Internationally recognized Grana Louise has delighted countless music fans around the world with her outstanding blues performances. Her deep, rich voice belts out the kind of raw, gut blues that makes your spine tingle and heart ache. Grana performs at Chicago's hottest blues clubs including Blue Chicago, Buddy Guy's Legends, B.L.U.E.S and the Kingston Mines. Grana has rocked the house at the acclaimed Apollo Theater in New York and festivals from Detroit to Mexico, Reykjavik to the French Riviera and beyond. CD combines studio and live recordings, brand new original songs and covers that have been personalized to make them her own.

Pianist Frank Melrose was the younger brother of music publishers and agents Walter and Lester Melrose, who ran Melrose Brothers music store in Chicago and were very involved in the business end of the Chicago jazz and blues scene of the '20s and '30s. Frank left Chicago as a teen and settled in Kansas City. He recorded sporadically in the '20s with Wingy Manone and Johnny Dodd's. His last session was in '41 as he was found dead that Labor Day. This previously unissued session was recorded in 1940 and features quintet sides with trumpeter Pete Daily, trio and solo material.

Sykes was a primary creator of the modern blues style and an outstanding singer, songwriter & performer; this CD is the first album to contain all 17 songs Sykes recorded for the United label from 1951-53, plus 3 alternate takes.

2022 Release. NINETY-YEAR-OLD"SIR"BOB STROGER, LORD OF THE BLUES, has had a glorious musical career and played with the greatest. He has appeared on more than 30 Delmark releases. "That's My Name" by Bob Stroger & The Headcutters marks his rst Delmark album as a leader. The Headcutters are a crack blues quartet hailing from Brazil, and they are a welcome addition to the Delmark family.

Blues guitarist Dave Specter is never prone to grandstanding. He communicates an inherent sense of style and form, subtlety and swing, keeping his magnetic needle always fixed on a steady, unalterable course. Recorded live at Buddy Guy's Legends and Rosa's Blues Lounge, Live in Chicago features special guests Jimmy Johnson, Tad Robinson and Sharon Lewis. The CD contains four instrumentals and two songs by each of the guest vocalists. Tracks include: Boss Funk, What Love Did to Me, What's Your Angle, Feel So Bad, Out on the Road, in Too Deep, Angel and more. DVD with more tracks also available in the DVD new release section.

One of the greatest blues albums of all time, West Side Soul was chosen by Living Blues magazine as one of it's top ten Desert Island Blues Discs. The new digipak case contains previously unissued photos and 1960s pluggers (promoting west side gigs) from the private collection of Bill Lindemann. The source material for the CD is now the original 1967 analog stereo mix by Stu Black who recorded many of Delmark's classic 1960s blues and jazz recordings. Featuring Mighty Joe Young, guitar; Stockholm Slim, piano; Earnest Johnson or Mac Thompson, bass; Odie Payne Jr. or Odie Payne III, drums. 12 tracks including "That's All I Need", "I Need You So Bad", "Feelin' Good", "All Your Love", "Sweet Home Chicago" and more.

Johnny Iguana toured with Junior Wells and Otis Rush and recorded with Buddy Guy and James Cotton. He's played piano with the best, and this is his first blues album as a leader. Johnny grew up on Erik Satie, Raymond Scott and Mike Watt as much as Otis Spann and Johnny Jones. His own compositions here-with the blues classics and a bevy of Chicago blues greats-inhabit the space of Spann, Sunnyland and Big Maceo but also busting the blues box open with new adventures in soulful surrealism. Ripples of punk, soul, jazz, classical - Johnny has drunk from these waters. But this is a blues album. It's Johnny Iguana's Chicago Spectacular!

The reviews of Quintus' first CD, Hey Jodie! (DMK 801), were stunning. "... best studio debut of 2009 and one of the best soul-blues albums of the past decade." -Blues Revue "McCormick possesses a rich, soulful voice and an incredible versatility on guitar. At one moment he's laying down an edgy blues-rock intro, and the next he's shifting into funk mode with confidence and swagger." - Living Blues with such a great debut CD one might wonder if his second Delmark CD could be as good. It is! Fourteen new original compositions. With special guest Billy Branch.

The 70's Japanese tours of Otis Rush, Jimmy Dawkins, Eddie Taylor and others created a small but intense Japanese blues following that bursts over with talent three generations and forty years later. Delmark Records presents No Border Blues, the first-ever American compilation of some of the best bluesmen and women in the Japanese underground blues scene today, with musical contributions by Johnny Burgin and production by Stephanie Tice.

