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The
Chicago Blues Festival 2002
Saturday
I fulfilled the dream of a lifetime. I performed at the 19th
Annual Chicago Blues Festival, thanks to Rafael Fuentes of
Fountainbleu Records and Best Buy, the wonderful music
retail outlet that was the sponsor of the particular stage I
appeared on.
Hawley
Hussey, world reknowned artist, inspirational teacher,
personal mentor, and the fabulous flame in my otherwise
dreary existence, agreed to accompany me to the Blues Mecca.
She even made the hotel reservations. I bought the airline
tickets from Hotwire.
I had
never attended the Chicago Blues Festival before, let alone
performed there. I did, however, live in Chicago for about
three months in 1976 and 1977. It's a great big beautiful,
friendly city that adores the blues, and blues musicians.
The city identifies itself, and rightfully so, as the "Home
of the Blues." Chicago is also laid back, easy going while
maintaining a high degree of low down and dirty. And the
Chicago Blues Festival is humongous, grandiose and cosmic in
scale. The biggest festival on the planet.
These
two photos were taken with a Jam Cam at the Chicago Blues
Festival by artist and teacher Hawley Hussey and then edited
with Photoshop 6 by my daughter Naomie
Ross
There
were 6 very large outdoor stages set up and run by very
professional people in Grant Park. There were an estimated
one million people attending this free event over a four day
period. There were dozens and dozens of vending booths
selling all kinds of merchandise: every kind of food, cds,
shirts, souvenirs. There were also booths representing
various record labels and several Chicago blues clubs. There
were major corporate sponsors and city government support
beyond anything I've ever seen before. The only thing I
could compare this to was the World's Fair of 1964 in
Corona, Queens, or Disney World on July 4th. It was
comparable to that. There were many tens of thousands of
people at the festival at any given moment spread out over a
good square mile of immaculately groomed trees, and grass.
Grant Park is in the Loop, the downtown area of the city. It
boast a magnificent water fountain that is amazing once lit
up in an ever changing array of colors after dark. There are
also some realy wild statues of dragons, and Indians on
horseback. To top it off, the backdrop to the whole scene is
the Sears Tower, which I believe has been the tallest
building in the Western Hemisphere for many years.
But the
blues was what brought people from all over the world to the
Chicago, the center of the blues universe.
Some of
the artists performing there included James Cotton, Billy
Boy Arnold, Bo Diddley, Super Chickan, Lousiana Red,
Homesick James, John Brim, Pinetop Perkins, the North
Mississippi All Stars, Big Bill Morganfeld, John Mooney,
LeRoy Parnell, W.C. Clark, Phil Guy, Paul Oscher, Bill
Perry, Doña Oxford, Shameka Copeland, Johnny B.
Moore, the Jelly Roll Kings featuring Big Jack Johnson, the
Carter Singers, Cephas + Wiggins, Jimmy Dawkins, Noah + the
Stratocats, Gloria Shannon, Buddy Guy etc. There were also,
as usual, dozens of blues bands in scores of night clubs all
over town. I sincerely apologize for forgetting anybody but
there were so many artists. The whole schedule can be
accessed at:
www.ci.chi.il.us/specialevents/Festivals/Blues2002/BluesFestivalPerformers2002.html
Now
that's a blues town. And then some.
Oh, the
Best Buy Stage where I performed is also called the Fun
Zone. And it was.
Due to
the short notice and the tight finances, I decided to use a
pickup band of Chicago musicians. We met at the gig and we
just sorta let 'er rip. Tino Cortes on drums, Beasley
Phillips on piano, and Greg McDaniels on bass, all did a
good job under difficult circumstances. I also did a couple
of solo original numbers. The crowd liked us very much. It
was a blast. This was a real blues crowd and they were
picking up what we were laying down.
Perhaps
next year, with a little advance notice, my well rehearsed
kick ass NY band will be able to accompany me at the
festival. I sure hope so, that would be flat out super nova.
After
the show I went to the Best Buy tent and signed autographs,
kissed cute little blues babies, and talked shop with fans
and musicians for about an hour. Okay, I didn't kiss any
babies. I played with them though. I jammed a little harp
too. Best Buy sold a lot of copies of my new Fountainbleu
cd, "Sleight of Hand" in the process. I met the regional
manager Greg Hornet who is a very smart and savvy retail
man. And I had a ball. One of the store clerks working in
the tent told me that I was the only artist she had seen all
week who actually seemed to be enjoying themselves in the
tent.
I told
her, "I'd have to be dead not to enjoy this!"
At the
Chicago Blues Festival with Tino Cortes on drums, Greg
McDaniel on bass, Robert Ross on guitar & vocals, and
Beasley Phillips on keyboard. Photo courtesy of Lawrence
Neuman.
We had
a major snafu at the airport. The cheap online tickets I
bought, were not subject to any change whatsoever although a
few airline reps told us we could be on standby and take a
later flight. The airline wanted to charge us $700 each for
a one way trip back to New York. Hawley did some fast
talking, and some gentle arm twisting to save the day.
Displaying her deadly logic, her charming personality and
people skills, Hawley got us on board a jet for only $100
each. We still felt ripped off having already paid the
original $150 each for roundtrip tickets, but at least we
weren't completely busted in the process.
Oh,
Hawley also made excellent use of her considerable feminine
wiles.
Earlier
that day, during breakfast, I got an allergy attack and
bought some Children's Benadryl. I downed about one third of
the bottle and spent the rest of the day semil comatose.
Really, I was freakin' loopy. On the train out to the
airport, some people were heard to say that I was on drugs.
I was.
but not the kind they thought.
Then
when I got home, still loopy mind you, I found out that
there's a rumor going around that I was dead.
Apparently
my obituary appeared in the latest issue of Living Blues
Magazine, the bible of blues.
My old
drummer and good buddy George "Shuffle Monster" Morales was
the first to call.
I
answered the phone and said "Hi."
He
said, "Robert??"
I said,
"Yeah, George?"
He
said, "God, am I glad to hear your voice."
I said,
"Gee George, I didn't know you cared quite that
much."
George
laughed and told me that a mutual friend, Canarsie Ken had
heard that I was dead and so George immediately called to
find out the truth.
I said,
"Well, for once, Kenny is way off. I ain't dead, not even a
little bit. Honest."
Then
brilliant jazz guitarist and longtime friend Danny "The Axe"
Axelrod called. He was practically in tears but I reassured
him that I was in fact quite alive in spite of what people
may think. Even bassist Mark "Mr. M.D." Dann, who after all
these years is still in my band, called to check in, and I
had seen him only a few days earlier. Of course Mark didn't
really believe the rumor for one minute but ya never know.
Anyway,
like Mark Twain, the reports of my demise are greatly
exaggerated. Or in my case, slightly exaggerated. I'm still
kicking.
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MORE
NEWS:
"Sleight
of Hand" Is On The Radio
Montreal
International Jazz Festival
The
Chicago Blues Festival 2002
Our
Fountainbleu CD "Sleight Of Hand"
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