Collaboration produces new sounds from Luther Badman Keith

From the opening horn riff that kicks off “Wow Oui Ole,” the first song on Luther Badman Keith’s new recording “Bluesmen Are Kings,” it is quickly apparent that the CD offers a new sound from the Detroit blues musician.

“Wow Oui Ole,” a jump blues tune inspired by Louis Jordan, is one of several on the 13-song CD that represent a variety of musical styles, featuring horns and keyboards as well as Keith’s vocals and electric lead guitar.

LUTHER BADMAN KEITH

“The biggest thing with this CD, which is my fourth one, is that it shows my evolution as a musician, and represents the growth from when I started in 1998 until now,” Keith said. “It’s taken time. I couldn’t have produced a CD like this the first 3 or 4 years out. I needed time to grow as a musician and a songwriter.”

According to Keith, the biggest influence on the recording is that he worked with a producer for the first time. It was recorded at Josh Ford’s The Sound Shop studio in Macomb. Ford, who performs as Motor City Josh, worked with Keith on the arrangements.

“He is a tremendous producer,” said Keith, who wrote all the songs on the CD. “He took the songs I wrote and helped bring out the best arrangements and refined my ideas.

“I can’t say enough about Josh Ford. Because he is a musician, he hears things well and is open to new ideas. If something is not working, he will tell you. And he is willing to take chances and be a little adventurous.”

The CD features horns by Billy Furman and Mark Croft (members of Keith’s band who also did the horn arrangements), keyboardist Jim David, and the studio rhythm section of bassist Alex Lyon and drummer Todd Glass. Motor City Josh also plays on the CD.

The result is a sound that incorporates the talents of all involved, producing a solid collection of well-crafted tunes.

“The greatest thing for me is to write great songs with great lyrics,” said Keith, a former long-time journalist who is now executive director of ARISE Detroit!, a community mobilization organization. “That’s what I get a lot of response to. I never fashioned myself as someone trying to be a guitar hero. I want to be appreciated more as a songwriter.”

Keith also hopes the CD brings appreciation for the many talented working blues musicians in Detroit, as well as blues legends of the past.

“Before I could play a note, I would go to shows and I could see that these blues guys were awesome,” Keith said. “I met Albert Collins and Luther Allison and other guys who were all great cats and nice guys.

“They were really more than average guys. They were people we should revere. I wanted to make that (title) song a tribute, that it is really special to be a bluesman. It is a wonderful experience to share with people the great feeling of blues music.”

According to Keith, the CD has gotten air play in England and Australia and on local radio stations WHFR, WEMU and WDET.

“I wanted to produce something listenable and fun, as well as make each song stand on its own. No two sound alike. There is jump blues, hardcore blues and a little rock. All those elements merge for a gutsier, blusier sound.

“I wanted to open some ears with it and make people say ‘wow oui ole.’”

UPCOMING SHOWS

Luther Badman Keith has two upcoming performances scheduled in downtown Detroit.

From 9 p.m-midnight Nov. 13, Keith will be joined by keyboardist Mickey Atkins in a free show with singer-songwriter Paul Miles at the Signature Grill, 250 Riverfront Drive, inside Riverfront Towers. Admission is free. RSVP by calling 313-394-0667.

From 6-9 p.m. Nov. 24, Keith and his full band will perform at a benefit for the Society of Professional Journalists at PJ’s Lager House, 1254 Michigan Ave. (313-961-4668). Admission is a $10 donation.

For more information on Luther Badman Keith, click badmanbluz.com.

Dirty Basement Blues is 'Coming Clean'

Dirty Basement Blues: Mike Conley, Joe Stanley, Bryan Miller, Pate Zajicek,Frank Grimaldi.

