RODD BLAND AND THE MEMBERS ONLY BAND - "LIVE ON BEALE STREET: A TRIBUTE TO BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND"

RODD BLAND AND THE MEMBERS ONLY BAND - "LIVE ON BEALE STREET: A TRIBUTE TO BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND"
LABEL: NOLA BLUE RECORDS
RELEASE DATE: JULY 16, 2021

LABEL: NOLA BLUE RECORDS
RELEASE DATE: JULY 16, 2021
Memphis scion Rodd Bland did not hesitate, when pproached in 2016, to put together a tribute to his father, Bobby “Blue” Bland, for a special showcase during the 2017 International Blues Challenge. The successful concert sparked an annual tradition that yielded three more shows and a new recording, Live On Beale Street: A Tribute to Bobby “Blue” Bland set for release in partnership with Nola Blue and a place in the blues music archives.

This accomplished drummer, who grew up in and around his father‘s band, has made a name for himself in his own right touring and recording with Corey Osborne, Benny Turner & Cash McCall, The Reverend Sean Amos, Will Tucker & Brimstone Jones, Ian Siegal and the Youngest Sons, and Danielle Nicole, to name just a few. Bland aassembled a band of A-list players including Jackie Clark on bass, Harold Smith on guitar, Chris Stephenson on keyboards and vocals and the horn section of trumpeters Marc Franklin and Scott Thompson, with Kirk Smothers on saxophone, along with vocalists Jerome Chism and Ashton Riker, all of whom worked for his father at some point in their career. The six-song set was recorded May 2019 at B.B. King‘s Blues Club, which sits at the corner of Second and Beale, serving as the gateway to this historic entertainment district.

The collection is unique in that it is not a  program of Bobby “Blue” Bland’s commercial hits, but rather an exploration of deeper cuts recorded by the Hall of Famer for the Duke and ABC labels. Bobby Bland, oft described as among the great
storytellers of blues and soul music with his influential vocal prowess, was sometimes referred to as “The Lion of the Blues” and “The Sinatra of the Blues.” This high expectation prompted Rodd Bland to invite three talented singers to take
on the challenge of presenting these lesser-known gems from Bland’s six-decade-spanning songbook.

WEBLINKS
OS: www.rbandthemob.com
For more information: Betsie Brown, Blind Raccoon, betsie@blindraccoon.com