Hi Folks,
Thank you so much for all the good luck wishes and support, we got home from the 26th International Blues Challenge in Memphis around 9:30 tonight (Sunday) and after chillin' a bit I decided to jot down some of my experiences while they’re still fresh. Because of the overwhelming generosity of our incredible friends, family and fans I had an unforgettable time! I didn’t make the finals but gave it my best shot…as luck would have it, the winner of the solo/duo category performed in my venue so the competition couldn’t have been stiffer…I’ll always wonder how close I might have come if he was in another club but I’m not making any excuses, everyone had their shot and they send the score sheets later so I’ll have an idea how I fared…here’s how it went down…
I was lucky to have Michelle, my friends and members of the Boston Blues Society to cheer me on. My sincere thanks to Michelle “Cupcake” Ezzy, Ramona “Romo” Margolis, Bob “Steady Rollin” Margolis, Maureen “Mo” Booth, Dan “Dan'a'mo” Meenan, Marty “M Dawg” Beecy, Denise “D Pup” Pageot-Beecy, Linda “LLCool Cat” Beneke, Dan “Danamatic” Beneke, Bob “2 Belt” Elsasser and John “multi ax” Donahoe for their undying support and friendship.
There were 10 of us that left from Concord (1-21) at 3:30 AM for a 6 AM flight, which got us to Memphis by 8:00 AM (Central). We hoped we could get an early check- in but the Spring Hill was jammed the previous night and we couldn’t get in till 3 so we waited for about 7 hours to get our rooms…I tried to crash in a chair in the lobby without much luck and had to be at orientation from 3:00-4:00 and Club 152 on Beale St. by 4:30, half an hour before the first act, to check in.
This year there were 150 bands and 80 solo/duo acts compared to 100 bands and 60 solo/duo acts when BMG competed in ’07 so the odds were tougher this year. We had 10 bands at our club, with 3 judges and then 3 new judges the following evening. Each act plays the same venue Friday and Sat. Sets were 25 minutes, which is barely 6 tunes.
I went on third the first night, after Alain Apaloo, who played a resonator guitar with huge low end (C tuning), had great finger style chops and compelling songs that were bluesy but strayed from traditional blues like some of my stuff. Also of note was a Italian finger style guitarist , Francesco Piu, (Hot Motzarella), Doug Beckman, who played a steel Paul Beard resonater with a quieter, old school approach and was accompanied by a very soulful singer, and traditionalist Austin “Walkin’ Cane” who charmed the crowd with his personality and delta style on a tri cone resonator and a wooden model. He even told a joke about removing his artificial leg and filling it with beer on a bet one night! The quality of musicianship was very high, especially instrumentally and I noticed most everyone did all originals. The idea that my dobro might have stood out went away after realizing 4 of the ten acts used them and there was one lap steel as well.
It’s hard for me to critique my own set though I got some feedback from the gang and it was similar to how I felt...
I did 6 songs and started on Dobro, doing all my stuff except “Bring It On Home” which I ended with and had the crowd singing with me. I was a little out of sorts for the first 2 dobro tunes, it was really hot on stage and there was no reverb on the pa for either vocals or guitar and it sounded so dry to me. I hate to make excuses (it is a “challenge” after all) but was a little out of my comfort zone until I picked up the Martin and finished my set with “Blues in the House”, “Slave to My Senses” and the Sam Cook tune. Crowd response was really good, especially after I did an extended jam at the end on the Sam Cook tune, I felt like I was at least in the running at that point.
What changed everything was when New Brunswick’s Mat Anderson took the stage. From the first note you knew this was going to be special. Vocally, his range, power, tone and dynamics were another level. He’s got quite a set of pipes and could work the mic from 4 feet away or bring it down to a whisper with a low baritone note right on top of it. He had a driving acoustic guitar technique (rock background?) with relentless bass lines and he’d solo on top, all with impeccable timing and technique. He played one slide tune that stood out and had so much variety song to song that it was constantly riveting to the listener. The pacing of his set was masterful, his 3rd tune was a gut wrenching soul ballad that vocally was untouchable all night and brought the house down. His sense of dynamics kept the tension and release building for the whole set and he ended with the most furious tune of the evening, practically shredding his strings in the process on a blues rock tune with a raveup ending, he really worked it. Add to that just the right amount of banter to make it personable. Everyone in the club knew he’d set a new bar. My only hope to compete at that point was that the judges would also recognize songwriting and crowd involvement, which I was told stood out in my set.
