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Bobby Blue Bland Interview

12/14/12 12:27 PM | Art Schuna

Bobby Blue Bland was booked into a club in Madison called Luther’s Blues in 2004. It was a great performance space with seating designed to give good sight lines from anywhere. I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to interview one of the truly great blues vocalists of our time.

Bo Diddley Interview

11/27/12 5:43 PM | Art Schuna

    I interviewed Bo Diddley in 2006 prior to a concert appearance here in Madison. He had a lot to say about his career and the music industry. Not all of it good.  Click on the title above to hear the interview.

My Philosophy of Record Collecting

10/22/12 6:52 PM | Art Schuna

  Gee I must feel low pretty often… What better way to get cheer up than to buy a few blues records?  I remember when I was in college, many years ago, I’d usually stop by the local record store after an exam and buy a few records.  Art

Henry Gray Interview

10/21/12 7:38 PM | Art Schuna

  I first interviewed Henry Gray by phone on June 30, 2004 to help promote his performance at the Folklore Village on July 23 and the Dodgeville Blues Festival on July 24 that year and that’s the interview that is linked to this page.  After doing the phone interview I decided I’d like to do a second interview to get enough material for publication.   Andy Cornett, who managed  and played bass in Henry Gray & The Cats band, arranged for me to meed Henry in his hotel before their appearance at the festival.  Henry was the headliner and didn’t go on stage until that night.  It was decided I should meet Henry at his hotel around 1 PM.  I had my list of questions and a small tape recorded, I drove to Henry’s hotel with a friend of mine Dave Sear, who’s also a blues fanatic.  We met Henry at his room and he answered the door in his underwear.  I’m used to seeing Henry only his dapper stage performance dress similar to the picture on the left.  It was a little startling seeing him in his state of undress but I quickly overcame that after we started the interview with Henry reclining in his bed and Dave and I in chairs next to him.  About half way through the interview, Andy Cornett walks in and says “You’re pretty casual” to Henry.  I finished the interview and it was published in Blues and Rhythm in issue 198 in April 2005.  I have managed to get to several of Henry’s performances at the Chicago Blues Festival after this and every time I’ve seen him I think back to that July day in  Dodgeville.  Click on the title above to go to the audio interview.

Dick Waterman Interview

10/13/12 2:43 PM | Art Schuna

    Dick Waterman is an author, photographer and blues music promoter.  He began in the music business by promoting local blues shows in the Boston area in 1963.  The following year he joined Nick Perls and Phil Spero on a journey to Mississippi that was to change his life.  The trio were in search of Son House, a bluesman who was only known as a performer on a few Paramount label 78s that were recorded in Grafton, WI in the early 1930s.  Based on a tip by Bukka White, they traveled South only to find that he was no longer there.  They eventually found him living in Rochester, New York.  Before long, Dick founded Avalon Productions to manage Son House and a number of other blues artists including Mississippi John Hurt and  Skip James.  Avalon promoted other artists including  Bukka White, Arthur Crudup, J.B. Hutto, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy and Luther Allison.  He also managed Bonnie Raitt early in  her career.        Dick photographed his artists and others over the years and this led to a later career as a professional photographer.  A number of his photos were featured on the Blues Hall of Fame wall, which featured photos of all inductees at the time at Luther’s Blues club here in Madison when they were in business.  His work may be seen at www.dickwaterman.com.  His book, Between Midnight And Day: The Last Unpublished Blues Archive has about 100 of his photos together with recollections of the artists portrayed.  I feel fortunate to own 3 of Dick’s photos.  Dick also assisted in writing the book  B.B. King Treasures .  He was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2000.  Dick is an incredible story teller and has many stories to tell about his career and the artists with whom he worked.  About half of this interview is about the discovery and return of Son House as a performer.  Perhaps one of the greatest rediscoveries in the blues revival era.  I use excerpts of my interviews with music to create radio specials.  Dick had so many stories I needed to do 2 shows to do justice to his interview.   Click on the title above to access the interview.  

