I know I've already mentioned the John Primer show, coming up Sunday night at the Thunderbird Cafe. But I want to mention it again, just to remind you that for blues fans, this should be a must-see.
Primer is one of those traditional Chicago bluesmen who came up with the best, and is keeping the spirit of this great music alive and well. He played with Muddy Waters and Magic Slim for years, which is good enough, but you also have to bring your own chops to the game, and Primer has certainly done that.
He's a gritty singer, and plays an expressive guitar with stinging slide work. Primer has recorded with many other bluesmen, and made a number of solo albums, most of them on import labels, but his work is not always easy to find. Just last November, he started his own label and production company, Blue House Productions, where he released his latest CD, "All Original." I confess that I haven't heard it (despite what you may think, BlueNotes is not all-powerful), but the clips I can find sound excellent. His band isn't called the Real Deal Blues Band for nothing.
So go and see this living connection to the history of the Chicago blues. Soak it up. Enjoy. Drink and dance a little, if you can find the space. Blues players like this won't be around much longer. It also just happens to be great blues.
And a special thanks to T-Bird owner John Pergal for continuing to bring in great acts like this, and still managing to create great vibes in the same tradition with his own tough band, the Pawnbrokers.
Here's a video of John Primer at work:
Posted
Mar 13 2009, 01:00 AM
by
Jim White