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The home of the blues throws its annual party

Chicago Blues Festival 2012
Grant Park
Chicago, IL
June 9, 2012
Paul Kaye
Paul Kaye
Mud Morganfield
Mud Morganfield
Rev. KM Williams
Rev. KM Williams

Review & photos by Pete Schoen

The smell of Maxwell street polish sausages and joyful music filled the air in Grant Park for the famous 2012 Chicago Blues Festival. Thousands of people flooded the streets to show pride in a city that has its cultural signature on the blues. Musicians scattered across five stages and played music with various roots from the delta to the city of Chicago. This year's acts showed a good balance of seasoned blues veterans and new young blood. Tributes were performed in honor of late great musicians such as Hubert Sumlin, KoKo Taylor and various Muddy Waters disciples.

One of my favorite performances of the evening was the tribute act for Hubert Sumlin. Blues sidemen such as Eddie Shaw, Dave Specter, Bob Corritore, Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith and Rollin Bob Margolin opened up a jam session that got everybody smiling. The band leader was ex Muddy Waters sidemen Rollin Bob Margolin who proceeded to lay down the dirty licks with his Vintage maple Telecaster. The performance carried a perfect balance of steady back beat and intermittent growling harp solos. These heavy hitting Chicago bluesmen made my night and would surely have made Hubert Sumlin proud.

The veteran blues acts really held the stage down but I was particularly impressed with a new young group by the name of The Homemade Jamz Blues Band. This Tupelo trio consisting of two brothers and a sister were a veritable blues explosion. A large crowd was drawn to their gruff vocals and stinging guitar licks. Frontman Ryan Perry carried a guitar constructed out of automobile exhaust pipes and played fingerpicking guitar work similar to that of Mississippi John Hurt. This group created its own flavor of blues and is destined to have a great future. This year marks the 100th birthday of Lightning Hopkins so it would only make sense that the festival would include some of the Lone star states finest. The majority of the weekend's artists were local but the festival did snag three Texas acts. Artists such as Milton Hopkins, Rev KM Williams, Jewel Brown and Texas Johnny Brown all shared their own styles of long horn music.

It was definitely a long hot weekend with a lot of music to consume but I will be back next year. The Chicago Blues festival is more than just a weekend jam with talented musicians; it is a celebration of life and culture. Fans have a lot more to look forward to because the blues aren't going anywhere.

Related articles:

Chicago Blues Festival 2010 review - Chicago, IL - June 2010
Chicago Blues Festival 2009 review - Chicago, IL - June 2009
Chicago Blues Festival 2008 review - Chicago, IL - June 2008
Chicago Blues Festival 2002 review - Chicago, IL - June 2002
Chicago Blues Festival 2001 review - Chicago, IL - June 2001

Paul Kayes
Paul Kaye
Homemade Jamz
The Homemade Jamz Blues Band
Homemade Jamz
The Homemade Jamz Blues Band
Dave Specter
Dave Specter
Sam Lay Blues Band
Sam Lay Blues Band
Mark
Mark "Muleman" Massey
Rev. KM Williams
Rev. KM Williams
Ronnie Hicks
Ronnie Hicks
Floyd Taylor
Floyd Taylor
Bob Jones
Bob Jones
Sam Lay Blues Band
Sam Lay Blues Band
Rev. KM Williams
Rev. KM Williams
Floyd Taylor
Floyd Taylor
Floyd Taylor
Floyd Taylor
Mud Morganfield
Mud Morganfield
Masheen Company Band
Masheen Company Band
Bob Stroger
Bob Stroger
Bob Stroger
Bob Stroger
Mud Morganfield
Mud Morganfield
Kenny
Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith & Bob Margolin
Joe Filisko
Joe Filisko
Kenny
Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith
Bob Corritore
Bob Corritore
Bob Margolin & Bob Stroger
Bob Margolin & Bob Stroger
Kenny
Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith
Barrelhouse Chuck
Barrelhouse Chuck

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