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Henry Butler, Basin St. Blues
Fri 7/27 @ Yoshi's Oakland
John Pizzarelli, Honey Pie
Thu 7/26 @ Yoshi's San Francisco
Fri 7/27 @ Napa Valley Opera House
Shovelman, Excavating the Future
Fri-Sat 7/27-28 @ Wanderlust Festival
Nathan James & The Rhythm Scratchers, Pain Inside Waltz
Thu 7/26 @ Poor House Bistro
Ron Hacker & The Hacksaws, Diddley Widdley
Fri 7/27 @ The Saloon
Sat 7/28 @ Redwood City PAL Blues Festival
Frank Bey, Drivin' With My Eyes Closed
Sat 7/28 @ Redwood City PAL Blues Festival
Tip of the Top, I Got To Go
Fri 7/27 @ Murphy's Law
Sat 7/28 @ Grand Deli Saloon
Sun 7/29 @ Bar Three Fifty-Five
Hamilton Loomis, Bow Wow
Thu 7/26 @ Biscuits and Blues
Fri 7/27 @ Torch Club
Sun 7/29 @ Moe's Alley
Big Head Todd and the Monsters, Ramblin' On My Mind
Tue 7/31 @ Mountain Winery
Aaron Leese and the Panhandlers, Love Me
Sun 7/29 @ Boom Boom Room
Mr. Lonesome and the Bluebelles, Just For You
Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers, Jumpin' In The Morning
Thu 7/26 @ Harry Denton's Starlight Lounge
Sun 7/29 @ Royal Cuckoo
Mitch Woods, Boogie Woogie Barbecue
Mississippi Jook Band, Barbecue Bust
Bessie Smith, Gimme A Pigfoot And A Bottle of Beer
Savannah Churchill and Her All Star Seven, Fat Meat Is Good Meat
Jesse Stone, Cole Slaw (Sorghum Switch)
Slim Gaillard, Potato Chips
"Big Boy" Teddy Edwards, Who Did You Give My Barbecue To? - Part 1
Tempo King and His Kings of Tempo, Alabama Barbecue
Barbecue Bob, Barbecue Blues
Champion Jack Dupree, Cabbage Greens No. 2
The Kansas City Six, Good Morning Blues
The Holmes Brothers, Concrete Jungle
Bob Dylan, Like A Rolling Stone (live)
Muddy Waters, Can't Lose What You Never Had
Michael Bloomfield, Just A Closer Walk With Thee
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Playlist: July 18, 2012
Ray Davies, The Voodoo Walk
Thu 7/19 @ The Fillmore
The Kinks, Acute Schizophrenia Paranoia Blues
Beso Nego, C'est La Vie
Fri 7/20 @ Peri's Silver Dollar
Sat 7/21 @ Bask Music and Arts Festival
Sat 7/21 @ Nourish
Stéphane Wrembel, Train d'Enfer
from the new album Origins
Stéphane Wrembel, Bistro Fada
Wed 7/25 @ Yoshi's Oakland
Special guest: Charlie Musselwhite
Sat 7/21 @ Yoshi's Oakland
Charlie Musselwhite, Sad and Beautiful World
Charlie Musselwhite, Cook County Blues
Charlie Musselwhite, Christo Redemptor
Phil Berkowitz, She's My Baby
Thu 7/19 @ St Francis Winery
Fri 7/20 @ Servino's
Sat 7/21 @ Monaghan's On The Hill
Tip of the Top, The Sportin' Life
Sat 7/21 @ Pleasant Hill Blues 'n Brews Festival
Sun 7/22 @ McGovern's Bar: Benefit for Jack Cohen
Two-Tone Steiny, There's a Party Goin' On
Tue 7/24 @ Biscuits and Blues
Quinn DeVeaux & The Blue Beat Review, I'm In Love Again
Fri 7/20 @ The Verdi Club
Sat 7/21 @ Bask Music and Arts Festival
Desmond Dekker & The Aces, 007 (Shanty Town)
Santana, Fried Neck Bones And Some Home Fries
William Bell, Just As I Thought
Screamin' Jay Hawkins, I Put A Spell On You
Albert King, Born Under a Bad Sign
Lonnie Mack, Hound Dog Man
Phoebe Snow, Baby Work Out
Geoff Muldaur and the Texas Sheiks, Fan It
Maria Muldaur, Get You Next To Me
The Blues Broads, It Won't Be Long
from the forthcoming album The Blues Broads
Zac Harmon, Drowning in Hollywood
from the new album Music Is Medicine
Tail Dragger & Bob Corritore, So Ezee
from the new album Longtime Friends in the Blues
Billy Boy Arnold, Going Back To Arkansas
from the new album Sings Big Bill Broonzy
Chris Smither, Hundred Dollar Valentine
from the new album Hundred Dollar Valentine
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Playlist: July 11, 2012
