Best Self Produced CD Entries Now Being Accepted- Due Oct 1st

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If you would like to have your CD considered by the Cascade Blues Association for submission in The Blues Foundation’s Best Self-Produced CD competition, please send your disc to BSPCD c/o Cascade Blues Association, PO Box 14493, Portland, Oregon 97293. You may also turn your submission in at the October Cascade Blues Association General Membership Meetings. No discs will be accepted later than October 1st.

All discs submitted must have been released after November 1, 2013. A committee set up by the Cascade Blues Association’s Board of Directors will listen to each submission and like the Journey To Memphis will rate each on a series of categories (blues content, instrumentation, vocals, art work and liner notes). Entries are only accepted by acts within the Pacific Northwest (Oregon, Idaho and Washington). We must receive your entry no later than October 1st. Please note, the entry that we submit to The Blues Foundation will require that we send them four copies of the disc for their judges. We will notify the appropriate act for the extra copies needed to send

2014 Muddy Award Considerations – Northwest CDs

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ARTIST CD TITLE
Alan Hager & Dave Fleschner Live From The Vault
Arthur Migliazza Laying It Down
Big Monti Dangling From A Rope
Bonepickers Strollin’
Chris Lord & Cheatin’ River Chunkabilly Blues
Duffy Bishop Find Your Way Home
Ellen Whyte & The Blackbird Flyers Good Luck Charm
Frank E. Gee & Jimmy Meunier Social Moments
Gabriel Cox Gabriel Cox
Hard Garden Blue Yonder
Holfar Blue Blue Suede Cadillac
Holfar Blue You Need Truth
Justin James Bridges On My Way
Karen Lovely The Prohibition Blues
Kivett Bednar Land Of The Living
Lisa Mann Move On
Mary Flower When My Bluebird Sings
Polly O’Keary & The Rhythm Method Compass
Robbie Laws Between The Lines
Shoe String Sue Mr. Right Now
Simon Tucker Space For Me EP
Terry Robb Hymn
Tess Barr Do What You Want
The Randy Oxford Band It Feels Good
The Roseland Hunters Roseland Hunters EP
The Strange Tones At Home With The Strange Tones
Tommy Hogan Howl Like The Wind
Ty Curtis Water Under The Bridge
Various Artists Blues From Eugene: An Eclectic Collection, Vol. 1
Various Artists NW Roots Uprising, Vol. 1 EP
Various Artists Shari’s 3 AM

Muddy Award Lifetime Achievement Recipients

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The following individuals have been elected by our members for induction into the Lifetime Achievement Muddy Award for their long-term commitment to the blues.

 

B.B King

Bill Rhoades

Bob “B.A.” Ancheta

Bonnie Raitt

Curtis Salgado

Duffy Bishop

Eric Clapton

Greg Johnson

Jim Mesi

John Lee Hooker (deceased)

Lloyd Jones

Luther Allison (deceased)

Norman Sylvester

Paul deLay (deceased)

Paulette Davis (deceased)

Peter Dammann

Phil Haxton (deceased)

Ray Charles (deceased)

Taj Mahal

Terry Currier

Willie Dixon (deceased)

Ms Janice Scroggins and her 88 Keys

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Janice Scroggins.
Emmett Wheatfall poem for Janice

Benefit for Janice Scroggins’ Family – June 9th

love of janiceTickets now on sale at Alberta Rose Theater for the benefit for Janice Scroggins’ family. Mon,June 9, 7PM. Get them online now before they are gone! www.albertarosetheater.com  Here is the current and awesome list of musicians performing :Portland Interfaith Gospel Choir, Lloyd Jones, LaRhonda Steele family, Norman Sylvester, Duffy Bishop & Chris Carlson, Julianne Johnson, Linda Hor…nbuckle, Dave Fleschner, Louis Pain, Reggie Houston, Brian Ward, Sonny Hess, Thara Memory, Myrtle Brown, Curtis Salgado, Mike Doolin, Patrick Lamb, Alan Hager, Lisa Mann, Peter Dammann, Terry Robb, Emmett Wheatfall, Lyndee Mah, Ken Derouchie, Anne Weiss, Brian Foxworth, Michael Alan Harrison, Tony Ozier, Devin Phillips and probably more musical friends of Janice.

