• Bob Corritore‘s 2012 in photos! This year was the first that Bob Corritore did not do his written “2012 Year In Review”. After a 5 week European tour in November and December and the upon return home the preparation for the April 2013 release of Bob’s collaboration with John Primer made it impossible to prepare the normal in depth reflection of the year. Instead we have put together a photo page of some of many highlights of the year. In 2012 Bob Corritore won the Living Blues Award in the harmonica category and is nominated in the same category for a BMA (Blues Music Award). He was also nominated for a Blues Blast Music Award for “Male Artist Of The Year” and won a Star Blues Award for “Blues Artist Of The Year.” Also 2012 was the year that Hohner Harmonicas put Bob’s image on their packaging for the Blues Harp model harmonica (next to Junior Wells and Dan Smith!). In May of 2012, the UK online magazine World Of Harmonicafeatured Bob as thier first artist highlight with a great tribute page. Bob was represented by numerous releases in 2012 including Tail Dragger & Bob Corritore / Longtime Friends In The Blues, Mud Morganfield / Son Of The Seventh Son (Also produced by Bob and the recipient of 2 Blues Blast Music Awards and two forthcoming Blues Music Award nominations),Kid Ramos & Bob Corritore / The Phoenix Blues Sessions, plus guest appearances on the Mannish Boys / Double Dynamite, and Smokin’ Joe Kubek & B’Nois King / Close To The Bone CDs. Bob made major festival appearances in twoMuddy Waters Tribute Sets (at Simi Valley Fest and Chicago Blues Fest) and a Hubert Sumlin Tribute Set (Chicago Blues Festival) as well as playing the last major festival appearance with Ann Rabson (In the Kenny Smith & Friends set) at theKing Biscuit Blues Festival. Bob organized a Chicago Blues Showcase for the Lucerne Blues Festival in Switzerland with headliners Eddie C. Campbell, John Primer, and Elmore James Jr. and then segued into the month long Chicago Blues Festival Tour, hitting 5 European countries and featuring the all-star package show of John Primer, Billy Flynn, Peaches Staten, Willie Hayes, Melvin Smith (who organized the line-up) and Bob. Sadly Bob Corritore lost one of his closest life-long friends with the passing of Louisiana Red and flew to Germany to attend the funeral and play a memorial show. Bob would play at the BMAs with Diunna Greenleaf and Bob Margolin and organized and co-hosted (with Bob Margolin) a star-studdedLouisiana Red Memorial Tribute at the Hard Rock Cafe in Memphis on the day after the BMAs. Bob and Tail Draggerheadlined the Stompin’ At The Savoy festival in Helsinki, Finland and Bob worked with Diunna Greenleaf at The Bisbee Blues Festival. Bob consistently performed with some of the greatest artists in the blues. All this and much, much more is brought to light through Bob Corritore‘s 2012 Year In Photos which you can see by clicking here. A heartfelt thank you to all the great friends and supporters who made this undeniably great 2012 happen! Note that some photos are uncredited and we would be grateful to anyone who can identify the photographers so we can add their credits.
• Dave Riley / Bob Corritore Juke Joint Blues Band appear this Saturday at the Rhythm Room! The 8 year blues partnership of Dave Riley and Bob Corritore will be presented this Saturday, April 13th at the Rhythm Room. Dave and Bob will appear with Dave’s son Dave “Yahni” Riley, Jr. on bass and Brian Fahey on drums. Look for some good down home blues this night. To see a photo page devoted to Dave and Bob’s blues adventures click here and here.    To hear some samples of Dave and Bob’s recorded music click here.  The Rhythm Room is located at 1019 E. Indian School, Phoenix, AZ 85014
• John Primer & Bob Corritore / Knockin’  Around These Blues to be released next week! The formal release date for the collaborative CD by John Primer & Bob Corritore in Tuesday April 16! The CD, titled Knockin’ Around These Blues will be released on the Delta Groove label and the initial reaction to the CD has been exceptionally positive! The CD features some great musicians: Barrelhouse Chuck, Chris James & Patrick Rynn, Billy Flynn, Bob Stroger, Brian Fahey and Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith! The Kentucky Blues Society says “This is one of those records that could have been released onChess back in the 50′s, only with modern production standards” and Chris Spector of Midwest Record says “a set of purist, south side Chicago blues.” Much appreciation for all the e-mails, Facebook posts, radio playlist inclusions, interviews, and compliments that this CD has already received. To see the album art for this CD, click here.  To see the first few reviews that have come in, click here.

• RIP Jimmy Dawkins – October 24, 1936 to April 10, 2013. Legendary Chicago blues guitarist/singer Jimmy Dawkinspassed away yesterday after a long ordeal with numerous health issues. He was 77. Originally from Tchula, Mississippi,Jimmy Dawkins moved to Chicago in 1955 and began to emerge as an in-demand session guitarist in the 1960s. He had a new, more electric approach to blues guitar than was ever heard before and it took the blues world by a storm. While making these innovative new sounds, Jimmy was simultaneously firmly rooted in the deep traditions of the blues.  In 1969 he made his debut CD Fast Fingers for the Delmark label, which firmly established Jimmy Dawkins as an artist in his own right. He was a good, understated vocalist, but his biting single string lead guitar was his strongest selling point. He made many albums in his career for a number of labels: Delmark, Earwig, Ichiban, Black & Blue, Excello, Evidence, JSP, Wild Dog Blues, Fedora, Storyville, and Rumble. Jimmy also recorded some brilliant backing on sessions by Johnny Young & Big Walter Horton, George “Wild Child” Butler, Carey Bell, Andrew “Blueblood” McMahon, Luther “Guitar Jr.” Johnson, and others. Jimmy activated his Leric Records label in the 1980s, issuing singles by up and coming blues artists such as Nora Jean, Mojo Elem, Little Johnny Christian, Queen Sylvia Embry, Vance Kelly, and Tail Dragger (Delmark recently reissued these sides in their 2010 release Jimmy Dawkins Presents the Leric Story). With Jimmy’s passing we lose one of the great developmental stylists of contemporary Chicago blues guitar.His bold, forward thinking sound influenced those that followed him.

