Semple has played and sung his way from Vancouver to Montreux, worked for CBC Radio and Television, has a Juno to his credit and won Much Music’s “Guitar Wars” competition in 1992. He has shared the stage with artists ranging from Martha Reeves to Danny Gatton to k.d. Lang.

For his performance at Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival, Semple will share the stage with Dave Chobot bass, and a pair respected veterans of the Edmonton music scene, Andrew Glover on keyboards and drummer Steve Hoy.

He has five cd’s to his credit. Defying categorization, Semple has released music that ranges from acoustic jazz to groove laden funk to hard rockin’ blues.

Now living in Regina, Jack Semple brings a world of experience to the stage of Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival as he kicks things off, Friday August 23^rd.

Roy Rogers is one of the world’s great innovators/practitioners of modern slide guitar. His recording career began in 1976, but he began playing guitar in the early 60’s in his native San Francisco Bay area. By the mid 60’s he began delving into the Delta Blues after hearing a recording of Robert Johnson, which also inspired him to take up slide guitar with a passion.

Over the years he has worked with such greats as John Lee Hooker, Bonnie Raitt, Keith Richards, Van Morrison and Albert Collins. As a member of John Lee Hooker’s “Coast To Coast Blues Band” in the 80’s he played a pivotal role in the revival of Hooker’s career by producing four of his recordings, including Grammy winners “The Healer” and “Chill Out”. In all he has received six Grammy nominations.

Rogers released his ninth solo recording, Slideways, in March of this year. The all instrumental disc showcases the depth of his abilities as an arranger and songwriter, while showcasing his own unique vision of the blues.

As Blues Revue said in a recent review “Slideways is a stunning all instrumental showcase that never lags. It proves he’s one of the most astounding guitarists working today…an album that should be on the “essential” list for any lover of slide guitar”.

More simply put, Bonnie Raitt said, “The guy is frightening!”

Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival is pleased to welcome Roy Rogers, modern master of the slide guitar, to our stage Friday evening August 23^rd.

Charlie Musselwhite has an impeccable blues heritage. Born in Mississippi in 1944 and raised in Memphis where he became immersed in that city’s musical culture, he went to school with Johnny Cash’s brother Tommy, lived down the street from rockabilly legend Johnny Burnette and went to parties hosted by Elvis Presley.

The blues caught Charlie’s soul in his teens and the young harp player befriended legendary Memphis bluesmen Furry Lewis, Will Shade and the surviving members of the Memphis Jug Band. At eighteen he moved to Chicago and began hanging out in the clubs on the South and West sides of that city. It was here that Charlie got a first hand education in the blues from Little Walter, Muddy Waters, J.B. Hutto, Big Walter Horton and a host of others. “Coming to Chicago was like walking into Fat City. These guys inspired me. They gave me an incentive to find my own sound.”

That sound has been cultivated in a recording career that has spanned over 35 years, dozens of albums and numerous awards and nominations for his incredible harmonica playing.

According to the Houston Post, “I don’t believe there’s a better blues band. When Charlie plays it’s loud enough, funky enough, good enough to not only raise the dead but also to make them cry out for WHISKEY…a killer harp and unpretentious, yet thoroughly impassioned singing.”

A native of the Bay area since 1969, Musselwhite has been touring worldwide, almost non-stop for 30 years hitting festivals, clubs, concert halls and colleges. As he says, “The blues seems to draw people together. You can share your soul with others when you’re playing or listening to the blues.

Share with us Friday August 23^rd as Charlie Musselwhite closes the first day of Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival with a 90 minute set.

John Cephas and Phil Wiggins are keeping the Piedmont blues tradition alive and well. Cephas’ rich baritone singing and refined fingerpicking combined with the rural blues harmonica playing of Phil Wiggins bring an easy-going, deeply soulful brand of country blues to the stage that bridges generations of music lovers. They keep the tradition alive while infusing it with their own originality, vitality, and most importantly, humour.

John Cephas was born in Washington D.C. in 1930 and raised in a deeply religious family in Bowling Green. His first musical taste was gospel, but he soon turned to blues. He learned the Piedmont style of acoustic blues that alternates thumb and fingerpicking and began emulating records he had heard by the likes of Blind Boy Fuller, Gary Davis and Blind Blake. He is also a founder of the Washington D.C. blues society and is committed to a revival of country blues.

