Featuring: Mpls Gospel Sound, Gary Primich, Mick Sterling, Big John Dickerson, Deborah Coleman, Bernard Allison & Buddy Guy
Minneapolis Gospel Sound
Church of the blues on the bay! The Sunday morning gospel set has become a welcome tradition at the Bayfront Festival with the uplifting music of Minneapolis Gospel Sound (MGS). This was a continuation of the "church of the blues revival" that started Friday night with the gospel singing Blind Boys of Alabama. MGS provided some funky gospel to help wake us up and get our blood flowing after two days of blues and partying...and it worked. MGS features a full sound with sweet, high four-part harmonies and music sprinkled with spicy soul, funk and gospel. The song "Since I Laid My Burden Down," had the Sunday morning crowd clapping right along with them. In fact, the audience was willing to go along with just about anything - standing, clapping, waving, but most drew the line when asked to start jumping. I guess it was just too early in the day for that! Although one family of four had their little Motown dance routine going out in the audience - they should have been on stage.
Gary Primich - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
Photo © 1997 by Tom Asp
All rights reserved
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Gary Primich
Back at the Famous Dave's Stage the final afternoon kicked off with some laid back, down-home, harmonica blues by one of the best harp players touring today. Primich has such a great full sound and was accompanied by the scintillating guitar solos of shorty. Primich plays harmonica with that wide amplified tone that draws on the rich tradition of the classic Chicago harmonica masters without being confined by that style. He incorporates jazz and country influences and is not afraid to take risks. He is expanding the blues without losing touch with its roots. Charlie Musselwhite said "I really like his approach, his tone, and the way he experiments and stretches out…he's not just playing the same old stuff we've all heard way too much of."
Mick Sterling - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
Photo © 1997 by Tom Asp - All rights reserved
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Mick Sterling
Mick Sterling, featuring the Stud Brother's Horns and Renee' Austin, definitely put on one of the most entertaining shows of the weekend culminating with Mick climbing the scaffolding and standing on top of the speaker stack that was at least 30 feet off the ground. He had the crowd pumped up, dancing, cheering and singing right along with him. Mick has that ability to make you experience both joy and sorrow all in one performance. Blue-eyed-soul and R&B singer Mick Sterling has spent the past nine years honoring the tradition of the great soul legends and it was a treat to have Renee' join Mick on stage at Bayfront. The Stud Brother's horn section, by the way, were just great!
Big John Dickerson - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
Photo © 1997 by Tom Asp - All rights reserved
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Big John Dickerson & Blue Chamber
Paul's scorching guitar and the enthusiastic keyboards of new member Tom Hunter set the stage for Big John Dickerson's ardent singing. Big John is a teenager in a 60 year olds body. He has a spark in his mischievous eyes as he spins and twists, does his little dance steps, and belts out some impressive and powerful vocals. I think I even saw a "moon walk" up there. He is a showman of the first order while on stage. Big John is one of the premier blues entertainers in the Twin Cities and is putting his years of performing with the likes of the Temptations, B.B. King and Bobby "Blues" Bland to good use. You can catch Big John with Blue Chamber every Thursday through Saturday at Famous Dave's in Minneapolis.
Deborah Coleman - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
Photo © 1997 by Tom Asp - All rights reserved
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Deborah Coleman
Deb, who said she loved Jimi Hendrix and Buddy Miles put on an intense guitar driven demonstration that left the crowd amazed at her abilities. It was fun watching her eyes roll back into her head as she concentrates on one of her guitar solos. (See interview in this issue).
Bernard Allison - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
Photo © 1997 by Tom Asp - All rights reserved
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Bernard Allison
Another one of those young SOB's, that's son of the blues. The son of the late Luther Allison, Bernard is "Keepin'The Blues Alive," (the title of his new CD). He demonstrated a complete mastery of the guitar at the final show on the Famous Dave's Stage. His slide guitar playing featured some scorching riffs that were like lightning strikes in the sky. Bernard is a very friendly, personable 32 year old who has spent the past 15 years developing his guitar skills where it counts -- out in front of blues fans all over the world. His aggressive playing is taking blues guitar to a whole new level. Bernard's guitar playing attacked our senses like a heat sensing missile and his polished stage presence kept us at a fever pitch throughout his performance. He is doing more than just "Keepin' The Blues Alive," Bernard Allison is taking the blues into the 21st. Century.
Buddy Guy - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
PPhoto © 1997 by Tom Asp - All rights reserved
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Buddy Guy
The anticipation was running high for the first appearance of Buddy Guy at Bayfront since his 1990 show. Buddy's big band took the stage for the first song. This great band features the skillful playing of Charles Kimble and tenor sax, Big James Montgomery on trombone, Paul Mundy on baritone sax, Tony Z on piano, Killer Ray Allison on drums, Greg Rzab on bass and the phenomenal guitar of Scott Holt. Scott has been with Buddy for 9 years and is almost like a son to him. No matter how many times I have seen Buddy Guy over the past several years his shows are always fun. He has such warmth and charisma on stage - and that smile of his is one in a million! You can't help but love this guy.
At a Buddy Guy show you can expect him to do and say many of the same things. Sometime during his show he will ask the band to "get so funky you can smell it." He did. He will make a reference to the weather or the last time it rained as he launches into his "It Feels Like Rain." He did.
Buddy Guy - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
Photo © 1997 by Tom Asp
All rights reserved
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He will comment on how he can play all night or would like to play all night, which he never does. The variation here was that he didn't want us to get tired of him and not invite him back (I like that twist). He will deliver a series of half completed songs in his "history of the blues" segment. Which he did to the consternation of many of the fans who would like to hear some of these songs all the way through. Especially the one that got it all started for him in the first place, the Guitar Slim classic, "The Things That I Used To Do." He will comment on the city he is in, usually asking if they would like a Legends Club (the name of his Chicago blues club) in their city. Well he didn't bring up the idea of a Duluth club but he did make several appreciative comments about Duluth and the harbor, especially after watching one very large ore boat sail by.
Buddy Guy - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
Photo © 1997 by Tom Asp - All rights reserved
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So no matter how much his shows are the same, they are always different -- so full of energy, featuring great blues and his trademark slashing guitar riffs. You can always count on him bringing out the drum sticks to play on his strings, lift his guitar overheard, walk to the ends of the stage - right out on the edge, and if you are lucky, like we were in Duluth, he will take a walk out into the audience which is always a highlight. He is always spontaneous too. When he broke a string, he just continued playing as he took the string off the guitar and threw it into the audience. At another point he hit a bad note, gave his guitar a funny look and said "oh shit." At one point during his "history of the blues" segment he rather poignantly commented "and then the British boys came and they had to let you know who we were." He said this with a touch of irony in his voice.
Buddy Guy - August 10, 1997
Bayfront Blues Festival
Photo © 1997 by Tom Asp - All rights reserved
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When Buddy Guy finished playing we left feeling fulfilled. This had been a superior weekend of outstanding blues.
For additional photos by Patrice Bartling go to:
Bayfront Photos Day 3
E-mail Ray Stiles at: mnblues@aol.com