John Mayall, Why Worry
Tue 7/17 @ Yoshi's Oakland
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers, Little Girl
Etta James & Sugar Pie DeSanto, In The Basement Part 1
Kim Nalley, At Last
Wed-Sun 7/11-15 @ Rrazz Room
Wed 7/18: Tribute to Etta James
Etta James, Dreamer
The Plāto'nes, The Perqs of Hypocrisy
Sun 7/15: Philosophy Talk Live at the Marsh
Fountain Blues Festival: July 14
Elvin Bishop, His Eye Is On The Sparrow
Ruthie Foster, The Titanic
Lurrie Bell, The Devil Ain't Got No Music
John Primer et al, The Blues Had a Baby (and They Named It Rock and Roll)
Canned Heat, Gorgo Boogie
California Worldfest: July 12-15
Meklit Hadero, Walls
Jessica Fichot, Bang Bang (你怎能瞞過我)
Rupa & The April Fishes, Culpa De La Luna
New York Gypsy All-Stars, Romantech
Little Charlie & The Nightcats, Tag (You're It)
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats, Lucky You
from the new album One Wrong Turn
Albert Collins, Robert Cray & Johnny Copeland, T-Bone Shuffle
Koko Taylor, I'm A Woman
Hound Dog Taylor, Taylor's Rock
Willie Cobbs, Big Boss Man
Bill Cosby, Big Boss Man
Woody Guthrie, Dusty Old Dust (So Long It's Been Good to Know Yuh)
Bob Dylan, Dear Mrs. Roosevelt
Bob Dylan and Mavis Staples, Gonna Change My Way Of Thinking
Mavis Staples, Wonderful Savior
Lurrie Bell, Death Don't Have No Mercy
from the new album The Devil Ain't Got No Music
Sat 7/14 @ Biscuits and Blues
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Playlist: July 4, 2012
Oscar Peterson Trio, Hymn to Freedom
Gaucho, Pearl
Mon 7/09 @ Yoshi's Oakland: Part-Time Sweetheart CD Release
Lionel Young, Summertime
Sat 7/07 @ Biscuits and Blues
Sun 7/08 @ Half Moon Bay Brewing Company
Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Baseball Canto
Bob Dylan, Catfish
Teddy Brannon Orchestra, Don Newcombe Really Throws That Ball
Buddy Johnson, Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?
The Treniers, Say Hey (The Willie Mays Song)
Watermelon Slim & The Workers, Max the Baseball Clown
Chance Halladay, Home Run
Sam & Dave, Knock It Out Of The Park
Holmes Brothers, Rounding Third
Palmetto Jazz Quartet, Base Ball Blues
Sister Wynona Carr, The Ball Game
Mabel Scott, Baseball Boogie
Monday, July 2, 2012
Live From The Fog City Blues Vol 1
Fast-forward a few months to the 2009 spring pledge drive. It occurred to me that instead of offering some commercial CD as a thank-you gift, I might try to use the work I'd done for that New Year's Eve special to put together an album of live-on-the-air performances, as a truer representation of the show's value (to me and, hopefully, to listeners). The folks at the station were relatively receptive, so I set about figuring out what needed to be done. That turned out to be mostly a matter of permissions – from the performers (either directly or through their record label), and in the case of non-original compositions, from the music publishers. And ay, there was the rub. Given what had been played live in the Fog City Blues studio up to that point, it was going to take some work to get clearance for some of those blues standards (whose copyrights were held by entities with few reasons to accommodate my endeavors) needed to flesh out the disc. I did reach out and get permission from a few folks -- including an early conquest on the show, the Canadian band whose music I'd been following longer than any other active musicians, Blue Rodeo -- but not enough to get the project off the ground. And so we went with the new CDs from two recent visitors to the show, Chris Cotton and John Németh, as thank-you gifts. Not too shabby, but alas.
