Bobby Hurricane Spencer and Jeff Dale – The Hurricane Dale Thang

Pro Sho Bidness Records – 2024

www.jeffdaleblues.com

http://bobbyhurricane.com

13 tracks: 42 minutes

The Hurricane Dale Thang is the musical collaboration between veteran L.A. blues musicians Bobby ‘Hurricane’ Spencer and Jeff Dale. Released in late October of 2024, this debut album has been delayed since 2019 when Spencer suffered a massive stroke. Years of rehabilitation, hard work, relentless support from Spencer’s wife, Retha, and dogged persistence brought back Spencer’s “musical prowess” and, as the one-pager states, “re-opened the door for The Hurricane Dale recording project to finally be realized.”

Bobby “Hurricane” Spencer began his musical career in Oakland, California, playing the various circuits in and around the Bay Area. According to the album’s one-pager, as an accomplished saxophonist, Spencer has played behind legends such as Etta James, Charles Brown, Lowell Fulson, and ZZ Hill. He has opened for Bobby Blue Bland, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, and Smokey Robinson. Some of Spencer’s original music appeared on Koko Taylor’s Grammy-nominated Force of Nature album (released in 1993).

Born and raised on Chicago’s South Side, Jeff Dale is an award-winning songwriter and performer (according to the project’s one-pager). Dale has worked with such blues luminaries as Pee Wee Crayton, Etta James, and Lowell Fulson. During his travels through the blues world, Dale has learned from many of the greats—Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Willie Dixon, Albert King, Clifton Chenier, and David “Honeyboy” Edwards. Since the 1980s, Dale has released eight albums of original songs.

Jeff Dale, who has vocal and guitar credits on the album, wrote all the songs for The Hurricane Dale Thang, in addition to producing the album. Rich Hyland mixed the tracks, and the album was mastered by David Donnelly of the DNA Mastering Studio in Los Angeles.

Bobby Spencer also has vocal credits, and he and Dale are joined on the project by several veteran L.A. musicians, including bassist Elizabeth Hangan (also with vocal credits) and Albert Trepagnier, Jr. on drums, percussion, and vocals. Another key member of the group is Derek Phillips playing keyboards. Lester Lands has guitar and vocal credits, along with saxophonists Pat Zicari and Jim Jedeikin.

Gale-force winds begin to howl on the album’s first track, “The Hurricane,” featuring terrific sax solos and a solid backbeat. Elizabeth Hangan soulfully sings lead vocals on “I Really Don’t Care,” which is reminiscent of those 1960s R&B “girl groups” like Martha and the Vandellas, while Derek Phillips’ keyboards are terrific. Old school soul is also on display on the album’s next track, “That’s How I Do” featuring lead vocals by Albert Trepagnier, Jr. and an old school brassy rhythm. Trepagnier, Jr. continues the sassy, brassy fun singing “Only Girl For Me” featuring catchy lyrics and another great backbeat. Spencer’s saxophone shines bright on “Fairmont Hotel,” with its own great lyrics and backbeat.

The band gets super funky on “Put Some Stank On It” with, once again, tremendous sax play, intricate keys, and great backing vocals. In the tradition of old-style blues standards, “Shackled To A Dollar” has a message that all of us can relate to right now. Finally, “When I Start Drinkin’” is a honky tonk-style number with the Elvis Presley-inspired refrain…Well, that’s all right.

As their one-pager states, The Hurricane Dale Thang project is a testament to the healing power of music and the power of love and friendship. Blues listeners will agree that you can hear and feel the love—more like joy—on every cut and the musicianship is second-to-none…especially Bobby Spencer’s terrific saxophone.

The ‘Hurricane’ is blowing sweet and strong, once again.

Writer Ken Billett is a freelance writer based in Memphis. He is a Blues Foundation member and former docent/tour guide at the Blues Hall of Fame. Originally from Tampa, Florida, Ken writes about travel, music, and the Mississippi Delta.

