Samui Blues http://samuiblues.com Koh Samui Thailand Blues Music From Around the World Thu, 15 Sep 2011 20:21:44 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Samui Internationl Jazz Fest 2011 http://samuiblues.com/samui-internationl-jazz-fest-2011/ http://samuiblues.com/samui-internationl-jazz-fest-2011/#comments Thu, 15 Sep 2011 20:21:41 +0000 mtwang http://samuiblues.com/?p=568 If you are in Koh Samui or the area and like Jazz then check out the the yearly Samui Internationl Jazz Fest Sept 18th to the 25th, 2011. For more info check out Samui Jazz Festival]]>

If you are in Koh Samui or the area and like Jazz then check out the the yearly Samui Internationl Jazz Fest Sept 18th to the 25th, 2011.

For more info check out Samui Jazz Festival

]]> http://samuiblues.com/samui-internationl-jazz-fest-2011/feed/ 0 Jazz Music Festival Samui Jazz 2010 http://samuiblues.com/jazz-music-festival-samui-jazz/ http://samuiblues.com/jazz-music-festival-samui-jazz/#comments Wed, 22 Sep 2010 04:40:32 +0000 mtwang http://samuiblues.com/?p=542 Date: 24 – 30 Sept 2010 Venue: Samui Island (Fisherman Village, Chaweng Beach, Lamai Beach) International and Thai artist will perform their jazz tunes at this beautiful, tropical island of Samui, Thailand. Meet 20 international artists such as Peter Beets, Saskia Laroo, Renske Taminiau, Alexander Beets and more than 100 Thai Jazz musicians, including the [...]]]> Date: 24 – 30 Sept 2010
Venue: Samui Island (Fisherman Village, Chaweng Beach, Lamai Beach)

International and Thai artist will perform their jazz tunes at this beautiful, tropical island of Samui, Thailand.

Meet 20 international artists such as Peter Beets, Saskia Laroo, Renske Taminiau, Alexander Beets and more than 100 Thai Jazz musicians, including the Big Band “the Nontri Orchestra”. There will be 11 stages and 42 shows on various locations.

The Samui International Jazz Music Festival aims to bring joy of Jazz Music to this fabulous location and give young Thai Jazz musicians the chance to perform with international artists.

All concerts will be free to the public.

For more information, please contact
festival@samuijazz.com
Tel: 077-427591

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]]> http://samuiblues.com/jazz-music-festival-samui-jazz/feed/ 0 Hot Hamilton’s Cool Blues Scene a lifetime spent trying to play the Blues in Hamilton, Canada Press Release http://samuiblues.com/hot-hamilton%e2%80%99s-cool-blues-scene/ http://samuiblues.com/hot-hamilton%e2%80%99s-cool-blues-scene/#comments Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:01:20 +0000 Cool Fool http://samuiblues.com/?p=530 THE BOOK BAND Representing the Best of Small Press P.O. Box 3471, Stn. C. Voice: 905-545-5274 Hamilton ON L8H 7M1 E-mail: info@thebookband.com www.thebookband.com Attn: Trudi FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Hot Hamilton’s Cool Blues Scene It’s the early 1960s and two Hamilton teens, Doug Carter and Richard Newell (later known as King Biscuit Boy), with two other [...]]]> THE BOOK BAND
Representing the Best of Small Press
P.O. Box 3471, Stn. C. Voice: 905-545-5274
Hamilton ON L8H 7M1 E-mail: info@thebookband.com
www.thebookband.com Attn: Trudi

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Hot Hamilton’s Cool Blues Scene
It’s the early 1960s and two Hamilton teens, Doug Carter and Richard Newell (later known as King Biscuit Boy), with two other friends, form The Chessmen band after being bitten by the Blues bug. Success from playing local gigs somehow results in a “tour” in England and Germany. The rest, as they say, is history … but it’s a wild journey that Blues aficionados will enjoy reliving. Cool Fool: Blues Rockin’ In The Hammer is Doug Carter’s honest, funny and as-true-as-he-can-remember-it story of playing the Blues (and other musical styles) from the 1960s to 1980s. Published by Seraphim Editions (www.seraphimeditions.com ), this straight-shooting memoir brings to life the vibrant Hamilton and Buffalo music scenes of the times. It traces Carter’s love of music and the ups and downs of his musical career, along with the good, the bad and the sometimes ugly bits about performing live.

