Interview door Omroep Meierij TV tijdens Paaspop 2018.

Een interview met Big Bo door Johan Mulders en Jan van de Loo (camera).

Paaspop 2018 Bo Brocken (Big Bo) from Omroep Meierij on Vimeo.

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The annual 2017 International Blues Challenge #33 has started today. Last year I was one of the competitors (2016). It was one of the most important highlights in my entire career as a musician. I was so happy to have made it to the semi finals. The experience was one to never forget. Too bad I can’t be there this year to attend the festival but I know one thing for sure: The Blues Foundation, Memphis, USA has done another great job organizing this massive event.

This year I am proud to see two of my favorite bands and musicians from my country participate; The Detonics (band) and Robert Fossen & Dave Warmerdam (duo) from the Netherlands. I want to wish them the best of luck, but even more, a great time in Memphis, just like I had when I was there during the event.

And this picture; the one on this years’ website of the IBC just couldn’t say more…

Or this one…

The IBC2017 Promo Video:

I was stunned to see these pictures on their website so prominently. It is truly one of the world’s biggest blues events!

I wish you all so much fun at #IBC2017 and good luck to all competitors. Keep on keeping on!

With love, Bo and Vera

PS: saying hello to Marcel, Onno and Nanny!

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BIG BO – Trouble Soon Be Over – Theatertour 2017

Volg deze blog voor verhalen, anekdotes en tour avonturen. Maar ook voor de verhalen die de kleedkamer eigenlijk niet mochten verlaten. Kortom; een kijkje achter de schermen bij Trouble Soon Be Over met Marc Stakenburg, Bo Brocken en Frédérique Spigt.

BIG BO – Trouble Soon Be Over – Theatertour 2017

31 okt 2016: Voorbereidingen Trouble Soon Be Over

Inmiddels zijn de repetities gestart. Daarnaast zijn we de laatste maanden  ontzettend druk geweest met de boekingen en promotie voor dit reizende blues theater. Wat een berg werk hebben we verzet! We hebben nu echt de overtuiging dat we iets moois kunnen gaan presenteren; het verhaal over het ontstaan van de Blues! In 17 theaters, in een tijdsbestek van 3 maanden zullen we de hele reis maken, van 1800  tot 1950, de complete tocht vanuit Afrika, vanaf de slavenmarkt in Natchez, tot aan Chicago en het ontstaan van de Rock ‘n Roll. Het wordt een fascinerend theaterstuk.

We hebben er alle drie ongelofelijk veel zin in en we hopen dat jullie er net zoveel van gaan genieten als wij zelf.

Met dank aan:

Vera van Faassen voor haar tomeloze energie en inzet, en geloof in het project.

Dutch Blues Foundation voor haar medewerking en ondersteuning.

Agents After All voor boekingen en ondersteuning.

05 dec. 2016: Promotiemateriaal, affiches en flyers

Het komt nu wel erg dichtbij allemaal. Vandaag is het promotie materiaal afgeleverd. We gaan er vol voor, en dat betekent, flyeren en posters versturen en plakken. We gaan proberen om alle zalen vol te krijgen voor de voorstelling TROUBLE SOON BE OVER! De kaartverkoop gaat erg goed (sommige zalen zijn inmiddels uitverkocht of verkopen de laatste kaarten) maar toch, we gaan ervoor! Want we hopen dat jullie allemaal enorm gaan genieten van deze prachtige voorstelling.

Info en tourschema: READ MORE

16 dec. 2016: Repetities in volle gang

Inmiddels zijn de repetities voor de voorstelling in volle gang.

Muzikale repetities van Bo en Fre, en de algehele doorloop worden voornamelijk gehouden bij de jongens van Studio Cube op hun mooie locatie. We gaan er vol voor en het wordt mooi!

Langzaam groeit de voorstelling en ook al ziet dat er in onderstaande foto nog wat rommelig uit; we creëren orde in de chaos!

18 jan. 2017: We zijn begonnen!

Jawel, de eerste drie optredens met TROUBLE SOON BE OVER zitten erop. En wat ontzettend leuk dat alle drie de shows voor uitverkochte zalen werden gespeeld.

