Chicago’s annual Blues Festival–at Grant Park through Sunday–is just one of the more high-profile events on the city’s rich blues scene. With enough history to keep music lovers constantly uncovering new nuggets of lore and a thriving live music scene, Chicago can confidently claim a place on top of the blues world.
2003: Year of the Blues
The U.S. Senate declared 2003 the Year of the Blues and at the project’s centerpiece is a seven-part PBS series overseen by Martin Scorsese, which will begin airing in late September.
Each 90-minute documentary has a different director and explores a different aspect of the blues, such as the Memphis scene, piano blues or the music’s influence on ’60s rockers. Scorsese’s episode, “From Mali to Mississippi,” focuses on the global aspects of a music that finds its origins in Africa, its home in the U.S. and ultimately a global audience.
“Godfathers and Sons,” directed by Marc Levin, examines Chicago’s blues history. In the documentary, Chuck D and Chess Records’ heir Marshall Chess bring together local blues giants with hip-hop artists.
“I wanted to do something that was not looking back, but instead tries to show that this music is still reverberating today,” Levin said.
The film builds to a scene in a recording studio where veteran blues musicians and hip-hop performers rework a classic Muddy Waters song to include rap.
Other Year of the Blues events include concerts, exhibits, radio documentaries and education programs coordinated by Seattle’s Experience Music Project and the Memphis-based Blues Foundation. Several record labels, museums and festivals also are involved.
Teaching through music is at the core of the program. The Year of the Blues advisory board–which includes record label owners, music journalists and major blues performers–selects one recording a week to trace the progression of the genre. View the board’s choice for week 20 and past selections at www.yearoftheblues.org.
Year of the Blues kicked off in February with a concert at Radio City Music Hall featuring blues heavy hitters B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Bonnie Raitt and rappers Chuck D and Mos Def.
Chicago’s blues district
Plans for a designated blues district along 47th Street have made minimal progress since city officials proposed the Bronzeville neighborhood project in 1998.
Under Ald. Dorothy Tillman’s direction, the original plan included a cultural center with an 800-seat theater, a bazaar of African shops, a Second City comedy club and a plaza dedicated to Quincy Jones.
In the 1930s, ’40s and early ’50s, the thriving area was home to legendary entertainment venues: the Regal Theatre, Savoy Ballroom and Metropolitan Theatre.
But so far, the biggest developments are snags: Community activists complained the district should be along 43rd Street, home to the legendary Checkerboard Lounge and a stretch of blocks called Muddy Waters Drive. Musician Lou Rawls criticized Tillman for construction delays and financial questions on the cultural center meant to bear his name–problems despite the $4 million Tillman gathered in government funding for the complex. Tillman’s project has failed to attract new clubs, as well.
More signs marking the district will be mounted and some initiatives with the Transportation Department will be complete by the end of the summer, according to one of Tillman’s aides.
Cliffs Notes history of the blues
Blues descended from the field hollers and rhythmic dance tunes slaves brought with them from Africa.
After the Civil War, when African-American farm workers made their way to cities such as Memphis and New Orleans, the blues took off. These urban communities latched on to the music and developed a “classic” blues style featuring piano and jazz sounds that became a national craze in the ’20s.
The hub of blues activity reached Chicago after World War II. The Chicago sound emphasized guitars and drums, a style that white musicians later transformed into rock ‘n’ roll music during the ’50s and into hard rock in the ’60s.
Today, traditional blues enjoys a global audience and continues to influence jazz, rock and country music.
Chicago Blues Museum
The Blues Festival ends this weekend, but the good vibes can last all summer at the “Chicago Blues Exchange.” The exhibit, which opens Sunday, features artifacts, films and photos from the Chicago Blues Museum. Check out both of Howlin’ Wolf’s guitars, the doors from Muddy Water’s home, the original “House of Blues” sign and “as much of the Checkerboard Lounge as I could carry,” said Gregg Parker, the museum’s president.
The museum has no permanent home so exhibits are set up temporarily at festivals and cultural centers, such as the Chicago Tourism Center, 72 E. Randolph St., where the “Chicago Blues Exchange” appears through Sept. 21.
Another of the museum’s exhibits, “Chicago Blues Legends/Portraits of the Masters,” is part of this year’s Chicago Blues Festival in Grant Park. See rare images, memorabilia and performance footage that focuses on the blues giants from the 1940s through the 1960s.