Carter says he wrote the book to expand on the back story of Hamilton’s most famous Blues harmonica virtuoso, Richard Newell, and “to celebrate the music and the musicians I made some great music with along the way.”

A book launch for Cool Fool will be held on Saturday August 14, 2010 at the Artword ArtBar (15 Colbourne Street, Hamilton), starting at 7:30 p.m. This event is free and is open to the public. There will be live music by Eddies Club Blues with Ron Copple, one of the original Chessmen. There will also be a short reading by the author.
Founded in 1995, Seraphim Editions publishes the works of established and emerging Canadian writers.

For more information about Cool Fool or the book launch, or to request a review copy (pdf format), please contact Trudi at info@thebookband.com.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Bassist Doug Carter has been a Hamilton musician since he started gigging with The Chessmen at local high schools and clubs. For many years, he made a living playing music with such Blues notables as Morgan Davis, Teddy Leonard, Donny Walsh, Harrison Kennedy, and Mike Oddie, as well as rockers Tim Gibbons, Fraser Loveman,
Michael O’Brien and Tom Wilson. Doug has co-written songs with Richard Newell and guitarist Mike McMillan. He is also a visual artist who has exhibited throughout Southern Ontario, and from 1995 to 2004, he administered the non-profit Carnegie Art Gallery in Dundas, Ontario.

To arrange an interview with Doug Carter, please contact him at coolfoolthebook@gmail.com

Read A Chapter here:
a lifetime spent trying to play the Blues in Hamilton, Canada
Doin’ The Buffalo Shuffle

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]]> http://samuiblues.com/hot-hamilton%e2%80%99s-cool-blues-scene/feed/ 0 Cool Fool Blues Rockin In The Hammer http://samuiblues.com/cool-fool-blues-rockin-hammer/ http://samuiblues.com/cool-fool-blues-rockin-hammer/#comments Thu, 05 Aug 2010 12:43:04 +0000 Doug Carter http://samuiblues.com/?p=525 This is my story, my memories, from my very subjective point of view. I’ve tried to capture the enthusiasm of the era, a golden age of pop music, and its roots in the Blues . I apologize if I’ve left anyone out that should have been included and I’ve done the best I can to [...]]]> This is my story, my memories, from my very subjective point of view. I’ve tried to capture the enthusiasm of the era, a golden age of pop music, and its roots in the Blues . I apologize if I’ve left anyone out that should have been included and I’ve done the best I can to confirm the spelling of the names I have used, but since 1959 was over 50 years ago, etc., and memory being what it is, what you’re holding, if not the truth exactly, is how I remember it.  

I made very little money from my musical endeavours, if you don’t count the $15 or so I get each year from the royalties for “Deaf, Dumb, Crippled & Blind” and “Caledonia River”, two tunes I co-wrote with Richard Newell that, believe it or not, someone somewhere still gets out of the vaults to spin on air.

Click on the  Book Cover to order  it.

The women in all the lives I touch on in this memoire have been left out on purpose. That’s another, and in some situations very complex, subject. I think I’ll leave that for the soap opera version.

In retrospect, the music ruled. As J.B. Lenoir wrote “…the voodoo music has got the whole world in its spell.” It sure as hell had me.

It’s hard to express the appreciation I have for all the help everyone along the way gave me pursuing my dream. Having gone straight from high school to the cold mill at Dofasco, as it was once known, I knew early that the get-a-regular-day-job-with-a-pension-and-stick-to it-until-you’re-65 was never going to work for me. Face the Burlington Street bus to Beach Road to & fro 5 days a week or hit the road and take a chance on life in a Blues Rockin’ band? Well, the next 150+ pages or so is my answer to that question.
About Cool Fool, The Book
Doug Carter

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]]> http://samuiblues.com/cool-fool-blues-rockin-hammer/feed/ 0 Oscar Peterson & Count Basie – Slow Jazz Blues http://samuiblues.com/oscar-peterson-count-basie/ http://samuiblues.com/oscar-peterson-count-basie/#comments Tue, 03 Aug 2010 12:52:06 +0000 mtwang http://samuiblues.com/?p=251

Pull up a chair, open a cold one, or pour your favourite glass of wine, light up that _ _ _ _ _ , and listen to the COOL Smooth, Jazz Blues of Oscar Peterson & Count Basie from 2000 .  Jazz in Koh Samui, Thailand OK they did not play here but we can dream.

