Savoy Brown at the Magic Bag

For over 45 years, guitarist Kim Simmonds has been the driving force behind the British blues rock band Savoy Brown. He has been featured on the cover of Guitar Player Magazine and has shared the stage with such guitar legends as Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Muddy Waters.

Now, the band, which recently signed with Ruf Records, is celebrating the release of its latest CD, “Voodoo Moon,” with “The Legend Continues Tour,” including a stop on Friday at the Magic Bag in Ferndale. Tickets are $25.

KIM SIMMONDS

Savoy Brown was one of the first British blues bands to record, releasing their first album in 1966. One of the first racially mixed blues bands, Savoy Brown backed up John Lee Hooker on his 1967 tour of the United Kingdom and has jammed with many blues greats, including Bobby “Blue” Bland and Charles Brown.

"Blues music has been my first love, somewhere it connects my Welsh roots and enables me to express my emotions and allows the perfect creative outlet,” Simmonds said in a release.

Savoy Brown has performed over 5,000 concerts at venues including The Royal Albert Hall, Carnegie Hall and the Fillmore East and West. In 1972, the band recorded a live album in New York’s Central Park.

Ex-band members have also been members of many notable rock and blues acts, including Foghat, Humble Pie, Fleetwood Mac, Black Sabbath and Ten Years After.

Simmonds has been inducted into the Hollywood Rock Hall of Fame and received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Detroit Blues Society.

Other upcoming events at the Magic Bag to mark on your calendar include the Anti-Freeze Blues Festival, featuring Reverend Payton’s Big Damn Band, Johnnie Bassett, Thornetta Davis, and The Rattlesnake Shake, on Jan. 7; the Eric Johnson Band on Jan. 11; soul singer Charles Bradley and The Extraordinaires on Feb. 12; and the rescheduled date for slide guitar wizard Sonny Landreth on May 18.

For information, click www.themagicbag.com.

AT CALLAHAN'S: Callahan's Music Hall in Auburn Hills has an impressive 1-2-3 punch this weekend, with Popa Chubby on Thursday (Dec. 1), Duke Tumatoe on Friday (Dec. 2) and Steve Gornall and the Blue Collar Blues Band on Saturday (Dec. 3). For info, click www.atcallahans.com.

MORE MO’:  Keb’ Mo’ will be joined by special guest Andres Osborne on Jan. 20 at the Royal Oak Music Theatre. Reserved tickets are $39.50. For information, click www.royaloakmusictheatre.com.

To send info to JB Blues, please email Joe.Ballor@dailytribune.com

Jeff Grand, Chris Canas Band win Detroit Blues Challenge

Congratulations to Jeff Grand and the Chris Canas Band, winners of the 2011 Detroit Blues Challenge.

Grand won the solo/duo competition at The Oxford Tap and the Chris Canas Band finished first in the band finals at Freddy’s in Clinton Township.

Grand and the Chris Canas Band will represent the Detroit Blues Society at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis.

Jim McCarty, from left, is shown with guitar buddies Bobby East and Jeff Grand.

They join an impressive list of Detroit Blues Challenge winners. Past champs in the solo/duo competition include: Travelin’ Blues, John Latini (twice), Mike Espy and Yakety Yak, Christy and Jeff Howard, Pete “Big Dog” Fetters, Carl Henry, and Paul Miles. Past band competition winners include: Rusty Wright Band (twice), Crossroads Blues Band, Count Bracey and the Pleasuretones, Front Street Blues Band, Luther “Badman” Keith, Lady Sunshine and the X Band, The Whoodoo Band, Mojo and the Boogiemen, and Joce’Lyn B and the Detroit Street Players.

Lady Sunshine and the X Band and Joce’Lyn B and the Detroit Street Players each placed second at the International Blues Challenge competition.

The IBC will be held on Feb. 1-4, 2012 in Memphis in the Beale Street entertainment district. Tickets are available now.

