Listen to THE JANUARY JOURNAL podcast.
This podcast chronicles some of the Rock, Roots and Blues events that occurred in the month of January in years gone by.

Think of cause that is at the antithesis of Western Democracy and chances are you will find in our midst many “useful idiots” that are propagandizing that cause. What is alarming is that they seem to be congregating in the upper echelons of society.

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Here is a summary of Jerome’s past NEW YEAR’S PROCLAMATIONS! (more details listed below)
2023 to be the YEAR of The BUNNY.
2022 to be the International Year of TRUE FAKE NEWS
2021 to be the International Year of the QR CODE .
2020 to be the International Year of the ‘EMBITTERED AND PARTISAN OPPONENT’.
2019 to be the International Year of 'NON-VIRTUE SIGNALING'.
2018 to be the International Year of ‘DEVOLUTION’.
2017 to be the International Year of ‘THE ALL GENDER TOILET’.
2016 to be the International Year of ‘RELIGIOUS RE-APPRAISAL’.
2015 to be the International Year of ‘THE SELFIE'.

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Jerome Douvendahns declared 2023 to be
The International YEAR OF THE RABBITS! Chinese New Year 2023 will fall on Sunday, January 22nd, 2023, starting a year of the Rabbit.


No I am not casting aspersions on our politicians as a bunch of bunnies! In Chinese culture the sign of Rabbit is a symbol of longevity, peace, and prosperity. In the 60's culture that I was born an raised in, it was one of the most iconic logos in the world! It was created as a humorous, sexy, and fun-loving symbol?!? Not in this day and age however! 2023 is predicted to be a year of hope. Many men will be hoping in vain for the return of those sexy fun loving bunnies.

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Jerome Douvendahns declares 2022 to be
The International Year of TRUE FAKE NEWS!

FAKE NEWS is false or misleading information presented as news. It often has a political bias with the aim of undermining and damaging the standing of a person or entity.
TRUE FAKE NEWS is where corporate and social media oligarchs don’t even bother with the façade that it is “the news” that they are presenting, they just put it out there knowing that it is BS, hoping that gullible consumers will swallow it!
It becomes TRUE FAKE NEWS when consumers are made aware the falsehoods corporate media is peddling. The result? Oligarchs presenting even more BS and imposing more censorship.

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1st Jan 2021 Jerome declares it to be the International Year of the QR CODE!

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Jan 1st 2019. Jerome declared 2019 to be the Year of 'NON-VIRTUE SIGNALING'!

Hang on! I'm virtue signalling about non-virtue signalling! What a bind. What a hypocrite! Forget that one.
OK. Plan B. What about if I declare 2019 as being The Year of 'CIS-GENDER'?

No good with that declaration either. Bigger fish to fry I know! OK here is a new one.
What about if I now declare ...wait for it ...
2019 to be The Year of FARSIGHTED LEADERSHIP.
Yes! 2019 the year in which there will be a change in perspective taken by world leaders and surprisingly Kim shows the way. Not only that it will be a year of bipartisanship.

There you have it! I was going to declare 2019 to be the year of BREXIT but that can wait for a couple of years.

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Jan 1st 2018. Jerome declared 2018 to be the International Year of DEVOLUTION

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Jerome declared 2017 to be the International Year of THE ALL GENDER TOILET.

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Jan 1st 2016. Jerome declared 2016 to be the year of religious re-appraisal!

Start of a new year! Time to re-appraise your religious beliefs. This flow chart will help!

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Jan 1st 2015. Jerome declared 2015 to be the international year of THE SELFIE'.

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Some folks didn't start a new year all that well!
Hank Williams
This legendary country music singer, died on this day the 1st of January back in 1953.
(Cause of death: I'm So Lonesome I Could Die.)
Alexis Korner
This UK bluesman died of lung cancer in London at age 55 back in 1984.
Townes Van Zandt
This long-suffering alcoholic, died in 1997 of a cardiac arrhythmia after hip surgery at age 52 .
Patti Page
This popular country singer died at age 85, suffering from both heart and lung disease on this day back in 1997.
Prompts one to make a few new resolutions about one's lifestyle ...and stick to 'em!!
Ted Hawkins
In 1995 this Blues singer-songwriter died of a stroke at age 58.

On this day back in1968 The Blue Velvets changed the name of their band to Creedence Clearwater Revival.

