25 track compilation from the vaults of DeLuxe, Regal & United from the late 1940s to early 1950s, feat. Dave Bartholomew, Ernie K-Doe, Larry Darnell, Annie Laurie, Chubby "Hip Shakin'" Newsome, Erline Harris, Joseph "Google Eyes" August & James "Blazer Boy" Locks.

AACM saxophonist, composer and bandleader Ernest Dawkins brought his NHE into the Velvet Lounge on July 14, 2005 for this live CD knowing it would be one of the groups' last performances at the historic "old" Velvet Lounge. The club is now closed (the last night was April 1, 2006), though the new location is supposed to be open in May. Trumpeter Maurice Brown has been gaining critical acclaim and popularity in the last two years, as he's been working with Dawkins whenever possible since relocating to New Orleans. For his return to Chicago for this gig, he's joined by Steve Berry on trombone, Darius Savage on bass and Isaiah Spencer on drums.

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.

The rough and rowdy blues heard at Turner's Lounge was the inspiration for this explosive 1968 recording. Blues legend Sunnyland Slim guests with The Hawks on piano and organ. This Digipak Deluxe Edition contains the previously unissued song "I'll Cry Tomorrow", five alternate takes and a 16-page booklet with many never-before-seen photos from the recording sessions and Turner's. "The raw-as-an-open-wound Chicago slide guitarist J.B. Hutto outdid himself throughout an outrageously raucous album anchored by an impossible-to-ignore "Hip Shakin'", the blaring title cut, and savage renditions of "20% Alcohol" and "Notoriety Woman". " - Bill Dahl A.M.G.

Chris Woods made his first records in the early '50s but his most prolific period was around the time of this session. He had recorded three European albums as leader, and as sideman with Dizzy Gillespie, Ernie Wilkins, Clark Terry, Ted Curson and others. But a new album with American sidemen had to be done. A date was found amid Chris' busy bookings with Clark Terry, Ted Curson and Buddy Rich. Modus Operandi is a great example of the versatility of multi-instrumentalist Chris Woods.

2022 release. Demetria Taylor was born to sing the blues. The songs on Demetria Taylor: Doin' What I'm Supposed To Do are a balance of traditional blues and modern R & B, with some written by her family, some by fellow musicians Mike Wheeler and Larry Williams, one by the venerable Magic Sam, and two by Demetria herself. This second Delmark record is a strong follow up to her Delmark debut, Bad Girl, and also features the legendary Deitra Farr on one track.

The plural "kings" comes from the fact that this CD is divided between Alfred "Blues King" Harris and Big Walter. You'll hear Walter's first Chicago recordings under his own name ('54); he plays Hard-Hearted Woman; Back Home to Mama; Card Game; Remember Me, and more!

Willie "The Lion" Smith in the 1920s was considered one of the big three of stride piano, along with James P. Johnson and Fats Waller. He was an influence on the young Duke Ellington. Because he remained active into the early '70s, Willie "The Lion" Smith was considered a living link to the glory days of early jazz. A major if underrated pianist, Don Ewell started leading his own trios in Baltimore in the mid-'30s; played during the New Orleans jazz revival (starting in the mid-'40s) and was with Jack Teagarden during 1957-1964. Ewell moved to New Orleans, where he worked regularly during his last years. This 1966 date, recorded live at the Golden Nugget in Toronto, features solo performances by Smith, Ewell and duets by the two.

Jazz trumpeter Corey Wilkes burst on the Chicago jazz scene in 2002. This is his debut as a leader. Corey took on the ghost of Lester Bowie and filled the vacant seat in the Art Ensemble of Chicago. His soulful notes can be heard gracing a variety of projects such as DJ sets by Logic, Osunlade and Josh Deep; tracks on Hidden Beach's Unwrapped Vol. 4, also recorded with Roscoe Mitchell, Art Ensemble, Tortoise, Ernest Dawkins, Nicole Mitchell and Ethnic Heritage Ensemble's Hot 'N' Heavy (DMK DVD 1574, DMK CD 574). with Chelsea Baratz, tenor sax; Jabari Liu, alto sax; Robert "Baabe" Irving III, piano and Fender Rhodes; Junius Paul, bass; Jeremy "Bean" Clemmons, drums.

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.

