Blues Industry

COSIMO MATASSA

Cosimo Matassa was a pioneer of rocking New Orleans R&B, who produced the revolutionary sounds that made the everybody dance in the early 50s. Working from a tiny studio, Cosimo developed a bass and drum-heavy sound, with light horns and prominent vocals and piano, that propelled several local boys onto the world stage. Studio owners…

JIM MARSHALL

The ‘Marshall Stack’ is that tall black monolithic speaker set that you see behind most rock bands as they use its massive sound dynamic to tickle your ears one moment and blow your hair off the next. The man behind this vital equipment wanted to be a loud, wild, jazz drummer like his hero Gene…

LEO FENDER

The man who gave the world the Stratocaster, the Telecaster and the Precision Bass was a trained accountant who started out tinkering with electronics in his spare time. Growing up in Anaheim CA, the 13-year-old Clarence Leonidas (Leo) Fender was fascinated by the loud, home-made radio his uncle used at his car repair workshop, so…

RY COODER

American popular music has its roots in dozens of diverse traditions, and most of them have been investigated by Ry Cooder as he played a wide selection of stringed instruments. A highly skilled guitar picker, his wise and amusing selection of songs on a long series of albums have broadened many horizons, and pricked many…

LEONARD CHESS

The Godfather of Chicago Blues, Leonard Chess made his Chess Record company the home of many legends of electrified urban Blues. Leonard and his brother Phil were Polish immigrants who came with their parents to New York in 1928, but soon relocated to Chicago. The brothers were fascinated by the music scene in the South-side…

JOHN FAHEY

The life of John Fahey is a fascinating enigma. He was an influential and innovative Folk/Blues guitarist; he set up his own record label as a teenager; he was an academic and musicologist; he re-discovered and recorded Bukka White in 1963; his music moved into the avant-guard with classical and Eastern influences; he struggled with…

THE BIHARI BROTHERS

Lester, Jules, Saul and Joe Bihari were four brothers of Hungarian descent who were responsible for setting up a string of record labels in Los Angeles and Memphis that made a huge contribution to the success of Blues music, especially on the West Coast, in the post-WWII era. The eldest brother, Lester, had a job…

ALLEN TOUSSAINT

The Godfather of funky New Orleans R&B, Allen Toussaint’s talents as a singer, pianist, songwriter, producer and arranger shaped the sound of The Crescent City for decades. As a solo artist Allen had a worldwide best-selling record with Southern Nights in 1975, but arguably his most important work was the vision he employed in the…

DAVE BARTHOLOMEW

If Rock’n’Roll is a mixture of jump-blues and R&B, then New Orleans’ own Dave Bartholomew has a claim to being the man who put them together. As songwriter, producer, arranger and trumpet player, Dave’s work gave this music the energy that got the youth of America and the whole world up on their feet and…

CUB KODA

Singer, guitarist, producer and DJ, Michael ‘Cub’ Koda is perhaps best known as a record collector, writer and critic. His work editing the All Music Guide, his journalism, reviews and album notes made his reputation for clear writing and thoughtful criticism. Cub’s music career reached it’s height when his band Brownsville Station took his song…