Big Al And The Heavyweights – Blues Power

VizzTone Label Group

https://bigal.net

10 songs time – 41:05

The latest effort from South Louisiana’s veteran blues-roots band finds them with two new members in Dangerous Dale Robertson on harp and Dennis the Menace Cedeno on bass. Stalwarts Marcel Anton on vocals-guitar and namesake and spiritual leader Big Al Lauro on drums carry on their legacy. All of the songs are band originals. Their sound is blues based while letting other influences creep in, including funk and the inevitable Louisiana vibes.

Although Marcel’s vocal is a bit too harsh, train effects via guitar, harp and drum locomotion are used to good effect on “Big Freight Train”. His voice is better suited to the slide guitar groove and the prominent bass line of “Blues Power”. He achieves kind of a Johnny Winter vocal sound. “If” is slow in tempo but mighty in sound. “Red Line” is a catchy upbeat shuffle with group vocals. Dale Robertson takes a rhythmic harmonica solo followed by a guitar solo by a stinging guitar solo in which he briefly quotes ‘Over The Rainbow”.

Now for a bit of jump blues where Dale puts his harmonica chops on full display along with one of Marcel’s speed defying guitar solos on the energetic “Tired Of Waiting”. “Wasted So Much Time With You” charges full steam ahead. A very soulful vocal graces the slow bass-infused “Got What I Like”. “Good Bye” is a classic New Orleans Rhythm & Blues ballad that contains some amazing guitaring. “I Want To Know” features a second vocalist with a shredded voice, yikes! More heartfelt guitar on this one. “Fast Drivin'” chugs to the finish line with hard charging harmonica.

Gritty harmonica-guitar blues infused with Louisiana style. These four musicians make quite a moving joyful noise. A top notch rhythm section hold up the forceful guitarist and harmonica ace. High energy supplemented by a few slowed down numbers. We have a winner!

Reviewer Greg “Bluesdog” Szalony hails from the New Jersey Delta.

Bukka White – Aberdeen Mississippi Blues: Complete Recordings 1930 – 1940

Document Records

www.document-records.com

20 tracks – 58 minutes

Booker T. Washington White, named for the great black educator, was born on a farm south of Houston in northeastern Mississippi on November 12, 1906. Bukka is the phonetic pronunciation of Booker. His mother was the sister of B.B. King’s maternal grandmother, giving him a connection to B.B. His father was a railroad worker who played the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and piano. At age 9, is father gave him his first guitar. At age 16, he married and was given a Stella guitar for a wedding present. The marriage did not last long as his wife died of a ruptured appendix.

He moved to the Mississippi Delta to work on a farm. While there, a talent scout, Ralph Lembo, spotted him walking down the street with his guitar. In May 1930, Ralph took Bukka to Victor Records for a recording session which delivered fourteen songs in one sitting. Unfortunately, only four of them ever made it to a record.

He married again in 1934 to Susie Simpson. They moved to Aberdeen to again take up farming. Around 1935, Peetie Wheatstraw took him to Chicago where he became friends with Big Bill Broonzy, Washboard Sam and Tampa Red. While in Chicago in early 1937, he recorded two songs – “Pinebluff Arkansas” and “Shake ’em on Down”, which were released on Vocalion. The latter becoming a major hit.

In October 1937, he was arrested in Aberdeen for the murder of a man he shot in the thigh and was sentenced to life in prison in the Mississippi State Penitentiary, otherwise known as the Parchman farm. John Lomax visited the prison in 1939 and recorded two songs with Bukka – “Po Boy” and “Sic “em Dogs On”. “Po’ Boy” became his second hit. He served two years in prison and was released. His wife divorced him shortly after his release. In early 1940, he returned to Chicago to try his hand at recording again. His producer, Lester Melrose, rejected the idea of recording old songs. Lester put him up in a hotel and told him to write new material. Bukka returned with twelve new songs that were recorded with Washboard Sam in March 1940. Those songs constitute the final twelve songs on this album.

Unfortunately, during the war years the music evolved and the interest in the style of music Bukka performed waned. In 1942, he moved to Memphis where he became a factory laborer. He continued to play music, but received little recognition until the interest in the blues rose again in the 1960’s. Bob Dylan recorded Bukka’s 1940 song “Fixin’ to Die Blues” in 1962. His young cousin, B.B. King moved to Memphis and lived with Bukka. Bukka introduced him around town. As B.B.’s fame grew, interest in Bukka grew again in the 1960’s, but that is another part of Bukka’s story not covered with this album release. Bukka died in Memphis on February 26, 1977.

