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HOT BLUES NIGHTS 2010 with Special Guest Johnny Drummer – June 12th!

admin — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 18:54:01 +0000

Earwig Music's Internationally Renown Blues Artist: Johnny Drummer

Blues Heaven Foundation is hosting our annual “HOT BLUES NIGHTS” event at the historic Chess Studios, located at 2120 S. Michigan Ave. in Chicago. Come on out and enjoy some live music with special guest Johnny Drummer, tour the historic Chess Studios, watch live video footage of the Blues greats, and feast on some food and refreshments!

WHEN: Saturday, June 12th @ 9pm

WHERE: 2120 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60616

ADMISSION: $10 minimum donation/person suggested (donations accepted at the door or at the Blues Heaven Foundation booth during the Chicago Blues Festival)

Marie Dixon participating in the Blues and the Spirit Symposium on June 9th!

admin — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 19:58:01 +0000

Dominican University Hosts

Blues and the Spirit II:

A Symposium on Chicago Blues and Gospel Music

Commemorating the Centennial of Howlin’ Wolf’s Birth and the 40th Anniversary of Living Blues Magazine

Wednesday, June 9 and Thursday, June 10

Dominican University (located just minutes from the Chicago Loop) will host Blues and the Spirit II, celebrating the centennial of Howlin’ Wolf’s birth and the 40th anniversary of Living Blues Magazine . Building on the discussion and dialogue begun in the May 2008 symposium, Blues and the Spirit II will continue its emphasis on the heritage of African-American Chicago and will also explore the shared roots, tensions and commonalities in Blues and Gospel music.

(Symposium registration is still open, but, as of May 24, on-campus housing is NO LONGER AVAILABLE! )

Panels and presentations with Blues and Gospel Scholars, Musicians, Writers, and Industry Representatives
Blues keynote Chuck D on Blues, Rap and Race
Spirit keynote Dr. Karen M. Wilson on The Sacred and Secular: How Spiritiuality was Supposedly Shaved Off the Blues
Special panel with the founding editors and contributors of Living Blues Magazine on the occasion of its 40th anniversary. (Early registrants will receive an original Vol.1, No. 1 edition of Living Blues with Howlin’ Wolf on the cover.)
Elders Council with contemporaries of Howlin’ Wolf
Blues and the Spirit Awards honoring Barry Dolins, Director of the Chicago Blues Festival, and Howlin’ Wolf’s daughters, Bettye Kelly and Barbra Marks
Wednesday evening reception and pro jam with an all star array of blues musicians from Wolf’s generation and from the current Chicago music scene.
Thursday evening motor coach transportation and entrance to Chicago Blues Festival opening at Millennium Park with Bassekou Kouyate, Otis Taylor, Eddie Shaw, and Hubert Sumlin, and Symposium after party at the legendary Rosa’s Lounge with Sharon Lewis and Texas Fire

The $75 registration fee includes ALL events June 9th and 10th: plenaries, panels, presentations, and reception and jam, as well as Chicago Blues Festival opening/ after party at Rosa’s Lounge

For more information, please visit: http://www.dom.edu/blues

Blues In The Schools at Joshua D. Kershaw School

admin — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 20:27:09 +0000

As part of our Blues In The Schools (BITS) program we are offering a free Blues harmonica workshop to the students at Joshua D. Kershaw School this Friday, April 16th. This presentation, targeted to their 5th and 6th grade students, is approximately 90 minutes long and will include the history of the Blues and the actual harmonica instruction. We anticipate an attendance of 60 students and will provide harmonicas to all participants. Marie Dixon, widow of the founder, the legendary Willie Dixon and President of Blues Heaven Foundation will be in attendance. Internationally known artist, Doktu Rhute will provide an oral history of the Blues and the harmonica instruction.

Marie Dixon featured on WCIU’s The U

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 23:48:21 +0000

Marie Dixon, President of Blues Heaven Foundation, was featured this morning on Chicago’s WCIU. She had an opportunity to discuss who recorded at the legendary Chess Studios at 2120 S. Michigan Ave. in Chicago, as well as some of the history of the Blues. Check it out!

CLICK HERE:

http://www.wciu.com/youandme.php?section=home&assetID=10001307

Chicago songwriter signs up to reclaim music!

admin — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:54:44 +0000

North Shore musician Jim Peterik is among thousands of songwriters nationwide who stand to earn big paydays on songs they sold off decades ago.
The U.S. Copyright Law of 1976 (it took effect in 1978) allows artists to take back ownership of songs 35 years after selling the rights to publishers. Songs given up in 1978 can be reclaimed by their owners in 2013; the paperwork to reclaim them has to be done two years in advance.
“It means money for me, for my heirs and for my family. It boils down to dollars and cents, but more emotionally, you feel you have part of your child back,” says Mr. Peterik, whose “Eye of the Tiger” became synonymous with Sylvester Stallone’s “Rocky III” in 1982.

