Blues

  • I say Happy Birthday John Lee Hooker, but the date is not really certain. There are a few dates between 1912 and 1923. However it appears that August 22 is correct. Hooker’s date of birth is a subject of debate; the years 1912, 1915, 1917, 1920, and 1923 have all been suggested. Most official sources…

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  • According to legend, as a young man living on a plantation in rural Mississippi, Robert Johnson had a tremendous desire to become a great blues musician. One of the legends often told says that Johnson was instructed to take his guitar to a crossroad near Dockery Plantation at midnight. (There are claims for at least…

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  • (updated on March 29, 2024) There are very few regrets I have—but I do regret that I did not buy tickets on January 5, 1995, for Rory Gallagher in my hometown of Geleen, in the Netherlands. The concert was in de Hanenhof, which would not be the world’s best venue, but it could hold a…

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  •   Why did I use the names of these 2 artists as the title of this blog? Because they had nothing in common. Well that is not entirely true. Both were born in Mississippi and both died on the 16th of August, Elvis 42 years ago today and Robert Johnson 81 year ago today. Both…

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  • Lonnie Mack- Guitar Hero

    Needless to say that 2016 has been a devastating year for the music industry so many iconic artists have died, but one musician that is so often forgotten in this year’s review shows and lists is Lonnie Mack. Lonnie Mack, the blues-rock pioneer who influenced an entire generation of guitarists like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Duane…

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