Brandon Santini and Delta Highway cut a new live CD by Robert "Nighthawk " Tooms

(Memphis, Tennessee) This week we travel downtown to old Beale Street where my freinds, Brandon Santini, Elliot Sowell, Derek Bonn, and Tom "Slim " Lewis are cutting a new live CD during 3 days of this week. They are cutting down at Mr. Handy's Blues Hall which is the site of the first performance I ever saw brother Santini give in Memphis years ago. Now at the age of 28, he has honed his skills and his delivery and is putting out some fine dynamic shows, passing by many of his competitors who have even more experience than he.

After 7 years, his partner decided he no longer wanted to play and Brandon took the bull by the horns and reorganized his group from the ground up. It was a great marriage of new musicians that would bear fruit quickly.

Drummer Derek Bonn lays it down

Derek Bonn, a new addition to the group is a solid blues drummer who knows the job and delivers the goods. He is not a flash in the pan but instead a musician who has obviously listened and paid attention to the great blues drummers and embraced their strengths, encompassing their skills to craft his own style. He is not distracting but is tasteful and in the pocket. In combination with slim Lewis the rhythm section is the best this band has ever brought to bear and this author has heard them play countless nights on Beale Street and elsewhere as I was often playing next door or on the same street.

my old friend, Tom "Slim" Lewis...I have been friends with Slim and his wife for many years

the new, hard driving version of Delta Highway

Brandon a native of North Carolina, moved to Memphis to play the blues and he has done so. With the new band he can stretch out and expand the possibilities of dynamics and improvisation far beyond the original band's capabilities. Brandon has paid attention and learned how to do more than play hard and loud. He has gained finesse, steadily improving as a musician and vocalist, now more capable than ever and accompanied by a professional band.

Elliot Sowell truly shines on guitar, he is a talent not to be missed

Elliot, Derek and Slim
Elliot and Derek both are veterans of the St. Louis music scene.

Elliot Sowell

Elliot Sowell is the perfect, tasteful foil for Santini's harp and vocals. His delivery is traditional blues with an emphasis on accompaniment, like the other band members using his instrumental virtuosity with aplomb to make the overall sound authentic and listenable rather than just another platform for guitar wanking. Tasteful solos riddled with classic blues technique are his stock in trade. He can deliver the perfect drone tone background riffs to build a base for a tune and switch instantly to provide fills and alternate with Santini's lead parts.

These guys play like much older, more experienced musicians and they have obviously spent many days listening to the good stuff and also meshing their various talents into a cogent mix while toiling away in these little blues bars, earning thier chops legitimately. They are flat out impressive to listen to and enjoyable for the crowds that they draw. I don't think they ever lose a listener.

Delta Highway

Brandon leads the band through a soulful blues number

Elliot Sowell

Brandon Santini blows a smoking solo

Santini's implements

Derek Bonn, one of the finest blues drummers in the city

Derek Bonn and Slim Lewis

I have had the distinct pleasure of sitting in with the band and it was as good a show as most any of the bonafide blues bands I have worked with in the past 30 years. No doubt, if you have an opportunity to hear these guys, do so. They are a real slice of the Beale street pie that is becoming more rare of a commodity each year.

Brandon Santini

Derek and Slim

Brandon Santini

Bike night on Beale Street is sort of controlled bedlam

the scene outside Handy Hall where Delta Highway is recording

On June 5th, the Rumboogie Cafe will celebrate its 25th Anniversary and the author will play twice during the big celebration along with some notable Memphis musicians who have played at this location down through the years, including James Govan, Don McMinn, John Lee Hooker, Jr., Eric Hughes, Guy Venable and some special guests. Tickets are still available. The Rumboogie Cafe is located next door to Handy Hall. In fact the two businesses share a bathroom. The Handy Hall is the last of the hardwood floored, old juke joints on the street. It is a tiny, yet soulful little room that has seen a lot of music. with my band the Wampus Cats, I used to back up Muddy Water's harp player, Mojo Buford in this room. I will be backing him up in Helena, Arkansas this year at the Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival.

