Big Band Blues and Big Band Boogie Woogie- John Penney [ 6/23/2009 - 09:50 ] #
NEW FROM NETA
BIG BAND BLUES Friday June 26 at 1200et/SD 07
Simultaneous HD feed on HD 03
BIG BAND BOOGIE WOOGIE Friday June 26 at 1300et/SD 07
Simultaneous HD feed on HD 03
CONTACT: JOHN PENNEY tunesailor@comcast.net 866-270-5141 or 248-798-5132
AMRF General News AMRF ON TV
|  | | 11th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival- John Penney [ 6/18/2009 - 16:58 ] #
11th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival
Friday and Saturday October 2 and 3
There hasn’t been a venue dedicated to “nuthin’ but the blues” in Metro Detroit since the glory days of Sully’s and the Soup Kitchen Saloon.
Until now.
Callahan’s Neighborhood Bar and Grill in Auburn Hills doesn’t book blues artists as a marketing gimmick. They do it because they love the music and the artists who make it. Just as we do at the AMRF.
The American Music Research Foundation is thrilled to announce that the 11th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival will take place at Callahan’s on Friday and Saturday, October 2nd and 3rd, 2009.
CONTACTS: CREATIVE DIRECTOR: John Penney, tunesailor@comcast.net. 248-798-5132
DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR: Brandi Stribbell, brandis@illuminatingconcepts.com , 248-478-2525
AMRF Festivals and Concerts AMRF General News Blues Boogie Woogie Events of Interest
| | | Koko Taylor, 1928-2009- John Penney [ 6/6/2009 - 15:24 ] #  The passing of Koko Taylor brings an end to the era when sharecroppers became Blues Divas. Born in an environment where Black women had little chance of success, Koko’s restless mind, curiosity, determination and enormous talent led her from the plantation to royalty as the world’s undisputed Queen of the Blues. Her life story is so rich that those of any dozen of today’s pop/rock stars combined would pale in comparison.
The American Music Research Foundation is proud to have documented much of that story, and to have captured a great performance in a setting befitting a great Diva. Our forthcoming TV program "Four Shades of Blues” offers perhaps the last opportunity to see Koko as herself, and helps us all understand her enormous impact on the music world.
Koko joins more than 60 artists who have been similarly filmed by the AMRF and whose greatness and contributions to American music will be forever preserved.
Ron Harwood
President and Founder
American Music Research Foundation "Grammy Award-winning blues legend Koko Taylor, 80, died on June 3, 2009 in her hometown of Chicago, IL, as a result of complications following her May 19 surgery to correct a gastrointestinal bleed. On May 7, 2009, the critically acclaimed Taylor, known worldwide as the “Queen of the Blues,” won her 29th Blues Music Award (for Traditional Female Blues Artist Of The Year), making her the recipient of more Blues Music Awards than any other artist. In 2004 she received the NEA National Heritage Fellowship Award, which is among the highest honors given to an American artist."
Click here for more information from Koko's official site.
AMRF Festivals and Concerts AMRF General News AMRF ON TV Blues
| | | One magical evening, Two extraordinary programs...- John Penney [ 6/3/2009 - 10:00 ] # 
There was magic in the air long before the band hit the stage for the 8th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival. The Award winning Paul Keller Orchestra had been rehearsing with local soloists Bob Seeley, Mr. B, Charles Boles, Dave Bennett and George Bedard for weeks during their regular Monday night gig at the Firefly Club in Ann Arbor, and the buzz in the street was palpable.
Three days before the show, Red Holloway arrived from California, and Axel Zwingenberger flew in from Germany. The interview shoots left the crew giddy. The dress rehearsal vibrated with chemistry and camaraderie. We knew we were going to capture something very, very special.
Within the first few bars of the opening number, Buddy Rich’s classic, “Basically the Blues,” the audience was whistling and cheering. Lindy-hoppers hit the dance floor. Executive Producer and AMRF President Ron Harwood drolly commented, “Well, I guess this was a good idea.” When the band launched into a rollicking version of “Sing, Sing, Sing” to close the first half of the show, he was on the dance floor himself.
It was well past midnight when the ecstatic house, still packed, demanded a second encore. By then it had become clear that one hour would not suffice to present this unique and exciting event. Instead we are proud to present two extraordinary programs: BIG BAND BLUES and BIG BAND BOOGIE WOOGIE. The programs are built around distinct narrative threads and stand alone, but when presented in this sequence they weave a tapestry illustrating the connections between blues, boogie woogie, swing music and jazz.
 BIG BAND BLUES SD Feed: Friday, June 26 at 1200 et / SD 07
(simultaneous HD feed on HD 03)
"If you cannot play the blues, you cannot play good jazz."
