Ally Venable Band Starts This Week’s Blues Music Rotation
Yesterday, I had a chance to take a good look at the Roots Music Report Blues Charts. After reviewing the charts I listened to a few minutes of many albums to see if they match my taste. I ended up with thirteen albums to listen to over the rest of the week. The album that intrigued me the most yesterday was Puppet Show from the Abby Venable Band. Currently, the album is number 23 on the Contemporary Blues Album Chart.
Evidently I have been doing a lousy job of keeping up with hot new blues artists from Texas. Because Abby is one of th hottest.t young blues artists (she’s 19 years old) in the Lone Star State.‘Ms Venable was named East Texas Female Guitarist of the Year in both 2014 and 2015. And her band was named East Texas Music Awards Blues Band of the Year in 2015,2016 and 2017.
About the Ally Venable Band
Ally Venable is both the leader, and lead vocalist and of course lead guitarist. Ally started singing in church at your age. In recent years though she picked up the guitar and found her passion.
Ally’s band mates Bobby Wallace and Elijah Owens provide a solid rhythm section. Wallace is the bassist and Owens the drummer. Wallace has tons of experience and is a master at his craft. While Owens is a classically trained musician.
Puppet Show is the band’s third album. Train Wreck Blueswas the band’s debut album and No Glass Shoes was their sophomore release. There are some helping hands on Puppet Show. Guitarist Gary Hoey provides his great guitar work on track one “Devil’s Son”. While Ally’s mentor Lance Lopez adds his guitar to “Bridges to Burn” track two. Steve Krase plays harmonica on the album and Eric Steckel adds some keyboards.
Final Thoughts
Bottom Line : Based on a limited number of listens Puppet Show is a winner and will stay in my rotation for a while, so check it out!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Ally Venable Band
Lurrie Bell: Carrying On the Chicago Blues Tradition of His Father, Carey Bell
I’ve mentioned before that I often use the birthday listings over at AllAboutJazz.com as a springboard to discover new music. That’s how I first really dove into the music of Lurrie Bell, a Chicago bluesman with deep roots and a guitar tone full of grit and soul.
Blues in My Soul – A Breakthrough Album
Back in 2013, Lurrie Bell had a banner year. He released what would become one of his most acclaimed solo albums, Blues in My Soul, on the Delmark label—a return to electric blues after a few more acoustic and spiritual outings. The blues world noticed.
Blues in My Soul earned Lurrie five nominations at the 2014 Blues Music Awards:
Blues Album of the Year (Blues in My Soul)
Blues Song of the Year (“Blues in My Soul”)
Traditional Blues Album of the Year (Blues in My Soul)
Blues Guitarist of the Year
Traditional Male Blues Artist of the Year
He took home the Blues Song of the Year award, and also won the 2013 Living Blues Award for Male Blues Act of the Year.
Lurrie Bell – Born December 13, 1958
Lurrie Bell was born in Chicago, the son of legendary blues harpist Carey Bell. He picked up the guitar at six, and by his teens was already playing with the likes of Eddy Clearwater, Big Walter Horton, and Eddie Taylor. In the mid-1970s, he spent four years touring and recording with Koko Taylor’s Blues Machine. His recording debut came in 1977 on his father’s album Heartaches and Pain, as well as King of the Jungle by Eddie C. Campbell.
Over a career now spanning more than four decades, Bell has released more than a dozen solo albums, collaborated often with his father, and contributed to numerous other blues records. I first heard his scorching guitar work on Live at Chan’s: Combo Platter No. 2 from Nick Moss & The Flip Tops, where he shines on a 13-minute version of Eddie Boyd’s “Five Long Years.”
If you’re a fan of Chicago blues and haven’t checked out Lurrie Bell yet—start now. Here are some great places to explore his music:
And here’s a great live performance of “Everyday I Have the Blues” from Bluesfest Eutin 2014:
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🎶 Update: Set Me Free (2024)
As for me? Lurrie Bell is still going strong. His 2024 collaboration with saxophonist Frank Catalano, Set Me Free, is now spinning as I write—and it’s a bold, soulful mix of blues and jazz that pushes the boundaries without losing the heart.
Between Lurrie’s expressive guitar and vocals, and Catalano’s blazing sax work, the album is a testament to two seasoned musicians still hungry for musical exploration. Set Me Free proves the blues isn’t stuck in the past—it’s still moving, still evolving, still alive.
Check it out—you just might find yourself set free too.
