2011 Muddy Awards In Review
On Thursday, November 3rd, the Cascade Blues Association presented the 23rd annual Muddy Awards at The Melody Ballroom to a huge crowd of blues lovers and musicians. Awards were handed out in 22 categories and though there were a lot of familiar faces in the recipients, there were also several first-timers recognized as well.
Outstanding performances were given by Billy D & The Hoodoos, plus an all-star Muddy jam put together by Lisa Mann including artists: Alex Shakeri, Allen Markel, Brad Ulrich, Brian Harris, Chad Rupp, Dallas Breed, Dan Fincher, Dave Kahl, Dave Melyan, Hank Shreve, Jake Johnson, Jeff Hayes, Jeff Knudson, Jim Miller, Joe McCarthy, Kelly Dunn, Kevin Selfe, Lisa Mann, LynnAnn Hyde, Michael Ballash, Peter Dammann, Rae Gordon, Sonny Hess, Stu Kinzel, and Vyasa Dodson. A spectacular show indeed!
Despite a couple of glitches, the show went off well. We had to scramble for cymbals to begin with, a fault of our own as we usually ask the artists to bring their own when doing events, though this showcase had to have quick change-overs and we did not inform the backline people beforehand. Jimi Bott and Ashbolt Stewart came to the rescue with their gear at the last minute. Thanks guys. The music for the slideshow also malfunctioned, even though we had checked it before opening the doors and it worked fine then. Murphy’s Law was in full force. If you would like to see the slideshow complete with music, visit our website www.cascadeblues.org and click on the Muddy Awards link to get the full grasp of what we had planned for the night.
A huge thanks go out to Billy D, Lisa Mann and all the musicians, Rich Lantz Wall of Sound for the backline, lighting and sound, The Melody Ballroom for once again giving us such a fine venue to hold this event, the CBA Board of Directors for their hard work in putting everything together and most of all to all of our members who took the time to vote for this year’s recipients and came down to help us celebrate.
We will do it all again next year, and I promise the slideshow will work then.
2011 Muddy Award Recipients:
Bill Rhoades
Lifetime Achievement
Contemporary Blues Act: The Strange Tones
R&B Act: Lloyd Jones Struggle
Traditional Blues Act: Kevin Selfe & The Tornadoes
New Blues Act: A.C. Porter & The Live Wires
Regional Blues Act: Ty Curtis Band
“Duffy Bishop” Female Vocalist: Rae Gordon
“Curtis Salgado” Male Vocalist: Ty Curtis
Electric Guitar: Robbie Laws
“Terry Robb” Acoustic Guitar: Mary Flower
Bass: Dave Kahl
Drums: Jimi Bott
Harmonica: Jim Wallace
Keyboards: Steve Kerin
Horns: Peter Moss
Venue: Duff’s Garage
NW Recording: Lloyd Jones “Highway Bound”
National Recording: Buddy Guy “Living Proof”
Performance of the Year: Buddy Guy at the Waterfront Blues Festival
NW Blues Event: Waterfront Blues Festival
“The Hurley” Award: Jeff Cota
Back What You Believe In: (Tie) Amanda Gresham & Barbara Hammerman / Greg Johnson
Lifetime Achievement: Bill Rhoades
Bookmark with:
J.C. Rico had a voice that just oozed soulful blues. His album First Offense clearly showcased that. Raised in Mississippi and spending time in Chicago prior to moving to Oregon gave him the exposure on just how this music should sound right. Opening with the funky backbeat behind his deep, serious voice on “Sign Of The Times” tells you right away that Rico meant business, which also offers a killer bluesy guitar solo. That is followed up by “Old Catfish Song” where he tells a nice story about a catfish who wishes he could travel on the train he hears go by every day. Other outstanding tracks include a cover of Solomon Burke’s “Cry To Me,” the deeply soulful “Never Gonna Change,” punchy horns on “Long Time Gone” and the slow blues piece “I Know Her Too.” At the time of this release J.C. Rico was commanding stages in the area with his band Armed & Dangerous. First Offense featured guest guitarists Lloyd Jones and Jim Mesi into the mix and the disc was a nominee for the Cascade Blues Association’s Muddy Awards for Album of the Year. Unfortunately, J.C. Rico passed away this last year, so having First Offense available again will bring back fond memories of such an outstanding vocalist and entertainer.
Also Reissued by Criminal Records Northwest is the compilation disc of the label’s founder Paul Jones playing drums behind a virtual who’s who of the local scene at the time and many of the label’s premier artists. It opens very strongly with a jumping rockabilly “Baby Let’s Play House” performed by guitarist Steve Bradley. There are so many variations of styles profiled on the disc that it creates such a great dimension that shows the diversity of each vocalist. Curtis Salgado’s reading of “My Soul’s Got A Hole In It” is so smooth it’ll send chills down your back. Jon Koonce takes a somewhat reggae approach on “Island, Island,” while Norman Sylvester gives his traditional funky knowledge on “Criminal Groove,” D.K. Stewart takes us to the bayou on his cover of “Congo Square,” and Joe Dobroe’s stellar guitar playing and deep gravelly voice make “Sitting On Top Of The World” a fun-paced quirky offering. The album closes with the soul-stirring vocals of J.C. Rico on “Walk On Water,” so well done it may bring tears to your eyes. Other fantastic numbers are presented by Lloyd Jones, Mark Dufresne and Lily Wilde. Not a bad track on the disc. Worthy of checking out again to relive those good times.