The Rafael Tranquilino Band

Espera
Flat Hat Productions

Rafael Tranquilino CD coverWhen you think of smokin’ hot blues guitar playing, Mexico City is probably not the first place you’re going to think of when listing where such musicians originate from. In fact, when I was speaking to Rafael Tranquilino in Memphis in January, it did not sound as if there was much blues being played there at all. But somehow, Tranquilino became enchanted with the music, and now residing in the Seattle area, his love for the powerful, rockin’ blues has helped him develop into one of the hottest young string bluesers on the West Coast. And he often mixes in his native Spanish language into his songs that helps make his style quite unique. His latest release Espera is a well-crafted example of everything that makes Tranquilino an artist to watch.

This is blues that often comes across with a bite and an edge to it. Stinging guitar work that has influences coming straight out of the Stevie Ray Vaughan songbook, but never actually imitating the master, as is apparent in his number “Stevie.” That piece captures the mood of Vaughan, but there is also kind of a little surf riff that arises in it as well. And by no means is that Texas blues approach the only angle that he plays from, there is a wide mix of range throughout the disc from heavy-hitting to very moody. Tranquilino’s slide playing is showcased in the opening track “Back Down, Engine Town” and on “Take You For A Ride” the mood is powerful with sizzling fret magic as you realize the ride you’re going on is going to be white knuckled. And that is a common feeling throughout Espera, with perhaps the finest moments displayed on the handful of instrumentals found scattered throughout the album.

Aside from Tranquilino on guitar, the band is made up of three sensational ladies, Lissa Ramaglia on bass, Eva Dizon on drums and Leah Tussing providing vocals on three tracks and songwriting credits on two. Tussing’s voice is quite hypnotic on “Do You Want Me?” as she implores the man of her desire to “catch me if you can” while telling herself that she “just has to breathe.” Tranquilino once again throws down mesmerizing and fiery playing in a somewhat Jimmy Page-esque manner on the song.

The sudden ending of the final track “Espera/Waiting” leaves you anticipating more. Its driving energy builds you up into a frenzy and that abrupt closure is a tease to get you into listening to the album all over again. It certainly hooked me into doing so.

Total Time: 66:16

Back Down, Engine Town / Salvo Mi Alma / Shuffle / Do You Want Me? / Stevie / Delta Soul / Lucia / Ya No Blues / Driving Blues / Crazy Jam / Take You For A Ride / No Vuelvas / Espera – Waiting

What’s on Tap for April’s General Membership Meeting . . .

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Melody Ballroom, 615 SE Alder St., Portland
Wednesday, April 2nd – 7:00 pm
Members always Free – Non-members $3.00
Opening Set – Kivett Bednar
Second Set – Drop Dead Red

The year keeps rolling along and the blues is red hot in the city so far this year. Unbelievable number of touring acts and the local musicians just seem to get better every night out. For a little stop in the Pacific Northwest, kind of out of the way for a lot bands on the road, this town has the blues big time. But you all knew this already, that’s why you’re Cascade Blues Association members and the monthly meetings can always be trusted to bring fantastic performances from some of our area’s best. It’s a great time to check out newer acts you may not be familiar with and to catch up on some you may have not seen for a while.

Opening the April meeting will be a fairly new musician to the Portland area, though he has been in town for more than a year.. Originally from Austin, Kivett Bednar knows a thing or two about musical creativity. Being a graduate of the Berklee School of Music in Boston, a forerunner in producing some of the most inventive artists in modern music, Bednar truly puts his education to good use. Recently he released a new album titled Land of the Living where he has blended metal music with the blues. It has a definite crunch to its sound with a lot of dark heavy chording. He will be performing the songs from Land of the Living during his set mixed with some classic blues you’ll recognize. Joining him for the set will be drummer Lynn Nicholson. This is a straightforward duo that if you’re fans of the music of Cedric Burnside Project or Hillstomp you’ll appreciate. Very original, taking the blues in Portland to a new and exciting direction.