Where’s all those kool kats with some $ash that can open a nice Jazz Blues Bar here in Koh Samui?

Come on down and make this place an International Entertainment Samui with some Samui Blues and Samui Jazz

]]> http://samuiblues.com/oscar-peterson-count-basie/feed/ 23 The Tear Jar- An Explosion of Blues Music http://samuiblues.com/tear-jar-explosion-blues-music/ http://samuiblues.com/tear-jar-explosion-blues-music/#comments Sun, 11 Jul 2010 13:58:23 +0000 mtwang http://samuiblues.com/?p=77 Anyone who has ever listened to the “Blues” knows that it is more than just music, but an inspiration, an unfolding of the emotions that we all feel. From Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Willie Dixon and many other influential Blues legends, to the more contemporary Blues artists such as Robert Cray, Eric Clapton and [...]]]>

Anyone who has ever listened to the “Blues” knows that it is more than just music, but an inspiration, an unfolding of the emotions that we all feel. From Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Willie Dixon and many other influential Blues legends, to the more contemporary Blues artists such as Robert Cray, Eric Clapton and Stevie Ray Vaughan, Blues music has and always be a part of out musical heritage.
Capturing the essence and spirit that the Blues represent is a novel “Blues Musical” called “The Tear Jar.” Not focusing on a particular band or individual, the “Tear Jar” instead is a collaboration and meeting of the minds of many talented people including producer Chris Bravacos, song writer Robert Welch, audio engineer Frank Silver and writer Jerry King Musser.

Blended into the musical are the rare talents of musicians such as: industry veteran Diane Wilson (singing the character of Savannah), talented Bluesman Don Johnson (singing the character of Mason Ball), Blues guitar virtuoso Jared James Nichols (singing the character of JD Hunter), Jazz sensation Rose Hudson (singing the part of Chandra), veteran Gospel singer Eugene Barclift (playing the character of Stubs) and Soul Music vet Charles Lee (as the Preacher), among others.

To set up the story, one needs to know what a ‘tear jar’ is and what it represents. In ancient cultures, water was a prized possession and giving up water from one’s own body, in the form of tears, was considered a personal sacrifice. They would catch their precious tears in tiny pitchers or ‘tear jars.” The ‘saved’ tears could then be used to ward off evil or to help a sick child. The writer takes this belief and implements into the storyline and applies it to the infectious Blues songs that encompass and define the musical. Here is a brief synopsis of the story:

“Seasoned, itinerant blues man, Mason Ball, returns to The Blue Rose, a club in which he enjoys playing, with an owner he deeply ‘admires.’ Upon his arrival, he’s surprised to discover that a ‘new kid in town’ has claimed the stage and attention of an appreciative audience. This young upstart, one JD Hunter, is unwilling to relinquish the limelight and makes it clear that the ‘old blues’ is dead. To add to the tension, Mason’s private love interest shares with him a serious, personal loss. Frustrated with his inability to appease her emotional pain, Mason dips his finger into a jar of tears given him by his recently departed mother and touches her with the potion. This act, apparently, manifests in wondrous results… relieving her of her anguish. Mason doubts his healing powers, yet can’t dismiss the changes he seems to have made. When word gets out, the audience demands Mason’s appearance onstage and seem to come for his ‘gift of healing’ as much as his gift of song. JD challenges Mason’s abilities, those both spiritual and musical. When a plan to expose Mason backfires, JD Hunter learns what it’s like to be on the receiving end of ‘the gift.’ But, gift or not, the characters in this story find themselves at a new place in their lives after discovering life’s potential magic is available to anyone.”