De allereerste show vond plaats in Walhalla Rotterdam, zo’n beetje de thuishaven van Frédérique. Dit was een try-out dus ook wel behoorlijk spannend aangezien het de eerste keer is dat je met zo’n heel circus voor publiek optreedt. We hadden de zaal van tevoren al twee dagen afgehuurd om de definitieve setting van de show een aantal maal door te kunnen nemen. Niet alleen voor ons, de spelers fijn, maar vooral ook voor de licht- en geluidstechnici een absolute must om alles op orde te krijgen. En dan de dag erna is het showtime. De reacties van het publiek waren overweldigend en hartverwarmend. De zaal sidderde en beefde en ging lekker uit haar dak toen we aan het einde van de show voluit de elektrische Chicago Blues speelden.

Twee dagen later was het uitverkochte Theater Diekhuus in Middelharnis aan de beurt. Ook in deze intieme zaal werden we liefdevol ontvangen door de organisatie. De reacties uit de zaal waren fijn en we konden nog lang nakletsen in de gezellige kantine van het theater. Middelharnis sure had the Blues that night! Zeer geslaagd!

De volgende dag was het vroeg op voor de show in Tilburg. De techniek is vaak al rond 12:00 u aanwezig en Vera en Ik hebben de bus vol spullen (decor en instrumenten). Vaak is het parkeren lastig in de grote steden en het uitladen, opbouwen en soundchecken kost erg veel tijd. In het uitverkochte Theaters Tilburg (de gezellige kleine zaal) speelden we onze show voor 150 bluesliefhebbers. Ook deze avond was memorabel!

Het is fijn om te merken dat alles klopt, dat het samenvalt en dat je ziet dat de moeite die we erin gestoken hebben wordt beloond. Het licht is schitterend (Joan van Loon), de projecties en decors betoverend (Vera van Faassen), het geluid briljant (Onno de Visser). Het verhaal en de muziek grijpen mooi in elkaar. We zijn er trots op en we hopen jullie dan ook te zien bij één van onze voorstellingen.

Op naar de volgende reeks!

24 jan. ’17:  MARC STAKENBURG EN BIG BO TE GAST BIJ KUNSTSTOF, NPO Radio 1

Met presentator: Freek van de Linden.

We spraken vanavond met programmamaker Freek van de Linden over het ontstaan de blues en natuurlijk over de voorstelling TROUBLE SOON BE OVER. Bo speelde 3 nummers live in de uitzending.

05-03-’17: NOG VIJF SHOWS TE GAAN…

Uitverkochte zalen, lovende reacties en recensies. Met groot succes trekt de karavaan van TROUBLE SOON BE OVER door het land. We hebben een enorm plezier in het maken van deze voorstelling en we genieten van alle reacties en de emoties op de gezichten van de bezoekers.

Nog vijf shows te gaan. In de Hoogeveense Courant een stuk over de voorstelling in Theater De Tamboer. Big Bo sprak met Willem Bessels over TROUBLE SOON BE OVER en de Blues. Met de actiecode ‘brocken’ kun je cd’s, een boek en gesigneerd affiche winnen.

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February 7, 2016: Heading back home and suffering jet lags

It is strange, being in Missississppi for just two weeks makes you don’t want to leave forever. We had a hard time saying goodbye and we felt like we didn’t want to go back to the country we live in. In the Netherlands we can imagine ourselves we have a “good life” (though I am not pretty sure about that anymore over the last 15 years), and although Mississippi is poor, we felt in some way that the people are more easy going, and that there is a lot of hope and happiness.

The flight back home was long but pretty ok. It was nice to see a warm welcome from our parents and family there at the gate.

We are suffering from a bad jetlag for almost a week right now but we are happy to look back on two fantastic weeks.

Thank you Memphis and thank you Mississippi for the wonderful times!

Bo and Vera.

February 6, 2016: BB King Museum and Blues Corner Cafe, Indianola, MS

When in Mississippi, everything goes slow. And that counts for us too. Don’t plan a lot of things to do on one day, you won’t make it. This would be our last day in the USA and we planned to go visit the BB King Museum in Indianola. Going for coffee while doing the necessary WIFI obligations, keeping in touch with home, we went over to the newest lunchroom in Clarksdale: The Yazoo Pass. It is kind of weird to see the beautiful, hipster-like entourage of this place, it’s fancy lounge couches, and pretty tables in such a dilapidadet place like Clarksdale. It is however good to see there is development and I am sure within the next 10 years a lot of things will change in the city. Hopefully the city council will be aware of the cities’ history and will try to preserve it’s authentic atmosphere. The coffee is good there though!

