Welcome to the July edition of BLUES JUNCTION. I am, of course, a little partial but I am going to refer to this edition of our ezine as the SUMMER SPECTACULAR. I try and not be taken in by hyperbole and am not a fan of self promotion, so it is with all honesty and sincerity when I say I am particularly proud of the work contained here this month. Much of my inspiration comes from the musicians I have worked with these past several weeks.  

It also came from my reflecting on the loss we just experienced when it was announced that Bobby Bland passed away on June 23^rd. On that Sunday afternoon, I was on the phone talking to a musician who had worked extensively with Bobby. We were both aware that the man known as "The Lion of the Blues" had been in declining health for some time, but were not aware of the immediate gravity of his condition. We instead were talking about happier times with Bobby when the news came across the wire. I had to break the news to Joe Arnold, a man who had traveled the world with Bobby. He played tenor saxophone in his great band up until health issues forced the great blues singer to cut back on his live performances. Read an appreciation I wrote about the great Bobby Bland in a piece entitled, The Lion of the Blues: Bobby “Blue” Bland.

Also, this month represents the culmination of a unique odyssey for me and for the subject of one of the most challenging pieces of work in which I have endeavored. It is an interview that I have been working on for exactly two months. If the aforementioned Joe Arnold doesn’t ring a bell, that’s OK. I gurantee every single one of you has heard him play. He is a sixty eight year old veteran saxophone player of countless recordings and live performances. At times over the past few months his story seemed so surreal to me that it was like I was talking to a fictional character. Joe Arnold is very real and the piece entitled, Out of the Shadows: The Joe Arnold Interview with David Mac represents the first time Joe has discussed his own career in public. It is a story of triumph and tragedy as well as redemption. I hope you take the time to read this piece and look forward to hearing your reaction to it. 

Speaking of a reaction I hope I get some from a piece called An Editorial by David Mac.

As always, our monthly artist spotlight shines on a very talented musician. In July, that is Steve Freund. He is a guitar player and vocalist who’s originally from Brooklyn, New York. His blues journey has taken him to Chicago and on to his current home in Northern California. We discuss a great many subjects including some of the blues greats he has played with along the way and his exceptional new album entitled, Come on in this House on 9 Below Records out of San Francisco.

It seems like there is a feature in the ezine that is called The International Monthly Artist Spotlight as I don’t remember the last time a month has gone by without the discussion of an artist from outside the United States. I don’t have that feature as I don’t want to put artificial boundaries on what is covered here in BLUES JUNCTION. Where a band or musician is from doesn't matter to me. I am not concerned with age,race or gender either for that matter; put a great record in front of me and you are in. That is what happened a few weeks ago when I first heard the album, Tired of Beggin’ by a band from Italy called, Egidio “Juke” Ingala and the Jackknives. Enjoy an interview I conducted with harmonica player and vocalist Egidio as well as that band’s exceptional guitar player, Marco Gisfredi.

With the year half over I thought it would be fun to go through the BLUES JUNCTION library and pull the best twenty albums that have been released over the past six months. All these recordings are in the early running for, Album of the Year and inclusion in our annual Best of 2013 Feature which will come out in January of next year.  

This month’s Jukebox selections were inspired by the interview and discussions I have had with Joe Arnold. Enjoy ten tunes from ten albums in which Joe’s sax can be heard.

As always, we keep you apprised on what’s cooking with Art Martel and his Straight Up Blues Productions. Congratulations to Art and his team which includes Patti Martel, Richard Hernandez, John and Diana Durado and the newest member of the team Dana Duran. Their work in bringing us the best straight up blues to Southern California for many years is commendable. Check out a preview of coming attractions.

It was just a few moments ago that I received the news that Texas Johnny Brown passed away at his home in Houston, Texas. A friend of Brown’s and Houston blues impresario James Nagel was kind enough to share with us his thoughts on the passing of an important figure in American music. We hope to hear more from James in the weeks to come as I think our readers would appreciate his insight into Texas Johnny Brown.

Finally, I would like to thank all of you who have contacted me though the BLUES JUNCTION website. I enjoy hearing from you. Your thoughtful commentary, support and kind words are very much appreciated.  Be well and be in touch. CIAO!

- David Mac