White explained his vigorous guitar playing style as “I stomp ’em, I don’t peddle ’em”. Critics cited his slide guitar style as “slashing” and noted his deep vocals as “booming”. The album opens with his first two songs recorded in May 1930 with his friend Napoleon Hairiston (shown in some notes as Harrison). “The New ‘Frisco Train” and “The Panama Limited” reflected his interest in trains dating back to his father. The next two songs from 1930, the gospel songs “I Am in the Heavenly Way” and “The Promise True and Grand” added Memphis Minnie (referenced as Miss Minnie) on vocals.

The songs previously cited that were recorded in Chicago in 1937 and from prison in 1939 follow. That order is “Pinebluff Arkansas”, “Shake’ em On Down”, “Sic’ em Dogs On”, and Po’ Boy”.

He returns to his interest in trains on “Black Train Blues”, the first of the recordings from 1940. On “Strange Places Blues”, he addresses the death of his mother in 1933 and seeking a woman to take his mother’s place. “When Can I Change My Clothes” addresses his time in prison and having to wear the prison attire.  “Sleepy Man Blues” also addresses his time of being in trouble and shunned by his friends noting “When A Man gets in trouble in his mind, he wanna sleep all the time”.

“Parchman Farm Blues” provides the story of his murder sentence, being sentenced to the prison, and life while there citing “If you wanna do good, you better stay off ol’ Parchman Farm. We got to work in the mornin’ just dawn of day. Just at the settin’ sun, that’s when the work is done.” He then declares his love of alcohol in “Good Gin Blues”. “High Fever Blues” discusses a time of sickness as the doctor stuck his “fever gauge” under his tongue and was told by the doctor, “All you need, your lover in your arms”. “District Attorney Blues” was released as the B side of “Parchman Farm Blues” and again is part of his criminal story citing that “he taken me from my woman cause her to love some other man.”

On “Fixin’ to Die Blues” he addresses loneliness singing “sure seems lonesome, Lord when the sun goes down…tell Jesus make up my dying bed.” On “Aberdeen Mississippi Blues”, he cites two Aberdeen women “gonna make me lose my mind”. He encourages the women to do “Bukka’s Jitterbug Swing”. The album ends with another train song “Special Stream Line”, a train that runs so fast from Memphis to New Orleans that ran “so fast the hobos don’t fool with this train. They stand on the track with their hat in their hands”.

Bukka’s songs reflect the country blues that were part of that era. The songs provide a story of his life, perhaps somewhat simply, but tied together makes for a solid narrative.

Writer John Sacksteder is a retired civil engineer in Louisville, Kentucky who has a lifelong love of music, particularly the blues. He is currently the Editor of the Kentuckiana Blues Society’s monthly newsletter.

Jennifer Porter –  Sun Come and Shine Redux

Overton Music

https://jenniferportermusic.com

10 tracks

This is a re-release of Jennifer Porter’s 2021 release showcasing her quite impressive vocals. Her style is contemporary/smooth jazz as her band backs the vocals that reach to the ether to deliver her remarkable sound. This is her tenth album and her background in jazz and classical are apparent.

Porter handles vocals, B3 and Fender Rhodes. Bernard Purdie is on drums, Willie Bascombe and Dan Boone handle bass duties, and George Naha is on guitar.  Miho Nobuzane plays a variety of keyboards while backing vocals are the trio of Audrey Wheeler Downing, Layonne Holmes and Kim Davis. Rod Papparozzi is the harpist. The horn section is Steve Jankowski (brass) and Tom Timko (saxes). Some individual performances and noted below.

The title track opens the album. This is a lofty and light smooth jazz cut showcasing Porter’s vocal ability. Porter plays organ which fills out the sound. There is a little light yet rootsy harp which is probably the bluesiest thing on the album. “Next is “Show Me Your Love” where Porter again hits the keys. This is an airy and contemporary little jazz piece with more ethereal vocal by Porter. The airy trumpet adds to the nouveaux jazz feel.