There Now is a collection of jazz hybrids: both new compositions and arrangements of early jazz standards. The Gang is concerned equally with the great musical legacies of Louis Armstrong, Pee Wee Russell, Derek Bailey, and the Art Ensemble of Chicago. It's the kind of exploration that can only come from musicians that are native speakers of three languages: jazz, free jazz and free improvisation. Josh Berman, cornet; Jeb Bishop, trombone: Guillermo Gregorio, clarinet; Jason Stein, bass clarinet; Keefe Jackson, tenor saxophone; Jason Adasiewicz, vibraphone; Joshua Abrams, bass and Frank Rosaly, drums. Also available: Old Ideas (DMK 588).

The collaborative trio of Ben Goldberg (clarinet, contra alto clarinet), Geof Bradfield (soprano and tenor saxophones, bass clarinet) and Dana Hall (percussion) explores new directions on General Semantics. Their Delmark Records debut features original music by the trio as well as unique interpretations of Duke Ellington, Cecil Taylor, and Hermeto Pascoal. The unusual instrumentationespecially the lack of a bassist- enables the musicians to transcend traditional instrument roles of accompaniment, improvisation, and interaction and create music that embraces form and harmony alongside freedom and spontaneous improvisation.

DELMARK'S 70th ANNIVERSARY BLUES ANTHOLOGY Featuring 10 of the finest tracks from the Delmark blues music vaults. Seventy years on, Delmark is the oldest independent jazz and blues record label in the world, boasting a catalog bulging with over twelve thousand recordings by a virtual who's who of jazz and blues.  Although Bob Koester retired in 2018, under the leadership of President/CEO, Julia A. Miller and Artistic Director Elbio Barilari, Delmark has released over 30 thirty albums in five years, has made digitally available over twelve thousand songs and continues it's mission.

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.

The natural Truth is that Guy King is a bad man, a fierce and soon-to-be prominent practitioner of the music that has thrilled his heart ever since he was a small boy. This brilliant new album, produced by Dick Shurman, features three songs co-written by King and noted biographer/songwriter David Ritz who also wrote the descriptive notes. Truth showcases present-day Guy King in his many guises: a straight-ahead blues shouter, a straight-ahead blues gunslinger, a powerful singer of blues-tinged pop songs, a gifted arranger and original writer of fresh and compelling blues-based material. "Yes, it's blues," says King, "but it's also deep soul and swinging jazz." 15 songs, over 70 minutes!

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.

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.

Featuring Richie Cole & Frank Catalano. As a native of Chicago, jazz pianist Jim Holman has been performing in the city's finest jazz clubs since he was sixteen. He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh's jazz studies program under the tutelage of Jazz Messenger alumni Nathan Davis and Leon Dorsey. Jim has performed in Chicago and Pittsburgh with outstanding jazz icons such as Mark Whitfield, Claudio Roditi, Donald Harrison, Antonio Hart, Jimmy Owens, Cecil Bridgewater and John Moulder. Jim has also performed and recorded with Ira Sullivan. Explosion! Was recorded at two separate quartet sessions also featuring Rick Shandling, Rusty Jones and Brian Sandstorm.

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!

Unique flute work in an intimate quartet setting, supported and stimulated by some of Chicago's finest improvisers: Jeff Parker, guitar; Harrison Bankhead, bass; Avreeayl Ra, drums. Named 2010 Flutist of the Year in the Down Beat Critic's Poll, she rides the wave into new compositions that explore many colors, moods and rhythmic grooves. Mitchell's earlier projects involved larger groups; Black Earth Ensemble, Black Unstoppable (DMK 575 CD and 1575 DVD) and Black Earth Strings, Renegades (587). This smaller group setting opens the door for Mitchell to stretch out as a soloist more so than on any of her previous recordings.

Traditional jazz tubaist Mike Walbridge has been active on the Chicago scene for forty five years as leader of the Chicago Footwarmers and a member of the Chicago Salty Dogs. Clarinetist/alto saxist Kim Cusack has been jamming with Mike since their teens! Kim has been active for many years also in the Footwarmers, the Salty Dogs, Jim Dapogny's Chicago Jazz Band and several groups at Andy's, one of Chicago's best jazz clubs. This CD features two mid-60s sessions previously available on the Blackbird label plus a newly recorded 2007 session. The 60s sessions feature Johnny Cooper, piano; Eddie Lynch, banjo; Glen Koch, drums. The 2007 session features Don Stiernberg, banjo/guitar; Bob Cousins, drums.