The 28th annual IBC, presented by The Blues Foundation, will begin with the FedEx International Showcase (Jan. 31). Quarterfinals will be held Feb. 1-2, the semifinals on Feb. 3 and the finals in the Orpheum Theater on Feb. 4. There will also be a youth showcase for those under the age of 21 on the afternoon of Feb. 3.

For information on IBC, click www.blues.org. For info on the Detroit Blues Society, click www.detroitbluessociety.org.

McCARTY ADDED TO HOEY CONCERT LINEUP

Guitarist extraordinaire Jim McCarty and his band Mystery Train have been added to the holiday lineup for Gary Hoey’s “Ho Ho Hoey Tour 2011” at 8 p.m. Saturday (Nov. 26) at the City Theatre in Detroit.

McCarty, who also sings, first displayed his considerable guitar chops as a member of Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels. Over the years, he’s performed in The Rockets, the Buddy Miles Express, Cactus, and the Detroit Blues Band. He has also recorded with industry icons such as Jimi Hendrix and Bob Seger.

Hoey, a rock, blues and surf guitarist, is known for his signature versions of covers such as “Hocus Pocus,” “Lowrider,” and “Misirlou.”

Tickets are $27 and are on sale now at OlympiaEntertainment.com, The Fox Theatre, Joe Louis Arena and City Theatre box offices, Hockeytown Authentics in Troy (without service charge), and all Ticketmaster locations and Ticketmaster.com. To charge tickets by phone, call (800) 745-3000.  For additional information, call (313) 471-6611. 

To contact JB Blues, please email Joe.Ballor@Dailytribune.com.

Detroit Blues Challenge this weekend

The Detroit Blues Challenge, hosted by the Detroit Blues Society, continues with solo/duo and band competitions this weekend.

On Saturday (Nov. 19), performers Lena Williams, William Toll, Jeff Grand, Gwen Hayes, and Buzz ‘N Buster will compete in the solo/duo competition at 7 p.m. at The Oxford Tap, 36 S. Washington St. in Oxford. The winner will represent the Detroit Blues Society at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis.

On Sunday (Nov. 20), Bea B., Sweet Willie and the Tea Bones, and the Chris Canas Band will compete in the band category at 7 p.m. at Freddy's, 40000 Garfield in Clinton Township. The winner of Sunday’s event will face the band 3 Ton Soul in the band finals at 7 p.m. Tuesday (Nov. 22) at Freddy’s, with the winner advancing to Memphis.

JEFF GRAND

The 2012 International Blues Challenge competition will be held Jan. 31 – Feb. 4, 2012 in Memphis in the Beale Street entertainment district. Tickets are available now.

The 28^th annual IBC, presented by The Blues Foundation, will begin with the FedEx International Showcase (Jan. 31). Quarterfinals will be held  Feb. 1-2, the semifinals on Feb. 3 and the finals in the Orpheum Theater on Feb. 4. There will also be a youth showcase for those under the age of 21 on the afternoon of Feb. 3. In 2011, 110 bands and 83 solo/duo acts competed.

The list of current blues artists that have competed in the IBC over the years includes Michael Burks, Tommy Castro, the late Sean Costello, Larry Garner, Zac Harmon, Jason Ricci, Super Chikan, Susan Tedeschi, and Watermelon Slim, among many others.

For information on IBC, click www.blues.org. For info on the Detroit Blues Society, click www.detroitbluessociety.org.

 To send info to JB Blues, please email Joe.Ballor@dailytribune.com.

Kenny Brinkley at Blues Heritage Series

The Detroit Blues Society Blues Heritage Series presents saxman McKinley “Kenny” Brinkley with the Rootsologists from 2-5 p.m. Saturday (Nov. 19) at the Scarab Club, 217 Farnsworth in Detroit.

Brinkley, 78, is a Detroit native who played his first gigs in 1954 at Phelps Lounge with pianist/bandleader Teddy Harris Jr. After being drafted by the U.S. Army in 1955, he ended up joining other black musicians to form a band that played at military bases around Europe for the next two years.

Following his military service, Brinkley performed at clubs around Detroit with artists such as Harris, Little Willie John, Joe Weaver, Alberta Adams and Don Davis.