Some examples of Jimmy Dawkins music as both a leader and as a sideman:
Jimmy Dawkins “Serves Me Right To Suffer” (click here) 
Wild Child Butler “Hippies Playground” (click here)
Johnny Young & Big Walter “Ring Around My Heart” (click here) 
Carey Bell “Sad Dreams” (click here)
Jimmy Dawkins with Big Voice Odom on vocals “Welfare Blues” (click here)

• RIP Di Anne Price (February 21, 1950 to March 13, 2013). Memphis had a great blues secret in singer/pianist Di Anne Price whose robust style revived some of the early sounds of classic blues woman. Despite her immense talent and showmanship she was little known outside of her native home of Memphis.  The Memphis Flyer described her this way; “Di Anne Price was easily one of Memphis’s most beloved performers. She played anywhere and everywhere. Her superb albums Wild Women, To Hell With Love, A Good Man Is Hard To Find, and Reekin’ With Love, all showcase her smoky vocals, barrelhouse piano, and her fascination with a variety of blues and jazz styles from 1920s throwback to more contemporary arrangements.”  Her huge personality used sas, wit and kindness to win over her audiences and her tight, jazz-oriented band (collectively called Di Anne Price & Her Boyfriends) backed her perfectly. She passed away on March 13 after a battle with some ongoing health issues. Special thanks to promoter Jay Sheffield and to the venue Huey’s in Memphis for their great support of Di Anne. To learn more about the late Di Anne Price check out her website athttp://www.dianneprice.net/. To see a great tribute to Di Anne Price by the Memphis Flyer and see a spectacular video of this great artist click here.

• RIP Johnnie Billington (1935 to April 1, 2013). Lambert, Mississippi blues singer/ guitarist/educator Johnnie Billingtondied on Monday, April 1st at a Clarksdale hospital from complications of a heart attack. He was 77. Johnny was a true beacon of blues purity who never strayed from a traditional blues sound. Born in Crowder, MS in 1935, Johnnie spent some time in the 1950s in Arizona and then Chicago before returning to Mississippi in 1977 where he became active in education. He received a number of awards; a Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, the Blues Foundation’s “Keeping the Blues Alive” Education Award, the Sunflower River Blues Association’s Early Wright Award, and the Mississippi Arts Commission’s Folk Arts Fellowship. He was a good and honorable man and a true bluesman. To read more about Johnnie Billington click here.
• First blues reality show!?! Roger Stolle and Jeff Konkel have announced a forthcoming weekly series called Moonshine And Mojohands,  a reality show about the blues experience in Mississippi. The projected first season will consist of 10 edisodes each of approximately 12 minutes in length and available free online at http://www.moonshineandmojohands.com/. Currently on the website you can see the series trailer that incldes snippits of scenes with Super Chikan, Artheice “Gas Man” Jones and Frank Ratliff (the recently deceased priopieter and tour guide of Clarksdale’s historic Riverside Hotel).Roger Stolle and Jeff Konkel have previously produced the highly acclaimed documentaries M For Mississippi, and We Juke Up In Here. Roger would not be pinned down to a specific debut date but promised us the first episode in early fall!
• Valerie June appears at ACM Awards! It is always a proud pleasure when someone from our blues family gets a shot at major mainstream exposure. Valerie June is a self proclaimed purveyor of “Moonshine Roots Music” which includes elements of blues, folk, gospel and country music. Hailing from Jackson, Tennessee, she is a youthful musical embodiment of her Southern heritage with a downhome guitar and banjo style, and accented vocals. She also possesses an intoxicating beauty with her slim silhouette, angelic face and Medusa-like dreadlocks. Valerie June recently had a feature article in Living Blues Magazine. Last Sunday, April 7th she appeared unannounced and uncredited on CBS’s broadcast of the AMC Awards (AMC stands for Academy of Country Music) as she sang sweet harmony in a duet with country music superstar Eric Church on his hit “Like Jesus Does.” To see this performance on YouTube, click here. Her memorable, poised performance and striking look surely made a powerful impression on the millions of viewers that tuned in to this televised event. Look for Valerie’s forthcoming CD Pushing Against A Stone. co-produced by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys, to be out later this year. For a nice interview/performance with Valerie June from Crane TV click here.
• Walter Davis Tribute CD to be Released! Album art revealed! Walter Davis was an immensely popular blues singer/pianist/songwriter who made scores of influential recordings in the 1930s and 40s. His somber, heartfelt blues is considered to some of the deepest ever recorded, and his songs have been covered by Muddy Waters, Ray Charles, John Lee Hooker, Pinetop Perkins, Champion Jack Dupree, and many more. More recently however, German pianist Christian Rannenberg has produced a marvelous concept album reconstructing the sound and mood of Mr. Davis. This project features Billy Boy Arnold, Charlie Musselwhite, Jimmy McCracklin, Christian Rannenberg, Keith Dunn, and Davis’ close associate Henry Townsend (with Bob Corritore). The CD is titled The Walter Davis Project and will be released on Electro-Fi Records on May 21. To see the cover art for this record click here. Look for some powerfully deep blues from this one.
  Here are some Walter Davis original recordings:
  “Oh Me Oh My” (click here)
  “Ashes In My Whiskey” (click here)
  ” Please Remember Me” (click here)
  “Come Back Baby” (click here)