Stoned

Ruthie Foster: This extraordinary songwriter/performer tackles life’s big issues throughout her sizzling new album. On it, Ruthie repeatedly testifies to her core message – that through all of the ups and downs of living, you must stay true to yourself. The pain as well as the joy of love, the strength it takes to weather life’s challenges, the hope that grows from seeds of faith and wisdom: All of this breathes inspiration and celebration into The Truth According to Ruthie Foster.

Odetta @Time : Rosa Parks was her No. 1 fan, and Martin Luther King Jr. called her the queen of American folk music. Odetta’s stage presence was regal enough: planted onstage like an oak tree no one would dare cut down, wearing a guitar high on her chest, she could envelop Carnegie Hall with her powerful contralto as other vocalists might fill a phone booth. This was not some pruny European monarch but a stout, imperious queen of African-American music. She used that amazing instrument to bear witness to the pain and perseverance of her ancestors. Some folks sing songs. Odetta testified.

John Scofield : Since that time he has prominently led his own groups in the international Jazz scene, recorded over 30 albums as a leader (many already classics) including collaborations with contemporary favorites like Pat Metheny, Charlie Haden, Eddie Harris, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Bill Frisell, Brad Mehldau, Mavis Staples, Government Mule, Jack DeJohnette, Joe Lovano and Phil Lesh. He’s played and recorded with Tony Williams, Jim Hall, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, Joe Henderson, Dave Holland, Terumasa Hino among many jazz legends. Throughout his career Scofield has punctuated his traditional jazz offerings with funk-oriented electric music. All along, the guitarist has kept an open musical mind.

Colin James : Looking back on a career that now spans two decades, Colin has walked through more than just a few doors to reach the level of success that he enjoys today. He continues to record the music that he loves (having just released his 12th CD, “Rooftops and Satellites”) has sold multi-platinum many times over, and his concert tours continue to sell out coast to coast.

Snooky Pryor @Blind Pig Records : An extremely devout and principled man, he became disillusioned with the music business and retired to downstate Illinois for most of the ’60s and ’70s to pursue carpentry, fishing, and to see after his large family. Finally, a series of successful European tours lured him back to performing regularly. With his children grown, Snooky found the time to write new material, and eight of those compositions are on Snooky, his first domestic album of material ever released. Snooky chose Sunnyland slim band members Robert Stroger on bass, Steve Freund on guitar, and Muddy Waters‘ band alumnus Willie “Big Eyes” Smith on drums. Released in 1987, the recording forced Snooky out of semi-retirement as the attention garnered from this release increased the demand for his personal appearances both here in the United States and abroad.

Little Walter @Wikipedia : Little Walter, born Marion Walter Jacobs (May 1, 1930 – February 15, 1968), was an American blues harmonica player, whose revolutionary approach to his instrument has earned him comparisons to Charlie Parker and Jimi Hendrix, for innovation and impact on succeeding generations. His virtuosity and musical innovations fundamentally altered many listeners’ expectations of what was possible on blues harmonica. Little Walter was inducted to the The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008 in the “sideman” category making him the first and only artist ever to be inducted specifically for his work as a harmonica player.

Johnny ‘Big Moose’ Walker : Mr. Walker was born, of partly native-American stock, in Stoneville, near Greenville, MS, and as a boy learned to play the organ in the local church, like his father before him. In his twenties he played piano in bands led by the drummer Cleanhead Love and the Memphis-based bass player Tuff Green, then toured with Elmore James and Sonny Boy Williamson before serving in the U.S. Army in Korea 1953-55. He later worked on the west coast with Lowell Fulson, in Greenville with Ike Turner and in Chicago with Earl Hooker, Howlin’ Wolf (Chester Burnett), Johnny Littlejohn (John Funchess) and many others.

Bill Wharton & The Ingredients @Blues On Stage : For anyone seeing Bill Wharton for the first time, his show was an overwhelming event. Wharton preached his “gospel of gumbo, assembled his culinary creation and continually urged the audience (especially the women) to help him out by stirring the pot until the gumbo was ready to eat. When he added his burning slide guitar to the mix, everyone got a show that they could see, hear, smell, touch and taste.

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