Red Holloway
"Some of the stuff John Coltrane and Miles Davis did was very, very innovative, but it was still the blues in the end."
Charles Boles
BIG BAND BOOGIE WOOGIE SD Feed: Friday, June 26 at 1300 et / SD 07
(simultaneous HD feed on HD 03)
"Boogie Woogie is happy blues." Bob Seeley
"If it weren't for the big band movement and swing, boogie woogie would have been forgotten." Axel Zwingenberger
WATCH THE FIRST FIVE MINUTES FROM NETA
Coming August 1: 4 Shades of Blues
The American Music Research Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation, promotion, and documentation of American music.
AMRF General News AMRF ON TV Blues Boogie Woogie Jazz
| | | Bernard Allison returns to Callahan's- John Penney [ 5/27/2009 - 22:40 ] # 
We fell in love with BERNARD ALLISON when he played our 7th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival in 2005, which is documented on the DVD Gen2 Blues.
BERNARD ALLISON returns to CALLAHAN'S in concert tonight, THURSDAY, MAY 28th. The Philadelphia-based DEB CALLAHAN band opens the show.
BERNARD ALLISON is the son of the legendary blues man Luther Allison. In addition to playing one of his late-fathers guitars, ALLISON also plays a guitar from the great Prince.
ALLISON is the youngest of nine children and learned from his father making his first appearance at the age of 13 playing his fathers live album. At 18 he joined the legendary Koko Taylor's band. Prior to striking out on his own ALLISON performed and learned from other greats like Willie Dixon, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and Johnny Winter.
Since his first solo album and his fathers death BERNARD ALLISON has risen to become a elite blues performer based on his live performances around the world and a string of acclaimed albums.
DEB CALLAHAN is considered one of Philadelphia's leading vocalist mixing blues and soul into a sound uniquely her own. She'll be making her Detroit debut and promoting her Grace and Grit CD.
BERNARD ALLISON'S concert last summer at CALLAHAN'S was a scorcher and this shows promises to be the same. Advance tickets are only $15 and available in person at CALLAHAN'S, via www.ATCALLAHANS.com, or by phone at 248-858-9508.
This is a great opportunity to check a leading modern blues entertainer and a up and coming female led blues band in one night.
AMRF General News Blues Events of Interest
| | | International Boogie Woogie Honored in Houston- John Penney [ 4/29/2009 - 08:23 ] #  The American Music Research Foundation’s “International Boogie Woogie” was honored with a 2009 Gold Remi Award for Television or Cable Documentary at Worldfest, the 42nd Annual Houston International Film Festival. WorldFest is one of the oldest and largest film & video competitions in the world, with more than 4,500 category entries received from 33 countries in 2009. Awards were determined by points accumulated in juried viewings.
“International Boogie Woogie” documents solo and trio performances by four internationally acclaimed pianists at the 7th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival, augmented by interviews with the artists: Switzerland’s Sylvan Zingg, France’s Philippe LeJeune, and Canadians Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne and Michael Kaeshammer. Wayne emigrated from California, and Kaeshammer from Germany.
“International Boogie Woogie” was originally uplinked by NETA in MAy 2008, NOLA INBM OK1. It is the most recent of four nationally distributed documentaries produced by the AMRF, a non-profit based in Farmington Hills, Michigan dedicated to the promotion, preservation, and documentation of American music. “Motor City Boogie Woogie & Blues Festival” was released in 2005, “Boogie & the Blues Diva in 2006, and “Gen2 Blues” in 2007.
The AMRF will release three new programs this year. Companions “Big Band Blues” and “Big Band Boogie Woogie” feature the Paul Keller Orchestra with pianists Charles Boles, Mr. B., Bob Seeley, and Axel Zwingenberger; saxophonist Red Holloway; clarinetist Dave Bennett, and guitarist George Bedard. “4 Shades of Blues” features Ruthie Foster, Ana Popovic, Tommy Castro, and Koko Taylor.
Executive Producer and AMRF Founder Ron Harwood said of the award, “I began filming these shows 10 years ago simply to document and preserve the excellence and elegance of underappreciated artists and genres. I never expected to win awards, but I am proud of our group’s achievements.” Producer and AMRF Director John Penney added, “It’s particularly appropriate that we received this award in Texas, the birthplace of boogie woogie.”
For a DVD containing the complete program
and an additional 45 minutes of bonus footage call toll free 866-270-5141.
$25 includes postage and handling.
