weekend plans

Hi All --

Here's info on some weekend music that involves some Lowcountry Blues Club members and friends, and unfortunately these are all on Saturday night. So it may be hard to see all three shows, but hopefully you can make it to one or two. Skye Paige and the Original Recipe start earliest, at 6 pm, at Gage Hall on Archdale Street downtown at the Unitarian Church with a fundraiser for a new organ there, so there's a cover charge. Tim Shaw and his buddies play at A Dough Re Mi, I'm not sure if there's a cover charge. And Cole Train opens for a band called Category 6 at the Windjammer, starting 10-ish, with a cover charge. There are surely more great music options if none of these suit you (these are just the ones that I've been told about) -- so check your local listings. And don't forget to mark your calendars for the Tuesday night jam!

greetings

Hi All -- Just a quick reminder that it's time again to head for A Dough Re Mi for the marvelous Tuesday night blues jam. And thanks to Dan Wright for hosting and playing and singing, thanks to Greg Levkus for his drumming, and Dave Jones for his bass playing -- our wonderful core group of musicians who start the show now each week. And thanks to all the other great musicians who have shown up and added to the fun. We hope to see many of you this Tuesday night if possible, or next Tuesday if you're otherwise occupied this time.

And very soon it will be Blues Bash time, with an amazing line-up of shows from Feb 6-16th, organized by the amazing Gary Erwin. Go to bluesbash.com for the full story, and don't forget to include some shows at A Dough Re Mi during the bash, and hang out with your blues club friends.

Jams Are Returning - Tuesday Jan 6th

Just a quick not to everyone that the weekly jams will be returning this week to A Dough Re Mi. The first jam will be Tuesday, January 6th at 8PM.

Over the past year, Tommy Thunderfoot has been our weekly jam master and has done an outstanding job. In addition to his outstanding musicianship, Tommy has also fostered the growth of the musician community and helped guide many novice musicians on the stage. I think its safe to say that the jams, and the Lowcountry Blues Club, would not be where they are today without the guidance of Tommy Thunderfoot. Thank you Tommy, you've done an amazing job.

However, things do change. Unfortunatley, Tommy has decided to take a break from the weekly jam master duties. We will miss Tommy and hope that he decides to return in the future. Luckily, Tommy will be staying on as a board member and will continue to provide his leadership there.

I don't have official word on this yet, but the rumor is that Dan Wright will be taking over as our jam master. As you may know, Dan is also an amazing musician. What you probably don't know is that Dan is an experienced jam master from Detroit. If you have noticed that Dan's blues have a funky Motown vibe, now you know why.

We welcome Dan as the new jam master (assuming that it is official), and look forward to seeing the direction he takes the jams in.

So come on out on Tuesday and enjoy the music.

Happy Near Year!

The Lowcountry Blues Club wishes everyone a happy and safe New Year!

Also, this is just a quick reminder that there will not be a jam on Tuesday, December 30th. The jams will resume on Tuesday, January 6th at A Dough Re Mi.

See you then.

Happy Holidays!

The Lowcountry Blues Club hopes that everyone has a good set of holidays over the next few weeks.

And we wanted to let everyone know that we're taking a break from the jams during this holiday season, but the jams will return after the new year.

See you then!

Upcoming Shows

We have another great weekend of shows lined up around the area:

Kicking things off first on Thursday night will be TWS & Friends at Wing Time in North Charleston. You all Tim Shaw as a Lowcountry Blues Club regular guitar player and occasional singer. My sources tell me that TWS & Friends stole the show at the Trident United Way Battle Of Bands, and Tim steals the show at our jams as well. So you should stop by and check them out doing their mix of blues rock, country rock, and classic rock.

Then, Steve & The Stilettos will be taking the stage at The Mill Friday night, starting around 9:30 PM. Stop by and see these veteran blues musicians do their thing. What's more, their driving rhythm section is none other than our Greg and Mark on drums and bass. That alone is worth seeing on any night. Add Steve on vocal and guitar and Joel on harmonica and you have a blues powerhouse.

Also on Friday, Tommy Thunderfoot & The Accelerators travel up to Sumter to deliver the blues to our friends in the midstate. This time, The Accelerators include Tanner on drums and JoJo on bass. Stone Cold Sarah Cool will also be there, adding her blues diva stylings to the rockin' blues mix. The shows at Legacies in Sumter are becoming legendary in their own right.

Then on Saturday, Tommy and gang are sticking around Sumter and playing at Pizza Lane as part of a benefit show. Our friend Jeff Norwood is also playing there on Saturday. You know when you get Tommy and Jeff together, those boys just gotta throw down and deliver a good show.

Speaking of people named Jeff, our friend Jeff Liberty will be playing on Saturday at Whaley's on Edisto Island. If your down that way, stop in and see him do his thing. He's got a great band and Jeff always delivers to the crowd like it was a stadium full of people. Greasy, gritty blues - just the way we like it.

Getting around to Tuesday, we have the weekly Lowcountry Blues Club jam at A Dough Re Mi. If you haven't been by lately, you should stop in and see why this one of the best nights of music in the state!

And on Wednesday, don't forget that our friend Larry McCray will be a the Pour House.

I hope I haven't forgotten anyone, but this weekend is shaping up as another great weekend of blues music in the region.

Larry McCray - Wednesday Dec 10th

Earlier this year, the Lowcountry Blues Club had an announced guest stop by the jam. The mystery jammer was Larry McCray and he was simply amazing. For at least an hour, he jammed hard and heavy with many of regular players. Those of us who were there, won't be forgetting that anytime soon.

As it turns out, he was just in town on vacation, visiting family, and decided to stop by and check out the jam. But now, he is returning for a show at the Pour House on Wednesday, December 10th. This is his first official appearance in Charleston in 7 years, and should be a great show.

"Larry McCray is one of a handful of talented young blues performers leading the genre across boundaries and into the new century. McCray's savage blues-rock guitar and warm, soulful vocals have drawn attention worldwide.

McCray's hard work paid off when he became the first artist signed by Virgin Records' blues division - Pointblank Records. In 1990, they released his debut, "Ambition," which was well received by the U.S. and European press.

1993 saw the release of McCray's second album, Delta Hurricane, which was recorded in Memphis with the notoriously funky Uptown Horns. The guitarist's gut wrenching rendition of Warren Haynes' power ballad, "Soul Shine," opened many ears to McCray's talent and diversity.

In 1998, Born To Play The Blues moved the story of McCray's broadly appealing music forward another giant step. Bold, brawny, often dazzling guitar lines are matched with confident, soul-drenched vocals. Understated funk rhythms and crunchy rock riffs meet searing slow blues and booty-bumping shuffles.

The year 2000 found the guitarist co-establishing his own independent record company together with Koch, forming Magnolia Records. The release Believe It kicked it off, putting McCray on chart to continue to release albums on his own dime and time, without the business or rules of a pressing-type of label.

McCray also sights a career highlight as being honored as the Orville Gibson 2000 Male Blues Guitarist of the Year. "Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, like seven or eight other people were nominated, as well" stated McCray.

With Magnolia Records his new home and a young son to raise, McCray was able to pull back into his personal life for a while. McCray keeps busy on the road trying to find the time to write music."

http://www.myspace.com/larrymccray

Again, this should be a great show. So stop by and check out this friend of the Lowcountry Blues Club.