The Blues Hall of Fame

On February 16th we'll be up at The Orpheum Theater  in  Tannersville for The Blues Hall of Fame Night.  Since I am being "inducted" I figured I had better find out what this organization is all about.  At first glance of course one is rather skeptical...feeling unworthy to be included in the same breath as the legendary masters of this music.  But upon going to their web site and reading their mission statement www.blueshalloffame.com things become a bit clearer.

You can go to the site and explore for yourself of course.  There's a lot of information there, but one of the first things to know is that there are different levels of recognition which just makes sense.  There are "Legendary Blues Artists", "Master Blues Artists" and "Great Local Blues Artists" among other categories.  They take pride in calling themselves a 'free and open to all'  grass roots organization, "We invite everyone to partner with us".  Go to the web site and see what you think.  I'd be interested in your comments.

For another perspective on The Blues...what exactly it is...and isn't...and who should...and shouldn't...be calling themselves "a bluesman" I will refer you to Adam Gussow.
Adam is a master harmonica player, best known as half of the musical duo Satan and Adam.  But he is much more than that.  Adam is a writer, a scholar, and a professor at The University of Mississippi.  Recently he has uploaded a series of his lectures to You Tube.  You can find them in the 'Blues Talk' section of Adam's website (delivered from the front set of his parked car).  www.modernbluesharmonica.com/blues-talk.html
He calls them "conversations about the history, culture, and meaning of the music".  Adam is brilliant, articulate, and provocative.  It's lenghty investment of time to watch all of this...like taking a college course really.  But you will be rewarded (and perhaps ticked off at times) by his insights and his sometimes controversial  opinions.  Again, If you do check it out I'll be curious to know what your reactions are.

Finally in this long winded post I'll refer you to Chick Willis "A Real Blues Artist and Inventer" (sic).
At this link:  www.blueshalloffame.com/Artists_Exhibit_Pages/Chick_Willis_Exhibit.html  you will find Chick's perspective on the state of The Blues Today:  "I am  quite sad and broken hearted to see what some of the Blues Societies are doing to my Blues."  Please read on and see what you think.


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