So more and more I am going to make this more a true Weblog! And by that I mean I’m going to make it more about what’s happening in my life, I will still be writing about books, music and turning back my biological clock. However, I usually struggle with analyzing why I like a book or even an album, so I have a hard time writing a review type post. I don’t like to write a complete analysis of each song on an album or a deep analysis of each book i read. I like to write a little about what the book is about, along with a little about the author. Hopefully, the posts I write may lead the reader to a new author or musician! With all that being said let’s see what happened today!
A Morning Walk/Run
My last full run was about two weeks ago. When I started the run the plan was to run the 2,5 mile course I ran on that last run. However, soon after I started even though I was doing okt mi, I just didn’t have it. So I chose to walk about mid-way through the first half mile. From that point on I ran a little then walked a little. I ran/walked the first mile in 14:24 and the second in 14:59, Then I walked most of the last .55 mile in 16:19. The overall pace for the run was 15:02. If I had been paying attention I would have picked up the pace a little to get under 15 min/mile pace.
The Soundtrack – Floreada’s Boy By Zac Harmon
Floreada’s Boy has been in my music rotation for a few weeks now and I like it more each time I listen to the album. Currently, the album made a big jump on the Roots Music Report this week. It rose from number 44 to No 3!Ir wouldn’t surprise me if it was No 1 next week. Zac sums up Floreada’s Boy as follows…
Floreada’s Boy is a reflection of my 50 years of musical performance. From the juke joints of Mississippi to stages all over the world. Not bad for an old countryests on Floreada;s Bo boy.
The Zac Harmon Band includes: Nate Robinson guitar, Gino Inglehart drums, and Corey Lacey on keyboards. Guests on Floreada’s Boy include: Texas Horns, Caleb Quaye, Sue Ann Carwell and Munyungo Jackson.
From Frank Matheis’s Review at Living Blues
Every song on Floreada’s Boyis a keeper. On the blues side, Harman kicks it into overdrive with slashing guitar and the horns to bring you firecrackers like Big Dog Blues, a deep blues that could take its place right next to the best classics of the genre. There is plenty of funk, as in Let It Slide and Stress.
On the soul side there are five beautiful songs, most notably the languid and slow That’s the Way I Feel about Cha, with a distinct 1970s vibe featuring the great SueAnn Carwell. Never Forget is a gut-wrenching, broken-heart love song that could have fit perfectly on a Marvin Gaye or Ray Charles record. The blues has always had something important to say, and Zac Harmon is saying it as clearly as ever. He closes the album with the stunningly heavy, powerful, socio-critical, anti-gun violence song Stop the Killing. If he had recorded nothing but that poignant and impactful song, so imperative in our time, that alone would stand as a masterpiece, his magnum opus. If only people took it to heart. Stop the Killing should win every songwriting award on the planet if there is any justice. Sing it from the rooftops. Read More at Living Be albumlues
The Bottom Line
Floreada’s Boy is a triple treat for me. First great songs,, Second great vocals and finally great guitar work! So check it out!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Blues of Zac Harmon
The following was posted earlier this week on Renaissance Granddad I thought I’d catch you up a bit before I post about today’s run!
The Run
Oh, what a difference a cloudy sky and a temperature that is a few degrees lower make on a morning run! I have been making it a habit to check the running conditions each night before a run. Last night the rating for this morning was an 8 out of 10 until after 10am. And the rating was correct! The beat thing was there was no bright sun beating down on me!
I ran the first mile in just a shade under 11 minutes. (10:59). The second mile was slower because much of the mile was uphill. My mile time was 11:20 and the average pace dropped to 11:09. I ran the third mile and fourth mile in around 10:56 with a little sprint at the end.As a result, I was able to finish with an overall pace of 11:00 min/mile and I was a happy runner! Here are those pesky nerdy details
The Nerdy Details
Total Dist: 4.14 Time 45:33 Pace: 11: 00 min/mile
Splits
Mile 1 10:59 Mile 2: 11:20 Mile 3 10:56 Mile 4 10:58? (I screwed up the Fitbit results by trying to edit my time and lost the exact last 1.14 miles)
Avg HR 138 MaxHR 152 Cals Burned: 563 Cals
The Soundtrack: Resurrection
The soundtrack for the run was Resurrection the latest release from Blues Guitarist Mike Zito. I’ve been a fan since I first heard his debut album Pearl back in 2010.
Zito says this about Resurrection ….
….Resurrection is an album of feelings, emotions, and is very personal. The title track is how I once almost lost my love, but it came back stronger than ever. I have had this song in me for years, but it only makes sense now to share it with the world. After the year we have had on planet Earth, I believe we all need a rebirth. This rebirth has given me an opportunity to be who I want to be musically and artistically.” More
About Resurrection
Resurrection was produced by Grammy-winner David Z. He is best known for his long-standing work with Prince. In addition, Z has contributed to albums by Etta James, Billy Idol, BoDeans, Buddy Guy and John Mayall, among many others.