In 1940 W2XDG in New York becomes the first licensed FM station and NBC begins broadcasting from the Empire State Building.

1st of January in Blues history
President Abraham Lincoln formulated the Emancipation Proclamation to free all slaves upon the defeat of the Confederate States of America; the proclamation was approved on January 1, 1863—an ironic date because January 1 was a customary day for major slave auctions and sales. After the 1865 readmittance of the defeated Confederate states to the U.S. government, the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution were passed to make all blacks free, voting citizens.

On this day the 2nd of Jan

1926 : The first edition of the legendary British music magazine Melody Maker was published, promising news and information for "all who are interested in the production of popular music." In 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.

Back in 1999 Isaac Hayes suddenly found himself with his first hit in years when the novelty song "My Chocolate Salty Balls (P.S. I Love You)" done under the pseudonym Chef, his character on TV's South Park.

Back in 1968 a shipment of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's album Two Virgins was confiscated at Newark airport, as its cover, showing the couple naked, was deemed pornographic. The album was later sold in America using brown paper bags.

1950 Sam Phillips opened the Memphis Recording Service, which he later renamed Sun Studio.

ALEXIS KORNER died 2nd January 1984; London, England
Alexis Korner began his musical career in London’s traditional jazz and skiffle scene. In addition to his performances and recordings, Korner’s television appearances and Sunday-night radio show on BBC Radio One also helped to promote the blues. Korner continued to perform and educate people about the blues until his death in 1984. His advocacy of the blues served as an inspiration for many young blues musicians in the United Kingdom, and his band Blues Incorporated served as a vehicle for the formation of bands such as Cream, the Yardbirds, the Rolling Stones, the Animals, and the Pretty Things.

On this day the 3rd of Jan

1980: R&B singer and pianist Amos Milburn died in Houston, Texas, at aged 52. Best known for the 1953 hit "One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer."
Cause of Death: One too many!

On this day back in 2014 Phil Everly of The Everly Brothers died at age 74 of complications from lung disease .

1970 Davy Jones announces that he's leaving The Monkees, essentially dissolving the group, which had dwindled to a duo. Yeh the guy that was left after Jones' departure decided not to continue as a solo act called The Monkey.

On this day the 4th of Jan

American Texas blues guitarist, singer and songwriter John Thurman Hunter Jr known by the stage name of Long John Hunter died on January 4th 2015 in Phoenix, Arizona.

On this day the 4th of January back in 1950 and two years after Columbia Records introduced the LP ( long-playing record), RCA announced its intention to follow suit. On this day the 4th of January back 1965 Leo Fender sold Fender Guitars to CBS for $13 million.

On this day back in 1970 The Who's Keith Moon accidentally ran over his chauffeur, Neil Boland, killing him. Apparently, Moon's car was under attack from some unruly teenagers, and when Boland jumped out to get them to move, Moon, in a panic, got behind the wheel to drive the car away himself. Unfortunately, the crowd had since pushed Boland under the car. One witness made a differing report on the incident: "When we saw that Moon was behind the wheel and off his face again, we desperately tried to get Boland out of the the car ...but Mood sped off!"

2011 Gerry Rafferty, who had a huge solo hit with "Baker Street" and was also a member of Stealers Wheel, died at age 63. Baker Street, Gerry Rafferty's masterpiece from the album City To City, sold more than four million copies worldwide and hung on to the number two spot in the US Billboard Chart for six weeks in 1978. More than 30 years later, the song was still earning royalties of nearly £80,000 per year. The sax solo was played by Scottish musician Raphael Ravenscroft, who was in the studio to record a brief soprano saxophone part and, when he heard that the guitarist would not be available to play the solo, suggested that Rafferty record it using the alto saxophone he had in his car. Ravenscroft died on Octopber 19 2014 following a suspected heart attack. Ravenscroft received only £27 for his great saxophone solo ...and the cheque bounced.

1957 Louis Jordan recorded "Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out."

On January 4, 1929, Victor Record Company (founded in Camden, New Jersey, by Eldridge R. Johnson in 1901) was taken over by the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) but its principal label continued to be known as Victor until 1946. Victor's Race series were discontinued in 1930. From November 1926 onwards Victor conducted extensive field trips. The Memphis Jug Band, Cannon’s Jug Stompers, Jim Jackson, Tommy Johnson, Ishman Bracey, Frank Stokes, Furry Lewis, and John Estes were all recorded in Memphis,‘‘Rabbit’’ Brown in New Orleans, and Roosevelt Sykes (using the name Willie Kelly) in Louisville.

