RIP Pinetop

I just read on the BBC news website that Pinetop Perkins has passed away.

Pinetop played with many greats over the years, most notably was his long run with the great Muddy Waters.

He will be greatly missed. Rest in peace Pinetop.

B.B. Still the King

On January 15th 2011, I went with a buddy to see B.B King at the casino in Windsor, Ontario. This was the second time I saw B.B. and he put on a hell of a show both times. (Btw- If you happen to be in Windsor go for a Jumbo corned beef sandwich at Malic's Deli)

His guitar playing is not what it once was, I think even B.B. himself would acknowledge that, but he can still shake the rafters with that golden voice of his. His story telling skills were as sharp as ever as he drew on his 50 plus years experience of entertaining people.

It was a great night and a real pleasure and honor to see one of the greatest performers of all time.

Lightnin' Hopkins CD Cover

I can't give very many details as the CD is still in the production stages but it appears my scratch-board painting of Lightin' Hopkins will be featured on the cover of a new CD compilation.

Although I'd like to maintain an air of professionalism I have to admit I'm absolutely giddy with excitement.

When I receive a copy I'll post it.

Keef and the British Blues

This is a clip, or rather a collection of many clips, from a BBC documentary called "Blues Britannia". I received a copy as a gift from my daughter's boyfriend who lives in Scotland, and it's fantastic . If it's at all possible to get your hands on a copy, I highly recommend watching it. If not, it can actually be viewed in it's entirety on Youtube(click link to view). It's a BBC production so it goes without saying that it's absolutely topnotch.

I was particularly impressed with some of the commentary by Kieth (Keef) Richards. Say what you will about him, the man knows his blues. This Youtube clip features many of his comments featured in the doc.

A lot of my reading is on the subject of the history of this great music form. I find the blues craze of post war Britain to be an extremely interesting and unexpected twist in the story of the blues.
Surreal in fact. I bet Muddy, Wolf et al., could have never imagined as young men, hollerin' at a Saturday night fish fry or picking cotton under the punishing Delta sun, that one day they would be performing in great halls for crowds of screaming white kids on the other side of the ocean.

Stranger still, is the fact that these pasty faced English kids introduced a generation of young Americans to a music that was born in their very own backyard. Irony is certainly not lost on the blues.

New Charley Patton Painting

This is the exclusive to 12 Bar Blog unveiling of my newest painting.

I tried some thing a little different this time around. I took a picture after every painting session and turned those into a short video (see below). Enjoy!

I now turn my paintbrush to either Muddy Waters or my Favourite blues singer, hell singer period, Otis Rush.

Chasin' That Devil Music

I've just recently finished reading a book entitled "Chasin' That Devil Music" by Gayle Dean Wardlow. Anyone who has ever read a book on the subject of blues history, at some point, has heard his name pop up.

Gayle Dean Wardlow was born on August 31st in Freer, Texas. At the age of 6 he moved to Meridian, Mississippi where he grew up and became interested in collecting old records. He originally sought out rare blues recordings to trade and acquire country and hillbilly discs.

Fortunately for blues fans the world over, Wardlow began to focus on blues recordings and investigating the lives of Mississippi blues musicians. He has since become one if not the most important blues researchers in the world. His investigations into the lives of blues legends like Charlie Patton and H.C. Speir have cemented his place as one of the world's leading authorities on country blues. One of his most illustrious discoveries is the uncovering of Robert Johnson's death certificate. Simply put, if not for his meticulous research and countless interviews with people like Ishmon Bracey, a great deal of the knowledge we have about the pioneers of blues music would likely have been lost forever.

"Chasin' That Devil Music" is a collection of articles Wardlow has written since the sixties for magazines such as Blues Unlimited, Living Blues, 78 Quarterly and Guitar Player.

If you're looking to read a blues history with a comprehensive narrative, this might not be the book for you. For that I recommend "Delta Blues" by Ted Gioia, or the blues lover's bible, "Deep Blues" by Robert Palmer. This book is about blues research and it reads as such. Wardlow's writing style is nothing close to approaching lyrical, it's plain and to the point. Many of the articles are about obscure musicians that might not be of interest to the casual blues fan. This stuff is 100% proof rotgut. The real deal.

Although some of the articles seem esoteric, many are enormously entertaining and informative. For me the highlights of this book are the pieces on Patton(actually written by Benard Klatzko with GDW), H.C Speir, Tommy Johnson, Blind Joe Reynolds and last but not least, Robert Johnson.

Also included in this book is an audio CD of over 20 great delta blues performances, as well as clips from interviews Wardlow conducted as part of his research. Most of the tracks are from Wardlow's very own collection and serve as a great companion to the reading materials. Well worth the price of the book itself.

I recommend this book to anyone who is seriously seeking to learn about the history of this great music. The importance of Wardlow's research in this field cannot be overstated. In fact, in 2006, "Chasin' That Devil Music" was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall Of Fame as a classic of blues literature. Good enough for me...I'm sold.

Welcome to the 12 Bar Blog!

Hiya blues fans! Welcome to my brand spanking new blues blog!

I guess a brief introduction of myself is in order. I’m Paul Lachine a professional Illustrator of almost 20 years now doodling away in the deep south- southern Ontario Canada that is.

I’m also the creator of a website called 12BarArt.com which features my blues themed artwork. Please feel free to poke around and peruse some of my paintings if Blues artwork interests you at all.

My vision for this blog is to explore different aspects of the blues- the old, the new and everything in between.

I hope you enjoy some of my blogs and please comment if the mood should strike you. I’d also like to extend an invitation to contribute to this humble little blog if you think blogging about the blues might tickle your fancy.

So- please check in every once in a while to see what the 12 Bar Blog is up to.

Cheers,
Paul