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New This Week
* Charlie Musselwhite released The Well this week. Grab the title track for free from Alligator below.
* Lots of video: A cool clip featuring the new Lee Ritenour project, plus a JJ Grey mini-doc and 8 exclusive videos from Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival in our Video of the Week section. And don't forget to view Festival photos in our special Crossroads photo gallery.
* Prizes this week include copies of the new CD from Albert Castiglia, plus blues festival tickets are up fro grabs. Hit our contests page to enter to win.
Lee Ritenour's new CD 6 String Theory brings together a host of guitar greats, ranging from Jonny Lang to John Scofield. With the range of players comes a range of styles, including the blues. Check this clip where Lee talks about teaming with Joe Bonamassa and Robert Cray...
Chicago's great Alligator Records label is offering free tracks from some of their latest releases on TheBluesMobile.com. This week, we add the title track from Charlie Musselwhite's new CD The Well.
Mary Lou Sullivan has penned Raisin' Cain, a fascinating new biography of legend Johnny Winter. Backbeat Books is graciously allowing Blues Brethren and Soul Sisters to download an entire chapter free.
Download the PDF file here, then use the discount code to pick up a copy at a 25% discount. Truly a great read, it also makes a great gift for any blues fan.
Weekly Contests
Over on the Contests page, we are giving away T-shirts from Bluescentric.com, plus copies of Albert Castiglia's new CD Keepin' On to pass along. Add to that tickets to several Labor Day Weekend Blues festivals.
Matt Andersen & Mike Stevens
"I Wanna Be A Float Plane" Piggyback
Busted Flat Records
Guitar man and singer Matt Andersen took away top honors at the 2010 International Blues Challenge, the first Canadian to ever win it. And now he has teamed up with Mike Stevens, a harp player famous for putting the harmonica in places it normally doesn’t go. But it goes pretty darn well with Matt’s guitar on their new record, Piggyback.
I have the lovely and talented Sharon Jones on the Radio Hour this week.
Four great House of Blues Radio Hour Encore Presentations are ready for you on the stream. Last week's Mississippi Sheiks show is there for those of you who missed it. And there is also Buckwheat Zydeco, Duos, and Elvin Bishop. Get comfortable and get listening!
More on our radio and video streams can be found here.
Blues of the Month CD for September: A CD and DVD Double-Whammy!
We've got some eye-candy and ear-candy for Blues of the Month Club members in September -- and both from blues labels up North.
For the DVD player, we have the amazing Mississippi Sheiks Tribute Concert -- a star-studded affair featuring John Hammond, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Geoff Muldaur, Jim Byrnes, Van Dyke Parks, Dave Alvin, and many more. The concert took place in Vancouver during the time of the Winter Olympics. The DVD comes out September 21st via Black Hen Music.
Plus, members will get the brand new CD from Duke Robillard, called Passport to the Blues. It's 13 tracks worth of house-rockin fun from the man who co-founded Roomful of Blues. The disc is just out on Canada's Stony Plain Records.
As a member of the Blues of the Month Club, you can get a signed photo from Elwood and a BluesMobile.com t-shirt, then a handpicked CD every month. Available now in 6-month or 12-month packages.
The Blues Music Store has always been a great place to find a selection of handpicked blues albums, and now we're adding MP3s -- some digital albums priced as low as $5!
For example, through August, the new CD from Cyndi Lauper, Memphis Blues, is just 5 bucks as a download.
Whether you want to freshen your library or just spice up your iPod, this is the place to do it. And remember, everything you purchase through our Amazon link helps pay artist royalties and streaming costs -- keeping it free for everyone.
Click the "purchase" button below or the navigation tab on the left hand side of the page to browse the store.
Get out and see some live blues. Here are just a couple of suggestions (hit the links for more info):
Labor Day Weekend: September 3-6
* Dusk 'Til Dawn Blues Festival in Renteisville, Oklahoma: Features Bernard Allison, E.G. Kight, Johnny Rawls -- 30 act in all. September 3-4-5.
* Bedford Blues & BBQ -- right between Dallas and Ft. Worth: Starring the Robert Cray Band, Taj Mahal and more. September 4-5.
* Summertime Bikes and Blues Festival in Freeport Texas: Huge motorcycle ride to the fest for great food and music from Mean Gene Kelton & the Die Hards. Don't forget to enter for the bike raffle -- a custom chopper is up for grabs...
Purchase
The House of Blues Radio Hour Stream Goes Global!
We've heard from more than 60 countries and territories so far. The map below shows some of our recent listeners (scroll over the targets to see cities and countries):
Video of the Week
JJ Grey and Mofro have released their new CD Georgia Warhorse. If you haven't seen the mini-documentary, see it here. Well worth it...
Eric Clapton opens his set at the Crossroads Guitar Festival with the Robert Johnson song that gave the fest, and the rehab centers, their name...
Jeff Beck tears it up on this exclusive highlight from Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival...
You asked for more Sonny, and here it is. In this video, Sonny Landreth demonstrates his combination finger-pick/slide style that he said was influenced by Chet Atkins and Robert Johnson, respectively. From Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010.
Sonny Landreth with a side-stage performance after his main stage appearance at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010.
Joe Bonamassa plays Woke up Dreaming on the side stage after his main stage performance at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010.
David "HoneyBoy" Edwards gets a 95th birthday serenade from the crowd before his side stage performance at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010.
Robert Randolph appears on a side stage following his main stage performance at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010:
Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010: Photo Highlights
Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010 took place just outside Chicago on June 26.
More than 13 hours of music from a great lineup that included Eric, Steve Winwood, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Joe Bonamassa, Sonny Landreth, Robert Randolph, Sheryl Crow, Jeff Beck, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Warren Haynes, and many more.
A sellout crowd estimated at 27,000 took in a very hot day of music. Here are a few highlights: (Re-posting of photos is allowed -- with attribution to TheBluesMobile.com)
Eric Clapton tears it up with Jeff Beck
Mayer's rocking side project: The John Mayer Trio
Slowhand Himself
Steve Winwood and Eric Clapton
Sonny Landreth after his main performance, puts on a clinic at a side stage.
Check out more photos in our Crossroads Guitar Festival 2010 photo gallery by clicking here.
The Blues Festival Season is in full swing-- visit our friends at the Blues Festival Guide!
Plus, members will get the brand new CD from Duke Robillard, called Passport to the Blues. It's 13 tracks worth of house-rockin fun from the man who co-founded Roomful of Blues. The disc is just out on Canada's Stony Plain Records.