The author is playing Alfred's with the Eric Hughes Band while Santini and company labors down the street

Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms at Alfred's(photo by John Gemmill)

Some upcoming dates:

Sat Jul 03	9:30 pm	Fiery Ron's Hometeam BBQ	Sullivan's Island, SC
Sun Jul 04	9:30 pm	Fiery Ron's Hometeam BBQ	Sullivan's Island, SC
Fri Jul 09	7:00 pm	Carolina Mountain Ribfest	Fletcher, NC
Sat Jul 10	9:00 pm	Uptown Sushi Bar & Cafe	Greenwood, SC

Here's a list of more dates from their website:

http://http//www.deltahighwayblues.com/fr_home.cfm

RCT

© Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms, 2010

A Night at Ground Zero Clarksdale by Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms

(Memphis, Tennessee) After a long afternoon in the sun playing with the Eric Hughes Band at the new Harley-Davidson dealership in Southaven, Mississippi, my brother, Jeffrey, and I re-grouped and headed even further south down the blues highway, Highway 61, to Ground Zero Blues Club in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Photo above is of my friends Brandon Santini of Delta Highway and Josh Roberts of the Reba Russell Band. I had seen Delta Highway members Brandon Santini, Tom Lewis, Derek Bonn and Elliot Sowell at our gig in Southaven and these guys performance got canceled so Brandon decided to drive down to hang out with us at Ground Zero.

Here's an article I wrote about Delta Highway: http://www.ameriblues.com/2010/04/brandon-santini-and-delta-highway-by.html

Here's a link to their site: http://www.deltahighwayblues.com/fr_home.cfm

I will be writing an upcoming article on Delta Highway's live recordings that are taking place this week

After loading in we get down to business, playing for a sold out crowd of kind revelers and blues fans, many who had come from out of town and even some who had traveled from out of the country to visit the most famous juke joint in the delta.

The Reba Russell Band is releasing their new CD on the 15th of May and it is the band's best effort yet. It is being called "8" as it is their eighth CD and it is full of new bluesy songs and a couple of surprises. Get your copy at RebaRussell.com.

Wayne Russell behind the throbbing bass

During a break I shot this picture of Reba Russell and Mr. and Mrs. Bill Luckett

Bill Luckett and award winning actor, Morgan Freeman, own Ground Zero and Bill has been a friend for many decades. He is currently running for Governor of Mississippi and it was great to see him and play one of his favorite songs, Albert King's "I'll Play the Blues for You." Ground Zero also has several well appointed rooms upstairs from the club which they rent out. It is a favorite place to stay for blues fans and travelers along the blues highway. The whole building is an old cotton grading warehouse and is a genuine piece of southern history.

Reba Russell sings the blues off the band's new CD, entitled "8."

That's Josh Roberts playing slide guitar above.

The party thrives at Ground Zero.

Doug McMinn behind the drums

Reba Russell

Reba Russell

Reba Russell

The Reba Russell Band without the keyboard guy who was taking the picture

Brandon Santini and Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms

If you ever get the chance, visit Clarksdale and the delta as it is rich in traditional blues, has a fine blues museum and is not fraught with all the tourist trap repugnance that is currently plaguing Beale Street. I love Beale Street more than anybody and have played there for over 25 years, but karaoke, dj's and club owners who only want to pay 5 piece bands $200 a night have degraded the experience considerably. Jesus, how cheap and trifling can you get? Beale is a historical gem but the better musicians cannot afford to play there. They still come to Clarksdale's Ground Zero.

Sorry, Beale Street, but you have done this to yourselves and I am not going to lie for you. It's not too late for Beale to come back to it's glory, but that's probably best left for another article. At this point the club owners are starving out the music scene to squeeze out higher margins for themselves and it has become just another alcohol experience for most visitors rather than the zenith of the blues mecca that it is purported to be.

our friend, Belinda Moore

that's Jay Moore's sweet mother, Doryce Moore, who comes often to see the band.

Brandon Santini, Jeffrey Tooms, Jay Moore and Brian LaPrade

Reba Russell, J. T. Lauritsen and artist/songwriter Sally Raburn

J. T. sat in on a few numbers. He hails from Norway and is booking the band for a Norway tour there this year in October. He is a good singer, harp player and organ player.

My brother and I stopped by Delta Donut after the gig, but sadly, they weren't open yet

World famous Abe's Bar-B-Que as seen on the Food Network

The crossroads where the two highways intersect

Here's a link to Clarksdale's Ground Zero blues club, Delta Cotton Company Apartments, Madidi Restaurant and a link to their club's live audio/video stream :

http://www.groundzerobluesclub.com/home.php

RCT

© Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms, 2010

Brandon Santini and Delta Highway by Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms

(Memphis, Tennessee) Last week I had the pleasure of sitting in with my friend, Brandon Santini, and his new version of Delta Highway. Victor Wainwright, who took the photo of the band above, invited the traveling Terry Lape and me to come down to Mr. Handy's Blues Hall at Third and Beale. Victor said he was setting up a piano that night and that I could drop in and play some with brother Santini's new band.