Intimate live performance of avant duo Mikrokolketyw at the legendary Polish film studios Wytwornia Filmow Fabularnych in April of 2010. Dew Point places the material of "Revisit" into the performance setting, expanding their tunes into improvised forms, playing as the soundtrack to director Harmon's film Sound in Motion. Mikrokolektyw's electronics driven compositions become more acoustic, the dynamic of each song expanded and explored. Visually the DVD provides a lush and atmospheric backdrop in which the band plays out against rich colors touched with interludes of abstraction from the film they accompany. 5.1 surround sound, PCM Stereo, plus the film Sound in Motion. Directed by Raymond Salvatore Harmon. NTSC all region, 70 minutes.

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.

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.

My thing has always been live music. Going to shows, booking shows, playing shows. Playing with the best musicians I could. More than anything, I loved the feeling of getting in the van and going. Even better, once I got there, I love the feeling of knockin' em dead. It's been nearly 20 years since my last live recording. That one, More Real Folk Blues Live, was Chicago in every way, back when living in Chicago was like Christmas for me every day. It was the result of seeing and playing with great blues artists all the time - artists like Eddie C. Campbell, Tail Dragger, Sam Lay, Eddie Taylor Jr., Jimmy Dawkins, Eddie Shaw, Little Arthur Duncan, Jimmy Burns, Big Smokey Smothers, L.V. Banks, Eddy Clearwater - and many others. It was a recording borne of a long, self-imposed apprenticeship - the kind musicians like me came to Chicago from all over the world to get. Although that apprenticeship ended some time ago, I have begun another journey that's taken me from coast to coast in the US and all around the world, across Europe, to Russia, Japan and beyond. Live recordings often just repeat well-worn songs played by well-oiled machines. This live session is the exact opposite. It offers twelve brand-new originals done by artists who don't play together regularly, performed for a packed house of enthusiastic fans of course! We had just one night to nail it - which made this recording a crazy, but thrilling, high wire act! The many miles and musical clairvoyance I've enjoyed with my road band of bassist Chris Matheos and drummer Steve Dougherty gave me the confidence for this do-or-die session. I drew from the great Bay Area blues talent pool that lured me to the West Coast back in 2016. I count all my special guests as friends and knew their contributions would carry me through. Blues legend Charlie Musselwhite's driving boogie-woogie harp on 'California Blues' is an absolute highlight. The end result is a raw, fresh, and original all-star set of blues, shot through with live energy. Chicago Blues sax legend Eddie Shaw once said, 'It takes 20 years to make a bluesman.' Here I am, ready to play my blues for you.

Featuring Monster Mike Welch, Kid Anderson, and Corey Dennison the latest project by Breezy Rodio, If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It, presents vibrant, new, quality original material. Rodio has produced a veritable smorgasbord of tasty songs. With the use of A-list musicians, dynamic horn arrangements and inventive original lyrics, Breezy has managed to produce a recording full of musical delights. I met Breezy shortly after he appeared on the Chicago Blues Scene. I watched him grow from a shy, young aspiring guitar player into the confident guitarist and vocalist that he has become. Believe me; I know a thing or two about navigating the Chicago Blues landscape. It may sound cliche, but you absolutely must pay your dues to get accepted here on the scene. Though long gone are most of the classic great musicians, Chicago is still the world Mecca of the Blues. I have seen many musicians with great potential fall by the wayside, succumbing to the many pitfalls that plague the path to success. Breezy has not only survived but has emerged as a dynamic artist. It is worth mentioning that Breezy's nine-year tenure as a guitarist in the band of Chicago's illustrious Linsey Alexander definitely gave him the experience and confidence to develop his own musical identity. I became acutely aware of his musical growth and development when I collaborated with him on his previous Delmark release, Sometimes The Blues Got Me (Delmark DE 853). I am confident that Breezy's musical growth will continue. I am happy to know him as a friend, and a serious musician, who shares the same respect for those who paved the way before us. Stay tuned, the best is yet to come.

After a 20 year hiatus, virtuoso guitarists Goran Ivanovic and Fareed Haque have joined forces again! A year of intensive touring and composing has produced INDOBALKAN, the duo's debut release on Delmark Records. Featuring rising star percussionist Juan Pastor and incorporating elements of jazz, classical, Indian and balkan music, the duo explore longer, more complex compositions and stunning technical challenges while retaining their love for beautiful melodies and sweet tones. Two of the most gifted guitarists performing today, their styles and backgrounds are vastly different but, as the Chicago Tribune wrote of them "when their two guitars play, cultural barriers melt away."