LONG BEACH BLUES FESTIVAL
1999

Day One: Saturday, Sept. 4

GUITAR SHORTY with SONNY RHODES
The set that kicked off the Fest was certainly an energetic one. We got to the Festival site a little late this morning, and Shorty had just started to play when I parked the car into the parking lot. With the secure back up by the Central Avenue Band, Shorty gave a strong performance. Especially on slow numbers, the vocals were as strong as his guitar.

After he played a few numbers, the guest Sonny Rhodes came on stage to play. With his trademark turban and a purple suit, he played great like he does on his recent albums. Too bad he was only allowed enough time to do three numbers. It was good to hear Shorty and Sonny exchange their solos, though. The only song Sonny did using the lap steel guitar was "Meet Me at the 10th Street Inn" from the latest album. If you are going to listen to Sonny Rhodes, you gotta hear his distinctive lap steel, folks. Great stuff! I hope this Fest would bring him back for a full one hour set.

So Sonny was gone, and Shorty continued to finish the set. He did "Hey Joe" and he said he was sending it out to brother Jimi. (He was once married to to Jimi's stepsister.) He wrapped the set up with his theme song "They Call Me Guitar Shorty", and on this one, he came down into the audience and did his famous roll overs on the field. I don't think anyone else can continue to play while rolling and turning like Shorty can. His show is always visually entertaining with his acrobatic playing, but even without that, Shorty is one heck of a guitar player and a good singer, too! His albums are good, but I think he is one artist you have to see live.

KOKO TAYLOR AND HER BLUES MACHINE
I had seen Koko many times, and I don't think I've ever been let down. But I also feel that her show hasn't changed much at least in the past 10 years or so. Her show this day was good, but many of the songs she sang here like "Jump for Joy", "I'm A Woman", and "Wang Dang Doodle" to close the set are what I have always been hearing everytime I heard her live. Pretty good, but not much new. There was one thing new this day, however. The guest guitarist was Ike Turner! He was called in after Koko sang a couple of songs, and he stayed till the end of the set.

THE FABULOUS THUNDERBIRDS with SMOKEY WILSON
The T-Birds seem to continue to tour and play very much, though I haven't seen any new albums for sometime now. The last time they appeared at this Fest was in 1995, and the members of the band hadn't been changed. Kid Ramos was great as usual (check out his latest solo CD on Evidence Music!), and the band gave a strong performance filled with blues and boogie you can really dance to.

I'd been really excited to find Smokey Wilson billed as a special guest of this set. He came on to play about 3 numbers during the set. I had never seen him before, so I can't compare his performance this day with any other shows of his, but I think he showed strong low and dirty character that he always shows on his records. He was terribly off rhythm throughtout his performance, but that too was very entertaining for me. The member of the band often looked surprised to hear Smokey playing rhythms so off from the band's playing. At one time whiele Smokey was playing, Ramos was raising both his hands with astonished look on his face. Smokey will be coming to Japan in December, and I hope he will be in good conditions to play then.

CLARENCE GATEMOUTH BROWN
He appeared with his regular band, the Gate's Express, and played beautifully. Like his latest album "American Music, Texas Style", he focused mainly on jazzy blues rather than the wider range of music including cajun, country, etc. He played many tunes from the new album including the instrumental "I'm Beginning To See the Light" with a jazzy guitar solo that was epsecially impressive. Before playing a song (was it "The Drifter"?, not sure...), he mentioned that Roy Gaines, who was among the audience, requested it. He mistakenly said, "This one is for you, Grady," and then corrected himself saying, "I kind of get the brothers mixed up." (Grady Gaines, the saxphone player, is Roy's older brother.)

Gate's main guitar of the day was his famous Gibson Firebird, but he also played the "Blues" guitar that was given to him by a guitar craftsman during his Japan tour this past May. He really seem to like that instrument. He didn't play much fiddle, but he did on "The Drifter", a classic slow blues tune. After the set was over, I had the chance to say hello to Joe Krown, the band's keyboard player. It was nice talking to you, Joe.

BUDDY GUY
The master of the hard driving blues guitar, Buddy Guy, was the one to close the first day of the Festival. One thing different from his past shows was the bass player. Greg Rzab, who's been in that position for quite a while, was not there this time. The rest of the guys were there (Scott Holt-guitar, Ray "The Killer" Allison- drums, Tony Z- keyboards, I don't know the new bass player.), and as usual, Buddy put on an energetic show. And as usual, his music this day was pretty much in the veins of hard rock. He went all over from Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, to Jimi Hendrix and Cream. Some say that his music nowadays his far from what you call a traditional blues, but I don't think so. He may be playing loud and hard, but I can feel his blues roots deep inside. I love hearing him live.