It seems you can go to almost any Blues music function in Houston and find Sparky Parker ‘spiffy-riffin’ on his guitar and you instantly see why he is quickly becoming a Texas Bluesman to be reckoned with. He has a feel for it, and to my ears, a finesse and a technique beyond his young [...]
Archive for Category: "Do You Hear What I Hear?"
Do You Hear What I Hear? by Monica Yasher
This week American Blues News is one year old. During this year there has been much discussion on if the Blues is alive and well. This discussion was primarily prompted by a writing in The Wall Street Journal questioning exactly that fact. There has also been major discussion from our Memphis writer, Robert “Nighthawk” Tooms, on what [...]
Jethro Tull’s Florian Ophale by Monica Yasher
I had the opportunity of catching Jethro Tull and speaking with Florian Ophale, the electric/classical guitarist of the band. Florian is from Germany, and we talked about Blues influences in his country. It seems the Blues are alive and well across the big pond. And, the local Blues open stage is one of the places [...]
Greg Gumpel – 27-Years Old and Looking to Soar
With his hands on a guitar or the yoke of a plane Greg Gumpel, the 27-year old (28 in January) guitar player from the band Victor Wainwright and the Wildwoods, is looking to make people soar alongside him.
27 Year Old Dennis ‘Applehead’ Clapp of MOJOFROMOPOLIS
MOJOFROMOPOLIS. Funny name. Serious jams. They won the first round of the IBC semi-finals this year, (and to many fans, should have won the whole enchilada) only to be beaten out in the end by The Ezra Charles Band. Dennis ‘Applehead’ Clapp (27) is one of the TWO ‘under 30 years of age’ Houston artists in the [...]
Tallan Latz: A Young Man and His Guitar
Being the youngest musician to play on stage with Les Paul is one of the highlights for Tallan Latz in his young career as a musician and given Tallan just turned 11 there are many more memories to come. Another is displayed in his photos as he plays his new PRS 513 guitar he [...]
The Zakk Knight Tale: Story of a 16 Yr Old Blues Sensation
For Zakk Knight this ain’t no fairytale, he’s determined to make this reality not a tall tale! Rewind to 2006 when Zakk first began playing guitar seriously after hearing Stevie Ray Vaughan and consuming every detail of his music and life. Then Zakk continued his discovery into blues as he studied other greats like Freddie [...]
Brandon Santini Cuts a New Live CD
(Memphis, Tennessee) This week we travel downtown to old Beale Street where my friends, Brandon Santini, Elliot Sowell, Derek Bonn, and Tom “Slim ” Lewis are cutting a new live CD during 3 days of this week. They are cutting down at Mr. Handy’s Blues Hall which is the site of the first performance I [...]
Laura Chavez Interview
Interview with Laura Chavez A few weeks ago I interviewed Bob Margolin for this site, and he mentioned Laura Chavez as being one of the top young guitarists. Having the respect I DO have for Bob and his musicianship, I went straight to google the name of Laura Chavez. This search led me to [...]
Interview with Gina Sicilia by Monica Yasher
Exposed to music early on by her music-loving family, Gina began singing at the age of 3 and wrote her first song at the tender age of 12. After spending her teenage years polishing her vocal and songwriting skills, Gina began singing in clubs around the Philadelphia area, and has since branched out worldwide. In [...]