Then it was off to Indianola again to visit the BB King Museum. This museum is an absolute must see! It gives such a clear insight in the man’s life and work. It is set up with great accuracy and holds a lot of information. We were absolutely struck and moved by the stories that tell the life of a young black man working on the fields, trying to survive the streets and finding his way in a by whites dominated culture, to be divided by segregation, confronted with racism, hate and violence. We both had tears in our eyes going through some sections of the museum hallways. The place is a great tribute to his life and the lives of the entire black community in the USA, and I will never forget going there. In the small yard behind the museum we found his gravestone, and I can’t express how I felt being there. BB was one of the greatest of all Bluesmen and he will forever live on in the minds of everyone in Mississippi and around the world. Everywhere you go in Indionola you can still feel his presence.

As we promised to Ronnie and Betty we then crossed the railroads that divide the town into two sections. There is mainly a black community living there and the people are just great. You will find good southern cooking, affordable beers and we were warmly welcomed by Ronnie and Betty again. Of course I took the guitar and played  a set for an enthousiastic audience that late afternoon. We had a great time at the Blues Corner Cafe and we talked with Betty and Ronnie for better part of the evening, telling us breathtaking stories about BB King’s funeral, how they got to meet him and become close friends, how Betty sang in the choir at his funeral, how Ronnie cooked for him at the Home Coming Events, and so much more incredible stories. Ronnie and Betty, it was great meeting you and we will surely come back again to pay you another visit! You guys better get that B&B ready!

Driving out of Indianola we sat in the car speechless, overwhelmed by so many impressions. We had dinner at Airport Groceries, a great restaurant just outside of Cleveland. By the time we got to Clarksdale we found out there were some great bands playing there but we didn’t get to see them. We were done. A great trip had ended and we needed the sleep for our flight the next day. What an impressive day it has been. We slept like babies that night.

February 5, 2016: Visiting Robert Johnson’s graves.

This day we wanted to do a lot of traveling and see all the magnificent places in the deep delta. It didn’t quite turn out how we expected because we had a hard time trying to find Robert Johnson’s grave…

Trying to find any of Robert Johnson’s graves can be a bit of a pain. We were lucky enough to carry some good travel guide books with us: “The Blues Highway” and “Blues Traveling”. These books can (sort of) show you where to go. From Clarksdale we drove about 90 miles south to a small village called Quito, and although we had a hard time finding the burial place itself, it is still a wonderful drive through the state of Mississippi. We finally arrived at where the first grave would be, next to a little wooden Zion Church building with a small graveyard. There is a simple gravestone here, marked: “Robert Johnson –  May 8, 1911 – August 16, 1938 – Resting in the Blues”. Nobody knows if this is the real grave site. The stone was put there decades after he passed away. Although this is very close to where the Three Forks club was, where he was presumebly murdered, reports from eye-witnesses tell a different story.

There is another presumed gravesite, also near a little baptist church, just before driving into Morgan City. We found it and the gravemarker looks more like a memorial stone than an actual grave. It is inscripted with lyrics from one of Robert’s songs and the titles of his complete recoreded repertoire. Still not his real grave? No one knows for sure and it is all part of the mystique hanging around the legend of Robert Johnson.

We were happy to rent a car equipped with a GPS and this is what you are going to need when traveling Mississippi looking for the “holy blues grounds”. Just north of Greenwood MS we found what actually (would) be the real gravesite. Reports say: “Rosie Eskridge was twenty-two years old when her husband, Tom, dug Robert Johnson’s grave in the cemetary of this church, to which Eskridge still belongs. She does not remember the exact spot, but she knows it is near a big tree…” This eye-witness had no financial gain for saying so, and it seems her story is true until someone comes forward with other evidence.

The place is situated far away from highways, cities and towns and the silence is just overwhelming. The headstone looks like it is been placed not long ago but walking here can grab you by the guts and it feels like this is the right place. Hard to discribe but many people visting this place feel that way. I sat down near his grave and paid a little tribute for the man who has inspired me the most, in one of his songs, Me And The Devil:

You may bury my body

Down by the highway side

So my old evil spirit

Can catch the Greyhound Bus and ride

See the clip here: VIDEO

It had cost us a lot of time trying to find those graves and we were too late when we arrived at the BB King Museum in Indionola, so we decided to look for a nice Juke Joint to get us a beer. Driving through the pretty little town we visited the place where BB used to perform on the corner of Church Street and we came across the Blues Corner Cafe, owned by two very friendly people, Ronnie and Betty. The side wall of the cafe has a pretty mural, with old blues related paintings that really stand out. We had our beer and although we were planning to leave soon, we spent our time talking to the owners and locals for a very long time. They asked me to play some songs too and I was overwhelmed by the warm and enthousiastic reaction from the audience. We had great southern food at their place that day. We promised Ronnie and Betty to come back the next day, just to stop by after visiting the BB King Museum and perform a full set.

