On Saturday, October 30, get ready to see one of the all-time great blues harmonica players B James Cotton. He will be appearing at the SLO Vets Hall at 8:00 PM (doors open at 7:30). Tickets are $15 for Blues Society members and $18 for non-members. (If you have a show pass, it is only good for one admission.) Valerie Johnson and the Blues Doctors will be opening the show. You can buy a membership for $10 at the door and get $3 off for this show.

This is a Halloween clothing-optional performance. So come to the show to hear some great blues and see (or wear) some outrageous costumes. We will be giving away a 12 pack of Blues CDs to the best costume at the show.

James Cotton ranks with the best of the Chicago blues harmonica players. His style developed from his early mentor B Sony Boy Williamson B with whom he spent six years traveling with as a teenager. In the 1950=s, he entered the Chicago blues scene by joining the Muddy Waters Band (following in the footsteps of Little Walter). Cotton formed his own band in 1966 and has been on his own since. In the last three decades, he has played and recorded with many great blues musicians and has released over 20 CDs with him as the lead performer.

Although he has had a long and illustrious blues career, James Cotton just keeps getting better. He received both a Grammy Award and a W.C. Handy Award for his 1997 Deep in the Blues CD (Polygram/Verve). This is part of his career renaissance that started in the early 90s. Touring now with a solid trio behind him (guitar, piano, and vocal), James Cotton is a blues force to be reckoned with.

"Just about the first record I ever bought was music by James Cotton. It was one of the things that turned my life around and put me deep into the blues;" Kim Wilson, Fabulous Thunderbirds

"On occasion Cotton=s playing becomes so fierce, he sucks the keys straight out of the harp and spits them back into his hand." Chicago Sun-Times

Valerie Johnson & the Blues Doctors features Valerie Johnson, an earthy lady with unearthly silk and steel vocal cords, who "makes music that walks right into your heart and shakes hands with your soul." Born in the Bay Area, Valerie spent eight years polishing her voice as she toured Europe with the Bitburg Gospel Choir. Often compared to Etta James and Janis Joplin, Valerie is a genuinely original talent with a direct line into the spirit of the blues. She recently spent part of the summer touring with Big Brother and the Holding Company.

The Blues Doctors include guitarist "Al B. Blue" Ingram, keyboard wizard "Reverend-Doctor Tom" Armistead, drummer Greg Barnes, and bassist Andy Kulikowski. The Blues Doctors= sound includes a variety of influences, ranging from jazz to Chicago style and ballads to reggae. Their latest CD, We Wanna Blues You Up (Flying Pig Music), has received good reviews. According to the Delta Snake Blues Review, "Valerie Johnson and the Blues Doctors have put together a fine set of music that should be a hit with any fan who loves the Blues. All of the musicians are clearly pros, who don't overplay and who contribute a multitude of great touches to the music."

On Saturday, November 6, the Blues Society welcomes the Kaye Bohler Blues Band. Tickets will be $8 for Blues Society members and $10 for non-members. Opening the show will be the Guy Budd Band.

Kaye Bohler returns to SLO with a stellar line-up of blues men behind her. After moving north, she brought together some of the best Bay Area players to create the Kaye Bohler Blues Band. Sid Morris, on piano, is an old school blues piano man who has been playing at the San Francisco Blues Festival for the last 30 years. On drums is Kevin Coggins (formerly of NiteCry) who drives the band with a steady pulse. On bass is Keith Milne (formerly of Soul Proprietors) who "lays down the bottom as steady and solid as a rock". Bruce Ferrel on guitar (also from the Soul Proprietors) is a rising star in the Bay Area who adds a hard-driving Chicago style to the band. Kaye also hopes to bring a small horn section along with her (and may recruit a local guest harmonica player).

Kaye has been working in the studio and recently finished a four-song promotional CD that has been well received in the Bay Area. She hopes to complete a new CD this Fall, and will be showcasing some of the songs from it during her show. Kaye=s rich, resonate voice has been captivating the Bay Area, and she is eager to return to SLO to share her new music and band. Kaye=s shows pack the punch of Tina Turner with a sexy and sultry, down-to-earth appeal. Her no-holds-barred approach to singing is uncontrived, honest, and driven by emotion. She brings her fun, raw danceable energy and her new blues band to the Vets Hall for a show that is sure to make you happy.

Guy Budd is well known for his full-bodied voice and wildly proficient guitar work. The band's performances primarily feature originals that encompass a wide range of blues/rock styles, from screaming guitar jams to soulful ballads, supplemented with traditional up tempo blues covers. This band works well together, exploring their own music while maintaining strong roots in the blues. Guy Budd considers the Central Coast a "musical mecca" that attracts good musicians, and he is happy to have brought together his current set of players. The band includes Ken Burton on keyboards, Will Anderson on bass, and Michael Daillak on drums. They are presently working on a new CD and playing clubs in the area.

Live acoustic blues every Thursday night at the Bon Temps Creole Café, 1000 Olive Street, SLO.

Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers will be performing October 17 at Mother=s Tavern.

Volunteers B we need you! Your Blues Society is run entirely by volunteers. The shows are set up, run, and cleaned up by a crew of volunteers. Each volunteer works one and a half hours per show. Besides a sense of accomplishment, volunteers get into the shows for free and receive a couple free drink tickets. We could use your help, so call 541-7930 (our voice mail number) and volunteer.

We also need volunteers to help do promotional activities. If you are interested in helping to promote our shows (and getting paid with a free pass to the show), call 541-1837.

If you like your blues on the country/folk side, you should listen to Paul Rishell & Annie Raines, Moving to the Country (Tone Cool). Paul Raines is a masterful finger picking guitar player who often shifts into slide guitar using a National Reso-Phonic. Anne Raines complements this guitar work with sympathetic harmonica playing or taking the lead with a harder edged Chicago style harp. Vocally, Rishell excels at the older blues covers, like Leadbelly's "Keep Your Hands Off Her", while Raines= forte is singing modern blues originals like "Good Women Have Bad Days." Together, they have created a modern folk blues with a strong connection to the past. Their CD is a mixture of classic blues songs (from Memphis Minnie, Leadbelly, and Blind Blake) and their own compositions. It is their combined instrumental work that shines on this CD, especially in their creative reworking of Django Reinhart=s "Tears" (which uses a chromatic harmonica for the violin parts).