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Taipei sings the blues

By Gavin Phipps
STAFF REPORTER
Friday, Nov 04, 2005, Page 13

Inset, above, Rambler. Main picture, Les Chats Noir. Inset right, the Beaver County Rangers. PHOTOS COURTESY OF ARTISTS

While overcast and gray skies put a bit of a dampener on the Blues Society Taiwan's (BST) inaugural Blues and BBQ Bash when it took place in Taichung in March, both organizers and society members are hoping that the heavens will be kind to them this time around when it holds its first Taipei- based blues bash at the Breeze Center Plaza tomorrow.

Organized by the BST and sponsored by Anheuser-Busch Asia and local radio station Super 98FM, the Taipei Blues and BBQ Bash will feature a mixed bag of blues oriented talent from both home and abroad.

The aim of the one-day festival is, according to the BST, two-fold. Firstly, it aims to promote blues music in Taiwan, where bluesmen like Boogie Chillin's Henry Westheim believe that it is a less popular genre because "people in Taiwan general think that the blues is `sad music.'" And secondly, it hopes the festival will generate local blues-oriented networks, which through word of mouth and music, will see a rise in the numbers of blues bands currently playing the circuit in Taiwan.

"Many people don't realize that blues music has always echoed across Taiwan. The term `blues' is really just another way of saying `life,'" said Westheim. "If you listen to Aboriginal songs you hear the same sentiments and feelings as in a Muddy Waters or a Robert Johnson song."

Unlike March's event, which received backing from the Taichung City Government, organizers of this weekend's blues bash had to forgo any form of

officially sanctioned government sponsorship. Instead the BST was forced to go it alone, which caused some confusion and nearly led to the cancellation of the festival altogether.

According to BST's Kevin Smith, who, when he's not deskbound plays for The Beaver County Rangers, problems arose shortly after the BST was informed of a scheduling change by organizers of the Taichung Jazz Festival and he got wind of another blues festival.

"We originally planned to hold the event in Taichung this weekend but the jazz festival spilled over into this week so we figured that in order not to clash why not move it to Taipei," said Smith. "It was a bit of a problem, especially when we heard news of another blues festival taking place. For a while it was [hit and miss] getting sponsors because we'd be asked `which blues festival are you?'"

Plans for the "other" blues festival eventually came to nothing and while the BST is still reeling from being given the runaround by organizers of the now

cancelled other festival, the change in venue and scheduling hasn't muddied the waters too much. In fact, the event's relocation to Taipei has left the BST already thinking about the event's future.

"We always planned for it to held twice yearly -- in spring and fall -- but until the sponsors pulled out earlier this year we'd always figured we'd try to keep it in Taichung," said Smith. "It would certainly be nice to hold it bi-annually in both Taipei and Taichung from now on."

Along with more standard forms of blues from popular Taiwan-based acts like BoPoMoFo, Stevie Ray and the Black Sheep and Boogie Chillin' blues fans will once again be treated to some hybrid and offbeat blues vibes tomorrow from the jug band Dave Chen and the Muddy Basin Ramblers, the vintage jazz/blues combo Les Chats Noir and the recently formed alt-country act The Beaver County Rangers.

In order to keep in tune with March's event

organizers have once again decided not to pack the lineup with big name overseas acts and have instead opted to invite only two international acts. Although based in Chicago, blues guitarist Shun Kikuta will be representing Japan and Argentinean bluesman Gabriel Gratzer will represent the Americas.

While those familiar with blues music may

recognize the names of the two international artists, many will no doubt be rather perplexed as to why the BST invited an Asian and a South American to perform at a bash held in celebration of a North American musical creation. According to BST's founder and president Douglas Rapier, booking such acts is both financially and culturally more viable than booking a famous North American blues act.

"We wanted to prove that the blues is international music and not [confined] solely to the US," said Rapier. "[Shun] Kikuta is Koko Taylor's guitarist and certainly not a nobody and Gabriel [Gratzer] was recommended to me by the French blues society. Even if we did invite a blues legend from the US hardly anybody in Taiwan would know who they were anyway."