“When It’s All Been Said and Done” is another silky and smooth number with Porter’s breathy vocals shining bright. More of the same follows with “Satin Shoes” except we get some horns added, keeping the feeling light.

“Stop Your Talkin’” is a bit jazzier with guitar and harp and a less light take on the music. Porter’s vocals pull the song back to the ethereal as the rest of the band lays out a little more funk. Then it’s “In and Out With You” where the band gets a groove going while Jennifer stays light and airy. The horns amp up a bit and the backing vocals are forthright, and then we get a ringing guitar solo.

“Bitter New York Night” is a light jazzy ballad with stratospheric vocals and the band keeps it light to maintain the feeling. Somber yet sensual. “You’re So Easy to Be With” features C.J. Chenier on accordion and Porter with the honky-tonk piano. It’s NOLA light, with Porter remaining airy and soft in her delivery.

“Something On Your Mind” is the lone cover song. The bass accompaniment is cool and the soprano sax adds to the soft jazz ambiance as Porter again vocally excels. The CD ends with the country styled rootsy-ness of “I’ll Be Here.” More smooth jazziness  but with a country flair. Here we have Cindy Cashdollar on pedal steel and Angelo “Buddy” Saviso on fretless bass.

The album is not a blues album. There ore two, maybe three hints at bluesy-ness, but the songs and deliveries remain centered in modern day new-age jazz. If you want to hear an outstanding vocalist whose ambient, and even space styled jazz vocals (similar to what one would hear weeknights on NPR Radio’s Echoes hosted by John Diliberto) are truly amazing, then this album is for you.

Blues Blast Magazine Senior writer Steve Jones is president of the Crossroads Blues Society and is a long standing blues lover. He is a retired Navy commander who served his entire career in nuclear submarines. In addition to working in his civilian career since 1996, he writes for and publishes the bi-monthly newsletter for Crossroads, chairs their music festival and works with their Blues In The Schools program. He resides in Byron, IL.

Many blues listeners are probably unaware of the existence of Paul Thorn. And that is a shame. While Thorn is not a died-in-the-wool blues artist, his musical roots extend deeper into the genre than many of the bands and artist being marketed as something they are not.

Another thing that separates Thorn from the pack is his ability to write songs that tell stories, often in humorous fashion, and with subtle insights or off-the-wall references that stick in your mind. It doesn’t hurt that he also consistently manages to compose musical accompaniment that helps flesh the stories out, whether it be with a guitar hook with his band at their rocking best or a stripped down acoustic treatment for a tender ballad.

Asked about his connections to blues music, Thorn was quick to set the record straight.

“I don’t consider myself a blues artist, but I am blues-ish. I’m a big fan of the blues. One of the first records I ever bought was a B. B. King Live In Cook County Jail. And then I had one called Down Home Blues by ZZ Hill. I wore those records out, listening to those when I was young. So there’s blues in what I do.

“I can’t say I’m John Lee Hooker. I’m a songwriter that seems to appeal to the blues audience. And I’m thankful I got invited in. The artist’s job is to endear themselves to the audience. So I don’t worry about, did I play the blues. If that comes in, great. I’m just going to be me all the way. Luckily, if you just be yourself, you don’t have to remember how to act. I’ve been accepted into the blues world, and I’m thankful for that, because I love blues, but I’m a songwriter. The thing that’s been a godsend is that it seems like there’s a group of people that have found what I do, and they like it. And they’re blues lovers. So I’ve been invited into the club of blues.”

Indeed he has. Thorn makes regular appearances on music cruises like the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise and the Sandy Beaches Cruise, which was started by the acclaimed singer Delbert McClinton. Thorn also is a regular at the prestigious King Biscuit Blues Festival, held in Helena, Arkansas.

Growing up, Thorn started singing in church at an early age. And given where he grew up, there was a strong musical influence from one particular artist.

“I grew up singing in Pentecostal church. My dad was a preacher. I grew up in the same town that Elvis Presley grew up in, Tupelo, Mississippi. I literally attended some of the same churches that Elvis attended. Also, I was friends with Brother Frank Smith, the man who taught Elvis how to play guitar when he was a kid. So I’m really connected to that whole Elvis thing. Even though we’re from a different generation, me and Elvis have a lot in common. We both grew up on that type of gospel music, that Pentecostal black gospel music. We both had a thing for that.

