Ally Venable

Ben Vee’s Roadhouse Blues News – Buddy Guy Farewell Tour and a bunch of new Blues album releases

Buddy Guy Farewell Tour begins February 11

At the age of 86 and still at the top of his form, Buddy Guy will be doing his farewell tour during 2023. He starts it in Mumbai, India on February 11, begins the North American leg on February 17th in Rockford, Illinois, and literally crisscrosses the country into the fall. He will also fit in appearances in Australia and a number of places in Europe as he does his final live performances in a career that has spanned over 60 years. Buddy is equally at home with Muddy Waters and Jimi Hendrix and puts on a show that includes playing in the crowd, playing the guitar with his teeth and behind his back, and regaling the audience with little stories about the songs he performs and the life he has lived. I have seen him three times and they were incredible shows. If you haven’t heard him live, check the tour dates on his website and make plans now. I don’t think the tickets will be available for long! AND I have a feeling that a lot of well known blues artists will be popping up on stage with him to say their final farewells to the reigning King of the Blues.

New Roadhouse Blues Releases Out Now

Ryan Foret & Foret Tradition – That’s What’s Happening Here : Vibrant blues and R&B sound out of New Orleans!

Eddie 9V – Capricorn : May be the reincarnation of Lowell George, Leon Russell, & Duane Allman!! He is only 27!

Teresa James – With a Little Help From Her Friends : Teresa bluzin’ the Beatles…well worth a ticket to ride!!

The 2:19 – We Will Get Through This : From Ireland, they kick out some badass rockin’ blues!

Planned Roadhouse Blues Releases in February 2023

Savoy Brown – Blues All Around (Feb 17th) : Kim Simmonds knew he had cancer and just kept recording right up to his death late in 2022..RIP

The Gayle Harrod Band – Temptation (Feb 24th) : Awesome voice and blues from this talent out of Baltimore!

Planned Releases in March 2023

Mike Zito & Albert Castiglia – Blood Brothers (March 17th)

Ally Venable – Real Gone (March 24th)

Eric Bibb – Ridin’ (March 24th)

#blues #bluesmusic #bluesrock #benveeroadhouseblues

A Veteran’s Day Roadhouse Blues Playlist for Nov 11th

Today is Veterans Day in the USA and I’d like to take this chance to thank the men and women from the United States and around the world that serve their nations and protect the peace. Many spend holidays away from family and do their duty on stations in remote and lonely places. Over the years, I have heard from some of them listening in to my shows from Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. To a person, they all comment on how the blues remind them of home and today it reminds me of all of YOU! Thank you for your service and listening to the songs I spin!!

This is the intended playlist for today’s show from 3-5 pm EST on http://www.bluesmusicfan.com.

ARTISTTITLE
Ben GranfeltBecauAse We Can (Live)
Christone “Kingfish” IngramLong Distance Woman
Roger ChapmanRabbit Got The Gun
Maria DainesDown to the Heart
Grizzlee TrainBurned Him Again
Mark SutherlandSuffocation Blues
Kai FjellbergYour Life
Billy F GibbonsShe’s On Fire
Ally VenablePlayed The Game
Mario Rossi BandMidnight Woman
Bjorn BergeA Matter Of Time
The Cold StaresIn The Night Time
West Side Joe & The Men of SoulKeep On Climbin’
Ben GranfeltMy Soul To You (Live)
Tedeschi Trucks BandJust As Strange
Supersonic Blues MachineRemedy (Feat. Warren Haynes)
Buddy GuyRed House
Guitar PeteIt Rained For Daze
Dennis SiggeryCall Me
Uncle Watson’s WidowJust Got Back From Babys
Gary MooreLove Can Make A Fool Of You
TBellyI Know You’re Mine
Simon Kinny-LewisCrawling Kingsnake ( Feat Andy Just )
Southern GentlemenEnd of the World
SantanaWhiter Shade Of Pale (Feat. Steve Winwood)

Roadhouse Blues Nooner (12-2pm EST) on BMFR

Mhmm…got some badass new Roadhouse blues today during my Nooner on http://www.bluesmusicfan.com from 12-2 pm EST!. Have tunes from Alabama Slim (see his cool photo in the post), Johnny Gallagher, Bjorn Berge, Joanna Connor, Kirsten Thien, The WildRoots, Ally Venable, and a couple of classics from R.L. Burnside and John Lee Hooker!