Back in Clarksdale that night, we went to see LaLa and her band perform in Ground Zero Club. Another great day!

February 4, 2016: Delta Blues Museum and Rock & Blues Museum in Clarksdale

The Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale is absolutely worth visiting. It tells the story of the origins of the blues and anything related to the music and the city. One of the highlights is the shack (or what’s left of it) where Muddy Waters used to live in. It used to be out at Stovall plantation but ended up in this museum after a 5 year world tour. The museum pays a respectful tribute to the musicians that worked (and some that still perform) in and around Clarksdale.

The Rock and Blues Museum just a couple of blocks away is owned by a dutch gentleman; Theo Dasbach. He is a devoted Music collector and the museum is stuffed with old records and items related to blues and rockńroll. You will walk around in a timeline starting somewhere around 1920 until late 70ś. It is nice to see how the blues evolved and influenced so many musicians throughout the entire world. Little Joe Ayers was playing live at the museum so we were able to see him perform a couple of songs. We then talked to Theo a long time, it is fun to hear his stories and tales about his passion.

We had some nice Lebanese kibbeh and fried okra for dinner, and that night we went over to the Shack-up Inn to see Ben Hunter & Joe Seamons play. Two great voices and multi instrumentalists and winners of the 2016 IBC! Once again we enjoyed their show.

Another great day in Clarksdale! Back to our little shack to get some good night rest.

 February 3, 2016: In the footsteps of Robert Johnson – Friars Point to Rosedale

Today we wanted to see the river and follow the footsteps of Robert Johnson. Heading over to Friars Point, a small harbour village alongside the Missisissippi River we stopped at a point where you can go over the levee and get right on the banks of the river. Shot some film here for the clip of Traveling Riverside Blues. Friars Point is mentioned in the song and we also shot some footage of me playing on the streetcorner where Johnson used to perform.

Following road nr. 1 south we were heading over to Rosedale, also mentioned in the song. We made some very nice pictures of the little town on the river and shot some more film. We had a drink at the White Front Cafe, and talked about the blues and the town with the friendly owner Barbara. It is good to see that the people in the Mississippi Delta are still proud of their rich heritage. Driving through the heart of the Delta (direction west) we then would visit places such as Greenville and Parchman (biggest jail in Mississippi and a terrifying place, featured in so many songs).

We had a late dinner (very tasty fried catfish!) over at Airport Grocery, a nice restaurant just west of Cleveland before heading back to Clarksdale.

February 2, 2016: At Ronny Drew’s and gig at Hopson Commissary

Surely one of the coolest guys we met is Ronnie Drew, owner of the Bluestown Music shop. This is the place where I got my Stella from, four years ago! It was great to meet him again. Going into his shop you can’t help yourself for staying there for about an hour or three, since he’s got so many cool vintage guitars and gear. I got to try most of them and we spent hours talking about the town, music and instruments. I finally decided to buy the ’98 National (NRP) “Delphi” resonator with Highlander pick-up installed. This is a guitar I always wanted to own (I almost got one in the Netherlands some day) and sounds superb. Ronnie is a very friendly and easy going fellow, I will surely pay him a visit again when we come back!

That night we had chicken and fried tomatos for dinner at the Hopson Commissary and I played a great show for the audience there. We talked with the owner Robert about the blues that night. This nice guy knows a lot about it and he told us some things we didn’t know yet. Appearantly there seems to be another plantation around Clarksdale, much older than Stovall and Dockery Farms, where there was music already… gotta check that one out. And he also told us that Henri Sloan and Charley Patton, might well have been the same person… Mysteries all over.

What a nice day we had!

 February 1, 2016: In and around Clarksdale MS

Clarksdale MS is considered the heart of the Delta and the city where the blues was born. Everywhere you go you can feel the presence of the blues. There are a lot of clubs where live blues is presented on stage, when in Clarksdale you can see live music every day in clubs such as Reds Lounge, Ground Zero and Hambone’s. Around 80% of Clarksdale’s residents are black but the city is flooding with people from all over the world who come to Clarksdale to experience itś rich heritage. Around Clarksdale you will find the big company farmers growing cotton, corn and rice.