January 4th 2018
The Moody Blues wouldn't have existed without Ray Thomas (left). He founded the first incarnation of the band in 1964 and was one of its first singers. As the band evolved and adopted its classic lineup that included singer Justin Hayward, Thomas switched roles slightly to become one of the few and certainly one of the best flute players in rock 'n' roll history. Thomas retired from the band in 2002, and announced he had prostate cancer in 2013. On January 4, he died at his home in Surrey at age 76, just three months before his band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

On this day the 5th of Jan

On this day the 5th of January back in 1933 Blues singer and guitarist Spark Plug Smith began a three-day recording session during which he recorded twenty tracks, for the The American Record Company [ARC] in New York City, USA.

5th Jan. 1998 : Sonny Bono (Sonny & Cher) died in a skiing accident in Nevada, near South Lake Tahoe, California, at age 62.

On this day the 6th of Jan

On this day the 6th of January back in 1956 Lonnie Donegan's cover of "Rock Island Line" entered the UK charts, eventually selling over three million copies and kicking off the national skiffle craze. The folk song that began the skiffle craze was written by Kelly Pace and first recorded in 1934 by the inmates at Cumins State Prison farm, Gould, Arkansas.



On this day the 6th of January back in 1968 Gibson patented their "Flying V" electric guitar. Lonnie got one and it kicked off the heavy rock fickle phase.


1993 Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman announced that he is leaving the group after 30 years as a Stone.

On this day the 7th of Jan

HOOCHIE COOCHIE MAN first recorded January 7, 1954.
‘‘Hoochie Coochie Man’’ is a pivotal song in the history of the blues. Written by Willie Dixon and first recorded for Chess Records by Muddy Waters on January 7, 1954 (with Dixon playing the bass), ‘‘Hoochie Coochie Man’’ was an instant hit for Waters and was soon on its way to becoming a definitive song in the Chicago blues style as well as a seminal song to what was to become rock ’n’ roll.

On this day the 7th of January back in 1970 Max Yasgur, whose farm in upstate New York played host to the original Woodstock Festival, was sued for $35,000 in property damages by neighboring farmers ...even though they had their fields ploughed and composted for free!

The Avengers pilot episode, "Hot Snow" with British secret agent John Steed and his female partners avenge crimes committed against the government, was aired on 7 January 1961. The final episode, "Bizarre" was aired on 21 April 1969 in the United States, and on 21 May 1969 in London, England.

On this day the 8th of Jan

Nauman Scott founder of Black Top Record label passed away on January 8, 2002, at the age of fifty-six. The label went out of business the same year, and as of summer 2004, most of the Black Top catalog was apparently out of print.
The label was was founded 1981 in New Orleans. From the late 1980s through the mid- to late 1990s, Black Top Records was one of the very best blues labels going, with a broad artist roster that took in straight-ahead blues, soul, and R&B. Founded by blues fans and brothers Hammond and Nauman Scott, the label’s first release was ‘‘Talk to You by Hand’’ by Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets.

Jan 8, 1963 marks the rise of Blues in England and Europe!
Eric Clapton and the Yardbirds record "Boom Boom" by John Lee Hooker. This begins the rise of Blues within England and Europe.

Jerome posted for Charlie Hebdo on this day the 8th of January 2015.

Where Do You Go to My Lovely?
Peter Sarstedt, singersongwriter, died 8 January 2017, aged 75.

On this day the 9th of Jan

On this day the 9th of January back in 1901 Ishman Bracey was born in Byram, Mississippi, USA. He was one of the foremost figures of the early Delta scene and sadly recorded only a few sides and these were all recorded in a two year period from 1928 to 1929. Bracey became an ordained Baptist minister in Jackson and never played the blues again. He even refused to come out of retirement in the 1960's during the country blues revival of that period. Ishman Bracey died in Jackson in 1970 aged 69.