I have not seen the production, but have listened to some of the music and was overjoyed to hear a dizzying array of crisp, fresh Blues cuts that are certain to be standards and will have die-hard Blues fans clamoring for more.

“When Does The Healing Begin” is full of Gospel-fueled licks and superb vocals that fuses the Blues and Gospel in an explosion of sound. The cut called “The Magic,” like any great Blues song, just bleeds emotion, from the growling vocals and the Stevie Ray Vaughan-like riffs, yet it still remains achingly tender. “Satisfier” is expertly played and sang, with sultry vocals and is sung with immeasurable passion and strength. “I’m Gone,” is bound to become a classic blues rocker, tight and structured, and just compels you to bob your head or tap your foot with melodic adventure. “Stormbringer” perfectly fuses Soul and Blues music, with impassioned vocals and stellar guitar and organ work.

“The Tear Jar” is bound to become an instant classic Blues production, with fresh Blues music for all fans of the genre, who are sure to be pleased with the efforts of all the performers and everyone who is involved with this wondrous project. In its beginning stages, “The Tear Jar” has a performance slated for the Sunoco Performance Theater on Thursday, August 7 and Friday August 8, 2008 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. And with an intriguing storyline, a stellar cast and new Blues standards, it will soon make a bold impression in the music world and specifically Blues music.

]]> http://samuiblues.com/tear-jar-explosion-blues-music/feed/ 0 Featuring Some Of The Great Guitar Blues Players http://samuiblues.com/featuring-great-guitar-blues-players/ http://samuiblues.com/featuring-great-guitar-blues-players/#comments Fri, 28 May 2010 08:33:47 +0000 mtwang http://samuiblues.com/?p=117 In the history of the guitar blues there have been some great players and fortunately many of those great players are still with us today. Whether you prefer smooth guitar blues or whether you like to have your guitar blues smash you in the face there have been players to oblige you and to entertain [...]]]>

In the history of the guitar blues there have been some great players and fortunately many of those great players are still with us today. Whether you prefer smooth guitar blues or whether you like to have your guitar blues smash you in the face there have been players to oblige you and to entertain you for over a century now. Here is a quick look at some guitar blues players that have made an impact.

BB King

BB King has been playing guitar blues for over 60 years and is one of the standards that people use when they talk about guitar blues players. He has recorded with such great bands as U2 and is best known for his trademark hollow body electric guitar he calls Lucille. He was originally called the Beale Street Blues Boy but before his first record came out the record company shortened it to BB and used his real last name of King to create the name BB King. In over 60 years BB King has played his smooth style of blues all over the world.

Eric Clapton

Known simply as “Slow Hand”, Eric Clapton is a self taught guitar prodigy who got his start in the famous 1960′s hard rock blues band Cream. After Cream disbanded he went on to form such acts as Derrick And The Dominoes but Clapton was always displaying his trademark slow hand smooth guitar blues style somewhere in the world. Recently Cream was reunited for a few shows and it is unknown whether or not they will stay together but even without a reunited Cream Eric Clapton has still left his mark as one of the greatest guitar blues players ever.

Robert Johnson

It is difficult to talk about guitar blues players without talking about the man that greats such as Jimi Hendrix and Muddy Waters cite as one of their prime influences. Robert Johnson was born in 1911 and died in 1938 but in between there he recorded and released at least a half dozen or more records that survive today as an example of the talent and vision that Johnson had. He lived the blues and, by some accounts, died because of the blues and Robert Johnson is the place where most blues is said to have come from.

Jimi Hendrix

For some reason Jimi Hendrix is never given his due as the master guitar blues player that he was because many people cannot see past his use of sound and energy on the electric guitar. But everything Jimi did was based in the blues and many of his more popular songs are simply blues songs done Jimi’s way and there is nothing wrong with that.

