Some Dave Konsa photos...

Our good friends and fellow blues maniacs Dave and Pam Konsa have been fans of my various bands over the years.  They live in Tacoma, WA but they trek all over Washington to see the band play, which we have always appreciated.  Dave always gives me a photo or two that he has created at various gigs, so I thought I would share a few of them with you here - enjoy!


The Killer!  Jerry Lee Lewis - Vallejo, CA, 1967

The Georgia Peach - Little Richard, 1967

Bassist Guy Quintino - Michael Lynch Band gig at the New Orleans Creole Restaurant, Seattle

Greg Roberts and Russ Kamerer - Michael Lynch Band gig at the New Orleans Creole Restaurant, Seattle

Greg Roberts, Bubba McCoy, and Guy Quintino at the New Orleans Creole Restaurant, Seattle

Mike Lynch and Bubba McCoy at the New Orleans Creole Restaurant, Seattle

Roy Kay sitting in with the Michael Lynch Band at the New Orleans Creole Restaurant, Seattle

NW R&B singer Patti Allen's most excellent shoes!

Tom Boyle, Richard Degere, and Mike Silva - Kirk Tuttle memorial gig at the Salmon Bay Eagles Club, Seattle

Leslie Milton and Mike Lynch - Kirk Tuttle memorial gig at the Salmon Bay Eagles Club, Seattle

New Orleans Creole Restaurant owner Gaye Anderson and Pam Konsa

Portland guitarist Jim Mesi

Mike Lynch and Eric Daw (Satellite 4) at the New Orleans Creole Restaurant, Seattle

The Charles White Band - probably at the Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle

Kirk Tuttle is dead.

Kirk Tuttle - 1942 to 2011

RIP

Our old friend and terrific drummer, Kirk "KT" Tuttle, died this morning (1/27/11) at Seattle's Swedish Hospital from complications associated with liver disease.  He was 68 years-old.  He will be sorely missed by the Seattle blues music community.  Photo created by Phil Chesnut.

Solomon Burke is dead.

RIP - Solomon Burke 1940-2010

Seattle Amp Porn - Pt. 1

Our good friend and excellent guitarist/bassist/singer Greg Roberts recently invited Jet City Blues to his Seattle home to check out his collection of vintage amps and guitars.  Here are some photos from that visit for you gearheads out there.  Enjoy!

Greg Roberts with his 1956 Alden guitar.  Similar to the Stratotone guitars, these axes were manufactured by the Harmony company and were available through Montgomery Ward back in the day.

A 1938 Gibson EH-185 amp and matching 11-string lap steel guitar.

The amp and cabinet is in beautiful condition.  The amp has both bass and treble controls, an unusual feature at the time.

The amp is actually a head that can be removed from the cabinet.  Here you can see the original 12" speaker, which still sounds great!

A 1950 Fender Pro Amp with a Jensen P-15N speaker.  This "TV" model cabinet would have had a tweed covering originally, but someone thoughtfully covered it with fake snakeskin sometime in the past.

It's not unusual to find old Fender tweed amps recovered or painted black (a friend of mine has a old Bassman that someone painted red!).  It's a mystery why someone cut the two holes in the bottom back panel here.

A 1963 Fender Reverb tank, prized by many players as the best sounding outboard reverb units.

This cabinet is also the wrong color, with the exception of the back panel.  Fender made the brown tolex covered amps for only three years.

Guild amp, circa 1961-62.  Similar to the Fender Pro it also has a single 15" (Utah) speaker.

Rear view of the Guild amp.  Note the wood reverb/tremolo footswitch.

A 1969 Fender Vibrolux Reverb amp.  This was manufactured shortly after Fender was bought by CBS, but still has the pre-CBS circuitry.  This is the same type of amp that Roy Buchanan played.

Rear view of the Fender Vibrolux Reverb.  Two 10" speakers and reverb/vibrato footswitch.

A Magnatone Model 213 Troubadour amp with reverb, vibrato, and one 12" Utah speaker.

These Magnatone amps have a beautiful true pitch-bending vibrato. 

An early '50s Leilani amp with a 6" speaker and Mother of Toilet Seat covering.  All distortion, all the time!

Last but not least - a very nice 1967 Gibson ES-330 guitar with single-coil pickups.

I am aware of a couple of other amp/guitar collections here in the Seattle area.  Keep an eye out for more amp porn to follow soon!

This just in from Zab Zyvoloski over at the Salmon Bay Eagles Club:

Hey Fellas!

Help this guy out, he's doing double duty!

Here's how...

Salmon Bay Dance Series with Brian Lee & the Orbiters!