On this day the 10th of Jan

On this day the 10th of Jan1976 Chester Arthur Burnett died at the age of at 65. Howlin’ Wolf was one of the most dynamic performers in the history of electric blues. Blessed with a voice that sounded like a raging chain saw, he stood six feet, three inches tall and weighed 275 pounds, with massive hands and feet. Wolf commanded immediate attention onstage. His tunes often contained a single chord or riff droning hypnotically under improvised rhythmic and lyric variations. Whether stalking the stage like a man possessed or crawling about on all fours like a wild beast, his intensity, growled vocals, falsetto moans, and powerfully direct harp playing rarely failed to astonish an audience.

10th Jan. 1995 : Rory Gallagher played his last concert, in the Netherlands. Five months later he would be dead after complications from a liver transplant.

VALE Jeff Beck
Jeff Beck, one of the most skilled, admired and influential guitarists in rock history, died on Tuesday 10th January 2023 in a hospital near his home at Riverhall, a rural estate in southern England. He was 78.
The cause was bacterial meningitis, Melissa Dragich, his publicist, said.

On this day the 10th of January in 2008 'Panic! At The Disco' announced they will be dropping their "!" with the release of their next album, 'Pretty. Odd'. Most of us were hoping they would be dropping a lot more.

On this day the 11th of Jan

1967: Jimi Hendrix began recording "Purple Haze."

On this day the 12th of Jan

January 12, 1976
A federal bankruptcy judge ordered Stax to close its doors on January 12, 1976. The Stax Records building was demolished in 1989, leaving an empty lot. In 2003, the Stax Museum of American Soul Music opened on the site of the original recording studio. The museum, houses original studio memorabilia and is dedicated to the preservation and promotion of American soul music. Stax artists include Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, Rufus and Carla Thomas, Sam and Dave, Booker T. & the MGs, The Bar-Kays, Anne Peebles, David Porter, The Staple Singers, and Eddie Floyd.

12th Jan 1959 : Berry Gordy, who had a hit as a songwriter with "Lonely Teardrops," launched the Tamla Record Company with $800 he borrowed from his family. A year later, he changed the label's name to Motown Records.

1981: The Recording Industry Association of America donated Bob Dylan's "Blonde on Blonde," KISS' "Alive!" and "Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols" to the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress returned "KISS Alive" and claimed that "Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols" must have got lost in the post.

 

January 12 1966. The first episode of Batman ("Hi Diddle Riddle") was aired on ABC.
Cast: Adam West (Bruce Wayne/Batman), Burt Ward (Dick Grayson/Robin), Yvonne Craig (Barbara Gordon/Batgirl), Neil Hamilton (Commissioner Gordon), Stafford Repp (Chief O’Hara), Alan Napier (Alfred), William Dozier (Narrator).
Basis: Bruce Wayne, alias Batman, and Dick Grayson, alias Robin, the Boy Wonder, defend Gotham City from the evils of diabolical villains.

Ronnie Spector, the singer who led all-timer girl group The Ronettes, died Wednesday 12th January 2022 after a brief battle with cancerher family revealed in a statement shared via her website. Spector was 78 years old. Born Veronica Yvette Bennett in 1943 in New York Citys Spanish Harlem, Spector formed The Ronettes with her older sister Estelle Bennett and their cousin Nedra Talley—the group signed their first recording contract with Colpix in 1961, when Spector was still a teenager.

On this day the 13th of Jan

1979:The Y.M.C.A. filed a lawsuit against the Village People over their song, "Y.M.C.A." The suit was later dropped. Tim Bogert founding bassist of the psychedelic rock band Vanilla Fudge died Wednesday 13 January 2021 at the age of 76 following a battle with cancer. Vanilla Fudge, in its original incarnation with Bogert, released five albums between 1967 and 1969, including their self-titled debut album, which featured the band’s biggest hit, a cover of the Supremes’ “You Keep Me Hanging On.”

On this day the 14th of Jan

On this day the 14th of January back in 1970 John Lennon and Yoko Ono had their hair cut and donated it to a charity auction.

On this day the 15th of Jan

On this day back in 1998 Junior Wells, American blues musician, died at 63. Junior Wells was a popular and influential postwar Chicago harmonica player. He also shared stages—as a tap dancer, as well as playing harp with Sunnyland Slim, Robert Lockwood, Muddy Waters, and others. He later claimed that the tips he received from these guest stints ometimes totaled more than the band itself was earning.

On this day in 1915 "Charlie continued to be irresponsible".