The idea was floated now and again over the next couple of years. But KALW's membership drives were evolving, eventually hitting on a thank-you-gift-less format that as an on-air personality I certainly had no qualms with. It was with the fifth anniversary of the show this year that the idea became viable again, for a number of reasons. First, having somewhat hastily put together a special program for the on-air fifth anniversary in January, I decided to revive another idea from over a year prior (actually, my wife's idea) to put on a live event -- a "Fog City Blues Revue" -- with some of our favorite local bands playing short sets at a local venue. With a little help from my friends and her, that came together in May for a slightly belated "Fifth Anniversary Revue," by which time I'd learned that KALW's spring membership drive would be a touch old-school -- still interruption-free ("No programming was harmed in the course of this pledge drive"), but we would be bringing back the bevy of thank-you gifts.
The stars were aligning. With five years on the air there had to be enough in-studio performances of original songs to dispense with the covers; there would be no seeking of separate publishing rights. And if that were the case, maybe we could make it hyper-local -- Bay Area musicians playing Bay Area blues. Of course that meant abandoning some great music played on the show: the Chicago purists, the Delta revivalists, the Gypsy jazz bands (local as well as fresh off the plane from Europe), not to mention those sentimental favorites from my home & native land, Blue Rodeo. But by creating a self-limiting set of justifiable criteria, I could leapfrog over a lot of unsatisfying decision-making, and... voilà: Live From The Fog City Blues Vol 1.
But of course it wasn't just voilà. Not only was there was some technical tweaking to do, but the sequencing became all-consuming -- after all, that's the essential creative work that goes in to every episode of Fog City Blues. Which track to open with? What kind of balance between solo and band performances, moody versus uptempo tunes? Group the harp players together or spread them out? Which track worked best as closer -- and which one worked best immediately before it, to heighten the drama? What story would this tracklist tell? In the end in took a couple of iterations, with input from trusted auditioners, along with a healthy dose of telling myself, more than once, "Good enough." It's just part of the story of blues in Bay Area as heard on KALW.
Especially without a track from Blue Rodeo.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Playlist: June 27, 2012
The Blues Brothers, Soul Man (live)
Fri-Sat 6/29-30 @ Yoshi's San Francisco: The Blues Brothers Revue
The Blues Brothers, Shake A Tail Feather
Fri 6/29 @ Paramount Theatre: The Blues Brothers Movie
Vieux Farka Touré, Lakkal (Watch Out)
Mon 7/02 @ Yoshi's San Francisco
Go Van Gogh, Thirteen
Sat 6/30 @ Disco Volante
Sun 7/01 @ The Lake Chalet
Bay Area Caravan of Allstars, Tin Pan Alley
Sun 7/01 @ Downtown Vacaville Blues Festival
Wed 7/04 @ Red, White & Blues Festival
Grady Champion, Lady Luck
Sun 7/01 @ Powerhouse Pub
Wed 7/04 @ Red, White & Blues Festival
Earl Thomas, All Talk No Action
Sat 6/30 @ Biscuits and Blues
John Lee Hooker Jr, One Eye Opened (live)
Thu 6/28 @ Biscuits and Blues
Hot Club of San Francisco, C'est Si Bon
Fri 6/29 @ Speisekammer
from the new album Live at Yoshi's San Francisco
Clifton Chenier, Cher Catin (live)
Bob Dylan, Boogie Woogie Country Girl
Lena Horne, Now!