Henry Townsend Interview

10/13/12 2:37 PM | Art Schuna

  Henry Townsend was born October 27, 1909 in Shelby, Mississippi and grew up in Cairo, Illinois.   He moved to St. Louis when he was young and this was his home for most of his life.  He began performing and recording with Walter Davis on piano.   He first recorded music in 1929 for the Paramount label in Grafton, Wisconsin and recorded in 9 decades of his career.   In 1999 University of Illinois Press published his autobiography “A Blues Life As Told To Bill Greensmith”.  He was equally adept with a guitar and the piano, but later in life as his fingers became less nimble, he preferred the piano.  He died in 1996, hours after receiving an award on Grafton’s Paramount Plaza Walk of Fame.  He postumously won his first Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album in the 2008 Grammy Awards for his recording “Last of the Great Mississippi Bluesmen: Live In Dallas” released by the Blue Shoes Project in 2007.  This recording also featured Honeyboy Edwards, Robert Junior Lockwood and Pinetop Perkins, all of whom, sadly, are no longer with us.  I had the good fortune of being able to attend a number of performances by Henry Townsend as he was frequently invited to the Chicago Blues Festival.  I phoned Henry at his  home in St. Louis in 2003 for this interview.  Click on the title above to access the interview.

Hubert Sumlin Interview

10/11/12 9:14 PM | Art Schuna

  I’m not really great in identifying guitarists just by listening to them but Hubert Sumlin’s tone and style are so distinctive, he’s one of a few I could pick out in a blind listening test.  He was born in Greenwood MS in 1931 and past on just last year.  Sumlin joined Howlin’ Wolf’s band in 1954 and was with him (except for a few brief lapses) until Wolf died in 1976.  His guitar came to define Howlin’ Wolf’s band nearly as much as Wolf himself.  Hubert Sumlin had a reputation for being more than a little wild in his youth.  When I interviewed Henry Gray (Wolf’s piano player) he told me Wolf would fire Hubert from the band on Friday and hire him back on Monday.  Fortunately, Hubert mellowed with age.  In Howlin’ Wolf’s funeral program, Hubert Sumlin was referred to as Howlin’ Wolf’s son.  I interviewed Hubert in 2005.  He was an incredible story teller.  He would often end a story by saying “Do you know what I’m saying?”  I have to admit, there were times I said yes even if I didn’t know what he was saying because I just wanted to keep hearing those stories.  Hubert Sumlin at this time was a gentle soul, but he maintained more than a little mischief.  I hope you enjoy this interview.  Click on the title above to go to the interview.

Jerry “Boogie” McCain Interview

10/11/12 6:16 PM | Art Schuna

    I’ve always been a big fan of Jerry McCain.  He was one of the most under-rated talents in the blues.  The songs he wrote were unique.  Jerry McCain was born in Gadsden, AL in 1930 and lived his entire life there.  McCain’s first record was made for Lillian McMurry’s Trumpet label in 1953.  Jerry was not too fond of this firs.t release, saying his voice was too high. He would go on to record 9 tunes for Trumpet and had one more release which included “Stay Out of Automobiles” which was released shortly before the label folded.  Neither of the Trumpet releases were commercially successful due to limited distribution.  His Trumpet records on a release originally issued on the Acoustic Archive label and reissued by Alligator titled Strange Kind of Feeling.   McCain would go on to record for Ernie Young’s  Excello label and had half a dozen singles released between 1955 and 1957 including “Courtin’ In a Cadillac” and “Run Uncle John Run” which were early classics.   Many of these were upbeat tunes aimed at rock and roll fans.  The song “Tryin’ To Please” mocks Elvis Presley’s “Love Me Tender”. These songs demonstrate McCain’s unique approach to lyrics that would be a trademark throughout his career.  The Excello sides may be found on That’s What They Want: The Best of Jerry McCain released on AVI/Excello which is, sadly, out of print. In 1960, Jerry McCain would acquire a manager Gary Sizemore, who would be with him for 26 years.  Jerry released a series of records on Sizemore’s Gas label.  His best tune from this period was released on the Rex label, “She’s Tough”.   This tune was a regional hit for him would later be covered by the Fabulous Thunderbirds in 1980.  You’ll find these recordings on a CD called Good Stuff, released on the Varese Sarabande label.   This CD also features a great tune called “Welfare Cadillac Blues”.  Unfortunately, this record seems to be out of print. Jerry would go on to record for the Okeh label who tried to turn him into a pop music star.  At least one of his records included backing by the Anita  Kerr Singers, a female chorus known for their syrupy arrangements.  I’ve never heard these records but maybe that’s a good thing.  He was billed $33,000 for these questionable productions.  The records were not a commercial success.  Between 1965-68 Jerry recorded for Stan Lewis’ Jewel label and released 5 singles. In later years, ….