Below is the intended playlist:

ARTISTTITLEALBUM
The Mighty KlucksC JamBackyard Blues
What the FRNKHey YaThere’s Something About You
3TIMES740 DaysSmile While I Sing The Blues
The Mighty KlucksMore WhiskeyBackyard Blues
Rocktrain Slaves5 String BluesThe Rock Springtime
Alabama SlimFreddie’s Voodoo BoogieThe Parlor
R.L. BurnsideDon’t Care How Long You’re GoneMississippi Hill Country Blues
John Lee HookerDimplesAnthology 50 Years – CD1
Johnny GallagherShake That TambourineA 2020 Vision (A Collection of Johnny Gallagher’s Work from the Last Ten Years in One Box)
Trainman BluesUndivided SeerShadows And Shapes
Kelly’s LotTook It BackBlind Raccoon Nola Blue Collection Volume Three Disc One
Trevor B. PowerWomanWhat Is Real
Bjorn BergeAlone AgainHeavy Gauge
Rocky & The House BandBall And ChainBackyard Blues
AJ Crawdaddy BandLove & WarPromo Single
Kenny James Miller BandGive That Dog A BoneTear In My Eye
Joanna ConnorIt’s My Time (feat. Joe Bonamassa)4801 South Indiana Avenue
Johnny Mastro and Mama’s BoysChild WolfElmore James For President
Rose Hudson With BarrelhouseThe Blues Will Burn YaBackyard Blues
Clas Yngstrom & Big Tex ThreeOutlaw BluesMr Bob’s Blue Devils
Kirsten ThienShoulda Been (Rock Slide Radio Mix)Blind Raccoon Nola Blue Collection Volume Three Disc One
The WildRoots634-5789WildRoots Sessions Volume 1
Ally VenablePlayed The GameHeart Of Fire
John Henry and the RainmakersPsycofillyJohn Henry and the Rainmakers
Brad StiversThree Times a FoolSIX
Krokfoss BandHave MercyAre You Ready
Mick ClarkeCrazy with the BluesCrazy with the Blues
Dudley TaftGoin’ Away BabyCosmic Radio
Jeremiah JohnsonDaddy’s Going Out TonightUnemployed Highly Annoyed

September 10th Roadhouse Blues Nooner on BMFR

It’s almost High Noon EST and time for my roadhouse house blues nooner on BMFR. Tune in at http://www.bluesmusicfan.com for some great new contemporary blues as well as classics by Southside Johnny, Mike Zito, Neal Schon, and many more.

This is the intended playlist

ARTISTTITLE
Mindi Abair And The BoneshakersNot That Kind Of Girl
Southside Johnny & The Asbury DukesHappy
Ash GrunwaldHammer (feat. Terry Evans)
Kat DanserVoodoo Groove
The Seamus McGarvey BandWalk On
Ryan Foret And Foret TraditionHarry Biscuit And The Jam
The Moon DogsThe Little Red Rooster
Mike ZitoLittle Red Corvette
Katarina Pejak – Ina Forsman – Ally VenableSixteen Tons
TOMMY CASTROLeaving Trunk (Live)
Tennessee RedemptionSouls In The Water
Marc BroussardCry to Me (Acoustic)
The Allman Betts BandMelodies Are Memories
Steve Miller BandSay Wow
Seth JamesGet Outside
Bob LanzaWalking After Midnight
Jason BuieWild Woman
Monster Mike Welch and Mike LedbetterGoodbye Baby
Cary MorinJug In The Water
Altered Five Blues BandLet Me Do The Wrong Thing
Monti AmundsonBluesman Moves To Paris
Luxuriant SedansWho Told You That
Southside Johnny & The Asbury JukesKill My Love
Jersey Swamp CatsJump, Jive, And Wail
John Ginty and Aster PheonyxBelieve in Smoke
Beth Hart & Joe BonamassaSoul On Fire
Nick SchnebelenIt Ain’t Me
Neal SchonA Girl Like You

Tuesday Roadhouse Blues Nooner

Join us on http://www.bluesmusicfan.com for Ben Vee’s Tuesday Roadhouse Blues Nooner featuring tunes by Joe Bonamassa, Widow Blue, Beth Hart, John Hiatt, Gary Moore, Genevieve Chadwick, Ally Venable, Joanne Shaw Taylor, and many more!!  It starts at 12 Noon EST….be there!!!