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]]> http://samuiblues.com/featuring-great-guitar-blues-players/feed/ 2 Blues Guitar Tips – How to Perform Left Hand Techniques http://samuiblues.com/blues-guitar-tips-perform-left/ http://samuiblues.com/blues-guitar-tips-perform-left/#comments Mon, 19 Apr 2010 02:43:19 +0000 mtwang http://samuiblues.com/?p=141 BluesIf you have a hankerin’ to be a blues guitar player but don’t know how to start, there is no better way than to immerse yourself in the recordings of the blues guitar players of the twentieth century. You can use the licks of famous blues guitarists as building blocks that will eventually be the [...]]]> Blues

If you have a hankerin’ to be a blues guitar player but don’t know how to start, there is no better way than to immerse yourself in the recordings of the blues guitar players of the twentieth century. You can use the licks of famous blues guitarists as building blocks that will eventually be the fragments of your own blues guitar solos. There is wide agreement amongst blues fans about who are the greatest blues guitarists, who is the best to learn from, but once you get talking to people you will realize that each person’s reaction to the works of the blues masters is personal and unique. So your starting point to being a blues guitar player is to take your own personal take on the blues you hear and expand on it.

If you are a new guitar player you might not be familiar with the various techniques that blues guitar players use to make their guitars sing. There is no special blues “magic” that you learn from the blues legends, the guitar techniques for one style are pretty much the same as for another, but you will find your own personal way of making established guitar techniques your own.

There’s a whole world of communication in the techniques that guitar players use to play notes with the left hand instead of picking using the right hand. The techniques are called hammer-ons and pull-offs. A pull-off is the art of picking a note and taking your left hand finger away in a kind of pulling action so that the note below your original note sounds. For example, you could place you first finger on the first fret of the first string and the second finger on the second fret of the first string. With both fingers in place, you pick the first string sounding the F# note and pull your second finger away so that the F note at the first fret sounds.

The “opposite” to the pull-off is the hammer-on which, if you follow up on the pull-off you just executed, you “hammer” the second finger back to where it was at the second fret so that the F# note sounds again. Another technique for the guitar player’s left hand is String Bending. If you look at your finger placed at a fret, you move the finger by pushing up and down. This makes your guitar string give a warbling sound.

As you are an aspiring blues guitarist of the twenty-first century, you will probably prefer to listen to electric guitar players. B. B. King is the coolest of the black blues guitarists, closely followed by a white English boy named Eric Clapton. You could also give a listen to Chuck Berry who is practically a one-man guitar style.

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]]> http://samuiblues.com/blues-guitar-tips-perform-left/feed/ 1 Memphis Blues Music Remains a Time Honored Genre http://samuiblues.com/memphis-blues-music-remains-time/ http://samuiblues.com/memphis-blues-music-remains-time/#comments Wed, 07 Apr 2010 09:29:30 +0000 mtwang http://samuiblues.com/?p=151 BluesMemphis Blues music first appeared in the 1920s in Memphis, and Memphis ever since has been a Mecca for blues music lovers worldwide. Beale Street, the heart of Memphis music scene, is home to everything from jug bands to jazz. The sub genre of Memphis Blues music that is Jug Band Blues emphasizes syncopated rhythms [...]]]> Blues

Memphis Blues music first appeared in the 1920s in Memphis, and Memphis ever since has been a Mecca for blues music lovers worldwide. Beale Street, the heart of Memphis music scene, is home to everything from jug bands to jazz.

The sub genre of Memphis Blues music that is Jug Band Blues emphasizes syncopated rhythms and sounds of early jazz and folk songs. Jug bands play on homemade, simple instruments, such as harmonicas, banjos, washboards, and kazoos, and of course, jugs.

After WWII, Memphis Blues music saw the birth of electric instruments. Many musicians flocked to Memphis to the Blues scene with these electric instruments, changing the sound of Memphis blues. The musicians would gather on Beale Street, where there were recording studios up and down. West Memphis saw the same influx of musicians, who would record the most famous and renowned classic blues, rhythm and blues, and rock & roll records. Once of the most famous of these studios was Sun Records, who would also record the likes of Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley, among many others.

The beginning of Memphis self expressive music was attributed by a certain sound that became familiar to the colored workers of the cornfields, the sharecroppers. Much of the early Memphis blues music was an attempt to capture the sound of the singing workers. This sound at first was nicknamed the gutbucket blues. Some of the more popular topics of the songs were those of prayer, faith, and life.

