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Interview: Australian Blues Guitarist Gus Mckay
Source:
Harry Watters
Q: Where did the interest in music originate from? A: I have always had a love of music from as early as I can remember.Both sides of the family were musical; not professional, but keen and passionate. Q: Were your parents supportive of your musical ambitions? A: My parents supported me in the form of lessons and there was always music in my life growing up, but I really have kept my ambitions to myself. Q: Growing up, what artists ...
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Interview: Wanda Jackson (PT. 3)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Wanda Jackson is still on the road performing. She'll be at the Highline Ballroom in New York on October 12. I caught her at a one-room blues bar on the outskirts of Memphis when I was down there. She was escorted to the stage by her husband Wendell Goodman and she proceeded to rock the house. When I saw Wanda the next evening at Graceland, we sat close together on two director's chairs, and I was able to look into ...
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Interview: Wanda Jackson (PT. 2)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
What was it like to sit in the Jungle Room at Graceland with Wanda Jackson? Pretty neat. If you've visited Graceland, you know that this room—with its grass-green carpeting and Hawaiian theme—is off limits on tours. Small by today's McMansion standards—the Housewives of Any City, USA, have have larger and more elaborate homes—Graceland remains larger than life. It's the place where Elvis Presley lived after he won the American Dream lottery—and was consumed by it. Rockabilly star Wanda Jackson knew ...
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Interview: Wanda Jackson (PT. 1)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Rockabilly is nothing more than jazz, blues and country all mixed around. You can hear the jazz and blues influence in the Western swing artists of the late '40s and early '50s. And like blues players, many original rockabilly artists came from poverty, trying to use music as a way out of their family's plight. As I write in today's Wall Street Journal (or go here), there aren't many of these pioneer rockabilly artists left, particularly on the female side. ...
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Musician friends celebrate Thielemans' 90 years
Source:
Michael Ricci
NEW YORK — Jazz harmonica virtuoso Toots Thielemans quipped that his legs don't work but his mouth does after he was pushed onstage in a wheelchair to a standing ovation during the first of two Jazz at Lincoln Center concerts this weekend celebrating his 90 years. And once he put his harmonica to his lips, he more than lived up to his words. Thielemans, who has been in poor health, had only played once this year at a summer jazz ...
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Belated Cheers to Buddy Guy
Source:
RJ on Jazz by R.J. DeLuke
Buddy Guy is Best of the Blues A bit late on the draw, but one of the great blues man of all time has been named a recipient in the next round of Kennedy Center Honors, a prestigious national award in the field of the arts. Sonny Rollins is a recent recipient. Buddy Guy is one of the finest — Mount Rushmore finest — of any who ever played the blues, the root music for jazz and rock. He's been ...
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Portugal’s Fado Em Si Bemol Return With Sizzling New Release
Source:
Harry Watters
Portugal’s Fado em Si Bemol is among the country’s most electrifying jazz acts. Part of what makes the group so appealing to audiences is the infectious and brightly lit way they are able to unite different musical styles. On the surface, Fado em Si Bemol fuse together jazz and world music; beneath that, the band is an amalgam of various global influences, sewn effortlessly by the distinct flavors of the Portuguese guitar. Quite popular in Europe, the band is starting ...
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JazzClip: Buddy Collette
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Buddy Collette could play just about every reed and woodwind instrument proficiently. As a result, the West Coast musician was called often by studio contractors and session leaders for pop and jazz recordings. But Buddy's ability transcended technique. His sound was full, seductive and brimming with energy. Buddy also was a major civil rights figure, which made his inclusion in the recording studios in the '50s and '60s all the more exceptional. Buddy was responsible for helping to merge the ...
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