“Man, kids growing up now, they don’t even know who Elvis is. I mean, I live in Tupelo, Mississippi, where he was born, and fewer and fewer tourists are coming to see the birthplace of Elvis Presley, because the new generation has no reference of it. It doesn’t mean nothing to them. They missed his life and all the excitement, hype and everything. So they don’t have a lot to relate to at all.

“I’m not making this up. Yesterday morning, me and my wife got up, had some coffee, and from front to back, we watched one of those horrible Elvis movies called Blue Hawaii. We watched the whole movie, and it was so horrible, we couldn’t take our eyes off of it. It was so bad, it was awesome! You know what I mean?

“In every movie Elvis would do the same thing. He would get in an argument with some guy who’s a bully. The other guy would always throw a first punch So Elvis gets knocked down, and then he gets up, knocks the other guy out, and then coincidentally there’s a guitar laying right there, so he just picks it up. After he cold cocks this guy, he just picks it up and starts singing, “Hula baby rock, hula baby rock.” You know, it was awesome!”

Thorn stayed with music, writing songs and still singing in church, eventually singing in bars, doing the typical stuff that all aspiring musicians do. He got discovered by a big-time manager and got a record deal on A&M Records.

“Ever since then, I’ve been doing this full time for over 30 years. Even though I’m not a household name, my career and my audience have gotten bigger every single year. There’s never been a year where everything’s went backwards. That’s because I get out there and I grind, I tour, and I build my fan base. It’s served me well, sticking with music.”

Thorn had a second career. He studied boxing, developing his skills to the point where he was a ranked Top Ten contender in his weight class. That led to a major bout that became the defining moment of his career.

“My uncle was a boxer. I looked up to my uncle when I was a kid and when I found out he was a boxer, it made me want to be a boxer. I wasn’t the greatest, but I was very good. I was good enough that I got to fight Roberto Duran, who during his career was a World Champion in four different weight classes. I lost on cuts after six rounds, but I took boxing as far as I could take it.

“Once I realized that I couldn’t be a champion, I don’t like to say I quit, because quitting is not taking it as far as you can take it. I took it as far as I could take it. I didn’t quit. I just knew my limitations. I couldn’t beat a world champion. If you can’t be a world champion, you don’t even need to be a boxer. Because otherwise, you’re just going to wind up getting your brain scrambled. My brain is scrambled, I know that. The main reason boxers fight too long is because it’s the only thing they know how to do. But I was fortunate when my time of boxing came to an end, I had music to dive into, and it has served me well.

“I did well in that fight. I got cut early on, and then the cuts start getting worse and worse. I was what was called a bleeder. There are certain boxers that their skin just breaks. And I have real sharp cheekbones, so my facial skeletal structure is just idyllic to get cut. And so I got cut up. But I’m in an elite club of people that can say they got to fight Roberta Duran. They don’t let you just walk in the ring with the bird, you gotta whoop some folks. And I whooped a lot of folks. I’ve received a few whoopings and, and I delivered a few whoopings. I was good enough to get in there with him and it’s one of the things I’m most proudest of. I know I may be the only person that got to ride in an ambulance to the hospital with Roberto.

“See, I busted his eye open, so I got some punches in. He actually told me after the fight that I hurt him. What people don’t understand about boxing, what made him great is he was so hard to hit. He had this ability to move his head and stay out of the way, and that was his true gift. But I caught him one time with a left hook when he was on the ropes. When I hit him, his whole head just spun like a top. I dazed him, but he had so much experience, he grabbed me, and he pulled me in, and he held on so that I couldn’t hit him again. He was just so hard to hit.

“One of the things I have on my bucket list is that Roberto plays congas. He’s a salsa musician. I’ve already reached out to him once because I wanted him to play on one of my records. It wasn’t because I necessarily wanted congas on my album. I just want him on there doing something. So I reached out to him, but he had something else going on. I’m going to reach out to him again, reconnect with him. He’s 73 years old, beloved in the country he lives in, Panama. He owns a restaurant that shows his fights on the screens, so he’s like a Panamanian Colonel Sanders. I would love to go over there and sit with him in his restaurant, shake his hand, say thanks for the memories. I’m sure he would love to be remembered.”

