Bowlful of Jammin’
A viable alternative to playoff baseball and college football is the 14th Annual Bowlful of Blues, featuring an eclectic collection of blues, zydeco and roots-rock artists. All will be doing their respective things during the eight-hour epic, which begins at 2 p.m. in the oak-filled Ojai Bowl in Libbey Park.
This year’s event will feature W.C. Clark, Sista Monica, Jude Taylor & His Burning Flames, “Grayboy” Dan Pollock & the Goodtimers, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps, plus local Santa Barbara heroes Tom Ball & Kenny Sultan and the Pontiax.
There’s ample room to dance in front of the stage, while bench seating is available under the giant oaks for the less energetic, and festival seating is allowed on the lawn behind that.
This event always offers lots of good music, and this year, they have the food to match. Rib Ticklers in Saticoy will have the only food booth inside the venue, but they do seem to know what they are doing: They recently captured the championship title at the Best of the West Nugget Rib Cook-Off in Sparks, Nev., an event that attracted 200,000 people.
Culinary news aside, this year’s event will be dedicated to the memory of singer-songwriter Percy Mayfield, known as “the poet laureate of the blues.” As an exclusive writer for Ray Charles and B.B. King, Mayfield penned several hits over the years, including “Hit the Road Jack.”
His songs will be performed by several of the artists, and his wife, Tina Mayfield, will be at the Percy Mayfield Scholarship Fund booth with recordings and information on her late husband.
Heading the bill will be guitarist W.C. Clark, “the Godfather of Austin Blues,” a Black Top Recording artist, and an influential presence in the capital of the Lone Star state since the late ‘50s.
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But waiting her turn, which will probably be right before Clark, is Bay Area blues belter Monica Parker, better known as Sista Monica. She’s getting some serious mileage out of her debut CD from last year, “Get Out My Way.” Last week she spoke of life on the road since her last album, which, she said, is doing fine.
“It’s amazing that it’s still got legs, and they’re walkin,’ if not runnin’,” she said. “It’s allowed me to tour around this great country and play with people like Etta James and the Temptations.”
Parker is one of those artists who accepts that life for the blues singer is largely spent going 65 mph, trying to get from one place to another. She particularly likes the festival concept.
“I think the festival circuit is a good thing because it allows the entire family to see a variety of artists in one fell swoop,” she said. “Festivals keep the blues alive. Blues is getting bigger and better and probably even a little more contemporary. There’s some funk, some straight ahead and a bit of rock.”
Parker has had an interesting career in addition to her musical endeavors. She was a Marine and ended up being a recruiter. She used her powers of persuasion and gift of gab to become an executive headhunter in Silicon Valley, securing positions for managers and engineers. She now has her own firm, but she’s had those blues longer than that.
“I was a gospel singer and I grew up in Chicago, but I moved to California in 1987. For awhile, I didn’t sing at all, but then one day in 1992, I decided to pick up a mike and do something. At first, it was just Aretha Franklin stuff. Then I decided my life story was something I could sing about. I studied Etta James, Katie Webster and Koko Taylor, then I started writing my own material.”
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The songs on “Get Out My Way” fairly explode out of the speakers, accompanied by a very proficient band.
“It’s rockin’ and it’s funky,” she said. “People started calling me ‘The New Blues Lioness,’ wherever that came from. There are already too many queens, so I guess I’ll accept that.”
Parker is presently completing the mixing on her second release, which should be ready by the first part of 1997. A three-song CD, perhaps available at the Bowlful, will serve as a sampler.
“The album is gonna be called ‘Stop Talkin’ ‘Bout Me Stalkin’ You.’ It’s focused on a love relationship that ended. It’s about the pain and sorrow of being deceived,” she said. “So it’s gonna be a love CD, but we will be rockin’ too. Some people think that blues is sad music, but blues is a healing music. It’s about telling the truth and healing.”
DETAILS
* WHAT: 14th Annual Bowlful of Blues.
* WHEN: 2-10 p.m. Saturday.
* WHERE: Libbey Park, Signal Street and Ojai Avenue in Ojai.
* COST: $22.50 advance, $25 at the gate.
* CALL: 646-7230.
* FYI: Lowback chairs, blankets, coolers and picnic baskets are recommended, but the sale and/or consumption of alcoholic beverages is prohibited in Libbey Park. No audio or video devices are allowed, nor are guns, knives, rocket launchers, phasers or dogs.
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The Rest of the Lineup
* Guitarist W.C. Clark, “the Godfather of Austin Blues,” is credited with influencing Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimmie Vaughan as well as the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Charlie Sexton and countless others. His latest album, on Black Top, is “Texas Soul.”
* Since zydeco music leaves scarcely a foot untapped, Jude Taylor & His Burning Flames probably will kick the dance floor into overdrive. Taylor, out of Louisiana like so many other zydeco artists, is making this appearance a family affair: His sons, Curley and Errol, are in the band. Besides the usual zydeco tunes, the band does a reverent cover of B.B. King’s “The Thrill Is Gone.”
* Alvin Youngblood Hart is a one-guy, one-guitar operation doing gritty, acoustic Delta blues. The 33-year-old Berkeley resident made a recent local appearance at Further Fest, which was held at the Ventura County Fairgrounds to celebrate the late Jerry Garcia’s birthday. Hart’s newest album, “Big Mama’s Door, is on Okeh Records.
* For several members of “Grayboy” Dan Pollock & the Goodtimers, this gig is, essentially, a reunion of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue--without Ike & Tina. One player, Clifford Solomon, spent 15 years after his revue days leading the Ray Charles Orchestra and currently plays with Charles Brown. Trombone player Fred Wesley led the James Brown horn section for many years, before embarking on a solo career.
* Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps are hot enough to be a fire hazard during this dry brush season. She’s from Texas and does those rockin’ blues backed by an all-star collection of session players. She was one of the highlights of the recent Groove Fest at Lake Casitas.
* Tom Ball & Kenny Sultan are a couple of blues virtuosos out of Santa Barbara who have managed to avoid that dreaded day job for more than 15 years. Ball plays harmonica and sings in a great, gruff blues voice between smiles while Sultan is a master guitar player. Over the years they have resurrected obscure blues songs such as “How Can I Miss You When You Won’t Go Away?” But their latest album, “Double Vision,” is nearly all originals. “Perfect Woman” is a hilarious song about just that: She owns a liquor store, is built like Dolly Parton, has Dodger season tickets and lets him hold the remote.
* The Pontiax, also from Santa Barbara, have been around since the early ‘80s. The group features the vocals and harmonica work of front man Mitch Kashmar.