We made our way back to the hotel later and collapsed, it was a long day and to think of all the effort for 6 tunes…
The next morning “2 Belt” and Michelle drove me to a music store in Bartlett called Yarborough’s and I bought a used reverb pedal, I wanted every edge I could get and it sounded way better the next night. We had a nice breakfast at the hotel and took the old fashioned trolley outside our hotel to Beale St. and poked around and enjoyed all that Beale is famous for. We were in a historic area with a pretty park right outside our window and a short ride (or 15 minute walk) to the action.
Friday afternoon was a tour of the Gibson guitar factory, where they make the hollow body electrics, which was a trip for me as I play a Lucille. I was stunned at how much of the process is by hand (most of it) and could not believe what goes into making a guitar, it takes about 21 days to finish most models. The store was very cool as well, picked up some small items, t-shirts, etc.
I decided to start the next night with 2 acoustic guitar tunes, Blues in the House and “Slave to My Senses”, switch to dobro for 2, “Last Call & First Light” and “Friday Night Shoes” and then back to the Martin to rock the house with “I Need a Raise” which is more of a Bo Diddley feel and one I didn’t do the first night. I felt really good about the set and my friends called it “spot on”. I was more relaxed, had more fun and just let it flow. The only problem was that Mat Anderson really poured it on the second night and took it over the top and the crowd was really behind him. We found out he won our venue the next morning.
.
After my show we all headed to BB Kings and caught some fine acts including NJ’s Matt O’Ree Band, who had the joint jumpin’! I thought they should have taken their night but it was not to be. I saw Christine Jackson with her band, I met her in ’07 and they sounded really good. We had a nice dinner and bar hopped a bit, caught Bob Margolin and Boston harmonica ace Rosie Rosenblatt at the Rum Boogie, the most crowded venue on the strip (and the smokiest, we have it so great in NE’s smoke free clubs). We were hoping to catch the Boston winners Mike Crandall band, who won the Boston band finals but the timing didn’t work out.
Beale St. was it’s usual gas and it was a mob scene most of the night. We hit the Pig, Tater Reds and a few other places and really enjoyed ourselves. It was a nice night weather wise as well and the sounds, sights and smells were awesome!
On Sat., four of us went to the Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Hotel, which is the site of Martin Luther King Jr’s assassination. This was one of the most moving experiences I’ve ever had and I recommend it to everyone. We did the self guided tour and stayed 51/2 hours and didn’t see everything. It covered the African American experience early in the Vietnam War and through the struggles down South including the bus boycotts and the sanitation strike in Memphis, which was why Martin was at the Lorraine when he died. His hotel room (306) was reconstructed exactly as it was in April of ’68 as was James Earl Ray’s boarding house room across the street. I can’t say enough of how this experience affected me and I’m so glad I went. We were pretty choked up when it was over.
We caught most of the band finals at the Orpheum on Sat. night and personally I didn’t think the level of quality was quite as high as 2007 but that’s just my opinion. The winning band had originals that were excellent and strayed a bit from pure blues and sported 2 smokin’ guitar players. Here’s who took the top spots in 2010:
The IBC honors the artists with awards in three demanding categories: band, solo/duo, and "Best Self-Produced CD." Matt Andersen, sponsored by Harvest Jazz and Blues from Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, walked off with the award for "Best Solo/Duo Artist," with second place honors going to Alphonso Sanders and Bill "Howl-n-Madd" Perry, sponsored by Mississippi's Crossroads Blues Society. The "Best Band" award was given this year to Grady Champion, brought to the challenge by the Mississippi Delta Blues Society of Indianola. Second place in this category was earned by the Karen Lovely Band, Cascade Blues Association, and the third spot went to Cheryl Renee with Them Bones, sponsored by the Cincy Blues Society.
We got out of town just in time as we heard part of our entourage got delayed due to Tornado warnings…just found out Marty and Denise had to stay an extra day and got home Monday afternoon, glad they were ok.
My sincere thanks to all those that supported my efforts at the IBC this year and especially to Karen Nugent and the Boston Blues society who put their faith and trust in me to represent Boston. I’m humbled and most grateful for the chance you offered me and it was an experience I’ll treasure always.
Sincerely,
Bruce Marshall
Ps, no French Fries or Cole Slaw for at least a month!!