Duran figures in one of Thorn’s originals, “I’d Rather Be A Hammer Than A Nail.” Other songs drawn from his life feature a wide range of subject matter run through the songwriter’s scrambled brain cells, making connections between old stray dogs, the Gospel, Pentecostal fireworks stands, trailer parks, and preachers.

On his latest record, Life is Just A Vapor, the singer revisits a topic from an earlier song, “Pimps And Preachers.”

“On the album is a song called “Chicken Wing. It’s about an old pimp telling stories about his life. The first pimp I ever met was my uncle. Since then I’ve met so many pimps and this one pimp had a nickname, Chicken Wing. It’s not really his story exactly. It’s a culmination of all the pimps I ever met. I’m saying it’s all a broad conglomeration. The thing about most pimps sadly, is pimps are cold. A pimp is somebody who promises you everything with no intention of ever giving you anything. That’s what a pimp is.

“You know, it’s like these record companies, a lot of them, they sign a singer, a young kid, and they put him in a limo, they put him in a hotel, they put him out on tour, but at the end of it, they take it all. They take most all the money and that’s what pimps do. They promise you this and that, but they never deliver. That’s reason I put that line in the song, “ I love my dog, I like my wife,” because that’s how they really feel. It’s funny to hear that in the song, but there’s a brutal side to that because I know pimps to this day, that if their woman walked away, they wouldn’t give a crap.

“Pimps don’t take care of you. You take care of them. Most of them wind up with nothing because they’ve exploited and used people all their life. You rarely see one that ends well. But I still have an affection for them because I grew up around them, and I learned one thing. The greatest advice a pimp ever gave me in life was how to get your woman back. When your woman leaves you, you don’t send her flowers, you don’t cry on the phone – you replace her. You replace her, that’s how you get her back. You see what I’m saying? You gotta let her know you got options. If your woman leaves you, you can’t get her back groveling, you gotta replace her. Once she finds out you got somebody else, then she’s gonna want to come back.”

These days, really good songwriters are seemingly in short supply. Thorn takes pride in his efforts, but is quick to share credit with those who have inspired him, and others who help him with the writing process.

“My songwriting mentors were actually country songwriters. Billy Maddox is the guy that I write with most of the time. He’s ten years older than me and when I met him, he was already having success as a hit country songwriter. Country songs are story songs, not so much modern country, but old country. All my songs are stories. Some people just put words in songs ’cause they sound good. But I try to make ’em mean something. Another well-known influence to a lot of people was Hank Williams Sr. If you listen to any of his songs, they’re so simple and eloquent. Every single line is a barn burner. Who can not relate to, ”I’m so lonesome I could cry.”

“That’s blues. It’s country, but it’s blues. Not to discredit anybody, but if you just go Do do do do do do do do all the time, where is the substance to that? You can go up there and noodle, show that you’ve got chops on a guitar or an organ, but without a song, it’s all gonna be forgotten real quick. Today it just doesn’t seem like people want to write a story. Another of my favorite writers is Roger Miller Is he a blues artist? No, but what is a better blues song than “King of the Road”? That’s a blues song. “Trailers for sale or rent, rooms to let 50 cents. No phone, no pool, no pets. I ain’t got no cigarettes.” That’s a blues song. It just happens to be very melodic, and very well put together by a guy who learned the craft.

One song on the new album, “Courage My Love,” is different than the usual Thorn material, although he does manage to fit in a reference to a “three horsepower lawnmower” without missing a beat.

“It’s a straight up love song. I’m not known for love songs, but I wrote that song with a great country songwriter by the name of Chuck Cannon, who co-wrote all those big, giant Toby Keith songs. Me and him wrote that song, which I’m proud of. It’s the only song on the record where it’s just me, my guitar, and my guitar player playing slide. It came out really good. When I was growing up, my sisters had records by this group called Bread. They had these awesome, beautiful love songs. And I wanted to write one that sounds like a Bread song. It’s a love song, unapologetic. Hopefully when somebody hears it, it’ll resonate with them and they’ll say, “I want to play this song for my wife or my girlfriend or, or maybe I’ll play it for my wife and my girlfriend. You know what I mean!“

The title track initially sounds like the songwriter is reflecting on his own mortality.