Parker’s acclaimed collection comprises tens of thousands of items documenting black culture of the 20th Century.
Many filmmakers and historians draw on the extensive holdings, which include instruments, recordings and more than an estimated 450,000 pictures and images.
When Ken Burns needed historic photos for his jazz documentary, he contacted Parker.
Experts’ festival picks
RedEye asked some local blues experts what they recommend:
Steve Cushing, host of WBEZ’s “Blues before Sunrise”
– Roy Gaines: Cushing says this guy should be on the main stage. Saturday, 12:30-1 p.m. Juke Joint Stage (On Columbus Drive, North of Jackson Street) and again with the West Coast Blues Band, Saturday 4:30-6 p.m. Front Porch Stage (Southwest corner of Jackson Street and Columbus Drive).
– Record Collecting: the Search for the Blues with Gayle Dean Wardlow, Joel Slotnifoff, Steve Cushing, moderated by Bob Porter: 4-5:30 p.m. Route 66 Roadhouse Stage (Columbus Drive, South of Jackson Street).
Bob Koester, owner of Jazz Record Mart and founder of Delmark Records
– Otis Rush: Friday, 8:30-9:30 p.m. Petrillo Music Shell (Northeast corner of Jackson Street and Columbus Drive).
– “All About Bob and Big Joe,” a celebration of Bob Koester and the memory of Big Joe Williams: Paul Garon, Bruce Iglauer, Michael Franks, Charlie Musselwhite, John Fishel. Discussion moderated by Bob Porter. Friday, 2-3:30 p.m. Route 66 Roadhouse Stage.
Gregg Parker, president Chicago Blues Museum
– Bonnie Raitt: Parker, who has played with countless artists, never played with Raitt. “She strikes me as cool,” he said. “I think she can hang out with the brothers.” Saturday, 8:15-9:30 p.m. Petrillo Music Shell.
– Mose Allison: Sunday, 3-4 p.m. Front Porch Stage and again from 6:20 to 6:50 p.m. Petrillo Music Shell.
Best blues record store
Jazz Record Mart
444 N. Wabash Ave
Jazz Record Mart is the city’s definitive source for jazz and blues albums, from the beginning of recorded music to contemporary artists. Other genres include a selection of international music from Cuba, Latin America, Africa, Brazil and elsewhere. Browse through an estimated 80,000 CDs, LPs, 45s, 78s and cassettes, or sit in on a performance on the in-store stage. Owner Bob Koester opened the store in 1959 and later founded an independent music label, Delmark Records.
Last artist to visit store: Matt Wilson, a drummer from New York who plays with the legendary Dewey Redman and his own quartet.
Rare offering: Koester drew $800 for a rare recording by Sun Ra, founder of avant garde jazz.
Blues Fest specials: (1) Extended hours: The store will open an hour early, 9 a.m., Friday through Sunday. (2) Start Sunday with coffee, bagels and the blues. The store hosts an all-star lineup of artists from Koester’s Delmark Records label from 10 a.m. to noon (though staff estimates the gig often runs until 2 p.m.).
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Who to see at this year’s Blues Fest
The 20th Annual Chicago Blues Festival in Grant Park kicked off Thursday and continues through Sunday.
Check out the main acts at the Petrillo Music Shell:
Friday
– 6-7:10 p.m. Willie Kent and the Gents with Bonnie Lee
– 7:20-8:20 p.m. Charlie Musselwhite
– 8:30-9:30 p.m. Otis Rush
Saturday
– 5-6:05 p.m. Jimmy Johnson
– 6:15-8:05 p.m. “Chicago’s 20th Anniversary Salute,” featuring Billy Branch, Carl Weathersby, Melvin Taylor, Butch Dixon, Barrelhouse Chuck, Mathew Skoller, Shirli Dixon, Shirley King and more of Chicago’s finest
– 8:15-9:30 p.m. Bonnie Raitt
Sunday
– 5-6:10 p.m. Ken Saydak and Zora Young with James Wheeler
– 6:20-6:50 p.m. Mose Allison
– 7-8:10 p.m. Cicero Blake
– 8:20-9:30 p.m. Buckwheat Zydeco
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By the numbers
750,000 Approximate number of people who attended the 2002 Chicago Blues Festival.
70+ Number of performers featured at this year’s festival.
0Cost to get into Blues Fest, the world’s largest free-admission blues festival.
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