Dirty Basement Blues is “Coming Clean.”
The band, which garnered a 2015 Detroit Music Awards nomination for best blues artist/group, doesn’t play straight blues.
The band’s album “Coming Clean,” which received a Detroit Music Awards nomination as best blues recording, incorporates rock, soul and other influences.
“The title speaks for us coming clean about all our musical influences and the things that inspired us to write music,” lead vocalist Frank Grimaldi said. “We’re all influenced by the blues cats, rock ’n’ roll, soul music, church music, anything with soul. We took our influences, put ‘em down, and made them our own.”
The album, which was recorded live with minimal overdubbing in March of 2014 at Josh Ford’s Sound Shop Studios in Macomb Township, has nine original songs and one cover, “Walk In My Shadow,” by Paul Rodgers.
It features the vocals of Grimaldi, who is only 24 but delivers with depth reminiscent of white blues/rock/soul singers from Southeast Michigan who made their mark in the 1960s and ’70s, such as Mitch Ryder, Mark Farner of Grand Funk, Scott Morgan of The Rationals, and the late Rob Tyner of the MC5.
“I’ve loved the MC5 since I was 12 years old,” Grimaldi said. “I love their live record ‘Kick Out the Jams.’ It is so sonically perfect. It feels like it’s going to fall apart at any moment and it doesn’t. That’s rock ’n’ roll.”
Grimaldi, whose first public performance was singing a Led Zeppelin song during an 8th grade talent show, used to hear vocal comparisons with Robert Plant. Recently, fans have been telling him he sounds like the late Steve Marriott from Humble Pie fame.
“That’s the highest compliment,” Grimaldi said. “He was one-of-a-kind.”
The group had its genesis as a power trio in early 2012 as two former Jam Samich band members — guitarist/vocalist Joe Stanley and drummer Mike Conley — joined forces with bassist Bryan “Bodi” Miller. 
A search for a lead singer brought in Grimaldi, who had been singing and playing guitar with the group Counter Culture.
The band added keyboardist/vocalist Pete Zajicek from the Square Boys for the 2012 Detroit Blues Challenge and advanced to the final round, but could not compete in the finals because Stanley was on his honeymoon. Zajicek blended so well with the other musicians that he eventually joined the group as a band member.
In 2013, Dirty Basement Blues returned to the competition and won the Blues Challenge, which is hosted by the Detroit Blues Society. Earlier, Jam Samich had advanced to the finals, but did not win. That made the victory a little sweeter for the group.
“It was just solidifying, a very victorious moment for us,” Grimaldi said. “… As a group, it was like a ‘yeah’ moment.”
From there, the band went to Memphis to compete in the International Blues Challenge.
“Memphis was incredible,” Grimaldi said. “We stayed at the Weston, across the street from the Gibson factory. We were only a block from Beale Street.
“There was great music everywhere. To be around that many musicians was great. Everybody was real cool and by the end of the week people were recognizing us and saying ‘Hey, Detroit!’ It was neat.”
The members of Dirty Basement Blues are currently working on their second studio album and will also soon release “Dirty Basement Blues Live at Callahan’s,” a live album recorded at Callahan’s Music Hall in Auburn Hills, which will host a CD release party on Aug. 21.

“We loved doing the studio album but we feel like live performances are our bread and butter,” Grimaldi said. “We get to jam more and people can see more aspects of all of us as performers.”

You can see the Oakland County-based Dirty Basement Blues band perform live from 5:30-6:15 p.m. on Thursday, June 25 at the Stars and Stripes Festival at Freedom Hill County Park in Sterling Heights; and 6-7:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 27 on the Summer Sun Stage at the first-ever Summer Magic Festival in Mount Clemens.

MORE BLUES
Several other blues bands will be performing at the Summer Magic Festival.
On the Summer Sun Stage (Clock Tower at New Street and Main Street), the Pet Zelenka Project performs classic rock and blues at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 25. On Friday, June 26, the schedule includes Rolling Blue (blues/rock) at 2:45 p.m. and Downriver Dan (blues/rock) at 5 p.m. On June 27, enjoy The Boa Constrictors at 2:15 p.m. On June 28, one man band Sweet Willie Tea performs a mix of Americana and blues at 1 p.m. and Laura Rain & the Caesars deliver powerful blues and soul music at 2:15 p.m.

On the Gemini Moon Stage (Roskopp Parking Lot, Macomb Place and southbound Gratiot Avenue), St. Cecelia (4 p.m.) and The Muggs (6:45 p.m.) perform blues rock on Friday. Saturday brings the Todd Wolfe Band (bluesadelic rock) at 7 p.m. and Jack Russell’s Great White (blues rock) at 10:30 p.m.

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

A Tribute to Eddie Burns on Saturday

When Little Sonny moved to Detroit from Alabama in 1953, he met Eddie “Guitar” Burns.

Burns, who died in 2012 at age 84, will be honored at the concert “A Tribute to Eddie Burns” at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 9 at the Scarab Club in Detroit.

Burns was the first musician to give Little Sonny, who became an internationally known harmonica player and singer, encouragement in the budding stages of his musical career.

Eddie Burns in 2005 at Cobo Joe's in Detroit. (BluesPhotos by Don Mc Ghee)

Little Sonny recalls working as a photographer at various Detroit clubs, including the Plantation Club on Russell near Warren, where Burns was a mainstay.

“Eddie found out I played harmonica and he used to let me come up and sit in with him,” Little Sonny said. “(Eddie) was the first one that did that.”

Little Sonny was impressed with Burns’ talent as a singer, harmonica player and guitarist, and also regarding his musical knowledge.

“Eddie was blues, but he would mix with some jazz as well, like Louis Jordan. He also knew a lot of Leadbelly and the other old cat’s stuff. He was more educated about the old blues than any of the guys I knew. He could back to Charlie Patton and all the old blues artists. He could not only go back, but he could remember the songs and play them.

“He was a hell of a musician, from the old type of blues, before Muddy Waters. He knew all those old songs I had never even heard of.

“He was a good writer too and had hits himself. He would play stuff by Bobby Bland and Louis Jordan and a lot of the old-time musicians, and some up-to-date stuff as well.