“It’s talking about enjoying every moment that you can. Older people better understand that life is just a vapor. When you’re 20 years old, it may not mean as much, but when you get a little miles on your car, your body and you go through the seasons of life, you see that it really is a short span, but I don’t think we should be sad about that.

“I just think we should find more ways to enjoy it. The origin of that song was I was having some ice cream with John Prine after a show one night. I got him in trouble for eating ice cream because I posted it on Facebook and his wife got really mad because John was diabetic. We were just enjoying ourselves that night. But it did make his wife Fiona mad because he may have shortened his life a little bit by eating that ice cream. But maybe it was worth it. Yeah, live it while you can. That’s what I’m trying to do.

“Joe Bonamassa is one of the big names in the blues world. He played on one song on my record about a worried, insecure man. I called Joe and said, “How much would you charge me to play on my record?” He paused for a minute, then says. ‘How about two Diet Cokes?” So I owe him two Diet Cokes. But I’m going to wait before I give them to him because I’m hoping this record will blow up, be real successful, and then I can afford to get him a whole six pack!

That song, “I’m Just Waiting,” opens with, “She called me baby 54 times today. All of my friends think that I’ve got it made.” But by the second verse, things quickly begin to unravel as Thorn relates, “For the second time this month it’s happened again. She thanked me for roses that I didn’t send.”

On “Wait,” a friend of Thorn’s is searching for love on Tinder, taking dates to Popeye’s Chicken to take advantage of discount offers. “We sat down at the table, It was understood. That two-for-$20 coupon was still good. The conversation flowed, the chicken got cold. We both agreed Jackson Browne finally looks old.” It is one more example of the off-the-wall images that Thorn conjures up.

“People always remember that line the first time they hear it. The thing I’ve always been amazed by is all throughout his career, Jackson Browne still looked like a young man, but then in the last couple of years he’s actually looking old. I thought that would be a nice thing to put in there, kind of tipping my hat to him, complimenting his longevity. He’s still out there still doing “Doctor My Eyes”. I’m hoping that he’ll hear this and laugh. I’m hoping he’s got a sense of humor about it. I think he will. A 20 year old ain’t going to get the reference. But people that’s lived a little, got some time in, they’ll get it and they’ll like it.”

Live and on recordings, Thorn’s band brings plenty of life to his worldly observations. Their tight sound is a product of time well spent.

“Well, obviously, to be in a band, you have to be able to play. The other thing I really search for when auditioning people to play with is identifying people that I think I could live with, people that I could travel with, people that I could be friends with. I know this is a cliche, but my band is truly a family.

“My drummer, Jeffrey Perkins, has been with me for 27 years. My keyboard player, Michael “Dr. Love” Graham, has been with me for 25 years. My former guitar player, Bill Hinds, was with me for 30 years. He finally retired, and Chris Simmons has been playing guitar for five years. Ralph Friedrichsen has been my drummer since 2010. The people that get in this group, they stay, because we pick the right people. Everybody in my band is a force. And I’ll tell you why. We keep improving as a band. Every night after our shows, we don’t dwell on it, but we talk about the mistakes we made. We acknowledge if we made a mistake or we could have played this better, I could have sang this line a different way.

“We don’t just pat each other on the back, cause the crowd will pat you on the back. But we know what we’re capable of. I want it to be to the point where if we have a bad night, they’ll still love it. If we have a bad night, we’re the only ones that know we had a bad night. That’s called being professional. And we pride ourselves on that.

“I’m 60 years old. My plan is to be able to continue what I’ve been doing, continue to grow my audience. I thank anybody that’s reading this or comes to a show. You are loved. And I thank the blues world for letting me be a part of it. I’m blues-ish, but I got accepted. For that, I am very grateful.”

Blues Blast Magazine Senior writer Mark Thompson lives in Florida, where he is enjoying the sun and retirement. He is the past President of the Board of Directors for the Suncoast Blues Society and a former member of the Board of Directors for the Blues Foundation. Music has been a huge part of his life for the past fifty years – just ask his wife!