Special guest: Bob Riesman - The Life and Times of Big Bill Broonzy
Big Bill Broonzy, Key To The Highway
Big Bill Broonzy, Eagle Ridin' Papa
Big Bill Broonzy, Just A Dream
Lil Green, Why Don't You Do Right
Big Bill Broonzy, I Feel So Good
Big Bill Broonzy, Black, Brown and White
Big Bill Broonzy, Hey Hey
Bo Carter, I Get The Blues
Honeyboy Edwards, When I Came In
James Cotton, 'Fatuation
Willie Dixon, The Seventh Son
Dan Aykroyd & Jim Belushi, Greenbacks
Canadian Scottish Regiment Pipes and Drums, O Canada
Bo Carter, I Get The Blues
Honeyboy Edwards, When I Came In
James Cotton, 'Fatuation
Willie Dixon, The Seventh Son
Dan Aykroyd & Jim Belushi, Greenbacks
Canadian Scottish Regiment Pipes and Drums, O Canada
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Playlist: June 20, 2012
Billie Holliday, Summertime
Sidney Bechet, Summertime
Billy Stewart, Summertime
Big Brother and the Holding Company, Summertime (live)
The Who, Summertime Blues (live)
Monterey Blues Festival: June 22-24
Grady Champion, I'm Smilin' Again
Sista Monica, Tears
Kenny Neal, Old Friends
JJ Grey & Mofro, Ho Cake (live)
Howell Devine, Devil Got My Woman
Thu 6/21 @ Cafe du Nord
Fri 6/22 @ Fort Mason
Sun 6/24 @ Revolution Cafe
The Panhandlers, St. James Infirmary Blues
Thu 6/21 @ Cafe du Nord
Hot Club of San Francisco, It's Alright With Me
Fri 6/22 @ Rhythmix
The Beatles, Birthday
Paul McCartney, San Francisco Bay Blues
The Beatles, She's A Woman
Paul McCartney, Bogey Music
Paul McCartney, We Three (My Echo, My Shadow, and Me)
Jerry McCain, That's What They Want
Lazy Lester, A Real Combination For Love
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats, D.O.G.
from the forthcoming album One Wrong Turn
Lazy Lester, Raining In My Heart
Skip James, Peace In The Valley
Skip James, Devil Got My Woman
Deodato, Also Sprach Zarathustra
Sarah Vaughan, Summertime
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Playlist: June 13, 2012
Hot Club of San Francisco, R-26
from the new album Live at Yoshi's San Francisco
Sat 6/16 @ Rancho Nicasio
Duo Gadjo and Their Hot Friends, La Foule
Thu 6/14 @ Armando's
Sun 6/17 @ Restaurant Chevalier
Go Van Gogh, Romski Kocik
Thu 6/14 @ Bottom of the Hill
Monophonics, Thinking Black
Fri 6/15 @ Great American Music Hall
The Soul Rebels, Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This
Jon Cleary, Let's Get Low Down
Dr. John, Locked Down
Fri 6/15 @ Paramount Theatre: Another Night in Treme
Mitch Woods, Big Easy Boogie
Sat 6/16 @ Poor House Bistro
Sun 6/17 @ Half Moon Bay Brewing Company
Ray Charles, Laughin' and Clownin'
Fri 6/15 @ Throckmorton Theatre: The Ray Charles Project
Shovelman, Navigate
Thu 6/14 @ Starry Plough
Howell Devine, Long Haired Doney
Sat 6/16 @ The Baltic
Sun 6/17 @ Revolution Cafe
Lee Rocker, Come Together
Sun 6/17 @ Yoshi's San Francisco
Volker Strifler, Let the Music Rise
Sat 6/16 @ Last Day Saloon
Howlin' Wolf, Smokestack Lightnin'
Howlin' Wolf, Crying At Daybreak
Hubert Sumlin, Hidden Charms
Freddie King, How Many More Years
Albert King, Howlin' for My Darling
R.L. Burnside, My Baby Caught The Train (Who's Been Talkin')
The Allman Joys, Spoonful
Colin James, Down In The Bottom
The Upholsterers, I Ain't Superstitious
Howlin' Wolf, 300 Pounds of Joy (live)
Samantha Fish, Runaway
Wed 6/20 @ Biscuits and Blues
Carolyn Wonderland, Only God Knows When
Thu 6/14 @ Yoshi's Oakland
Nice Guy Trio, Tiny Gods (Waking Music)
Thu 6/14 @ Yoshi's Oakland
Bobby Freeman, Big Fat Woman
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Playlist: June 6, 2012