Below is the intended playlist.

ARTIST TITLE
Gerry Joe Weise B Flat Jazzy
The Kentucky Headhunters Boones Farm Boogie
Willie Nelson Heartbreak Hotel (With Leon Russell)
Melissa Etheridge The Shadow of a Black Crow
Alvin Lee My Baby’s Come Back To Me
Willie May You Know I’m Lying
Widow Blue Slow Blues and a Shot of Gin
Ally Venable Running After You
Mean Gene Kelton Texas Honey
Genevieve Chadwick Yes You Did
Glen Hansard Roll On Slow
John Hiatt Over The Hill
Beth Hart & Joe Bonamassa Miss Lady
Joanne Shaw Taylor I’ve Been Loving You Too Long
Sonny Landreth Bound By The Blues
Tom Hambridge Little Things (ft Sonny Landreth)
Tiffany Pollack & Eric Johanson Diamonds On The Crown
Tab Benoit Cherry Tree Blues
Lisa Mann Hard Times, Bad Decisions
Karen Lovely Never Felt No Blues
Long John And The Killer Blues Collective Cold Blood Blues
Janis Joplin One Good Man
Paul Personne & Lost In Paris Blues Band I Don’t Need No Doctor
Joe Bonamassa Midnight Blues (Live)
Gary Moore If You Be My Baby

Best of the Blues 2018 – Ben Vee’s Roadhouse 66 Song List

Similar to the old Route 66 that wound from the heart of the United States in Chicago to the west coast and captured some of the best of what America has to offer, the Ben Vee Roadhouse 66 song list meanders world wide from Africa to Europe to North and South America.. on then to Australia and up to Asia capturing the best blues songs of 2018. The roadhouse blues is situated at the crossroads of the blues and rock genres so there are plenty of upbeat tunes and a number of belly grinders on the list. The selection includes 15 female singers..a dozen blues rockers…several roots blues tunes and numbers of hot contemporary blues recordings…I hope you download and enjoy listening to all the songs!!

As a DJ, in 2018 I played over 200 sets and 500 hours of blues music or roughly 6,000 songs for listening audiences. On my 24 hour Roadhouse blues stream, I streamed thousands more. Picking the best 66 from my broadcasts was both a labor of love and a huge challenge.  The position of the songs on the list is of little consequence…you might list them in a different order or include ones that I didn’t.  The important thing is that these 66 tunes are a “top shelf” sampling of a vibrant and growing contemporary blues market. Don’t let ANYONE tell you that the blues are dead or dying!!  I encourage you to turn your friends on to songs on the list and help spread the news that, as Buddy Guy said on his latest album, the blues is alive and well!!

