“You Can’t Mess WithMama!” — MarieKnight, IH Mississippi

Valley Blues Festival 2008So many blues fests and too

much fun! At the 25th AnnualChicago Blues Festival it was big-ger and better than ever in beauti-ful Grant Park on the shores ofLake Michigan. Thursday’s theme“Catfish Blues” was a day withJimmy Burns and his blues at theMississippi Juke Joint stage andover on the Front Porch Sugar saw

another fabulous show withPinetop and band—Big Eyes,Steady Rollin’, Bob Stroger andKenny Smith plus what a joy tosee Little Willie Littlefield back intown on the Louisiana stage. Forthe evening Louis Jordan’s tributefeaturing who else but the bluesjumper Duke Robillard and RedHolloway was out of this world.The closer was Johnny Winterwsg James Cotton. The next day’stheme - “Sweet Home Chicago”with the Queen of the Blues—Koko Taylor headlining the festand opening up for her was blueslegends Cicero Blake Sugar PieDeSanto, Eddy Clearwater,Lonnie Brooks, Jimmy Johnson,

Ronnie Baker Brooks, Otis Clayand Billy Branch. Saturday’s “LetThe Good Times Roll” kicked offwith Chick Rogers at theCrossroads Stage and then theBanjo Project with Otis Taylor,Don Vappie and Guy Davis.Sugar, Junior & hundreds of bluesfans loved dancing to CedricBurnside and Lightnin’ Malcolmat the Jukejoint Stage. Later thatnight they followed the KokoTaylor Celebrity FoundationBlues Club Crawl Bus to three dif-ferent clubs with Koko on board aswell as her older sister Aunt Vi!Needless to say it was a “WangDang Doodle!” But boy didn’t itrain on Sunday – after a gospelopening with the VictoryTravelers and Marie Knight &Dave Keyes, Sugar had to takecover. It was “Everyday I Have the

Blues” as its theme with the Kingof the Blues –BB King headliningand opening for him was KarenCarroll, Charlie Love, Lurrie Bell,Magic Slim and the Teardrops,Little Willie Littlefield. Before BBbegan he thanked Buddy Guy,Koko Taylor and Lonnie Brooksfor all the doors that they haveopened for the blues. It was abeautiful evening and afterwardsBB joined Buddy at his clubLegends before taking off downthat long blues highway.

Next up was Blues on theFox—downtown Aurora, IL, wasnext with a picture perfect week-end featuring Eddy Clearwater,Elvin Bishop, Corey Harris,Bettye LaVette, Marcia Ball,Kenny Wayne Shepherd wsgHubert Sumlin and Willie BigEyes Smith. It was wall to wallpeople with nowhere to move andobviously a larger venue is neededto accommodate all those hungryblues fans. Thank-you Paula

Gotcha! Marcia Ball spots Sugar in the photopit at The Blues On The Fox, 2008

Anne Harris , fiddler and dancer, withOtis Taylor's Black Banjo Project 2008

"Old" Pete Seeger and his grandson,Tao Rodrequez-Seeger blessing theHudson River at the 2008 ClearwaterFestival

Delta groove recording artist, AnaPopovic heats up the July night inWindsor, Canada, BluesFestInternational

Welcome Home! Little Willie Littlefield returns to the 2008 Chicago Blues Festival

"The Six Of Us", performing in the Circle Of Gospel at Clearwater, 2008

All photos by Shirley Mae Owens unless otherwise credited.

And I Ain’t Lyin’!

BLUESBIG CITY SUGAR MAE

60 Big City Blues • Aug.-Sept. 2008

Steiger for all your hard work!Sugar & Junior then slipped intoNYC after stopping by MinisinkHills to visit their good DoctorEric Cassell and Mother Owens.The next morning they found theClearwater Festival – GreatHudson River Revival goingstrong in its 42nd year along thescenic Hudson in Croton Park inWestchester County. They gotthere just in time for the Blessingof the River and saw Pete Seegerand his grandson Tao performtogether. This year Pete Seegerdeveloped a new venue called theCircle of Song and Sugar enjoyedtwo acappella gospel groups as thebeautiful Woody Guthrie BeaconSloop hoisted its sail and nearbywas the Clearwater Sloop. It’s allabout the river and Mother Earth.Thank-you Pete Seeger for youramazing vision! A fun filled eco-friendly family summer solsticeannual festival. Visit www.clear-water.org.

It happened in 1993 and againin 2008 the Big Muddy, the mightyMississippi River rose and leftbehind a mud filled inoperable LeClair Park in Davenport, IA buthave no fear the IH MississippiValley Blues Festival tackled thehuge job of moving two blocksaway and the fest did go on!Although they didn’t break eventheir hopes are high to find moresponsors to present their 25thAnnual Mississippi Blues Festivalin 2009. Join the MVBS today atwww.mvbs.org! Highlights at theIH MVBS Fest for Sugar Mae wasjust being there again celebratingher 20th year and emceeing at thehistoric Adler Theatre with theCarolina Chocolate Drops wherethe audience was so thrilled andamazed by their performance thatthey begged for more. Also at theAdler Sugar caught up with DaveKeyes accompanying MarieKnight who warned Sugar thatyou can’t mess with Mama(Mississippi River)! Marie openedup for George Brock and her oldfriends—The Holmes Brothers.

Sugar Mae witnessed another awe-some performance by JimmyThackery and then caught up withthe Queen of the Blues – KokoTaylor who told Sugar how excitedshe is about sailin’ on the highseas—the Legendary Rhythm &Blues Cruise with Etta James thisOctober. “Etta was the first womansinger I met. Etta was alreadythere (Chess Studios) with a hit.They thought Etta was a whitegirl. It’s been awhile since I haveseen Etta,” smiled Koko who hasbeen working as a consultant forthe new film about Chess entitled“Cadillac Blues.”

Sugar’s fourth festival in sixweeks was across the border toWindsor, Canada’s BluesfestInternational. Sugar loved seeingTaj Mahal as well as thousands ofblues fans who went absolutelynuts over him. Richie Havens wasin fine form too and spoke aboutthose Greenwich Village dayswhen it was no longer necessaryto write down a song when thecassette tape arrived. Pazman’sSupersession was tight wsg

Thornetta Davis. And AnaPopovic blew everyone away andis truly amazing as she proudlyshowed off her baby backstage toJunior and then this young mamapicked up her guitar and got downto business rocking out the gratefulcrowd. Plus Larry McCray at thetop of his game blew the bluesfans away. Thanks to Ted &Louise Boomer for all your hardwork and hospitality.

Before Sugar Mae & Junior getback to work at the next round ofblues fests they especially givethanks to Brother Ed Owens forhis visit celebrating Sugar’s birth-day and when 30 years ago Ed &Sugar met Koko Taylor & TheBlues Machine. Thanks Ed for get-ting Sugar & Junior Up North for along cool swim in North Bar &Lake Michigan.

Love & Happiness!Sugar MaePS Happy Birthday to the Good

Doctor Eric Cassell!

Larry McCray is serious about his guitar andhis blues, 2008 BluesFest International

Queen Koko Taylor celebrates the 25TH Chicago Blues Festival,2008, with a hardy set!

River Road reciepient Denise LaSalle at the2008 IH Mississippi Valley Blues Festival

#1 Soul Sister, Detroit's Bettye LaVette has earned her crown, Blues On The Fox, 2008The hardest working sweetheart of the blues, Blues Sister Jeannie making LittleSmokey Smothers feel at home at The Blues On The Fox, 2008

61Aug.-Sept. 2008 • Big City Blues