Growing up in the shadows of Chicago's blues mecca, Theresa's Lounge, had a lasting effect on Toronzo Cannon. He'd listen to the raw, soulful sounds of legends like Junior Wells, Buddy Guy and Muddy Waters. This led him to pick up his first guitar as a teenager and learn to sing and play the sounds he heard. Inspired by the 3 Kings (Freddie, B.B. & Albert), a little Hendrix and some 70s r&b/soul, Toronzo soon developed his own powerful, gospel-flavored vocal style and electrifying stage presence. "Aside from his fretboard chops, Cannon is notable for being one of the few local artists to emphasize original material in his live performances... his lyrics are witty and vivid." - Living Blues.

With Billy Branch, Eddie Shaw, Big Time Sarah, Eddie Taylor Jr.., Shun Kikuta, Roosevelt Purifoy, Greg McDaniel and Pookie Styx. The debut CD by the daughter of legendary Eddie Taylor (Jimmy Reed rhythm guitarist), who had a hit for VJ with the song "Bad Boy" in 1955. Demetria revisits the song here as a tribute to her late father. But Demetria is not just riding pops' coattails. Even though she just turned 38, Demetria won the B.L.U.E.S. on Halsted Blues Diva Contest 2010, has already performed three times at the Chicago Blues Festival and guested on two Eddie Taylor CDs. 11 songs including the rousing duet with Big Time Sarah on "Wang Dang Doodle".

Blues From The Inside Out is the most expressive project of Dave Specter's 35 year career. Featuring his debut as a vocalist, the album is an exciting and timely celebration of blues, soul, jazz, funk and gospel. With a guest appearance on guitar by Jorma Kaukonen of Jefferson Airplane/Hot Tuna fame, who also co-wrote one of the album's 12 original tunes. These are exciting times to hear Specter, an evolving artist who embraces growth and discovery. In times when darkness and doubt may seem to hang over us, we need to remember the world is illuminated by possibilities. With this new album, Dave Specter's brilliant light shines down on us all.

A walk in the Delta with sanctified swagger, It Ain't Right is a joyous culmination and testimonial to Jimmy's vocal talent and musical gifts. Relevant and inspiring, these songs are loaded with a great sense of collective purpose. Other musicians may cover a tune, but his clear and soulful message and individual approach make any song directly his own, and Jimmy Burns our musical treasure. Jimmy is accompanied by his working band Anthony Palmer, guitar; Greg McDaniel, bass: Bryant "T" Parker, drums; with additional support from Sumito "Ariyo" Ariyoshi, piano; Roosevelt Purifoy, organ; Marques Carroll, trumpet; Chris Neal, tenor sax; Aaron Getsug, baritone sax.

Bluesman Linsey Alexander was born in Mississippi and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. His first guitar was never retrieved from the pawn shop where he left it almost 50 years ago. Using the money to help pay his way to Chicago, he now has a variety of guitars. Linsey has played with B.B. King, Bobby Rush, Buddy Guy, Little Milton, Magic Slim Johnnie Taylor, Larry McCray, A. C. Reed, Byther Smith, John Primer, Otis Clay and Eddie Clearwater. Been There Done That is Linsey's Delmark debut and it features an eight piece band including the LA Horns plus special guest Billy Branch on harmonica. Lots of brand new original songs brought to life by Linsey's powerful vocals.

Tennessee blues poet Sleepy John Estes made his recorded debut in 1929 with the song "Broken Hearted, Ragged and Dirty Too". In '35 John teamed up with Hammie Nixon and they went on to record many classic sides together until WWII. After a twenty-year absence Delmark's Bob Koester rediscovered John and presented him to the new blues audience in '62. This led to a series of LPs and a reinvigorated career. This album was recorded in November of 1974 at concerts in Japan, one of the very first tours of that country by a blues artist - preceded only by a B.B. King State Department appearance. The Estes tour was a great success and even resulted in an Estes track appearing on the Japanese Top 100 chart! 73 minutes.

Soulful Days is the debut album by Soul Message Band but, for the most part, these masterful musicians are not appearing on Delmark for the first time. Organist Chris Foreman and drummer Greg Rockingham both came from the now defunct Deep Blue Organ Trio who have two Delmark albums and one DVD. Alto saxophonist Greg Ward appeared as a sideman on Jason Roebke's High Red Center album (DMK 5014) and tenor man Geof Bradfield recently came out with his Delmark debut, Yes, And... Music For Nine Improvisers (DMK 5027). Newcomer Lee Rothenberg is featured on guitar and wrote "Sir Charles", the smoking opener for this funky, greasy organ combo album.