1 Joe Bonamassa King Bee Shakedown
2 Anthony Gomes Whiskey Made Me Do It
3 Lance Lopez Blue Moon Rising
4 Larkin Poe Bleach Blonde Bottle Blues
5 Billy F. Gibbons Hollywood 151
6 Danielle Nicole Save Me ft. Kenny Wayne Shepherd
7 Boz Scaggs Little Miss Night And Day
8 Buddy Guy Cognac (feat. Jeff Beck & Keith Richards)
9 Shemekia Copeland Ain’t Got Time For Hate
10 Widow Blue Who’s Gonna Take Care of Lucille?
11 Bettye LaVette Things Have Changed
12 Mike Zito Mississippi Nights
13 Layla Zoe Are You Still Alive Inside
14 Ray Bonneville South of the Blues
15 Markey Blue Ric Latina Project Raised in Muddy Water
16 Colin James I Will Remain
17 Jim Allchin Voodoo Doll
18 Tinsley Ellis Nothing But Fine
19 Sean Chambers All Night Long
20 Ryan McGarvey Ain’t Enough Whiskey
21 The Nick Moss Band The High Cost of Low Living
22 Teresa James & The Rhythm Tramps The Day The Blues Came To Call
23 Delta Moon Skinny Woman
24 Chris Smither Maybelline
25 Janiva Magness Down Below
26 Curtis Salgado/Alan Hager You Got to Move
27 Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats Coolin’ Out
28 The Record Company Roll Bones
29 Travis Bowlin Vicksburg Blues
30 Damon Fowler Ain’t Gonna Rock With You No More
31 Beth Hart & Joe Bonamassa Give It Everything You Got
32 Dana Fuchs Ready To Rise
33 Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite The Bottle Wins Again
34 Sue Foley The Lucky Ones (ft Jimmie Vaughan)
35 Anthony Geraci Why Did You Have to Go
36 Joe Goldmark Beautician Blues
37 Mud Morganfield Oh Yeah
38 The Lucky Losers The River
39 Fiona Boyes Ember
40 Johnny & The Headhunters Watch And Chain (Hey Gyp)
41 Hannah Wicklund & The Steppin Stones Mama Said
42 The Reverend Shawn Amos Moved
43 Dry Johnson Drunk Girl With a Tamborine (feat Snit)
44 Tom Hambridge This End of the Road (ft Sonny Landreth)
45 Anthony Gomes Take Me Back Home
46 Ally Venable Backwater Blues
47 Kat Danser Hol’ Up Baby
48 Dan Patlansky Judge A Man
49 Marcia Ball Take a Little Louisiana
50 Sari Schorr Thank You
51 Too Slim And the Taildraggers Trouble
52 Jamie Lynn Vessels Done Me Wrong
53 Lindsay Beaver Dangerous
54 Steve Krase Dirty Dirty
55 Black River Delta Keeps Me Bleeding
56 The Marcus King Band Side Door
57 Kris Barras Band Wrong Place, Wrong Time
58 Dany Franchi Wanna Know
59 Niecie Thank God for Fools
60 Eric Steckel We’re Still Friends
61 Luke Winslow King Chicken Dinner
62 John Akapo Maui Drive
63 Kat Riggins A Girl in the Boys’ Club
64 The Bob Lanza Blues Band Hey Baby
65 Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne That Raggedy Shack
66 Elvin Bishop That’s the Way Willy Likes It

Ben’s IN THE BIN Blues Reviews – September 14, 2018

Here’s a trio of albums I really enjoyed listening to this summer……

Ally Venable Band – Puppet Show  (Connor Ray Music 2018)

Ally Venabl

A blues rocker who looks like a super model and plays a guitar like a super star, this nineteen year old from Texas does a great job on her second album, Puppet Show.  She gets some contributions from Lance Lopez, Steve Krase, Gary Hoey, and Eric Steckel….all blues stars in their own right and a sure sign of what they think of her talent. Loved the slow blues grinder, Comfort in my Sorrows, and enjoyed Backwater Blues, Survive, and the title cut Puppet Show.

Crystal Shawanda – Voodoo Woman (New Sun Records 2017)

crystal shawanda

Born and raised in Canada and now based in Nashville, this native American has an incredible voice that encompasses the best of Koko Taylor, Etta James, and Janis Joplin.  The song, Bluetrain (Slight Return)/ Smokestack Lightning Revisited, is a powerful original tune that I really love.  And she does a great job on covers of Ball & Chain, Hound Dog, Voodoo Woman, I’d Rather Go Blind, and Wang Dang Doodle.

The Lucky Losers – Blind Spot (Dirty Cat Records 2018)

lucky losers

Though they are San Francisco based and recorded the album in San Jose, California, I could have sworn Cathy Lemons and Phil Berkowitz took a pirogue down some black water bayou in southern Louisiana and recorded their third album, Blind Spot, under the shade of a moss covered oak tree next to the water.  She and Phil seem to bring out the best in each other as they take a joyful romp through what I call the “down the bayou” blues….music that is blues infused with a healthy dose of R&B, soul, and a bit of funk. I loved Alligator Baptism, It’s Never Too Early, Love Is Blind, and Supernatural Blues.  And The River is a fantastic showcase for Cathy’s voice.  This album has my early nod for nomination as one of the five best albums of 2018.  It also features some great guitar work by special guests Laura Chavez and Kid Andersen as well as some bad ass guest sax by Nancy Wright and even some violin by Annie Staninec.