 

Monday 15th January 2018
Dolores O’Riordan, lead singer of Irish rock band the Cranberries, died. She was 46.
The band released a statement on Facebook Monday afternoon confirming O’Riordan’s death. “Irish and international singer Dolores O’Riordan has died suddenly in London today,” the statement reads. “She was 46 years old. The lead singer with the Irish band The Cranberries was in London for a short recording session. No further details are available at this time.”

On this day the 16th of Jan

A unique voice in Australian music has been silenced with the death on Wednesday 16th January 2019 of Australian blues legend Chris Wilson. It was with his band Crown of Thorns that Wilson really found his groove, bringing the blues, country and folk sounds together with his powerful and distinctive voice front and centre.

1998: David "Junior" Kimbrough, blues musician, died at 67.
Beginning around 1992, Kimbrough operated a juke joint known as "Junior's Place" in Chulahoma, Mississippi, which attracted visitors from around the world, including members of U2, Keith Richards, and Iggy Pop. In this period he recorded for the Fat Possum Records label. Labelmate R. L. Burnside, and the Burnside and Kimbrough families often collaborated on musical projects. Kimbrough's sons, musicians Kinney and David Malone Kimbrough, kept "Junior's Place" open following his death, until it burned to the ground on April 6, 2000.
One of the most idiosyncratic stylists in modern blues, Kimbrough’s style of music was raw yet complex, traditional but up to date enough to draw crowds of dancers to the house parties and juke joints he ran in Marshall County, Mississippi, for close to forty years.

January 16, 2023
Gina Lollobrigida, post WWII Italian film diva, died at 95.
Lollobrigida played opposite Hollywood stars such as Humphrey Bogart, Rock Hudson, Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis and Frank Sinatra, becoming one of the most recognizable cinema icons of the 1950s and 60s.

On this day the 17th of Jan

17th Jan 1970; Billy Stewart and three of his band members were killed when their car went out of control and off a bridge over the River Neuse in North Carolina. He was an American musical artist, with a highly distinctive scat-singing style, who enjoyed popularity in the 1960s. His radical interpretation of the George Gershwin song, "Summertime" was a Top 10 hit on both the pop and R&B charts.

VALE Australian soul singer Renee Geyer.
Australian singer Renee Geyer died 17th Jan 2023 aged 69 following surgery. Saw Renee perform a number of times. Appreciated her soulful rendering of songs. Admired her persona especially when at The Gov she seriously chastised a group of patrons who were more intent on talking rather than listening to her. Good on you Renee. RIP.

On this day the 18th Jan

1973: Pink Floyd began recording "Dark Side Of The Moon."

On this day the 19th of Jan

1998: Carl Perkins died at aged 65 after suffering three stokes over the last two months.

On this day the 20th of Jan

2012. Blues, R&B, Rock, Gospel and Jazz vocalist, Etta James, died of leukemia in Riverside, California just 5 days before her 74th birthday Her powerful, versatile and emotionally direct voice could enliven the raunchiest blues as well as the subtlest love songs, most indelibly in her signature hit, “At Last,” died on Friday morning in Riverside, Calif. She was 73. Etta James' career has spanned five decades and influenced numerous artists, including Beyoncé and Adele. She is included in Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time and in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time for At Last!



Born 1888 Lead Belly, Louisiana, blues 12 string guitarist (Rock Island Line), (d. 1949)

On this day the 21st of Jan

1984 Jackie Wilson suffered a heart attack while singing "Lonely Teardrops" at the Latin Casino in Cherry Hill , New Jersey . He was in a coma for a year, regained consciousness, and then died 8 years later.

1982 : B.B. King donated his entire record collection to the University of Mississippi's Center for the Study of Southern Culture. The 20,000-record collection included 7,000 discs King aired as a disc jockey at Memphis' WDIA in the Fifties.

CHAMPION JACK DUPREE died 21st January 1992 in Hanover, Germany.
New Orleans native Champion Jack Dupree, who was raised in an orphanage since he was a baby, learned piano from local musician Willie ‘Drive ’Em Down’’Hall. A successful boxing career in the late 1930s earned him his ‘‘Champion’’ moniker. Dupree made his first recordings for OKeh in Chicago in 1940 and 1941. Dupree’s New Orleans barrelhouse style remained intact and these recordings would influence future pianists Professor Longhair and Fats Domino.