Even today on Beale Street, songs are written and recorded in the small studios by artists with their dreams in tow. The streets in Memphis are just as alive today with the Memphis Blues as they were in the 40s and 50s. The clubs and bars in Memphis fill up every night with tourists and people who sit for hours listening to the artists and their music, much the same way they always have.

With all of the new and ever changing genres of music that have come about, people may wonder what gives the Memphis Blues music such staying power. The answer is simple. The Memphis Blues remains such a huge part of tradition in Memphis because it is more than just music. It is an entire culture and lifestyle that gets passed from one generation to the next.

Ever since the Memphis Blues music was born on the curbs of Beale Street, people have been flocking to Memphis to enjoy it ever since. Chances are pretty good that it will continue to be enjoyed and loved for many more generations to come.

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]]> http://samuiblues.com/memphis-blues-music-remains-time/feed/ 0 Mastering Blues Keyboard Riffs http://samuiblues.com/mastering-blues-keyboard-riffs/ http://samuiblues.com/mastering-blues-keyboard-riffs/#comments Sat, 27 Mar 2010 06:12:19 +0000 mtwang http://samuiblues.com/?p=113 bluesIn popular music, blues keyboard riffs are universal. From Billy Preston jamming with the Rolling Stones to Ray Charles kicking into “What I’d Say,” blues progressions and scales serve as the basis for legendary songs and amazing keyboard solos. One of the greatest aspects of blues keyboard riffs is the musical theory behind them, which [...]]]> blues

In popular music, blues keyboard riffs are universal. From Billy Preston jamming with the Rolling Stones to Ray Charles kicking into “What I’d Say,” blues progressions and scales serve as the basis for legendary songs and amazing keyboard solos. One of the greatest aspects of blues keyboard riffs is the musical theory behind them, which is simple enough for beginners, yet still challenges virtuosos.

An important musical tool to understand when playing blues keyboard riffs is the pentatonic scale. The minor pentatonic scale is the basis for most blues solos. Its cousin, the blues scale, adds a flatted fifth in between the fourth and fifth of the minor pentatonic. The major pentatonic is also used in blues keyboard riffs.

If you’re not familiar with these scales, here are some examples. We’ll use the key of E. The minor pentatonic consists of the tones 1, b3, 4, 5 and 7. So in the key of E we would have E, G, A, B and D. To change this to the blues scale, add the flatted fifth, which is bB. This gives you the notes E, G, A, Bb, B and D. The major pentatonic consists of the 1, 2, 3, 5 and 6. In the key of E, this gives us E, F#, G#, B and C#. By learning these scales up and down the keyboard, you will have a base on which to build some awesome blues keyboard riffs.

So how do you make these scales mourn and wail like only the blues can? By knowing them inside and out, you can make musical theory sing. Running up and down scales will just make your blues keyboard riffs sound like finger exercises, but knowing how to blend major and minor pentatonic together will leave your listeners astounded. The key is to understand how blues keyboard riffs incorporate each scale over different chords.

For a basic twelve-bar blues progression, the choice of scale is open, with a few basic rules thrown in for good measure. One of the basic rules to keep in mind is that there are two easy scales to use over any one chord. If you’re playing over an E or E7 chord, you can choose to use the E minor pentatonic or the E major pentatonic. By alternating between the notes of these two scales, you’ll find a variety of notes from which to choose when playing blues keyboard riffs.

You can change any of the minor pentatonic to the blues scale for some added flavor. To do this in the major pentatonic, it may be easier to visualize the scale differently. Take the root of the chord and drop it a minor third. For example, if A is the root, then you would go down to F#. Now play a minor pentatonic in this key. You’re using the same notes as the A major pentatonic, just starting on a different root. Change it to a blues scale and you’ll have the notes F#, A, B, C, C# and E. Now you’ve got another blues scale to play over an A chord! It’s that simple, and it works for any key.

By mastering the use of these scales, you can play any blues keyboard riffs that come your way. The trick is to practice them until you no longer have to think about the notes; you just feel them under your fingertips. Then you’ll wail and mourn like only the greatest blues players can.

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