Of note, Victor Wainwright and the WildRoots' new album, Beale Street to the Bayou, has just hit #2 on the blues charts. You heard about him here first, at the American Blues News. Victor is scheduled to fly overseas with me and the Reba Russell band during an upcoming tour to Norway in October. We will be backing up Victor on the big cruise ship between Reba Russell sets. Here's an earlier article I wrote about Victor Wainwright: Victor Wainwright, Blues, Boogie and More

Handy Hall, where family pictures of Mr. Handy still hang on the walls

Billed by the owners as the last real juke joint on Beale, Handy Hall is a small venue which has been played by Watermelon Slim, the North Mississippi All-Stars, and back in the 1980's by Muddy Waters' harmonica player, Mojo Buford, accompanied by me and my band, the Wampus Cats. It is a tiny place with a wooden floor attached to the adjacent Rumboogie Cafe by a door. In fact, there is no bathroom inside Handy Hall. You have to walk next door to the Rumboogie for such amenities.

View from the street looking inside Mr. Handy's Blues Hall, or Handy Hall as it is known
(photo courtesy of Carson Lamm, Rum Boogie Cafe)

As Gatorman and I dropped in on this Thursday night, the band was just getting ready to play and I got to say hello to Victor and Brandon. Since American Blues News' Monica Yasher last wrote about the band, Brandon has gotten all new personnel. Click here to read Monica's article: Interview with Delta Highway by Monica Yasher

The last band was great and this band is actually even better. The instrumental virtuosity and tastefulness of accompaniment are not to be rivaled by many blues bands on this earth, and I have seen quite a few. I watched with delight as the band masterfully plowed through a wide selection of old blues with grace and fluidity. The band goes up and starts out the night with some instrumental numbers and is then joined by bandleader Brandon who guides the show with some good vocals, excellent crowd rapport and fine harp playing.

Brad Webb of I 55 Productions and Tom "Slim" Lewis
at the Memphis Blues Society jam

(photo by Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms)

My old friend and band mate, Slim Lewis, is still playing bass with Delta Highway. Slim is a steady hand at the bass and he has been a denizen of Beale Street almost as long as I have. He has many hours behind the bass on these stages. He is not only a valued old friend to me but also a real asset to all the younger players in the band. Tom returns to the band after a year and half absence. He recently toured with the Rockin' Jake Band and was also a member of Jason Ricci and New Blood.

Brandon Santini and Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms on Beale Street

Brandon moved from his home in North Carolina to pick up the sounds of the Delta, which he absorbed like a sponge in short order. He currently plays about 3 nights a week with the band at their home base of Mr. Handy's Blues Hall. Like most Memphis' professional musicians, he is planning more lucrative and far-reaching tours in the near future.

Brandon Santini (photo by Victor Wainwright)

I played many, many nights at the Rumboogie Cafe while Brandon Santini played next door with Delta Highway and his harmonica playing has truly metamorphosed, going from being an excellent beginner into a first rate professional, delivering the goods with an eclectic blend of styles. Rather than being just another guy out there copying songs and styles, he has incorporated the best and owns it as his own now, playing with confidence that comes from paying your dues for so many nights in clubs and on the road.

The band now has good dynamics and more sophisticated playing skills. You can look for great things from Brandon. He has already been nominated for a Blues Music Award in 2009 as "Best New Artist Debut" and toured internationally, re-forming his band along the way.

Elliot Sowell

(photo by Victor Wainwright)

Elliot Sowell, guitarist for Delta Highway

(photo from MySpace)

Delta Highway's new guitarist, Elliot Sowell, is a truly tremendous talent, with a style that incorporates the best of blues and even some rockabilly influences. His playing sounds like it would be coming from a guitarist much older in years. This is what you want coming out of the guitar amp if you are leading a blues band, tasty accompaniment and searing lead lines. Elliot originally comes from Texas and he has also lived in St. Louis during the past few years, playing with the Rockin' Jake Band. I really enjoy Elliot's playing and would encourage you all to seek out the new record that these guys are producing for release this spring.

Derek Bonn and a few friends
(photo from MySpace)

I also got a few moments to speak with Derek Bonn, a superb blues drummer who knows the value of backbeat in the mix of a good blues band. Derek is not only talented but a very affable and genuine person as well.

Derek Bonn, drummer for Delta Highway
(photo by Victor Wainwright)

He formerly resided in St. Louis and was a member of the band, Los Carnales. He has also backed up many other artists, among them Arthur Williams, Nick Curran, and Kirk Fletcher. Derek adds a lot to this band. I don't think you could find a better drummer for the job.