Zito has help from a lot of old friends on Resurrection. While Zito provides blistering guitar work and lead vocals, those old friends helping out include: Matthew Johnson – drums; Doug Byrkit – bass guitar; Lewis Stephens – piano, organ; Zach Zito – acoustic guitar; Lisa Andersen – backing vocals; Eric Demmer – Saxophone; and Fernando Castillo – Trumpet.
About The Tracks on Resurrection
The eleven tracks on Resurrection include eight original songs that showcase Zito‘s talent as a composer. The remaining four tracks showcase his talent as an interpreter of other compositions, as he tackles the work of JJ Cale (“I’ll Make Love To You”), Eric Clapton (“Presence of the Lord”) and Willie Dixon (“Evil”).
“I wrote and recorded the music I felt strongest about and I wanted to share it with the world,” Zito says.” I played my guitar the way I want to play my guitar, not the way anyone says I am supposed to play my guitar. I sang the way I wanted to sing – in my voice with my emotions. I had David Z produce for me again after a few years apart. We have now worked on seven albums together and I believe he understands my music and helped me to shape this album to be strong in the year 2021. This is an album that requires deep listening from beginning to end. More
Final Thoughts
I was really glad that unlike many runs today‘s run was fairly easy. That’s important because I was able to “come back to the music” several times during the run.
What I heard each time was Mike Zito at the top of his game! His vocals were “vintage” Mike Zito and they reminded me at several points along the way of the vocals I first heard on Pearl.
I know this album is going to be in my music rotation for a while! So Check It Out!
Speaking of Mike Zito being at the top of his game. At this years Blues Music Awards at The Blues Foundation’s 42nd Blues Music Awards in Memphis, TN, Zito won two awards
The first award was in the category of Blues Rock Artist. While the second wasBlues Rock Album of the Year for Mike Zito and Friends – Rock ‘n’ Roll: A Tribute to Chuck Berry. Check it Out, too!!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Mike Zito
Here’s a short playlist of the songs on Resurrection. At the 3.25 mile mark of today’s run I “came back to the music” and chuckled when I heard “Running Man”…..
Six String Stories – Joanna Connor – The Best Blues of 2016?
A couple of weeks ago, I spotted an album titled Six String Stories on the Roots Music Report Blues Chart. The artist was Joanna Connor. Since the title of the album was interesting and I had never heard of Ms. Connor, I went to Spotify and gave it a quick listen. Wow! It sounded great! But then my ADD kicked in and I was soon off listening to other albums and Six String Storieswas set aside.
Somehow at the end of last week the album caught my attention again and I went back to Spotify and listened to it again. Boy am I glad I did! Ms. Connor is one hell of a slide guitarist! She may even give my favorite slide guitarist Dave Hole a run for his money!
How Have I Missed Joanna Connor?
So why have I never heard of Ms. Connor? Well, it seems that her career started out way back in 1989 with the release of her debut album Believe It released on Blind Pig Records. Eight more albums followed over the next ten years. After the release of The Joanna Connor Bandin 2002, decided to take a break from recording ad touring to raise her daughter. She has continued to play live locally in her adopted home Chicago.
The reason I have never heard of Ms.Connor may be that she began he career during MY period of child rearing. In 1989 Sharon, Lois and Bram and Raffi spent more time on my turntable than blues! Additionally, she hasn’t released any albums during the time, when I rediscovered the blues, and started exploring new artists more fully. So now back to Six String Stories!
About Six String Stories
One of the things that I really liked about Six String Storieswas the variety in Joanna;s music.Joanna’s fiery slide blues licks are mixed in among some soul, gospel and funk! Of the ten tracks on the album Joanna co-wrote eight of them with Marion Lance Lewis, a multi-instrumentalist and mainstay of her live band.
In his review in Elmore magazine Jim Hynes writes….