Brian Lee and Zab Zyvoloski


On Sunday evening Sept 12th, the Salmon Bay Eagles and Zachariah Cassady will be presenting the first Swing Dance lesson & DJ dance. We are expecting everyone from beginners to veteran dancers! The lessons will occur from 6 until 7pm and then Zachariah will have a DJ dance afterwards until 8:30 pm. Two and a half hours of dancing, and what a great work out! Who needs to go jogging or bike riding when you can dance instead! Spending time practicing in your living room during the week, so you can be better for the next lesson, is a fabulous way of getting fit and graceful at the same time. And Hey! What better way can you think of to get socially active at the same time as getting physically active?


On the 26th, after the dance lesson, instead of the DJ dance, Brian Lee & The Orbiters will provide LIVE music and really get the dancers moving! You know what a great blues band this is, and they are fantastic to dance to. This Sunday dance format will be continued for the indefinite future, so you can always show up for a lesson and/or a dance on any Sunday. The live band dances with Brian Lee & The Orbiters are targeted for Sundays towards the end of each month, with Oct 24th, Nov 28th, & Dec 19th set as the next dates in the series. The next live dance with the Orbiters will be on Sunday, Oct 24th.


It will always be $5 for the lesson and another $5 for the DJ dance afterwards. The Brian Lee & The Orbiters Dance is a $10 admission or only $12 for both lesson & dance! Come for one or both!  For Salmon Bay Eagles members, the dance lesson, the DJ dance, and the live performance of Brian Lee and The Orbiters, are all free.


Zachariah is also planning on having a Waltz dance session from 1 to 4pm on the first and third Sunday of the month, just prior to the Swing Dance lesson, and he will use the same format as the Swing dance. Check Zachariah’s website for the particulars at:

http://www.waltzetc.com/sunday.htm

Come on down the Salmon Bay Eagles at 5216 – 20th Ave NW in “Definitely Different” Ballard, and get fit, have fun and meet new people! Grab your dancing shoes and we’ll see you there…


http://www.salmonbayeagles.com/

brianleeorbiters@gmail.com

This just in from our friend and unindicted co-consirator John "Mr. Solid" Lee:

The J & M Café and Mr. Solid Productions Presents

The Sunday Evening Social Club and Jam, featuring the rockin’ and funky sounds of the Seattle Houserockers. Also tap dancer Tim Hickey will be performing some hot numbers for all to see. Every Sunday beginning September 12th 2010. 7 to 11pm.

The weekly gathering will also be a jam session of sorts as friends and musical compatriots drop by to join in the fun every week. Joining the Houserockers for the kick-off will be some of the Puget Sound area’s finest and lasting blues and roots players.

Guitarist Jack Cook has played with virtually everyone on the Seattle blues scene including the legendary Issac Scott. At this time Jack leads his own cool ensemble, The Phantoms of Soul.

Jack Cook

Mark Dufresne is an extraordinary vocalist, harmonica player, and songwriter. Mark was the vocalist for 5 years with Roomful of Blues, and during that time the band won the “best band” award from the national Blues Music Awards and one of the two recording projects he did with Roomful, “That’s Right!” was nominated for a Grammy in 2004. Mark is a true delight to hear!

Mark Dufresne

Mike Lynch, harmonica and vocals, has been a mainstay on the Seattle blues scene for many years always fronting top notch groups with excellent players. Mike has been a sideman with both Tom McFarland and Issac Scott. His band the Harmonica Playboy and His Midnight Movers was voted “best band” by the Washington Blues Society in 1998.

Mike Lynch

Members of the Seattle Houserockers are journeyman professional musicians who have performed at festivals and in clubs all over the world. After decades of performing and contributing to dozens of recordings, the Seattle Houserockers have formed to play a cool mix of classic R&B, Blues, New Orleans beat, fatback, and boogie.

The Seattle Houserockers are:

John Marshall- harmonica, vocals ( Wild Rhododendrons, Trouble At Home )

John Marshall

Dan Newton- guitar, keyboards, vocals ( the Crossroads Band, the Mark Dufresne Band )

Dan Newton

John Lee- bass guitar, vocals ( the Crossroads Band, the 3J’s )

John Lee

Marty Lockwood- drums, vocals ( the Blue Flames, Laurinado Almeida)


www.myspace.com/seattlehouserockers

Tim Hickey has worked on TV, film, and stages all over the world and now produces and choreographs shows with a focus on live music.


http://www.timtapshickey.com/

The J&M Café and Cardroom is a historic Pioneer Square landmark. The J&M is Seattle ’s oldest bar established in 1889 and has long been a popular watering hole. With new ownership, a little makeover, great food, tasty libations, and top flight blues and roots music, the J&M Café is a great spot to let the good times roll. From 7 to 9pm families are able to join in the Social Club fun. Also, bassist John Lee, former cook at both, Miz Sadie’s at the Owl Café and the Highway 99 Blues Club will be conjuring up his red beans and rice as a weekly special.


http://www.thejmcafe.com/

J&M Café and Cardroom
201 1st Ave. South
Seattle , Washington 98104
206-517-7864


Come on down and get you’re groove on. No cover charge.