Derek Bonn (photo from MySpace)

These guys just rocked the joint, just killing the capacity crowd in this little joint and they were particularly enjoyable when accompanied by piano virtuoso Victor Wainwright. I had a great time sitting in and playing a few numbers with these guys as they are a bonafide blues band. They deliver the real sound and are not just some guys calling themselves blues players. Lots of nights they will have a bigger crowd in this little club than the bigger club next door.

Likewise the members of Delta Highway share a camaraderie that is built on trust and respect for their fellow musicians. This trait is not shared by all the bands who have played on this stage. One such bandleader, who shall not be named, does not pay his band, only shares tips with them. His musicians put up with this repugnant, predatory behavior so I suppose they get what they sign on for, but you will never read his name on this page. To insure that we keep our music scene vibrant, I strongly encourage all of you musicians to refuse to participate in such ill-advised arrangements. Have some pride and respect for your brothers, for God's sake. Regardless, I am encouraged at younger bandleaders like Brandon and his guys who overcome the obstacles together and are doing it the right way.

Delta Highway's sound was full and hard driving without being too rocked out. They sound like a real blues band and this is something that is pretty rare in a world saturated by weekend warriors, misplaced hard rockers and dilettantes. Without reservation, I strongly suggest you make your way to see them on Beale Street and elsewhere. Don't forget to drop some tips in the bucket.

More NEWS:

Memphis Blues Society

I attended the Memphis Blues Society's Blues Jam at Neil's in Memphis and had a great time, visiting with loads of good friends and even leading a group at the end of the night. God have mercy on you all, as I will be the Jam Master on the next event on the 15th of April, starting at 7 PM in the big back room at Neil's, located in Midtown Memphis at McLean and Madison Avenue. It promises to be another extraordinary night with some special guests slated to attend and play.

I spoke with John Gemmil, Vice President of the Memphis Blues Society and he is arranging a method by which we can gather funds for the renovation of Memphis Slim's original Memphis home. We hope to have this set up in the next few days so that you can donate directly at their site. Here's the article I wrote about Slim and his house: Resurrecting the Home of Memphis Slim

To join the Memphis Blues society, just click on this link: Memphis Blues Society

While you are at the site, order a copy of the Memphis Blues Society Compilation CD. It is excellent and features a rare performance of Beale Streeter Earl Forest and the late Richard Hite(formerly of Canned Heat) along with my band, the Wampus Cats. There are also great cuts by Billy Gibson, William Lee Ellis, the Pocket Rockets and Blind Mississippi Morris, Larie "Waddy" Mitchell, Krash Kole and the Blues Souls, the Eric Hughes Band(with me on keys), Victor Wainwright, Phillip Dale Durham and Bobby Lawson. These talented artists are all my friends and I really dig this record.

How do you get a copy?

This compilation is not for “sale”…you won’t find it in any music stores, on-line, etc. The only way you can get a copy is to join the Memphis Blues Society. The compilation is another benefit of MBS membership. Join/renew today, and start listening to some of the best blues in Memphis (or anywhere else for that matter).

The Memphis Blues Society thanks the artists for their awesome contribution and support of the blues and for Keepin' the Blues Alive!

click here:

Memphis Blues Society



Before the Music Dies

I would encourage you all to watch this video on Hulu and also to support live music and independent musicians in order to protect and nurture the music we all love and enjoy. The message of the video is self-explanatory, but to recapitulate, suffice it to say that greedy bastards everywhere are doing their best to turn art into a commodity not unlike fertilizer. We all need to be cognizant of this fact and do our best to cherish what we love to insure its survival for our descendants.

It features Erykah Badu before her naked public debut/misdemeanor/publicity stunt in Dallas and a host of other musicians. Check it out here:


http://www.hulu.com/watch/62945/before-the-music-dies

The Blues Foundation

Speaking of supporting our music, let me encourage you all once again to join the single largest protector of the blues, the Blues Foundation. An entry level membership is now available for a nominal charge and this will allow you to vote for the winner of the Blues Music Awards in many categories. You will also be supporting the International Blues Challenge and the Blues Hall of Fame.

Please take a minute to do your part to support the music we love. It's easy to join online, here's the link:

Join the Blues Foundation today!

Check out my website at: http://www.RobertNighthawkTooms.com

RCT

Photographs, ©Victor Wainwright, 2010
Photographs and text, © Robert "Nighthawk" Tooms, 2010