“He wasn’t just an outright blues artist. He mixed his stuff. I learned to go into a different bag from him.”

Singer-guitarist Carlton Washington, 29, will lead a veteran band at the tribute Saturday. He will be joined by singer-guitarist Billy Davis, who first gained recognition with Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, as well as bassist Frank Bryant and drummer Clyde “Poppa” Lee, both veterans of Eddie Burns’ band.
Washington is from a different generation, but he is familiar with Eddie Burns and his music.
“I’ve always been into the history of Detroit blues," Washington said. "I came up watching Johnnie Bassett, and he provided inspiration to dig deeper.

“Eddie Burns was a great songwriter, and it’s an honor to be able to pay tribute to a very important part of Detroit blues.”

Although Burns later garnered the nickname “Guitar,” he started out as a harmonica player. Burns played the harp “backward,” with the higher register on the left side.

“Eddie is the only guy I know who could play ‘Juke,’ and sound like Little Walter,” Little Sonny said.

Burns, a Mississippi native whose brother Jimmy Burns is a Chicago soul-blues musician, played and recorded with John Lee Hooker, and toured internationally. Eddie Burns received the Michigan Heritage Award in 1994, and, in 1998, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Detroit Blues Society, which is hosting Saturday’s event.

Little Sonny was close friends with Burns for over 50 years and performed with him at his final live performance, at the Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival at the Music Hall Center for Performing Arts in Detroit in 2008.

“I never had a friend better than him,” Little Sonny said. “He would tell you and show you things a lot of other musicians wouldn’t show you. He would guide you in the music world.

“He would give me information on touring overseas before I went overseas. He let me know about the pitfalls so I would avoid them. That’s the kind of person he was. He would give you some advice to help you. He wasn’t selfish.”

Little Sonny described Burns as “humble.”   

“You couldn’t beat him. He was a beautiful person and he left behind a beautiful legacy with me and other musicians too.”

The Scarab Club is at 217 Farnsworth near the Detroit Institute of Arts, A $5 donation is requested. For information, click detroitbluessociety.org.

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

Anti-Freeze Festival has recipe for hot blues

Here’s a recipe for some hot blues.

Start with a national headlining act that has roots that go way back in the blues music world. Add a sprinkle of top local talent. Mix, and let smoke.

Repeat for a double batch.

That’s a winning formula for this weekend’s Anti-Freeze Blues Festival at the Magic Bag in Ferndale.

On Friday, the headliner will be Louisiana swamp boogie legend Lazy Lester. Supporting acts include vocalist Tosha Owens; Detroit blues veterans Harmonica Shah and guitarist Jeff Grand, and John Rhoades, one of several younger players making a mark in the Motor City.

On Saturday, the Siegel-Schwall Band headlines; following the Howard Glazer Band, which recently released the fine CD “Looking in the Mirror;” young guns Jason Alter and Jason “J-Bone” Bone; and the Chris Canas Band.

The event is a fundraiser for the Detroit Blues Society.

“It’s the first and biggest fundraiser (of the year) for the Detroit Blues Society,” said Steve Soviak, president of the DBS. “It’s very exciting. It doesn’t get much better than Siegel-Schwall and Lazy Lester.

“Lazy Lester has been around, almost, since day one. He is 81 years old and was there with Muddy Waters and the whole second generation of Chicago blues guys, although he’s more of a swamp blues guy, with other guys like Slim Harpo.

“I remember seeing Siegel-Schwall at Masonic Temple in the 1970s, opening for Dave Mason. I believe (drummer) Sam Lay is still in the band. He played in Muddy Waters’ band at one time.”

Lay, 79, is also famous for his work with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band as well as lengthy stints backing up Little Walter, and performed with Bob Dylan when he introduced electric-rock at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965.

I saw Siegel-Schwall perform at the Magic Bag a few years ago, and it was one of the best shows I’ve seen at that venue. Harmonica player Corky Siegel and guitarist Jim Schwall cut their blues teeth as youngsters performing as the house band at Pepper's Lounge on the south side of Chicago back in the ‘60s.

Following the show, Lay told me, “I’m so hot, my toenails are sweating.” That’s how hard this band works.

Soviak is also pleased with the supporting acts at this year’s festival, the 21^st in the series.

“They are the cream of the crop of Detroit blues,” he said. “Jeff Grand and Harmonica Shah are involved, and Howard Glazer too. Chris Canas has won the Detroit Blues Challenge four times and will be going to Memphis to represent Detroit at the (International Blues Challenge).”

General admission tickets are $25 each night. Stop by and say hello to Soviak at the merchandise table. The Detroit Blues Society is celebrating its 30^th year and has several special events and a membership drive planned.

“It’s an exciting year for us, and we’re starting it off with the Anti-Freeze Blues Festival,” Soviak said.

To see a story about the Siegel-Schwall Band by music writer Gary Graff, click here.

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