….Connor sings like she wields her axe, fiercely with a “take no prisoners” approach. The opener, “It’s a Woman’s Way” and “By Your Side” feature her trademark slide. She takes the slow blues route on “We Stayed Together,” trading some verses with Lewis. She treats Jill Scott’s “Golden” with the right jazz-soul feel as it morphs into funk over her spoken part. The bayou-inspired “Swamp Swim” shows the improvisational side of her playing especially when offset by the guitar heavy “Halsted Street.” The centerpiece of the album is “Heaven” which brings in the gospel with horns and the Lewis Family Singers.. Connor says, “I wrote that as more of a political song with West African feel, but Lance gave it more of a gospel sound. His brothers are pastors and have churches so they brought that kind of feel to it.” The much covered “Sky is Crying’ sounds like a completely different tune here Read More
Bottom – Line
Six String Stories may be my favorite blues album of the year! It has everything I love in an album, Fantastic guitar playing coupled with well-written and sung songs. A couple of great covers are also thrown in the mix. .My favorite tracks so far are “It’s a Woman’s Way” and “By Your Side” and the two instrumentals “Swamp Swim” and “Halsted Street”. So Check it Out! And as per usual I have a lot of back-catalog music to explore!!
Links for the Further Exploration of the Music of Joanna Connor
Originally Posted October 2014 Revised and Updated June 2026
With the IQ test over and having done better than my wife anticipated, I now have my eyes set on my first 5K of the year, this Saturday in Delanco. Tonight was my second-to-last workout before the race, and it turned out to be my best run of the late summer early fall!
I tried to run short pickups throughout the run and a couple of times my pace dropped below 9 minutes per mile and was under 10 minute per mile pace through most of the run. I pushed it through the first 3.1 miles of the run and then backed off.
I was able to pick it back up though for a decent push at the end. Overall the time was 39:32 over 4.03 miles for a final pace of 9:48. which I am happy with!
The Soundtrack
The soundtrack of the run was Bona Fide, the latest release from Chris Thomas King who is somewhere today celebrating his 49th birthday (according to his website and 50th according to AllMusic)!
Who is Chris Thomas King?
King was born on October 14, 1964, in Baton Rouge. His father, Tabby Thomas, is a locally prominent bluesman who owned a club called Tabby’s Blues Box, which opened in 1979 and closed in 2004 following Tabby’s retirement.
As a result, King, started early toward his musical future; even as a youngster he was well known as Rockin’ Tabby’s son and a child genius. While frequenting his father’s club he performed with the late Silas Hogan, Guitar Kelly and Clarence Edwards, three masters of swamp blues.
By sixth grade, King was learning to play the trumpet and later traveling as a rhythm guitar player of famous musicians like Lowell Folsom and Joe Tex. As he matured in the musical setting of New Orleans area blues culture, King was encouraged to experiment and develop his own style. Because each blues musician had a unique playing and singing style, he was discouraged from singing others’ songs or even playing the way they did.
He told Lisa Simeone on National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition, “They would never sit me down and say, ‘Well, this is how it goes.’ They … told me don’t sing their songs … ‘Find your own song and sing that.'” Full Biography
About Bona Fide
After listening to Bona Fide, I wondered why I never heard of him (uh, because you never hear of anyone??) Ok here’s one reason. He came on the blues scene according to Wikipedia in the late 80s and early 90s, when I was busy raising four children!! From Wikipedia:
King is known as the pioneer of rap/blues fusion.[1] He conceived the first sample-based blues concept album in the early 1990s by writing and producing the first all-rap/blues album for RCA Records titled 21st Century Blues… From Da Hood.Read More
AHA! He Spent Many Years in Europe!
From his website, I discovered that he spent many years in the more liberal confines of Europe!!:
Like Miles Davis and Bob Dylan before him, Chris Thomas King was originally celebrated as the young savior of an aging musical culture when he first arrived on the national scene. Branded as a rebel King was banned form blues festivals across the United States.
He fled to Denmark to cool his heels in the more liberal environment that flourished in Europe. While in Denmark he recorded and released the critically acclaimed hip-hop blues album “21st Century Blues from da hood.”
The French embraced him as a major artist with vision and the rest of Europe followed. He toured with his Danish band extensively across Europe playing major festivals and theaters but longed to return to New Orleans.
Upon returning to the United States in 1995, he started his own independent production company and record label, 21st Century Blues. Soon after he found success as a film composer and actor. Winning three Grammy Awards by 2003 and several Country music CMA awards. Full Biography
I Saw Home in Movies! Who Knew?
While I may not have known his name, I did see him and hear him in the movies Ray, where he played bandleader and blues guitarist Lowell Fulson, and in O Brother, Where Art Thou? where he “portrayed a skilled blues guitarist who claims he sold his soul to the devil in exchange for his skill on guitar.
The character is based on blues musicians Tommy Johnson and Robert Johnson, both of whom have been linked to selling their soul to the devil at a rural Mississippi crossroads!” (From Wikipedia) But now that I know the name and love the album Bona Fide,
Final Thoughts and The Video
I will be checking out the rest of his discography – maybe I’ll even check out the music that got him branded a rebel and sent him to Europe to ply his trade!!!