Phil Wiggins was born in Washington D.C. in 1954. He began his musical career with some of the area’s leading blues artists including Archie Edwards and John Jackson. Listening to horn and piano players as well as music by Sonny Boy Williamson I, Junior Wells, Little Walter and Big Walter helped to define his harmonica sound.

John and Phil first met a quarter century ago at the Smithsonian National Folklife Festival in Washington and have been playing together ever since. The pair spent much of the 80’s playing Europe, Africa, Central and South America, China, Australia, New Zealand and Scandinavia often under the auspices of the U.S. State department.

The Chicago Tribune has said of them “No pretense here, just down-home, traditional country blues delivered with feeling.”

Catch that feeling Saturday afternoon at Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival as Cephas and Wiggins continue in their mission to keep the Piedmont Blues alive and well.

Terry Hanck is well known for his hard blowing sax, incredible range and gutsy vocals. Born in Chicago, Hanck was heavily influenced by the blues, soul and jazz music of the 50’s and early 60’s. After moving to California in 1965, He toured with Elvin Bishop through most of the ‘70’s and ‘80’s and Bishop gave him plenty of opportunities to hone his craft on stage. “Terry Hanck is a fine vocalist, an amazing showman, and my favourite sax player,” says Bishop. Terry Hanck left the Bishop band to tour under his own name in the late ‘80’s playing a signature mix of New Orleans Gumbo, Kansas City Jump and East Bay Funk. He draws on a vast repertoire of songs, including many originals and his energetic performances spotlight an artist at the peak of his craft. His top-notch band includes Chris “Kid” Anderson on guitar, Michael “Fly” Brooks on Bass, and Butch Cousins on drums.

A sought after sideman, Terry has shared the stage with Big Joe Turner, Bonnie Raitt, Steve Miller, Albert Collins, Robert Cray, The Neville Brothers and a host of others.

Terry Hanck brings a polished “festival” show that has wowed audiences throughout the United States and Europe to the stage of Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival Saturday, August 24^th. Don’t miss this Alberta premiere.

Big Jack Johnson will bring the essence of a Mississippi juke joint to the stage of Edmonton’s Labatt Blues festival. Born in 1940, this native of Lambert Mississippi first recorded at the legendary Sun studios in 1961. Big Jack gained prominence in the late ‘70’s as the singer, bass and guitar player in the critically acclaimed group “The Jelly Roll Kings”. He went from there to record several solo records in the ‘80’s and early ‘90’s. He has also appeared in the films “Juke Joint Saturday Night” and Robert Palmers’ “Deep Blues”.

Equally at home pounding out hard-edged juke joint dance music or laying down a number on acoustic blues mandolin, Big Jack mixes all the influences of modern American music. Rockabilly, country, blues, all have a home on stage when Delta master Big Jack Johnson puts them together with all the power, grit and rhythm at his command.

His most recent recording project saw him in the studio with harmonica ace Kim Wilson of the Fabulous Thunderbirds last October. Johnson sang in his deep, soulful voice and played electric and acoustic guitars, along with mandolin. “The Memphis Barbecue Sessions” cooks with intensity and reminds us all what raw power the Delta Blues can have.

Nominated for nine W.C. Handy Awards in the past five years, Johnson is finally getting the recognition he so richly deserves.

Please join us in welcoming Big Jack Johnson to a stage in Alberta for the first time, Saturday afternoon August 24^th at Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival.

C.J. Chenier is the son of zydeco legend Clifton Chenier. Born and raised in Port Arthur Texas, C.J. was aware of his father’s music but also had his own tastes. He liked James Brown and Funkadelic, John Coltrane and Miles Davis. He learned saxophone early on and played in top forty bands in Port Arthur. His dream was to make it as a jazz or funk player.

One week shy of his 21^st birthday in 1978, Clifton asked him to bring his sax along and join the Red Hot Louisiana Band. “I didn’t know any of the songs they played”, he recalls, “but the guys helped me out and brought me along. And then one day the music hit me, and I knew this was what I wanted to do.” In 1985, as his famous father was ailing from diabetes, C.J. took up the accordion and began opening the shows. “My father didn’t push me, but I believe it was his idea all along that I would carry his music.”