In the ‘60s, he spent several short periods of time with The Motor Town Revue, which performed on concert tours of Motown artists. This led to Brinkley being on the famed recording of Stevie Wonder's “Fingertips” at The Regal Theater in Chicago in 1962. 

In the late ‘60s, he joined with trumpeter Herbie Williams to form a quintet called The Decoys, with Don Whitehead on drums, Leonard McIntyre on bass and Earnest Wilson on piano. Later, Brinkley formed a band called KB + 3, with Nate Shepard on organ, James Brown on drums, and various guitar players.

Brinkley later played with bluesman Kenny Miller and, in 1996, joined the Back Door Blues Band.

At the Scarab Club, he’ll be backed by the Rootsologists, featuring Dan Devins (vocals/harmonica), George Friend (guitar/vocals), Mike Marshall (bass) and RJ Spangler (drums).

To send info to JB Blues, please email Joe.Ballor@dailytribune.com.

Paying tribute to early-era Fleetwood Mac

Singer-guitarist Brett Lucas is certainly keeping busy these days. He is just finishing a two-week European tour with soul singer Bettye LaVette and has several other projects going as well.

BRETT LUCAS

On Friday, Lucas will perform with the Peter Green-era Fleetwood Mac tribute band Rattlesnake Shake (which includes singer-guitarist Danny Methric, bassist Tony DeNardo and drummer Todd Glass of The Muggs) at the New Way Bar, 23130 Woodward, in Ferndale.

“The biggest comment we get from people is that they didn’t realize they (Fleetwood Mac) played this kind of music,” Lucas said Thursday in a phone interview from Malaga, Spain. “A lot of music they recorded didn’t get released and some of the stuff that got released was only on some compilation. People know they played blues, but they played a whole other kind of music, tunes that were released on ‘Then Play On.’ Their songwriting took on a whole new level at that point. We play some of their early blues and some of their more modern stuff.”

Lucas also just finished producing 32 tracks by former early-era Fleetwood Mac slide guitarist Jeremy Spencer. The songs, recorded at the Tempermill studio in Ferndale, also feature Glass, Rachel May and James Simonson.

“It’s a cool thing, all this coming together,” Lucas said. “Producing Jeremy’s new material and playing in a Fleetwood Mac tribute band is pretty wild. It’s a really special thing.”

The Jody Raffoul Band opens for Rattlesnake Shake at the New Way Bar Friday.

Lucas, Simonson and Glass also perform on Thursdays (but not Nov. 10) in the band St. Cecelia at Andiamo’s-Royal Oak.

 

Acoustic blues

Fans of acoustic blues will enjoy the Live! From the Living Room Acoustic Showcase on Friday (Nov. 11) in the atrium of the Oakland Arts Building, next to the Blue Note Café, at 7 N. Saginaw St. in Pontiac.

This week’s showcase features the Rev. Robert Jones and Leonardo. Rev. Jones, a singer-guitarist, performs blues, spirituals, work songs, and more, often on a National steel guitar. His versions of Son House songs are superb.

Singer-guitarist Leonardo also plays acoustic, solo, Delta-style blues, citing influences including Rev. Jones, Muddy Waters, Charlie Patton and Skip James.

For information, click www.OldFrontPorch.com.

 

Rockin’ Blues NYE

Tickets are now on sale for Rockin’ Blues NYE 2012 at Callahan’s Music Hall, 2105 South Blvd. in Auburn Hills. The celebration of the new year will again headline Pazman’s Supersession, featuring guitarist Mark Pasman (host of The Motor City Blues Project, heard every Sunday evening from 9 p.m.-midnight on WCSX-94.7 FM).

Jimmy Thackery is at Callahan’s this Friday (11/11) and Duke Robillard returns on Nov. 18. Also, mark your calendar for upcoming performances at Callahan’s by The Millionaires on Nov. 23, Ronnie Baker Brooks on Nov. 25, and the Tommy Castro Band on Nov. 26.

For ticket info, click www.ATCALLAHANS.com.

To send info to JB Blues, please email Joe.Ballor@dailytribune.com.