[Dixielandjazz] 2003 - The Year of The Blues.

[TCASHWIGG at aol.com]

How nice of Congress of the USA to declare 2003 the year of the Blues.

It has however turned out to be the year they gave us the BLUES, just check 
the record numbers of the unemployed, business bankruptcies, and start adding 
up 80,000 people a month losing their jobs since the current Administration 
entered office.

America does indeed have the Blues in 2003, and we are certainly not the only 
country experiencing the Blues this year.

Blues music is alive and doing quite well all around the world, there are far 
more Blues Clubs presenting live music five to seven nights a week in the USA 
than there are Jazz clubs.

I believe we will no doubt see soon a lot of modern Blues songs hit the 
airwaves, crying about the economy, and having the poor folks eating bricks for 
bread, moldy Govt. surplus cheese, beans and rice, folks pushing their cars to 
church on Sunday cause they can't afford to buy gas for them. Etc.

They may not get airplay however because the radio stations are mostly 
controlled by Clear Channel and they are trying to placate the unrest with Smooth 
Jazz, like there is no problem and we can just sit back and listen to smooth 
relaxing music and forget the economic situation.

Just in the Central Valley of California, alone, there are many Blues Clubs 
offering live bands nightly, but the reports that I am getting is that many of 
them just don't have enough customers coming out every night to spend money to 
support the club and the music simply because they are unemployed or 
underemployed and they don't have disposable income.

They are saving their money and only going to the Big Festival events when 
B.B. King and a couple of other Headliners come through there area, they barely 
have enough money left to stop at the local pub and have one beer on the way 
home, after paying $25.00 to $30.00 to attend the festival, $5.00 - $8.00 to 
park their car, $$5.00 to $7.50 a beer at the show, not to mention $2.30 a 
gallon for gasoline to get there and back.

YEP WE GOT THE BLUES all right.

Should be some great new Blues Recordings hitting the market for Christmas,

 How could we possibly celebrate the Blues if we never had them?  

Cheers,

Tom Wiggins

Can't wait for "Happy Days Are Hear Again"

"Never get out of these Blues Alive"   john lee hooker....