When Clifton passed in 1987, C.J. inherited his fathers’ accordion and his band. He’s taken his fathers’ music and added elements of music that he grew up with and infused traditional zydeco with a contemporary punch.

The Boston Globe said of one of his performances, “C.J. attacks the accordion with the tension and drive of James Brown…creating contemporary, turbo-charged dance music.” Living Blues magazine named C.J. Chenier “The Best living zydeco singer and accordionist.”

Dust off your dancing shoes and get ready to hit the floor running as Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival proudly debuts C.J. Chenier and the Red Hot Louisiana Band, Saturday, August 24^th.

Marcia Ball is a triple threat as a pianist, singer and entertainer. With 10 albums to her credit she has remained true to her roots and a love for blues, R&B, Cajun, zydeco and gospel. Born near New Orleans in Vinton, Louisiana, and now living in Austin Texas, she cites Allen Toussaint, Professor Longhair, Earl King and Irma Thomas as influences on her writing, playing and singing. “What I’ve always hoped was that my contributions would add to the lexicon”, Ball admits, “To have songs that would live on and increase the body of work that is blues and R&B.”

She is also an incredible player. The Chicago Tribune said of a recent performance “Ball has a rollicking piano style that mixes equal parts of Jerry Lee Lewis’ flash and Professor Longhairs’ elegant groove.” Working with her road tested touring band, Marcia Ball has played clubs, national and international festivals, and for the President of the United States in the course of her career.

Marcia Ball is nominated for no less than 5 W.C. Handy Awards in 2002 including artist and entertainer of the year, keyboard player of the year and album and female artist of the year.

Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival is pleased to bring this incredible talent to a stage in Alberta for the first time, Saturday August 24^th

Rory Block is world renowned for her mastery of country blues. Born in Princeton, New Jersey and raised in New York City’s Greenwich Village, she began seeing and hearing the greats of the genre perform in a live setting at age 14. It was a time when audiences were just rediscovering the blues masters of the early 20^th century and country blues legends. She apprenticed directly with the likes of Son House, Reverend Gary Davis, Mississippi John Hurt, Skip James and Fred McDowell. This apprenticeship instilled an authenticity to her recording and performance that would have been nearly impossible to achieve any other way. In fact, Guitar World has said of her “One of today’s great exponents of Delta blues guitar…playing and singing styles so true to Delta tradition that they might have been honed on the banks of the Mississippi.”

Her recording career began in 1965, when she recorded an album with fellow guitarist Stefan Grossman under the alias Sunshine Kate. The instructional record was titled “How to Play the Blues”. After taking a ten-year break, Block returned to touring, recording and teaching full time. Since the mid ‘70’s she has recorded 9 albums under her own name and shared the stage and recording studio with Bonnie Raitt, ‘Keb Mo’, The Band, Stevie Wonder, Taj Mahal and a host of others. She is a four time W.C. Handy Award winner for “Acoustic Blues Album of the Year” (2), and “Traditional Female Artist of the year”(2).

Rory Block is no stranger to local audiences and Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival is very pleased to be able to bring this incredible performer back to Edmonton to kick things off Sunday August 25^th.

The Twisters are a hot four-piece blues outfit from Canada’s West Coast. Each of the members brings a distinctive style to the group and between them they bring over 6 decades of experience to the stage.

Dave “Hurricane” Hoerl was born and raised in San Francisco and has played his harmonica with Michael Bloomfield, Albert Collins, Percy Mayfield and Big Mama Thornton to name just a few while coming up in the Bay area blues scene. In 1982 he moved to Vancouver and ended up becoming a landed immigrant in 1982. In Canada he has recorded with Powder Blues, Valdy, Gary Fjellgaard, and has made three cd’s with Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne. According to Real Blues Magazine he was “Canada’s Top Harp Blower”  1996-2000.

Sandy Smith can play drums and guitar and is also possessed of a fine singing voice. His first exposure to the blues came as a youth growing up in Chicago. With more than 20 years experience to his credit Sandy has performed, toured and recorded with Big Miller, Russell Jackson, Pine Top Perkins, Sue Foley, Long John Baldry and a host of others. A six time winner of the Real Blues Magazine award for “Best Canadian Blues Drummer” Sandy says “playing the blues is my life.”