Django Reinhardt, Sweet Georgia Brown
The Rosenberg Trio, Minor Blues (live)
Sat 6/09 @ Throckmorton Theatre: Djangofest Mill Valley
Gonzalo Bergara Quartet, B-612
Thu 6/07 @ Throckmorton Theatre: Djangofest Mill Valley
The Lost Fingers, Pump Up the Jam
Fri 6/08 @ Throckmorton Theatre: Djangofest Mill Valley
Special in-studio guest: Jimmy Luttrell
Sun 6/10 @ Throckmorton Theatre: Djangofest Mill Valley
Gypsy Jive (in-studio)
Lutrell Paradise (in-studio)
Lutrellology (in-studio)
Merle Travis, I'll See You In My Dreams
I'll See You In My Dreams (in-studio)
Ain't Misbehavin' (in-studio)
Bye Bye Blues (in-studio)
Spade Cooley, Fidoodlin'
Spade Cooley, Devil's Dream
Georgine (in-studio)
Runaway Gypsies
California Honeydrops, When It Was Wrong (live)
Jackie Greene, Messin' With The Kid
Sat 6/09 @ Coloma Blues Festival
Chris Pierce, Play With Me
Arian Saleh, Better in Blue
Balcony Players, Skelephant
Sun 6/10 @ Viracocha
Kabbalah, Elephant Mentsch
Fri 6/08 @ Ashkenaz
Whiskerman, Fair Mind, Maker, Weeper, Babe
Fri 6/08 @ Cafe du Nord
Tom Jones, Run On
Jimmy Rogers, Money, Marbles And Chalk
Memphis Minnie, Dirty Mother For You
Les Paul & Mary Ford, Walkin' and Whistlin' Blues
Cole Porter, Be Like The Bluebird
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Playlist: May 30, 2012
Doc Watson, White House Blues
Bob Dylan, Lone Pilgrim
Dan Hicks & The Hot Licks, Subterranean Homesick Blues
Wed-Thu 6/06-07 @ Yoshi's Oakland
Johnny Cash, Train Of Love
Cash'd Out – Thu 5/31 @ Yoshi's San Francisco
Devine's Jug Band, The Lindberg Hop
Fri 6/01 @ 50 Mason Social House
Tip of the Top, Fattening Frogs for Snakes
Fri 6/01 @ Yoshi's San Francisco
Sat 6/02 @ The Iron Gate
Curtis Salgado, He Played His Harmonica
Curtis Salgado, What You Gonna Do?
Mon 6/02 @ Yoshi's Oakland
Phantom Blues Band, I Can't Stand It
from the new album Inside Out
Tedeschi Trucks Band, Rollin' and Tumblin'
from the new album Everybody's Talkin'
Mannish Boys, That Dood It
from the new album Double Dynamite
South Memphis String Band, Turnip Greens
from the new album Old Times There
Jim Dickinson and North Mississippi Allstars, Down in Mississippi
from the forthcoming album I'm Just Dead I'm Not Gone
Jack White, Trash Tongue Talker
from the new album Blunderbuss
Dr. John, Revolution
from the new album Locked Down
Meshugga Beach Party, Bubbie's Kitchen
Sun 6/03 @ Hotel Utah
Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers, Barbary Blues
Fri 6/01 @ Marilyn's On K
Mon 6/04 @ Lagunitas Brewery
Tue 6/05 @ Rickshaw Stop
Shovelman, This Little Pig
Fri 6/01 @ Hopmonk Tavern
Whiskerman, Blind Saint
Fri 6/01 @ La Pena Cultural Center
Sat 6/02 @ Amnesia
Seth Augustus, It'll Be Me
Fri 6/01 @ Revolution Cafe
Wendy DeWitt, Don't Tell Me You Love Me
Thu 5/31 @ Grand Deli Saloon
Sun 6/03 @ Armando's: Delta Blues Festival Benefit
Big Cat Tolefree, Jinky Woman
Sun 6/03 @ Armando's: Delta Blues Festival Benefit
Sun 6/03 @ Winterhawk Winery: Blues in the Vineyard
Bay Area Caravan of All-Stars, Why I Sing The Blues
Sun 6/03 @ Winterhawk Winery: Blues in the Vineyard
T-Bone Walker, They Call It Stormy Monday
T-Bone Walker, Why My Baby
Duke Robillard, T-Bone Shuffle
Benny Goodman, Old Man Harlem
Thomas Mapfumo & The Blacks Unlimited, Yarira Ngoma
Wed 6/06 @ Yoshi's San Francisco
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Playlist: May 23, 2012
Sly & The Family Stone, Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)
Sam & Dave, I Thank You
Xandra Corpora, Thank You (in-studio)
Con Brio, How Many Days?