Songs that predate the law can be reclaimed 56 years after they were written, so many artists from the 1940s and ’50s are stepping up to reclaim their work, too.
Brent McBride’s Nashville-based Copyright Recapture LLC is helping songwriters with the lengthy application process. He says hundreds of songwriters don’t even know about the law.
“Songwriters in major markets like New York, Nashville and Los Angeles haven’t heard about it. And there are even fewer people who know in smaller markets like Chicago,” he told me.
So far, only a handful of musicians in Chicago, including Mr. Peterik and the widow of bluesman Little Junior Parker, have come forward.
“With the brilliant music scene of Chicago, I think there are many more who could take advantage of (the law),” he said, “especially in the field of the blues.”
Mr. Paterik said he’s been trying to spread the word to fellow artists.
“We made these deals a long time ago when we didn’t have a penny in our pockets. We regretted it later, and this is a chance to reclaim that,” he said. “It’s a good feeling.”

ChicagoBusiness.com

Supporters of Blues Heaven using GoodSearch and GoodShop!

admin — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:34:23 +0000

Willie Dixon’s Blues Heaven Foundation can earn a donation every time you search the Internet and shop online!!!

CLICK HERE TO READ PRESS RELEASE!

Search the web with Yahoo-powered GoodSearch.com and they’ll donate about a penny to your cause each time you search!

Shop at more than 600 GoodShop.com merchants including Amazon, Best Buy, Toys R Us, and others, and a percentage of each purchase will go to your cause!

Gibson shows how Willie Dixon was an inspiration…

admin — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 23:55:09 +0000

There is an article about Willie Dixon posted on Gibson’s website, by Ted Drozdowski, titled “How Blues Legend Willie Dixon Inspired Zeppelin, Cream, Hendrix, Stevie Ray, the Stones, and Other Guitar Greats”. It reads…

Willie Dixon was arguably the blues’ greatest songwriter and — as a talent scout, producer, and session bassist — a key player on the nascent Chicago electric blues scene of the 1950s.

He kick-started the careers of Buddy Guy, Otis Rush, and Magic Sam during his tenure at the Cobra label and helped build the legacy of Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, and other legends while on the payroll at Chess Records. Today, recordings of Dixon tunes are still inspiring new generations.

To mark the 94th birthday of the late “bard of Vicksburg,” as blues poet John Sinclair dubbed him, here’s a rundown of 10 of the greatest guitar performances of songs from Dixon’s extensive catalog:

You can check out the complete article by clicking HERE.

Record Row Festival…FREE Concerts in the Blues Garden!

admin — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 22:41:02 +0000

Already underway, the Record Row Festival held in the Willie Dixon Blues Garden is proving to be another successful year! Please check the lineup HERE, or you may contact us at (312) 808-1286. The FREE concerts are held everything Thursday from 6pm – 7pm through summer (if it’s raining, we bring the party inside). Although the concerts are absolutely FREE to the public, donations are gladly accepted. It is your generous donations that enable Blues Heaven Foundation to continue with our programs.

Here is the lineup for the next few shows:

7/30/09: Jimmy Jay @ the Hard Drive Band

8/6/09: Nellie “Tiger” Travis – www.nellietravis.com

8/13/09: Park Avenue Players

8/20/09: Johnny Drummer & The Starlighters – www.johnnydrummermusic.com

We hope to see you there!

Blues Heaven Foundation

The Blues world mourns the loss of Koko Taylor!

admin — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 22:19:11 +0000

шлюхитрансы

It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that the Dixon family expresses their condolences for the passing of an extraordinary woman, and blues legend, Koko Taylor. Koko passed away this afternoon in Chicago from complications due to surgery in mid-May. For more information, please click on the links below:

The Book of Eli film

CHICAGO TRIBUNE

daybeakers movie

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES

JAM BASE

2120 S. Michigan Ave. – Landmark of Rock &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#039;n Roll

admin — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 17:23:22 +0000

Blues Heaven Foundation, located at the historic former Chess Studios at 2120 S. Michigan Ave. in Chicago, has been named as one of the Landmark’s of Rock ‘N Roll on MSN. Come check it out at http://cityguides.msn.com/citylife/cityarticle.aspx?cp-documentid=16957382

Buddy Holly Memorial in Cleark Lake, IO

Graceland and Sun Studios in Memphis, TN

The Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, CA