Brandon “Yukon Slim” Isaak can handle drums, guitar or vocal work with ease. Born and raised in Whitehorse, he took his earliest inspiration from the likes of Buddy Guy and T-Bone Walker, later becoming more fascinated with the guitar stylings of Eddy Taylor and Jimmy Rogers. Brandon moved to Vancouver in 1999 and hooked up with Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne, later joining the Twisters. Brandon likes to stay true to the blues tradition and his playing runs the gamut from slow blues to steaming shuffles and hard swing. He always brings intensity to the stage.

James Taylor plays bass and doubles on trumpet in the Twisters. “JT” as he is known was born in Vancouver and raised in the music rich city of Nanaimo. He’s played stand up bass and trumpet for a variety of West Coast bands. His talent, energy and ability combine with solid “meat and potato” bass lines has proved to be a cornerstone of the Twisters sound.  

Kelley Hunt is a native of Emporia Kansas who has been laying down her own brand of blues since she learned to play boogie woogie piano at the age of ten from her mentor Mary Burke Norton.

At home, her parents played a steady stream of blues, jazz, R&B and gospel records so it’s no wonder that Hunt lists Ruth Brown, Billie Holiday, Ray Charles, Professor Longhair, Ann Peebles and Aretha Franklin as her major influences.

Those influences have given Kelley the ability to write and play music that blurs the lines between blues, rock and roll, boogie, ballads and gospel. As a songwriter she has the talent to boil down emotional issues, personal experiences and observations to simple, fiery arrows to the heart. Her singing voice is soulful and powerful, with remarkable range. Through it all, that strong left hand developed all those years ago by Mary Burke Norton shines. It’s the part of her live performances that captivates, amazes and makes you wonder why she isn’t an international blues star.

That may be changing for Kelley. In recent years she has appeared at the Kansas City Blues Festival, New York State Blues Festival, Monterey Bay Blues Festival, Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland Oregon, and a host of others across North America. Her radio exposure has been growing and her music has made its’ way into at least one major motion picture.

Kelley Hunts’ blues star is on the rise and Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival is pleased to reintroduce her to Edmonton audiences after a nearly 20 year absence Sunday August 25^th.

Sonny Rhodes may have dropped his trademark turban since the events of September 11^th but his signature lap steel guitar sound and heartfelt vocals still have the ability fill the hole in your soul.

The native of Smithville Texas, played behind legends Albert Collins and Freddie King in the fifties. He fronted his own bands after that and has been on the road just about non-stop for the last 35 years. He did take a few breaks, including operating a nightclub in the Bay area during the seventies and a stint in the navy. Through it all he has remained true to the blues. Sonny always puts 100% into his shows because for him they are an opportunity to make new blues friends and win fans. He does it with his intricate, burning guitar solos, ability to move effortlessly from ballad to shuffle to full tilt roar in the course of a set and his ever-present charm. He transports the audience to Sonnys’ own blues world.

Sonny has been bringing his blues world to Edmonton on a regular basis for 20 years and we have all been the richer for it. Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival is pleased and proud to be able to put him on the big stage, doing what he does best on Sunday August 25^th.

Our closing act at the festival this year is truly a legend. Ike Turner is “The Father of Rock & Roll”. 1951 was the year, and the song was “Rocket 88”. Written by Ike Turner at the age of 19 and recorded by the young innovator with his band The Kings of Rhythm, This one song was tagged “The very first Rock & Roll recording” by Sam Philips of Sun Studios.

Little Richard calls him “The Man”, and BB King calls him “the best band leader I’ve ever seen.” The list of historical sessions he’s done is astounding. Elmore James, BB King, Howlin’ Wolf, and a host of blues and rock royalty have all worked with Ike Turner.

With the release of his Grammy nominated recording “Here and Now” last year, Turner announced to the world that he was back from a 20 year absence from commercial recording. The album is chock full of his signature whammy bar effect, blues-swing fusion, boogie, rippin’ piano and organ riffs, swinging horns and when Turner takes his place at the piano you know who Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis grew up listening to.

For his performance at Edmonton’s Labatt Blues Festival, Turner brings his 9-piece show band from Los Angeles featuring vocalist Audrey Madison. There is only one “Father of Rock & Roll” so don’t miss your chance to experience this living legend.

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