On this day the 22nd of Jan

January 22, 2019 Fender Unveils the American Acoustasonic Telecaster.
A hybrid acoustic/electric guitar, it's built with a fully hollow Tele body featuring an integrated forearm contour, plus a smooth-playing mahogany neck and open-pore satin finish.

Back in 1959 Buddy Holly made his last recordings alone with an acoustic guitar in his Greenwich Village apartment. Songs included "Peggy Sue Got Married," "Crying, Waiting, Hoping," "That's What They Say," "What to Do," "Learning the Game" and "That Makes it Tough." The rough versions were overdubbed and released after his death.

On this day the 23rd of Jan

On this day in 1959 6,000 teenagers attended the first night of the ill-fated Winter Dance Party with Buddy Holly at the Million Dollar Ballroom in Milwaukee (despite temperatures of 17 below and 13 inches of snow).

January 23, 2018
Trumpet and flugelhorn player Hugh Masekela is regarded as the "Father of South African jazz," deftly combining the coolness and crispness of American jazz with the depth and flavor of different musical styles of his home country and continent. The jazz legend and political figure was 78 when he died on January 23, 2018.

On this day the 24th of Jan

1961 : Mel Blanc, who was the voice of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Road Runner and many other cartoon favorites, got in a horrible car accident on a stretch of road in Los Angeles known as Dead Man's Curve.



Hearing the news, Roger Christian of The Beach Boys was inspired to write a song about the treacherous turn.

On this day the 25th of Jan

Born 25nd January 1897 in Pendleton, Texas "Blind" Willie Johnson American blues/spiritual singer and guitarist.

January 25th, 1899: John Adam “Sleepy John” Estes was born in Ripley, Tennessee.

On this day in 1938 future vocalist Etta James was born in Los Angeles, California.

 

Little Feat's 'Dixie Chicken' (album) was released January 25, 1973.
Dixie Chicken is one of the band's most popular albums, which incorporated New Orleans musical influences and styles. The title track was released as a single by Warner Bros. in January 1973 in the US. The artwork for the front cover was by illustrator Neon Park (Martin Muller).

On this day the 26th of Jan

On this day the 26th January 2018 Jerome Douvendahns bucked the PC trend, The Greens, Triple J, the Yarra, Darebin and Fremantle Councils and declared the 26th of January to still be a day to commemorate our indigenous heritage, our British foundation and our Multicutural character! In podcast 294 www.sablues.org presented a selection of Australian roots and blues music to be played on the 26th of January 2018, Australia Day ...like it or not!

As the Australia Day debate heats up, www.sablues.org stepped into the firing line of The Greens and those from the outraged Left who are demanding a change. Earlier in the week www.sablues.org announced its plans for a podcast of Australia roots and blues music to be played on January 26th. When questioned on the issue, podcaster Mr Douvendahns stated that the podcast should not be seen as a celebration but rather a commemoration. He went on to say

“We are on about roots and blues. It’s about presenting a playlist that acknowledges the adversity of the 162,000 convicts transported to the Great South Land from 1788 to 1850. 162,000! It is also about respecting Australia’s indigenous heritage and acknowledging the hardship they suffered as well. Not only that, think of the many who have migrated to Australia over the years and the trepidation they must have experienced. When reflecting on all this hardship and misery the best remedy is music, songs that communicate the hopes, sorrows and convictions of ordinary everyday people.”

When pressed on the implications of such a podcast, producer Mr Stoeckel seemed resigned to any ensuing controversy.

“We’ll see wont we! Be interesting to see how our subscribers respond. Will we get more or less than our regular 4,000 downloads a month for this podcast? I’ll let you know. What I don’t really expect is our FaceBook page to be inundated with a whole lot of hate mail. Now that would be a storm in a teacup!”

On this daythe 27th of Jan

The song "(Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay" became Otis Redding's first and only No. 1 hit on this day in 1968.

On this day in 1980 at the Gaumont theater in Southampton, England, AC/DC play their last show with Bon Scott. (He would die on February 19 after a night of excessive drinking).

On this day in 2014 Pete Seeger died at the age of 94.

