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 Artists Blues Boogie Woogie Rhythm and Blues
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