Area Artists Have Shot at Blues Glory

Several artists with ties to the local blues scene have been nominated for W.C. Handy Awards, the blues world’s top honors. Winners will be announced today at ceremonies in Memphis.

Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers, the Riverside-based band that plays regularly in Orange County, is a candidate for blues band of the year in a field that also includes the Charlie Musselwhite Band, Roomful of Blues, Anson Funderburgh & the Rockets and the Smokin’ Joe Kubek Band. Piazza also has been nominated for best harmonica player, along with Carey Bell, Kim Wilson, Charlie Musselwhite and Sugar Blue.

“Two Heads Are Better” by the Los Angeles/Long Beach duo of Harmonica Fats and Bernie Pearl has been nominated for country/acoustic blues album of the year; it is up against albums by Lonnie Pitchford, Homesick James, Keb Mo’ and Junior Kimbrough.

Singer-guitarist Debbie Davies, a regular in local blues clubs before her move to the East Coast a few years ago, has been nominated for best female contemporary blues artist; the competition is Marcia Ball, Etta James, Koko Taylor and Michelle Willson.

Mighty Sam McClain, who records for the AudioQuest label in San Clemente, has been nominated for male soul-blues artist of the year against Johnny Adams, Solomon Burke, Little Milton and Bobby Bland, and as male vocalist of the year, against the same field as in the soul-blues category plus Charles Brown.

Piazza and the Mighty Flyers play May 13 at the Harbor Lights (formerly Heritage) Brewing Co. in Dana Point. Bernie Pearl and Harmonica Fats will play an electric show backed by the Bernie Pearl Blues Band on May 19 at the Hyatt Regency Irvine, and an acoustic duo show June 18 at Spaghettini in Seal Beach.

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ROOTS ROCK AND TREES: Rockabilly, psychobilly and roots-rock fans should mark July 1 on their calendars. The Hootenanny Showdown, an all-ages, outdoor festival at Oak Canyon Ranch next to Irvine Lake, will feature the Cramps, Rev. Horton Heat, the Paladins, Lee Rocker’s Big Blue and the Blasters, among others. Tickets, $19.50, go on sale May 13 through Ticketmaster. Information: (714) 991-2055.