Some forthcoming musician benefits that you should know about...


1. Charles White Benefit Concert


Date: Sunday, July 11th
Time: 4:00 to 11:00 PM
Where: New Orleans Creole Restaurant
Address: 114 1st Avenue South, Seattle (Pioneer Square)


Seattle blues singer "Sir" Charles White has been diagnosed with and is battling Light Chain Myeloma cancer. This is a benefit concert to raise money to cover out-of-pocket expenses that his health insurance doesn't cover. Admission is $20 with 100 percent of the proceeds going to Charles' medical expenses.

Featured bands will include:

4:00 to 4:45 - The Fabulous Roofshakers
5:00 to 5:45 - Steve Bailey & Crossroads
6:00 to 6:45 - Tim Turner Band
7:00 to 7:45 - Mark Whitman Band
8:00 to 8:45 - Mary McPage Band
9:00 to 9:45 - Stacy Jones Band

If you plan on donating to the Washington Blues Society's (WBS) Musicians' Relief Fund (MRF) on behalf of Charles, you will need to identify your donation as such. All WBS-MRF donations earmarked for Charles will get to him. If you are unable to make the benefit, please consider mailing a donation (checks or money orders - no cash) to:

Washington Blues Society
Attn: Charles White MRF Fund
PO Box 70604
Seattle, WA 98127

For more information please contact:

Mary McPage: mary_mcpage_band@yahoo.com
Bill Blackstone: charleswhiteband@yahoo.com

2. Mauva Belle Family Benefit Concert

Date: Sunday, July 25th
Time: 3:00 to 6:00 PM
Where: Salmon Bay Eagles Club
Address: 5216 20th Avenue NW, Seattle (Ballard)

Leslie "Star Drums" Milton and Gael "Lady Keys" Kurath will host a benefit on Sunday, July 25th at the Salmon Bay Eagles for the family of premier singer and entertainer, Mauva Belle, who passed away on May 20th in New Orleans of pancreatic cancer. She was only 49 years young. After spending three months in the hospital with no medical insurance, donations are being requested to help her family with the medical bills. Her husband, James White, will try to fly up from New Orleans to attend the benefit, and is very appreciative of the Seattle musical community coming together to celebrate the life of one of our own.

Mauva's CDs will be auctioned off, and musicians are welcome to sit in with Star Drums and Lady Keys. Some confirmed musical guests (at this date) include: Mike Lynch, Bruce Ransom, Gary Lee Johnson, Walter Young, Matt Clausen, and Lonnie Williams.

For more information, please contact:

Barbra Crain: bcbayou@comcast.net

Dana Lupinacci Band at the Eagles Club

Here are some photos I took of the Dana Lupinacci Band playing at the Salmon Bay Eagles club about a week ago.  My old pal Jeff Ziontz is playing guitar in this version of the band, and the group sounded great -  swinging and not too loud.  I sat in with the band for a couple of tunes, as did harp maestro John Marshall.

So what's not to like about the Eagles?  The Thursday night gigs are early (8:00 PM to 12:00 AM), there is never a cover, and the inexpensive drinks are nuclear powered.

Left to right: Jeff Ziontz, Dana Lupinacci, Dave Petrie, and Charlene Grant

John Marshall sitting in on the harp and vocals.

Katie, the Eagles's singing bartender.

These guys were trying to get me to join the Ballard VFW.  I'm considering it!

Nitelife with Johnny Mercury

Here are some photos from a gig that Nitelife did at the Highway 99 Blues Club last month, with our special guest Johnny Mercury.  Johnny is well known in the Northwest country/rockabilly scene and is a fine guitarist, singer, and songwriter.  Thanks for the helping hand, Johnny!

Note: All photos in this blog were created by Cathy Borste.

Left to right: Greg Roberts, Mike Lynch, Russ Kamerer, Johnny Mercury, and Guy Quintino

Johnny Mercury

Our friend Brice reminding us the that the Liquor Control Board is cracking down on musicians drinking on stage.  We wouldn't want to encourage drinking in the nightclub!