Thu 5/24 @ Great American Music Hall
Santa Cruz Blues Festival: Saturday May 26
Big Sam's Funky Nation, Funky Donkey
James Cotton, Elvin Bishop et al., Three Harp Boogie
Joan Osborne, Bring It On Home
Holmes Brothers, Man Of Peace
Los Lobos, Billy 1
Sacramento Music Festival: Fri-Mon May 25-28
Contino, Rotgut Run
Big Joe & The Dynaflows, You Can't Keep A Big Man Down
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats, P.A. Slim Is Back
Sista Monica Parker, Hug Me Like You Love Me
Bob Dylan, Gotta Serve Somebody
Woody Guthrie, Little Black Train
Johnnie & Jack, Uncle John's Bongos
Bob Dylan, Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum
Charley Patton, Poor Me
Bob Dylan, It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry
Levon Helm, It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry (live)
Bob Dylan, Levon Helm & Rick Danko, The Weight (live)
Bob Dylan, Minstrel Boy
Bob Dylan, It Ain't Me Babe (live)
Levon Helm, False Hearted Lover Blues
The Band, Blind Willie McTell
Bob Dylan, I Don't Wanna Be Your Partner
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Playlist: May 16, 2012
Dennis Johnson, Radio Blues (in-studio)
Howell Devine, Railroad Stomp (in-studio)
Xandra Corpora, The Battle of San Francisco (in-studio)
California Honeydrops, Miss Louise (in-studio)
Quinn DeVeaux & The Blue Beat Review, All Night Long
Tin Cup Serenade, Tin Cup Blues
Thu 5/17 @ Viracocha: Fog City Blues 5th Anniversary Revue
Go Van Gogh, Sirens (in-studio)
Sat 5/19 @ Revolution Cafe
Shovelman, Moonshine (in-studio)
Sun 5/20 @ Maker Faire
Sun 5/20 @ Lagunitas Beer Circus
Panique, Swing 48 (in-studio)
Thu 5/17 @ Viracocha: Fog City Blues 5th Anniversary Revue
Hot Club of Cowtown, Dark Eyes (in-studio)
Carolina Chocolate Drops, No Man's Mama (in-studio)
Cowboy Junkies, Stranger Here (in-studio)
Blue Rodeo, Are You Ready For The Country (in-studio)
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats, U B U
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats, Walk All Day
Irma Thomas, Same Old Blues
Sun 5/20 @ Yoshi's SF: West Coast Blues For A Cure
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats, Back From The Dead
Rick Estrin & The Nightcats, One Wrong Turn
from the forthcoming album One Wrong Turn
Phiil Berkowitz, Midnight Rooster (in-studio)
Tip of the Top, Wait Baby (in-studio)
Joe Louis Walker, Too Drunk To Drive Drunk (in-studio)
Chris Cotton, Blues For Big Bill (in-studio)
Quinn DeVeaux, Bo Diddley Song (in-studio)
Tin Cup Serenade, Same Old You (in-studio)
Taj Mahal, Fishing Blues
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