Big Road Blues

Jimmy McCracklin, 2008 Pocono Blues Festival

The term blues legend is too loosely thrown around, seemingly applied to any artist who’s had some measure of longevity in the blues world without regard to the actual content of their recordings. Jimmy McCracklin is a blues legend and I’ve been fan ever since I bought a collection of his 1950’s sides over twenty years ago called Blast ‘Em Dead!. The fact that McCracklin was headlining the 17th annual Pocono Blues Festival was all I needed to hear to make the four hour trek to this year’s festival. The Pocono Blues Festival has become one of the country’s premiere blues festivals through it’s diversity of acts and its commitment to blues, not blues-rock or rock bands that play blues which make up the line-up of far too many so called blues festivals.

Over the years I’ve played McCracklin often on my radio program and two years ago I decided to give him a call and he was gracious enough to chat with me about his lengthy career (interview below). In his heyday, from the late 1940’s through the 1960’s, he led one of the toughest, hardest rocking blues bands on the West Coast. He was a prolific and witty composer, a fine singer/pianist and was a real pioneer in defining the soul-blues style made so popular by Little Milton, Bobby Bland and others. With a pair of excellent records in the 1990’s for Bullseye he achieved some wider exposure although during his hit making days he remained something of a neglected figure with a stature that seems to have always been higher in the black community.

McCracklin shared the bill with Sugar Pie DeSanto, warming up the stage for her on a too short set. Now, I would have loved to see McCracklin in his prime but at age 87 he didn’t disappoint. He remains a vigorous singer who still knows how to put across a song and electrify a crowd. Wearing a bright red suit and matching tie McCracklin delivered the goods on classics like “Think” and one of his biggest hits “The Walk.”

Sugar Pie DeSanto, 2008 Pocono Blues Festival

I’ve never been as big a fan of Sugar Pie DeSanto although I recall picking up the LP Down in the Basement: The Chess Years around the same time as I picked up the McCracklin record. In fact I still have the record complete with $3.99 sticker! DeSanto’s music was a saucy blend of blues and soul and she always sounded like a real firecracker. Well at age 72 she’s still a firecracker and delivered the festival’s wildest show hands down. DeSanto was simply mesmerizing and still full of unbridled sexual energy as she was only too happy to display. Among the highlights were a ripping version of her classic “In The Basement” which she originally recorded as a duet with Etta James and a fine version of the bluesy “Hello San Francisco” which is perhaps my favorite number by her. The song was dedicated to her late husband who she recently lost in a fire. The show stopper was when she brought a friend of ours on stage for a little dancing before taking running leap, wrapping her legs around him and riding him around the stage! Thankfully it’s all on video.

Unlike some other blues festivals which have a bit of a slapped together feel, the Pocono Blues Festival always feels well conceived and thought out which is probably the reason I didn’t see one act that wasn’t worthwhile. Among the other highlights were superb sets by Bobby Rush who did an outstanding solo set in the small tent. Rush played harmonica and guitar, told some colorful stories and absolutely captivated the audience with his charm and enthusiasm. Also in the small tent was Byther Smith who delivered two tough sets of Chicago blues backed by a very good backing band who was playing with Smith for the first time. The sets were heavy on covers but delivered with such grit that it didn’t really matter although it was nice to hear his “Runnin’ To New Orleans” from his fine Smitty’s Blues release from a few years back. Smith has a new CD and DVD from Delmark. Also memorable were the acoustic duo of guitarist Michael Roach and Johnny Mars who play almost exclusively in Europe and a high energy set by Lurrie Bell who seems to get better and better each time I see him.

For a more in depth review of this year’s Pocono Blues Festival make sure to read Doc’s Pocono Mountains - Home of The Blues article.

Jimmy McCracklin Feature/Interview (Aired 9/10/06, 1 hr 1 min, RealAudio)