On this day the 28th of Jan

Died: January 28, 2005, London, United Kingdom Nicola James "Jim" Capaldi. English drummer, singer and songwriter. His musical career spanned more than four decades. He co-founded the psychedelic rock band Traffic in 1967 with Steve Winwood with whom he co-wrote the majority of the band's output. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a part of Traffic's original line-up.

On this day in 1968 during their tour in Australia, members of "The Small Faces" were escorted off their flight from Adelaide to Essendon for drinking beer on the plane, being rowdy, and using "very bad language." Two of the flight's four attendants were in tears and are still picking up the empties. One flight attendant thought the band was "Off Their Faces". The remaining attendant was subjected to even more bad language when they landed.
"Essendon! Where the f*#k is that?".

Paul Kantner co-founder of the '60s psychedelic rock band Jefferson Airplane, died on the 28th of Jan at the age of 74.

Tom Verlaine, the iconic frontman of Television, has died on the 28 January 2023 in New York after a brief illness, according to a statement shared by a publicist. Verlaine was 73 years old.
Verlaine’s work with Television is punctuated by the group’s landmark 1977 debut album, Marquee Moon, regularly hailed as one of the best albums of the 1970s. Television’s intricate, airy compositions embodied the experimental wing of Manhattan’s fabled CBGB scene in the late 1970s. Verlaine went on to release several solo vocal and instrumental albums.

On this day the 29th of Jan

On this day back in 1992 Willie Dixon, blues composer exited by the backdoor, died at 76

The late Singer and Motown Songwriter Barrett Strong passed away on Sunday Jan. 29 at the age of 81 in Detroit . He co-wrote some of Motown's most enduring hits including “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” for Marvin Gaye and Gladys Knight & the Pips, “War” for Edwin Starr, the Undisputed Truth’s “Smiling Faces Sometimes” and a wealth of material form the Temptations including “Papa Was a Rolling Stone,” for which Strong shared a Grammy Award.

On this day the 30th of Jan

On this day the 30th of January back in 1971 Adelaide had its answer to Woodstock! Three days of peace, love and music on a dusty dairy farm 60km south of the city. Yes it was The Myponga Pop Festival featuring Black Sabbath (UK) Syrius (Hungary) Fraternity, Jeff St. John, Wendy Saddington & The Copperwine, Spectrum, Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs, Chain, Daddy Cool, Hans Poulsen and Margaret RoadKnight to name but a few. $6 for 3 days! Loved it.

MANCE LIPSCOMB died 30th January 1976; Navasota, TX.
Guitarist and singer. The rural musical storyteller, who did not travel outside Texas until he was in his sixties, was a throwback to nineteenth-century entertainment sensibilities. Lipscomb, who never viewed himself as a bluesman, was the last of the line of genuine Texas ‘‘songsters’’; entertainers, often itinerant, who, much in the manner of West African griots, served as cultural depositories for the rural communities they frequented.

1980: RIP Professor Longhair.

1982 : RIP Lightnin' Hopkins.

On this day the 31th of Jan

The first known blues harmonica recording January 31, 1924.
The first known blues player who recorded using first position was Herbert Leonard on January 31, 1924 (with Clara Smith, ‘‘My Doggone Lazy Man’’).

The first African-American harmonica player to make a record, that is probably Pete Hampton. He was born in Kentucky in 1871 and made a string of recordings between 1903 and 1911, mostly done in Britain and Germany. His harmonica playing was featured on "Dat Mouth Organ Coon", which he recorded as an Edison cylinder in 1904. He later recorded versions of this tune for other companies, although none of his other songs seem to feature any harmonica playing. The piece starts out as a typical vaudeville song, then Hampton goes into a harmonica solo. His harp playing cannot be considered blues in the strictest sense of the word, although it does have many elements of the blues in it, including a short fox chase section and a finale which appears to have Hampton playing harp with his nose whilst simultaneously whistling!

It may bring sorrow, Lord, and it may bring tear
Oh, Lord, oh, Lord, spare me to see a bran’ new year
Charley Patton ‘‘34 Blues,’’ recorded January 31, 1934

1970: RIP Slim Harpo. He was an American blues musician, a leading exponent of the swamp blues style, and "one of the most commercially successful blues artists of his day". He had his biggest commercial success in 1966, when the predominantly instrumental "Baby Scratch My Back" reached no.1 on the R&B chart and no.16 on the US pop chart. Harpo described it as "an attempt at rock & roll for me."

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