CONTACT: John Penney 248- 478-2525 tunesailor@comcast.net
AMRF General News AMRF ON TV Boogie Woogie
| | | In Words and Pictures: 10th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival- John Penney [ 12/8/2008 - 22:19 ] #
 Over the past decade the AMRF’s annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival has presented 59 artists (not counting supporting players) in 14 concerts and produced four nationally distributed public television programs. Three more programs will be on the air soon and four more are in production.
Our live audiences each night are treated to three or four hours of incredible performances by both legendary artists and those deserving wider recognition. Audiences are aware that we are filming for television – it’s hard to miss the looming 26ft. boom of the jib camera as it swoops in and away from the stage – but that’s about as far as it goes.
Each television program presents an hour of the best performances viewed from the best seats in the house, enhanced by interviews that bring viewers closer to the artists and their music. The DVDs contain about an hour of “extras,” including additional performances and extended interviews with the artists. 
That’s a total of six hours of entertainment from each concert, 12 hours per year since the Festival expanded to two nights in 2005. Producing those 12 hours requires hundreds of hours of work by dozens of people. Planning for the next festival begins shortly after the last one ends.
We have written thousands of words about what we do and why we do it and could write a few thousand more about how our 10th Annual Festival was one of the most challenging but ultimately gratifying and important we have ever produced. But the cliché is that pictures are worth thousands of words and we have an unsurpassed collection of thousands of photographs documenting all of our festivals, including a few hundred from this one.
The photographer is John Collier, our long time friend who won many awards for his work at the Detroit Free Press. The slide show/photo essay linked below takes you behind the scenes with us during the final, frantic four days of this year’s production. We hope that the artistry of the photographs and the events they capture bring you as much joy as they have brought us.
Happy Holidays from all of us at the American Music Research Foundation.
THE 10TH ANNUAL MOTOR CITY BLUES AND BOOGIE WOOGIE FESTIVAL IN WORDS AND PICTURES. 
THE AMRF IS A REGISTERED 501(C)(3) DEDICATED TO THE PROMOTION, PRESERVATION, AND DOCUMENTATION OF AMERICAN MUSIC SO THAT CURRENT AND FUTURE GENERATIONS MIGHT UNDERSTAND AND NOT FORGET WHERE THEIR MUSICAL AND CULTURAL HERITAGE COMES FROM. FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO MAKE A DONATION CONTACT BRANDI STRIBBELL AT BRANDIS@AMRF.NET OR TOLL FREE 866-270-5141
About the American Music Research Foundation AMRF Festivals and Concerts AMRF General News AMRF ON TV
| | | Life, History, Music- John Penney [ 10/1/2008 - 18:10 ] # 
The words, “Life, History, Music,” loom large on the AMRF letterhead. If you have any questions about what those words mean to us, look no further that the cover story in the October 1, 2008 edition of Detroit’s Metro Times on Little Sonny Willis, a featured artist in our 10th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival at the Music Hall. See the pictures and read the article here.
AMRF Festivals and Concerts AMRF General News Blues Boogie Woogie
| | | 10 Years Young!- John Penney [ 9/26/2008 - 00:21 ] #  The Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival has always been about more than just presenting a great annual concert or two. From the beginning it was conceived as a vehicle that would bring great artists together so that their performances and stories could be captured on videotape.The goal is to document and preserve our musical and cultural heritage so that future generations will have an opportunity to understand it. This is the mission of the American Music Research Foundation.
As we celebrate our 10th anniversary we can look back with satisfaction on the history we have preserved and even some history we have made. We have documented the music and stories of over 59 artists, including such seminal figures as Koko Taylor, Johnnie Johnson, and Jay McShann. (For a complete list visit the artists page of our website.)
In 2004 Maria Muldaur recreated the sound and look of the Classic Blues singers of the 20's with James Dapogny's Chicago Jazz Band, a performance that inspired the best selling album, "Naughty, Bawdy & Blue," and the title of our TV show and DVD, "Boogie & the Blues Diva."In 2006 we presented 22 artists on stage for a night of Big Band Boogie Woogie, including performances in which world renowned solo pianist Bob Seeley played with a big band for the first time. In 2007 we reintroduced Frank "Sugarchild" Robinson, who disappeared from the scene after having been one of the biggest stars of the day as a child in the 50's.
We have produced four public television programs that have aired over 600 times on close to 200 stations across the country. Five additional hours of programming are in production, and this year's Festival will result in at least two more.
Throughout our 10 years, our good friend John Collier has documented our festivals with his brilliant photography.
VIEW A PHOTOGRAPHIC RETROSPECIVE OF THE MOTOR CITY BLUES &BOOGIE WOOGIE FESTIVAL.
