I’m so lucky to have a monthly column here at the San Diego Troubadour! It’s the month of February and on Valentine’s Day, I’ll officially profess my love for Liz Abbott, editor of this very wonderful music tabloid. Hang in there, Liz! You’ve been doing a great job keeping musical dreams alive during the Pandemic. […]
Atom Orr has released two new albums, As If Tomorrow and Afterimage. The band is the long established solo project by Christopher Hoffee that has released 17 albums of original music He has been a fixture on the local scene in this band and others for over 30 years, including Blacksmith Union, the Truckee Brothers, […]
I doubt there’s a blues harp player on this planet that doesn’t know the name James Harman. His mastery of that instrument is only exceeded by his incomparable songwriting talents. I used to have some money, but it all got spent. Reached down in my pocket and I pulled up lint. Then add a voice […]
Rick Shea may be Southern California’s best kept secret on the Americana scene, but to those who have followed his 30-plus-year career, his poetic survey of the American songscape is something to shout about. His new release, Love & Desperation, is proof positive of a well-earned reputation, Shea gives us a glimpse of the inspiration […]
Hello Troubadourians! What do you want or expect from your playing? When I ask that question of most serious musicians the usual answer is “that it is good.” Okay, but really that answer is just the front end of circularly logical reasoning. How do you know if something is good? Because I like it. Well, […]
The drummer propels the band into a hooky neo-blues riff. They go through the related chord changes until reaching the end of the head, when the band stops with a crash. The spotlight zeros in on the drummer and the other three leave the stage while he strikes out on his own. He starts subtly […]
Tom “Tomcat” Courtney died last month. He was the Godfather of the Blues in San Diego, and among the last of the OG bluesmen in the world. He was our direct link to Lightnin’ Hopkins, T-Bone Walker, Johnny Shines, Smokey Hog, and all the past greats. He meant so much to so many, and the […]
Leonard Feather, legendary jazz critic for the Los Angeles Times, was chatting with a local journalist between sets at Elario’s nightclub in La Jolla during a late 1980s engagement by trumpeter Harry “Sweets” Edison. “I come down here to Elario’s as often as I can,” Feather said. “It’s better than anything currently going on in […]
There used to be a club on First and C Streets in downtown San Diego called the College Inn that was a long-time home to country music, country boogie and swing, and rock-a-billy. The audience was mostly navy and a few of us who came for the music. I remember seeing Merle Travis, Roy Hogsed, […]