While the goal of the society remains to start small and gradually build awareness of blues music in Taiwan, both Rapier and Smith hope that in a couple of years the blues will have increased in popularity to such a level that the BST will be able to book a hugely popular and tremendously expensive blues legend like Eric Clapton. This is, however, still a dream and for the time being the nation's blues fans will have to enjoy the vibes of equally talented, yet lesser-known blues artists.

In addition to the music at the Breeze Center Plaza tomorrow blues fans will also be able to purchase food and drink with a blues theme, participate in a blues-oriented trivia quiz that offers a wide range of prizes including CDs. Blues fans who want to take to the stage themselves will have the opportunity to play with members of several bands at a special open blues jam. And those with a whim to learn what it takes to become a capable blues guitarist will have the opportunity to attend workshops hosted by Shun Kikuta and other artists.

For your imformation:

What: The Blues Society Taiwan:
The 2nd Blues and BBQ Bash
Where: Breeze Center Plaza, 39, Fuxing S Rd, Sec 2, Taipei (台北市復興南路2段 39號微風廣場)
When: Tomorrow, from noon until 9pm.
Tickets: Admission is free

The Bands:
BoPoMoFo: Led and formed by Blues Society President and host of ICRT's once hugely popular Blues Power Hour, DC Rapier. BoPoMoFo is a multicultural five-piece grass roots blues band that plays pure Chicago-style blues.

Stevie Ray and the Black Sheep:
Named in honor of the late blues-guitar guru Stevie Ray Vaughn, Taipei-based trio Stevie Ray and the Black Sheep play Vaughn-inspired sets heavy blues sets. It is the only band to boast an all local lineup.

Beaver County Rangers:
Although relatively new to the local blues scene, the
Rangers combine blues with trappings of traditional/modern alternative country and roadhouse sounds. It might sound a bit odd, but this motley crew should prove crowd pleasers tomorrow.

Les Chats Noir:
Originally a three-piece with a vintage sound, Les Chats Noir, or The Black Cats has recently added a drummer, a keyboardist/sax player and a trumpeter to the lineup, which should give this already exciting blues and jazz combo a true New Orleans sound.

Dave Chen and the Muddy Basin Ramblers:
Whether amped-up or unplugged, Dave Chen and his mob of Muddy Basin Ramblers play a hybrid blend of classic blues, old time country and swing jazz and employ some rather unconventional instruments such as a jug, a kazoo, a washboard and even a bicycle horn.

Boogie Chillin'
For an unintentionally formed combo Boogie Chillin' has managed to become one of the most active of all Taiwan's blues bands. The combo draws inspiration from blues greats Muddy Waters and Elmore James and fills its sets with an eclectic mix of contemporary, standard and even experimental blues.

Gabriel Gratzer
When Gabriel Gratzer gave up gospel for blues he
inadvertently gave Argentina the blues and is now
regarded by many as being instrumental in creating the South American country blues scene. Gratzer performs a wild blend of Mississippi country and inner city blues.

Shun Kikuta
Since graduating from the Berklee College of Music Chicago-based Japanese blues guitarist Shun Kikuta has performed at many of the US' leading blues venues and collaborated with a myriad of popular blues artists.
Performing what has been described as "soulful, explosive, and heart-wrenching music" Kikuta should prove a worthy headliner for tomorrow's Blues Bash.

The Rundown:

12:10 to 12:50: BoPoMoFo
1:10 to 1:50: Stevie Ray and the Black Sheep
2:10 to 2:50: Beaver County Rangers
3:10 to 3:50: Les Chats Noir
4:10 to 4:50: Dave Chen and the Muddy Basin Ramblers
5:10 to 5:50: Boogie Chillin'
6:10 to 6:50: Gabriel Gratzer
7:10 to 7:50: Shun Kikuta and Friends
8:15: Grand Finale Blues Jam"

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