Nationwide — Blues singer and bandleader Larry Taylor intends to share his Chicago West Aspect legacy all over the place in 2024—by recording, movie and dwell exhibits in your group. Initially a drummer, Taylor strikes audiences onto the dance ground with uncooked soul singing and exact sounds of his band, the Soul Blues Healers. They bring about the glory of Black music historical past to life.
Taylor, age 68, is the oldest in a household of musicians headed by the late guitarist Eddie Taylor Sr. (heard on VeeJay Information) and singer Vera Hill Taylor, who joined the Nice Migration to Chicago from Mississippi within the Fifties. Larry produced a CD that includes his musical brothers and sisters Brenda, Tim, Demetria, and the late Eddie Jr. Larry’s son Liljet 2x provides a heart-gripping constructive rap backed by the band. Generations of Blues was launched by Nola-Blue Information in 2023, receiving worldwide airplay and significant acclaim.
“That is Chicago Blues as you’d anticipate it to be – straight forward, no nonsense and genuine… a really complete legacy piece and an exquisite tribute to a monumental blues household,” raved Huge Metropolis Rhythm & Blues Journal.
“Blues is the best music on the earth. We need to hold it going,” declares Taylor. “I really feel like our ancestors are inspiring musicians of at this time to maintain their songs alive.”
Blues was crafted by African People from the nineteenth century, woven from on a regular basis tales and emotions shared in Southern cotton fields and lumber camps. Like spirituals, this easy, highly effective music helped hold the group collectively within the face of poverty and injustice. Blues mixed African rhythms with Celtic melodies to type the basis of American common music. Blues is a part of jazz, R&B, rock, nation, and even hip-hop – a type that celebrated its fiftieth anniversary final yr.
Larry Taylor grew up in a home visited by Chicago blues giants like Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, and Elmore James. For almost 30 years earlier than forming his personal band in 2004, he drummed with Junior Wells, John Lee Hooker, A.C. Reed, Johnnie Taylor, and plenty of extra icons of blues and soul.
However throughout Larry’s lifetime, many Black venue proprietors and promoters have aged out. Few conventional small lounges stay within the hood for younger musicians to hone their chops.As a result of blues is the basis of rock music, many white followers have been drawn to it, together with some who needed to take management. In the present day many nationwide “blues” festivals characteristic principally white-led acts that declare the highest slots.
The difficulty of blues exploitation involves the Los Angeles film display in time for Black Historical past Month 2024, when The Rhythm and the Blues, a characteristic movie by Darryl Pitts based mostly on Larry Taylor’s household story, seems on the Feb. 6-19 Pan African Movie and Arts Competition. Actor Leon Robinson (The Temptations; 5 Heartbeats) stars as Eddie Taylor Sr., and Man Davis, son of Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis, performs Jimmy Reed, full with racked harmonica. The soundtrack contains music by Larry and Eddie Taylor Jr.
For Taylor and his partner-manager, Barrelhouse Bonni, the very best different to tradition appropriation is to supply their very own exhibits within the hood. For the previous two years, they’ve teamed with native nonprofits and the Chicago Division of Tradition and Particular Occasions free of charge concert events in public parks and church buildings.
“It took some time to get going after the pandemic, however quickly we had folks popping out of senior buildings to listen to us,“ Taylor stated. “They keep in mind how nice this music was: blues, soul, funk, doo-wop, and old-school R&B.” Younger folks standing round had an opportunity to listen to it too—some for the primary time. “Blues and soul music must really feel just like the Fifties, 60s and 70s and earlier. It’s an outdated custom. If it sounds proper, it’s going to attain folks of their hearts.”
Taylor urges promoters to make use of arts funding to convey heritage blues to cities huge and small for festivals, golf equipment, and group packages. “We pay our musicians first rate cash. We’re joyful to do historical past interviews and academic workshops to make our journeys extra useful. This basic Black music could be a focus to rebuild Black Predominant Streets everywhere in the nation. Plus, our blues is so groovy, it brings folks of all ethnic teams collectively.”
GET THE BLUES!To e-book dwell exhibits and packages with West Aspect bluesman Larry Taylor:https://larrytaylorchicagoblues.com
Nola-Blue Information is providing a 20% low cost on Larry Taylor’s household album Generations of Blues throughout Black Historical past Month, February 2024. Go to https://bit.ly/TaylorGOB and use low cost code gobcd for CD purchases and gobdigi for digital downloads.
U.S. Premiere The Rhythm and the Blues within the Pan African Movie and Arts Competition, Los Angeles, Feb. 6-19, 2024: https://paff2024.eventive.org/movies/659bbad8041a39007c3d5744
For press inquiries, contact larry@larrytaylorchicagoblues.com or 773-209-4712.