Here’s the closing track from Bona Fide, “Goodbye Chicago” I say, “Hello Chris Thomas King and Happy Birthday!!”
Post Update and Confession:
I never did get around to exploring the ten albums Mr. King released prior to Bona Fide or the four he released after. However, I did listen to his most recent release 2023’s Big Gray Sky and loved it. I’ll give you my thoughts soon!
Originally posted in Jn 2014 Updated and Revised July 2026
Discovering Charlie Musselwhite
It’s amazing to me that I’ve never been a big Charlie Musselwhite fan. I love blues harp and he is certainly one of the best players of the harp around, so why?? It’s in explicable isn’t it, is it his voice or is it that there’s too much, music and too little time and somehow poor Charlie gets lost in the shuffle\!
Well that may have to change because last night and today I listened to one of the best blues albums of 2013 Juke Joint Chapel from Charlie and I must say at 69 years young he appears to be at the top of his game!!
Juke Joint Chapel is an amazing album, Here are some of the key tracks each are great. The descriptions are from Charlie’s Website:
The live and kicking Juke Joint Chapel showcases five originals and seven choice covers with a stone groove band of Matt Stubbs (guitar), Mike Phillips (bass) and June Core (drum
The classic Eddie Taylor shuffle “Bad Boy” chugs with grace and attitude as Musselwhite slyly quotes
“C.C. Rider” in his opening harp solo, his tone as thick as sweet molasses. His is one of the most recognizable voices in the blues, a true “instrument” he employs effortlessly to great expressiveness.
“Roll Your Moneymaker” cruises smoothly as a ’55 Lincoln Continental, the luxury ride only interrupted by dynamic stop-time. Written by crap-shooting Shaky Jake Harris, whom Musselwhite says played harmonica as “another hustle” and modestly admits to “showing him a couple of licks.”
Stubbs stands out and is a monster guitarist graciously allotted extensive solo space throughout from a leader who has enjoyed the services of many greats, but will never feel threatened by another instrumentalist.
The toe tapping two-beat of Tony Joe White’s “As the Crow Flies” is driven hard by the propulsive and endlessly inventive Stubbs along with Musselwhite, who has observed, “In country music, the singer might say ‘my baby left me and I’m gonna jump off a bridge.’ But in blues, they say ‘my baby left me, and I’m gonna get a new baby’.
” “Gone Too Long,” from fellow harmonicist Billy Boy Arnold contains one of his patented syncopated figures and an unstoppable rhythm from the Musselwhite band demanding you can’t sit down….. Read More
And of Course I asked Who is that on Guitar!
As I listened to the album aside from the great harp from Charlie, I kept thinking over and over, who is that on guitar? Because the playing was great as was the chemistry between the guitarist and Charlie.. and now I know the answer Matt Stubbs! It’s also good to read that I’m not the only one who was impressed by Mr Stubbs!!
Charlie’s Awards and Honors
Here’s some of the recent awards that Charlie has garnered…… impressive is an understatement!!
2011 GRAMMY Nominee for Best Traditional Blues Album
The Well – Alligator Records
2012 Blues Music Award Winner for Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year and for Best Instrumentalist Harmonica
2011 Blues Music Award Winner for Best Instrumentalist – Harmonica AND Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year! Also nominated for Album of the Year for The Well, Traditional Blues Album of the Year for The Well and Song of the Year for “Sad and Beautiful World”
Featured on Cyndi Lauper’s, Memphis Blues, also a 2011 GRAMMY nominee for Best Traditional Blues Album
2010 Blues Hall of Fame Inductee
2011 Living Blues Award. Readers’ Poll winner for Most Outstanding Musician award (Harmonica), for the fifth year in a row, his 9th overall Living Blues Award for Outstanding Musician.
2011 saw Charlie recognized in the DownBeat Magazine Critics Poll in both the Blues Artist category and Blues Album
2011 DownBeat Magazine Readers Poll – ranked among the Best Blues Artists and Best Blues Albums for The Well
Featured on Tom Waits latest album, Bad As Me, which entered the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart at #6 in November 2011. Charlie appears on five tracks, including the title track.
So after listening this afternoon, I went back to the beginning of Charlie’s career and listened briefly to his first album Stand Back! Here Comes Charley Musselwhite’s Southside Bandand again I ask how come I didn’t listen?? Boy once again I have a lot of catching up to do!!
Here’s Charlie and the band performing: “As the Crow Flies” at Lagunitas Brewery in Petaluma, for the 2nd annual Coahoma-to-Sonoma Blues Festival, 2013.