Samuel Charters Interview

10/5/12 4:48 PM | Art Schuna

  Samuel Charters is a noted blues scholar and author, record producer, musician and poet. He first became interested in the blues after listening to Bessie Smith’s version of “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down And Out.”  He soon became a record collector and began playing jazz clarinet.   While in the Army in the early 1950s he ran afoul of the House Un-American Activities Committee.  This led to an interest in politics, but as he did not feel he could run for political office he began writing about black music as a means of fighting racism.   His book, “The Country Bluesmen” was published in 1959, one of the earliest books on the blues.  Charlie Musselwhite told me in an interview that this book was important in his becoming a bluesman.  He was living in Memphis and read the book.  Then he discovered that many of the bluesmen included in the book were still living in Memphis.  He tracked down many of them from Charter’s book.  Perhaps the most instrumental to his future career was Will Shade, who played a number of instruments but was best known for his work on harmonica.  In the 1950s Charter began to search for African American bluesmen and did field recordings of them for the Folkways label.  One of his early successes was the rediscovery of Lightnin’ Hopkins.  He recorded him in his home using a single microphone and a portable tape recorder.  In this interview, Sam describes holding the microphone and moving it from Lightnin’s guitar to his face depending on whether he was singing or doing a guitar instrumental break.   The Smithsonian-Folkways recording “Lightnin’ Hopkins” is still in press and is an amazing record given the conditions under which it was recorded and worth seeking out.  He recorded quite a number of blues musicians including Pink Anderson, Billy Boy Arnold, Baby Tate, Homesick James, Jesse Fuller, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, James Cotton, Otis Spann, Juke Boy Bonner, Robert Pete Williams, Big Joe Williams, Siegel-Schwall Band, Eddie Boyd, Otis Rush, Champion Jack Dupree and Memphis Willie B to name just a few.  He also produced all of Country Joe & The Fish’s LPs.  Perhaps one of his most important production achievements was the Chicago/The Blues/Today! series which was originally released as 3 LPs on the Vanguard label in the mid-1960s.  This is essential blues that belongs in every blues fans collection.  Each LP/CD featured 3 bands, many of them not under contract at the ….

Honeyboy Edwards Interview

10/5/12 4:41 PM | Art Schuna

  I had the privilege of interviewing David Honeyboy Edwards in October 2003.  It was a remarkable in that although he was 88 years old at the time, he had an amazing recall of events from his lifetime going back to the earliest days of his life as a blues artist.  He got his start in the pre-war era and learned how to busk on the streets from Big Joe Williams.  He was one of the last living blues musicians who was a contemporary of Robert Johnson and performed with him. He knew many of the blues greats from the pre-war era.  His interview covers not only discussions about many of the bluesmen he worked with over the years but also what life was like at that time.  He talks about hoboing to travel from town to town and being harassed by the police.  He also talks about his life as a gambler and how to cheat at dice.  Honeyboy wrote a book about his life, “The World Don’t Owe Me Nothing” published by Chicago Review Press which is still in press and is definitely worth tracking down as there are very few autobiographies of blues performers from this era.  I had the good fortune of seeing Honeyboy in performance on a number of occasions.   The last was the next to the last time he ever performed in public at Folklore Village in Dodgeville.  He was 95 yeas old.  He was joined by Michael Frank, owner of Earwig records who released a number of Honeyboy’s recordings including “Delta Bluesman”, which has his first recording for Alan Lomax and the Library of Congress together with more contemporary recordings.  All of his recordings are worth having.  A few of my favorites are “Mississippi  Delta Bluesman” released on the Smithsonian-Folkways label originally in  1970.  “Don’t Mistreat A Fool” on the Genes label, “Shake Em On Down” on APO and “White Windows” on Evidence are also favorites.    We lost Honeyboy August 29,2011.  It marked the end of an era as he was probably  the last pre-war performer and the last direct connection to blues artists of that era.  Click on the title above to go to the interview.