Drop Dead Red last played a CBA meeting a couple years ago, but they now have a new vocalist in Theresa Lowe, who has fronted bands such as Inner City Blues Band and Undercover in the past, as well as performing often with the Northwest Women in Rhythm & Blues. The musicians making up the band are all well versed veterans of the blues scene, including “Grandma Funk” Joanne Mead laying down her sensational bass work, “The Deacon” Tim Doyle who has been fingering those grooves on the keys for years with acts like Robbie Laws, Lori Bouck and Sonny Hess, drummer Wilton Merritt with a heavy background in gospel with renowned artists like The Mighty Clouds of Joy, Shirley Caesar and James Cleveland, saxophonist Bob Anderson who worked as a jazz musician and left music behind for 25 years before resurfacing with numerous Northwest blues bands, and guitarist Jon Tennis who claims he has fronted more nobodies in town outlasting most of the local dives and weddings he has performed at.

The word “quality” exemplifies Drop Dead Red, from their talent and well-orchestrated arrangements to their top of the line equipment. They play a wide variety of music and have been well received by audiences wherever they’ve played. This will be a fun-filled set, with an evening of listening and dancing pleasure.

Between sets we will hold our popular free ticket drawing for a chance to win CDs, concert tickets and more, so make certain to pick up your ticket at the door. We will also have another multi-CD drawing for a $1.00 per chance to take home a special package of discs put together just for this meeting.

Start your blues month out properly and come down to The Melody Ballroom for great music and to catch up with old friends. Bring your buddies, too. Convince them that they should also be members of the Cascade Blues Association, joining our friendly family of blues enthusiasts.

Cascade Blues Association Website

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In the cyber world of today, it is necessary to keep changing with the times to stay on top of things. With that in mind we are trying to consistently keep our website to be more user friendly and accessible. Over the past couple of years, Bruce Gifford has worked on giving the site a more friendly and easier to read look and we thank him for everything he has provided the CBA during that time moving us in the right direction.

At this point, we wish to introduce you to the new webmaster, Buko. Many of you may know Buko within the music scene in Portland and also for the work he has provided for multiple websites, including his own buko.net and the Twolouies.com site, both chronicle what is happening within Portland’s music present and past. Other sites he has developed and maintains include Kravmaga-sf.com, insulators36.org and sustainableofficesource.com. Buko is working to resolve server issues we’ve encountered in the past, making the calendar even more easier to navigate, bringing back our on-line merchandise store and even more. This is an work in progress that we’ll keep you up to speed on in the BluesNotes, but keep an eye on his progress at cascadebluesassociation.org.

What’s on Tap for March’s General Membership Meeting . . .

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Wednesday, March 5th – 7:00 pm
Melody Ballroom, 615 SE Alder St., Portland
Opening Acoustic Set – Ralph Broqvist & Jim Wallace
Second Electric Set – Kenny Kofler & The Third Power

We want to apologize for canceling the meeting in February at the last minute. We did not foresee the inclement weather that decided to hit town that day and pretty much close  everything down for the following few days after. But it is better safe than sorry when this happens and after speaking with The Melody Ballroom and the performers it was considered the best option for all. We will work at trying to reschedule the acts for a future date.

But we do not see anything that should interrupt the March meeting and we’re back on schedule with our regular first Wednesday of the month, too. Just to let you all know, we have a line-up of acts for the remainder of the year that are mostly new to playing our monthly meetings, with perhaps one or two old friends. All the band slots for the year are filled and the opening sets are filling up quickly.

Opening the meeting in March will be a very special grouping that does not happen too often. Normally we offer an acoustic set, but tonight we had the opportunity to showcase our friend guitarist Ralph Broqvist who will be joined by Portland harmonica ace Jim Wallace and backed by the Suburban Slim Band. Usually when Broqvist visits town, these performances are something that may only occur at small gatherings of friends or in a jam setting.

Ralph Broqvist

Ralph Broqvist (press photo)

Ralph Broqvist is the leader and guitarist for the popular Swedish band, Blueass Blues Band and has also worked with Deborah Coleman’s band when she toured through Norway. He has been called by Jefferson magazine as “one of the unsung heroes of Swedish blues guitarists today,” who can play sharp rock guitar, blues that just feels right in tempo and tone, and when on slide guitar you can imagine “Hound Dog Taylor smiling from Heaven . . . or maybe downstairs.”

