Bluesman Johnny Shines spent the late 30s on the road with the great Robert Johnson, then lived long enough to win a W.C. Handy Award in the 90s.
Tag: Robert Johnson
Posted inMusic
Kokomo Arnold helped shape giants of the blues
Kokomo Arnold’s recording career lasted less than a decade, but he changed the world by influencing the likes of Robert Johnson and Elmore James.
Posted inMusic
Gifts that sing—are you listening?
The best best box sets of 2017 include 11 CDs from David Bowie’s Berlin period, 529 tracks of live vintage country from Louisiana Hayride, Roland Kayn’s 14-hour electronic masterwork, and the most complete portrait yet of Hüsker Dü’s early years.
Posted inMusic
Johnnie Temple bridged country blues and urban swing in the 1930s
Bluesman Johnnie Temple cut dozens of sides for Decca, including several with famous Chicago jazz band the Harlem Hamfats.
Posted inArts & Culture
Country music’s little white myth
The new book Hidden in the Mix details African-American contributions to country music.
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The Reader’s Guide to the Chicago Blues Festival
Early this year, citing financial crisis, the city of Chicago threatened to consolidate or eliminate most of its free lakefront music festivals, or at least to start charging admission to some of them. The cover-charge idea died on the vine, but four events—Viva! Chicago, the Country Music Festival, Celtic Fest, and the Gospel Music Festival—have […]
Posted inBlogs
This Week in Reader Music
Psych-metal, blues history, dirtbag rock, and the effects of high-quality dance pop on pregnant women
Posted inMusic
The Robert Johnson Variations
Three generations of musicians play the songs and ponder the legend of the archetypal Delta bluesman.
Posted inBlogs
Making the Porcine Scene
Deep underground, chef Efrain Cuevas of Clandestino does the loaves-and-fishes thing with a single pig.