About the American Music Research Foundation AMRF General News Blues Boogie Woogie
| | | discussion
- Beautiful slideshow. I can't wait for the show this weekend!
- [ryan] read more (1 total) |
| Get tickets now!- John Penney [ 9/15/2008 - 14:23 ] # THE 10TH ANNUAL MOTOR CITY BLUES & BOOGIE WOOGIE FESTIVAL
OUR BIGGEST FESTIVAL EVER!
AT THE MUSIC HALL CENTER IN DOWNTOWN DETROIT
Friday October 3 Doors 7:00pm show 8:00pm
Bob Seeley, Pinetop Perkins with Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Allen Toussaint
   
Saturday October 4 Doors 7:00pm Show 8:00pm
Little Sonny Willis with Eddie Burns, Otis Clay, Bobby Rush
   
TICKETS : $35/night general admission
$60 for a two night pass
$75/night VIP includes mezzanine seating, complimentary buffet, and cash bar
Available at the Music Hall Box Office 313-887-8486
Or at ticketmaster.com
Performances will be taped for public television
AMRF Festivals and Concerts Blues
| | | Thanks for Visiting at Jazzfest- John Penney [ 9/11/2008 - 09:30 ] # 
Thanks for giving us the opportunity to talk to you about the American Music Research Foundation at the Detroit International Jazzfest Labor Day weekend.
The 10th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival is just around the corner and it's going to rattle the rafters at the Detroit Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts.
 Friday night October 3rd is a piano blues bash with Bob Seeley, Pinetop Perkins with Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Allen Toussaint.
Saturday night October 4th brings Detroit's King of the Harmonica Little Sonny Willis with very special guest Eddie Burns, followed by Otis Clay and finally, the great Bobby Rush.
General admission tickets are just $35 a night, or $60 for a 2-night pass. VIP tickets providing mezzanine seating, a complimentary buffet, and a cash bar are available for $75 a night. Call the Music Hall Box office at 313-887-8486, or buy online from ticketmaster.
Make sure to use those postcards we gave you at the jazzfest for 10% discounts on tickets. And congratulations to the winners of our drawing for free tickets, Julie Evans-Zelinske of Dearborn and Patricia Walker of Detroit. We'll see you at the show!
The American Music Research Foundation is a non-profit dedicated the preservation, promotion, and documentation of American music, particularly Blues and Boogie Woogie, Gospel, Jazz, and Rhythm & Blues. As we celebrate our 10th Anniversary we can look back and see that, not only have we documented and preserved performances and oral histories of such artists as Jay McShann, Johnnie Johnson, Alberta Adams, and Red Holloway (for a complete list visit the artist page), but we have also made some history. We are working on some special events surrounding this year's festival - watch this space for updates!
AMRF Festivals and Concerts AMRF General News
| | | discussion
- We folks in Grayling, MI won't get the broadcast from our public TV channel. Co...more
- [John Novak] read more (1 total) |
| The 10th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival- John Penney [ 8/22/2008 - 13:43 ] #  It's our 10th anniversary and we're proud to present a particularly rich array of artists with deep roots in boogie woogie, blues, gospel, and soul at the Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Detroit.
General admission tickets are $35 each night, $75 VIP tickets provide you with mezzanine seating, complimentary buffet, and a cash bar. Available at the Music Hall box office (313-887-8500) and through ticketmaster.
For more information click here. or call toll free 1-866-270-5141.
AMRF Festivals and Concerts
| | | Thanks for Stopping By!- John Penney [ 8/7/2008 - 11:19 ] #  It was a pleasure to meet you at Elizabeth Park during the Jazz on the River Festival last weekend!
The American Music Research Foundation is a non-profit dedicated to the promotion, preservation, and documentation of American music, focusing on blues, gospel, ragtime, boogie woogie, jazz and rhythm and blues so we can provide a vehicle for generations to understand the historical significance of our American musical heritage. You can visit us at www.amrf.net
This year we celebrate the 10th Anniversary of our Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival. The performances and interviews with the artists will be recorded for posterity, and the footage used to produce nationally distributed programs for public television.
Your name has been entered into a drawing for tickets to this year's festival. The winner will be announced in early September. We look forward to seeing you at Music Hall October 3rd and 4th!
AMRF General News
| | | 10TH ANNUAL MOTOR CITY BLUES & BOOGIE WOOGIE FESTIVAL- John Penney [ 8/5/2008 - 12:37 ] # The 10th Annual Motor City Blues & Boogie Woogie Festival was hosted by the Detroit Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts on Friday October 3 and Saturday October 4, 2008. The performances and interviews with the artists were recorded and will be used to produce nationally distributed programs for public television. For our 10th anniversary we were proud to present a particularly rich array of artists with deep roots in the blues, boogie woogie, gospel, soul, and rhythm and blues.
