tradition in its simplest form, but the only way to see it is to get a ticket for one of the early departures (before 7:35) and get in on the Advance Party at Wabash Tap. (6:15 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.)  He will also be hosting the “Harmonica Showdown” along with his band, in which several rival harmonica players will do some head-cuttin’, with many special guests including two young Chicago harpslingers, Omar Coleman and Harpmonster. For blues harp fans, this is the show to see.  (8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)



Guitar Duel at Rosa’s Lounge

Rosa’s Lounge is the darling of blues purists, offering a wide variety of local and touring acts, honoring tradition (the bar was modeled on the legendary Theresa’s) while nurturing modern original acts like Pete Galanis, the guitarist from the popular Howard & the White Boys, on a double-bill with veteran slide guitarist Li’l Ed Williams. This is a typical Rosa’s bill, featuring a popular veteran performer with a lot of showmanship alongside a younger star who’s picking up the mantle.  Li’l Ed & the Blues Imperials have become the flagship act for Alligator Records, cranking out energy-charged CDs built around the slide-guitar theatrics Ed learned from his uncle, the legendary J.B. Hutto.  This is featured as a “Guitar Duel”, but there’s just as likely to be a lot of friendly jamming going on, since both high-energy acts place an emphasis on fun.  (8:00 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)



South  Side Showcase / Chicago Blues Festival Preview at Catcher’s Inn

Robert Pasenko is one of the better drummers on the Chicago circuit, and he’s played with just about everyone, including gigs with the revivalists Blue Plate Special.  He’s also one of the premier blues photographers, and so his jam sessions at Catcher’s Inn are well-documented and well-attended.  This “South Side Showcase” highlights the wealth of talent that resides in Chicago today, from rising underground stars like Mz. Peachez to local veteran stalwarts like Linsey Alexander and Smilin’ Bobby.   Several of the performers in this jam will be part of this year’s Chicago Blues Festival, along with Li’l Ed and Johnny Drummer.



Killer Ray Allison is a world-renowned drummer, but in recent years has turned to guitar with surprisingly good results.  He was taught by Muddy’s one-time guitarist Pee Wee Madison, and it shows up in his resonant playing.  He’s also a husky vocalist, often roams the audience with a wireless axe.  Tré (he uses only a first name) is a second-generation bluesman, and one of several exciting young guitarists on this tour.  He alternates between melodic struts and explosive bursts of fretwork, a balancing act familiar to fans of Buddy Guy.  When his band The Blue Knights, backs up the sultry, feisty Lady Kat, the result is always compelling, and sometimes ecstatic.  Mz. Peachez has turned some heads with a set of pipes that allows her to get away with covering Aretha and Tina, but she’s a fine raw talent who has become continually more nuanced in her approach.  (8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)



OTHER PERFORMERS AND CLUBS ON THE TOUR

James “Taildragger” Jones received his moniker from no less than the immortal Howlin’ Wolf, with whom he played for a while – apparently with a casual sense of punctuality, earning him the nickname.  Dragger is a classic Chicago blues singer, a breed that is getting more scarce every year.  He borrows heavily from Wolf as well as Sonny Boy Williamson, and although he once played guitar, he now spends his time as a vocalist, often roaming down into the crowd in front of the band.  His repertoire includes many classic blues, as well as some originals in the same vein, captured for posterity in Delmark Records’ “Live at Vern’s Friendly Lounge” DVD release.  He was a regular at the old Delta Fish Market on the west side, but more recently has spent more time in European festivals than in Chicago.  Rooster’s Palace, where he’s appearing on this tour, is a classic joint – on a stretch of the West Side where there used to be a lot of them, many with blues bands.  It might take a few tries to get in to this tiny room, but well worth it.  (8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)



Fantastic L-Roy has grown on me more and more over time, as I’ve begun to see his deeper influences.  He’s kind of a cross between Louis Armstrong and Sam Cooke, straddling the line between jazz and soul.  He’s a master at working the crowd, roaming the retro-70s room at Linda’s Place with a wireless mike, phrasing songs conversationally, occasionally pouring a customer’s drink behind the bar while he croons.  The Bulletproof Band is supple, shifting smoothly from R&B to soul to jazz, like a point guard dishing shots to L-Roy.  Linda’s Place is a sweet little haven in a neighborhood that needs more bright spots like this.  (7:30 pm. to 1:30 a.m.)

 

Vance Kelly is one of the few acts in Chicago who was able to please audiences on the South, West and North sides, with a versatile band that spans the wide spectrum of blues material, from old soul chestnuts to funk to raw down-home blues.  Kelly plays all over the world, but when he’s not touring, Checkerboard Lounge has long been his “home base”, stretching back to its years as a rough and ready landmark of 43rd St. (9:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m.)



There’s a reason we send the early buses to Lee’s Unleaded Blues.  Johnny Drummer has held the weekend set at Lee’s for 10 years, an eternity with the fickle blues audience.  He’s a crowd-pleaser, switching between keyboards and harmonica, wandering the audience as a vocalist, and clowning just enough before he calls up local luminaries that add special flavor to the show.  (7:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.)