Jim Wallace (photo by Greg Johnson)

Jim Wallace (photo by Greg Johnson)

Jim Wallace, of course, needs no introduction to Portland blues fans. One of the region’smost popular harmonica players, he has worked as band leader of The Haus Katsand has played alongside greats like Rick Welter, AC Porter & The Live Wires and Franck Goldwasser. The Suburban Slim Band will back Wallace and Broqvist, featuring Phil “Suburban Slim” Wagner on guitar, John Neish on bass and Scott Van Dusen from The Third Power band will be doing double duty on drums, playing both sets. Certain to be a memorable meeting for sure.

And yet, that is only the beginning. For the second set of the night we will be presenting Kenny Kofler and The Third Power, a new blues-based variety group from Portland showcasing some of the city’s brightest up-and-coming talent.

Kenny Kofler & The Third Power (photo by Roger Kofler)

Kenny Kofler & The Third Power (photo by Roger Kofler)

Led by Kenny Kofler, whose musical background began with the accordion at the tender age of five, moving on to saxophone that saw him reap numerous State and regional awards as a soloist in high school and college, and eventually taking up the guitar to express his love for American roots music. He has performed in multiple genres ranging from funk, blues, jazz, classical and contemporary country with numerous bands such as Deep Blue Soul Revue, The Sinners Club, Walter Guy Band, Bolt Upright and many others. With The Third Power Kenny provides vocals, guitar and saxophone.

Also on saxophone is the amazing Eric Rabe whose influences include Blue Lou Marini, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane and others that helped him develop his own recognizable trademark sound. He has worked alongside many of the most highly regarded acts in the area as well as making a name for himself as a session musician in several of the top studios in Portland. His presence adds a very melodic and soulful sound to The Third Power.

Scott Van Dusen on drums is the backbone of the band. With solid, driving grooves, his background spans various genres of rock, blues, jazz, fusion, folk and R&B. Since relocating to Portland from Southern California, where he worked with Tupelo Blue and The Jill Sharpe Band, he has been working with some of the finest musicians in the Northwest.

Rounding out The Third Power is bassist Chris Hale. Originally from San Diego, he has been honing his skill for nearly a quarter century playing blues and jazz. One of the Northwest’s most talented and entertaining bassists, he will wow you on both the fretless electric bass and the upright. A cerebral pocket-player with a superb talent for melodic intuition, he brings a rock-solid low end the band filling nooks and crannies with sonic goodness.

Don’t forget to pick up your free drawing ticket as you enter The Melody, for your chance to win CDs and concert tickets. We’ll also have another multi-CD raffle, winner takes all, for only $1.00 a chance. Come on out to the meeting and be prepared to party with two bands in one night. Bring your friends, too. We’re always happy to see new faces.

Jimmy Mak’s Welcomes Back Janiva Magness

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Janiva Magness - photo by Greg Johnson

Janiva Magness – photo by Greg Johnson

“One of the most fiery and original vocalists in contemporary blues and soul…thoughtful, inventive and almost unerringly on the money.” – Mojo Magazine

One of the blues most electrifying entertainers, Janiva Magness returns to Portland for what is sure to be another spell-binding performance at Jimmy Mak’s on Thursday, March 6th. The awards and accolades attributed to Magness keep piling up, as in this last year alone she was honored with the Living Blues Readers’ Award for Blues Artist of the Year and took home two Blues Music Awards for Female Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for “I Won’t Cry” from her latest Alligator Records release Stronger For It. She writes her music based on life experiences and delivers with strong emotion backed by a solid tight band. It is no wonder that she has also been awarded with the Blues Music Awards Entertainer of the Year recognition in the past and is a perennial nominee.

Jimmy Mak’s is located at 221 NW 10th. Showtime is 8:00. Tickets are available through tickettomato.com and are $13.00 general admission and $17.00 for guaranteed seating (dinner purchase required). 21 and over only. This is a CBA co-sponsored event, members showing their current membership card will receive a $1.00 discount at the door. Discount may also be used on-line when ordering tickets by using the code “cba.”