FRIDAY OCTOBER 3
Allen Toussaint - New Orleans writer, producer, arranger, and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Allen Toussaint was inspired by Professor Longhair and later Fats Domino. As a producer for Minit Records in the 60’s, Toussaint played a primary role in defining the New Orleans R&B sound. He has published some 800 songs that have been recorded by everyone from Al Hirt ("Java") to Irma Thomas, Bonnie Raitt, and Labelle.
Pinetop Perkins is the last of the original boogie woogie pianists. Perkins spent 12 years playing with Muddy Waters before going out on his own. The Blues Foundation named him Blues Pianist of the year so many times that it eventually “retired” him from the award and named it after him. In 2005 he was given a Grammy Award for lifetime achievement.
Willie "Big Eyes" Smith was born in Helena AR and moved to Chicago when he was 17. He began sitting in with Muddy Waters' band in 1957 and soon beame a permanent member, playing live and on all of Muddy's Grammy winning albums. Willie then formed the Legendary Blues Band with Pinetop Perkins, Louis Myers, Calvin Jones, and Jerry Portnoy. The group recorded four critically aclaimed albums and received several Grammy nominations.
Bob Seeley - Detroit’s own Bob Seeley will return to the Festival to celebrate his 80th birthday. Seeley is revered around the world as one of the greatest solo boogie woogie players working today. A friend and contemporary of none other than the legendary Meade Lux Lewis, Seeley plays with a fire and conviction reminiscent of Lewis, Pete Johnson and Albert Ammons.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4
Bobby Rush began performing in the juke joints of northern Louisiana as a teenager. He moved to Chicago in the mid-50’s, where his bands included the likes of Fredie King, Earl Hooker, and Luther Allison. Rush calls his music “folk-funk,” deeply rooted in tradition but decidedly modern. Rush was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 2006, and in 2008 was honored by the Blues Foundation as both Acoustic Blues Artist and Male Soul Blues Artist of the year.
Otis Clay is one of the premier deep soul and gospel singers working today. Born in Mississippi, Clay began performing with such legendary gospel groups as the Pilgrim Harmonizers and the Sensational Nightingales. He moved to Chicago and launched a solo career as a deep soul singer with a series of hit singles in the mid-60’s. His raw, fiery vocals drive an energetic and danceable blend of soul, R&B, and Blues.
Aaron “Little Sonny” Willis, “King of the Blues Harmonica,” is known for his hot, driving sound and is one of the most respected artists in Detroit. Willis began singing gospel and spirituals in church as a child in Alabama and became interested in the blues after his mother gave him a toy harmonica. He moved to Detroit in 1953 and has been performing in the city and around the world ever since.
Eddie Burns – Burns grew up in the Mississippi delta where his grandfather ran the local juke joint. He began playing harmonica and picked up the guitar after settling Detroit in 1948. Burns worked as a member of John Lee Hooker’s band and backed him on the legendary recording, “Real Folk Blues.” He has been a fixture in the Detroit Blues scene ever since, with numerous recordings and international tours to his credit.
TICKETS AVAILABLE FROM THE MUSIC HALL BOX OFFICE AND TICKETMASTER
AMRF Festivals and Concerts AMRF General News
| | | INTERNATIONAL BOOGIE WOOGIE ON DVD- John Penney [ 7/21/2008 - 12:19 ] #
For a DVD containing the complete program
and an additional 45 minutes of bonus footage call toll free 866-270-5141.
$25 includes postage and handling.
 A pianist with a ferocious left hand rolling through eight-beats-to-the-bar is what comes to mind when you think of boogie woogie. The four pianists in INTERNATIONAL BOOGIE WOOGIE provide plenty of that while approaching the music from different perspectives. Switzerland's Sylvan Zingg demonstrates that, "you can boogie anything." France's Philippe LeJeune is a jazz pianist originally inspired by boogie woogie legend Memphis Slim. Vancouver B. C.'s Kenny "Blues Boss" Wayne learned boogie woogie from his church organist in Los Angeles, and Toronto's Michael Kaeshammer has been reinventing the genre ever since he heard boogie woogie as a child in Germany. The program ends with all four artists jamming in a classic eight-handed "train wreck." If you love the piano, the performances in INTERNATIONAL BOOGIE WOOGIE will amaze and inspire you.
WATCH A 3 MINUTE TRAILER
ALSO AVAILABLE
Gen2 Blues
Boogie & the Blues Diva
Contact:
boogie@amrf.net
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