With Louis Myers, Dave Myers, Mac Simmons and Big Moose Walker! Blues vocalist Willie Buck was born in 1937 in the small town of Houston, Mississippi. Willie performed on what became known as the "Chittlin Circuit". Shortly after developing his reputation, Willie migrated to Chicago in 1954 where he truly immersed himself in the Chicago blues scene and became a real force on Maxwell Street. Willie was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in Chicago in the summer of 2004. The Life I Love was recorded in 1982 and was issued then in a very limited edition LP. It appears on CD for the first time now and features previously unissued live tracks totaling 65 minutes of genuine Chicago blues.

FRENCH CONNECTION

This live recording takes US back to just a few months after the release of the legendary Hoodoo Man Blues (DMK 612) album. Junior is accompanied by the Aces - Louis Myers, guitar; Dave Myers, bass; Fred Below, drums. Eleven songs and great bits between Junior and the audience in between songs comes to over 60 minutes of pure blues delight. "I Wanna Boogie", "Messin' with the Kid", "Man Downstairs", "Worried Life Blues", "Hideaway", "That's All Right", "Look on Yonder's Wall", "Fattening Frogs for Snakes", "Got My Mojo Workin'" and more.

Blues guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and bandleader Dave Weld got his start on Chicago's west side in the late 70's. At the 1815 Club on Roosevelt Road, Dave was in the house band with Chico Chism, Shorty Gilbert, Hubert Sumlin, Detroit Junior, and Eddie Shaw. Dave played there with Otis Rush, Guitar Junior, Tail Dragger, Little Arthur, Johnny Littlejohn and more. Weld was under the tutelage of Grammy winning slide guitarist JB Hutto. JB introduced Dave to his nephew, Lil Ed. They started the band "Lil Ed and the Blues Imperials" and played every joint in the West side for ten years. Burnin' Love is Weld's Delmark debut and it features Lil Ed on guitar and the legendary Abb Locke on saxophone.

Sharon Lewis made her Delmark debut in 2007 as a special guest vocalist with Dave Specter on Live in Chicago (CD DMK 794, DVD DMK 1794). Born in Fort Worth, Texas Sharon's earliest musical experience was as a member of a gospel choir. She moved to Chicago permanently in 1975 and became active on the Chicago blues scene in the early 90s. In 2005 Sharon formed her own band, Texas Fire. "... it's Sharon Lewis who provides the disc's (Live in Chicago) most exciting moments. Her powerful pipes inject a strong gospel vibe into her originals "In Too Deep" and the head-turning ballad "Angel". - Blues Revue.

Though this is Pierre Lacocque's band, and he is the principal songwriter and stage front with his harmonica, there is an ensemble feel to all of Mississippi Heat albums. When you listen to this superb CD, you're not just hearing a band. You're hearing a family, one with a deep love, understanding, and respect for each other. That special guest Sax Gordon is so seamlessly incorporated into their signature sound speaks volumes. Fourteen of the sixteen songs here are new originals. From straight-ahead Chicago blues, boogie and swing to Latin beat, Caribbean and funk Warning Shot is a remarkable musical achievement.

In a review of Weld's first Delmark CD, Living Blues magazine said: "Burnin' Love is a raucous monster, Weld performs wonderfully wild guitar their sweet vocal harmonies are as animated as Weld's wicked and rockin' slide guitar."(Monica's) "Talk Dirty" is equally suited for a sultry blues diva here Myhre displays her burly pipes." The songwriting team of Weld/Myhre has reached new heights with the sublime title track, the self-described "Sweet Rockin' Soul" and the crossover "Sweet Love (Dulce Amor)". With special guests Bobby Rush adding harp on 2 songs, Greg Guy (son of Buddy Guy) on guitar on one and Sax Gordon on tenor and baritone sax.

Here are some of the rarest hot piano solos ever made. These performances were originally recorded in Chicago during the mid to late 1920s by the Capitol Music Roll Company and issued as nickelodeon piano rolls. In 2007 Delmark issued Jimmy Blythe, Messin' Around Blues (DMK 792) from the same set of rolls. With the help of digital technology these rolls will sound more full and rich than ever before. This CD feature rolls transcribed by Clarence Johnson, another of the finest blues players of the 20s. The piano roll performances presented here provide a clearer record than do their 78s because these solos were recorded using modern recording techniques from a "live" player piano.

Willie Buck has been leading his own bands for over 40 years. He's been on the scene since his arrival in Chicago as a teenager in the midst of the heyday of Chicago blues in 1953. He put out his only album in the early 80s which became a collector's item over the years and was re-issued in 2010 as The Life I Love (Delmark 805). At that time it was decided Willie would create a new album for Delmark but it wasn't until Rockin' Johnny stepped forward that the project got off the ground. Cell Phone Man features 16 songs with a heavy dose of Muddy Waters Chicago Blues. Johnny's Band is Rick Kreher, Barrelhouse Chuck, John Sefner, Steve Bass and special guest Bharath Rajakumar.