BOOGalOO Blues Weekend

norton GranGe, isle oF wiGht oCtober 4th – 7th 2013 saturday

It’s that time of year again, and once more I am back on the Island, ten years after first coming to a Boogaloo Blues weekend. Delighted to find that the rain has ceased and the sun is out, so let’s see what the weekend brings?

First band of the weekend was Tim Aves Wolfpack. Tim is almost always here running the after-midnight jam sessions, but it is the first time that I have seen him on stage with his band. A tight four piece with a hell of a repertoire, and as you would expect, a large number of Howlin’ Wolf songs. Always a hard job as first band of the weekend, but eventually, some brave souls got up to dance, and for the rest of the set, the floor was fairly well packed.

The usual break between bands, with Bob Hokum, on DJ and MC duties, hampered by the fact that the CD decks were missing! Second band on the bill was another band that I hadn’t seen before, The Producers and they built on the start that Tim and the boys had made and quickly got the crowd back on the floor. I stopped making notes about the actual songs that they played, but suffice it to say that the dance floor was rarely empty. As usual, after a four hour drive, I was too pooped to go to the jam session that night. Family commitments on the Island also meant that we missed getting back in time to see any of the afternoon acoustic sets, but I had good reports of them so was looking forward to the evening which kicked off with a band new to the UK, Brilleaux, straight in from New Zealand, and determined to make their mark. Sounding like a mix of ZZ Top, Status Quo and Chuck Berry, they hit the stage running and never let up, going straight from one number to the next with brief but witty intros from the singer Graham Clark. What a stupendous introduction to this dynamite band, Please come back to the UK again! Next up was Ireland’s new Blues act Grainne Duffy with her band, and I was looking forward to seeing her, having heard great things. So let’s get the good point out of the way first, great musicianship from all concerned, good voice, great guitar playing, but, and it’s a fairly big but, very little rapport with the audience. Saying ‘Thank you very much’ at the end of each song, and inviting the crowd to clap along on what seemed to be every other number does not in my book constitute making contact with the punters! People did eventually get up to dance, but Grainne could learn an awful lot about stage craft and presentation from the brilliant Brilleaux. sunday

Sunday, and this time, I got back in time to see Tim Aves acoustic set, where he proved to any doubters that he is a superb blues guitar player, with a real feel for the resonator that he was playing for the numbers that I saw, and much underrated. He was followed by Stomping Dave, who was at the venue for possibly his fourth or fifth time, this time he was going to be on the main stage in the evening with his new trio comprising

Earl Jackson on bass and Sam Kelly on drums, but in the afternoon, he was performing his full stomping routine and going down a storm. Sometimes I don’t think he realises how funny he is, and that can sometimes cause people to overlook what a brilliant musician he actually is. This was, however, quickly put right on the main stage that evening, when he played both guitar and piano (with the occasional stomp) and put on a virtuoso performance, having the floor packed with dancers.

The final act of the weekend was the long established Blues n’ Trouble, who were obviously going to have to work really hard to eclipse Stomping Dave. If numbers on the dance floor are anything to go by, I would say that the scores put Brilleaux at number one, with Stomping Dave second and a tie between the Producers and Blues n’ Trouble. I tried to stay awake for the final jam session, but found myself nodding off, even though the quality of some of the acts was top notch, I gave in and went to bed. Will I be back next year? You bet your sweet life I will!

Dave Stone