We decided to go see some of these farms, the places where black laborers used to work and sang their songs. The first one we visited is called the stovall Plantation. Muddy Waters used to work here and it is the place where he was recorded for the Library of Congress, by Alan Lomax and John Work. His cabin isn’t there anymore (moved to the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale) but a blues marker shows the place where it used to be. Stovall is an impressive place and you can still feel the vibes of the old Delta blues about a hundred years ago.

Then we drove about 70 miles south on highway 61 near Cleveland to go see Dockery Farms, the place where Henri Sloan and Charlie Patton (the Father of the Blues) used to live. Son House and Robert Johnson lived there too and we consider this the place where the blues was born. The guys all learned how to play from Charlie Patton and Henri Sloan. It is a deserted but well preserved place on highway 8 next to an old gas station and baptist church and still looks in good shape. The sign in front of the massive cotton gin really stands out. It is an amazing site that gives clear insight about the life on a cotton farm.

It is heartbreaking to see the area fall into decay, it’s poverty and bad maintenance, although there is some development going on nowadays. Many of the original juke joints have disappeared, or are falling apart. But when you really try, you can still find a few that feature live blues music and serve good southern food. You can still feel the atmosphere and presence of the blues when visiting the deep Delta.

Heading back to Clarksdale that evening we went over to the Hopson Plantation, another old cotton farm, just south of Clarksdale which is now a place that offers shacks for rent to tourists. The old Hopson Commissary is turned into a cafe, features live music on mondays and serves some food.

Later that night we went to the Bluesberry cafe in downtown Clarksdale to have spaghetti and meatballs (the only plate they serve) and see Watermellon Slim perform. He is a great entertainer and it is fun to see him play. He likes the bottle though and it can affect the quality of his playing some, but we had fun watching him. Later that night we all jammed on stage before heading back to the Riverside Hotel to get some sleep. Our last night at the Riverside Hotel, the next morning we would go out renting a shack at the Shack-up Inn, part of the Hopson Plantation.

January 31, 2016: ESCAPING THE BIG CITY

Wandering around in Memphis for a week can be quite overwhelming. The busy crowds in the streets, the neon lights on Beale, the focussing on the IBC16 contest, the long walking distances, you can imagine we slept like babies that night. The next morning we checked out of the hotel and took a cab off to the airport to rent us a car. We’d go south, direction Clarksdale MS, home of the Blues!

Taking highway 61 south, it is kinda weird to see the environment change once you drive into Mississippi. It is wide open and you can see the farmlands stretching out for miles where the cotton would grow in the summer. Some old shacks and barns which are overgrown by ivy and moss give it an atmosphere which immediately makes you think of stepping back in time about a hundred years. Old rusty cars and tractors are left forgotten beside the roads and once you get past Robinsonville you can see the signs of restaurants advertising for that good southern food: Hot Tamales, Crawfish, Catfish and Gumbo.

Getting into Clarksdale you will surely run into “The Crossroads”, the intersection of the two Blues highways: 61 and 49. It is marked with a sign that has three huge blue guitars on it which will immediately make you think of a Blues capitol of the world. Clarksdale is nothing like a capitol, in fact it is a poor city, like most of the places in Mississippi. The houses look old and in bad shape and although there is a lot of development going on in the city, you can still see the abandoned buildings and stores here, weathered and worn out.

The famous Riverside Hotel is such a place. This used to be an old hospital where Bessie Smith was taken after she was in a bad car crash but couldn’t be saved by the doctors. Turned into a hotel in the forties this place really breathes the atmosphere of the old Delta Blues men, and often gave roof to people like Ike Turner, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker and many old blues legends staying there. We booked a room (Sam Cooke’s Room), for two nights.

That afternoon we walked into a small coffeehouse called Levon’s. They had a backline set-up for that evenings band to play when they saw me come walking in with my guitar slinging on my back. They asked me to play a few songs and so I played there better part of the afternoon. That was cool!

In the evening I opened the show for The Muleman at Reds Lounge. The owner of the place called Red is a very nice guy and I was happy to see him again after four years. The place didn’t change a bit and he still didn’t fix the roof! Opening up for The Muleman was a great thing to do and later that night we’d all jam together and have some fun!

It surely feels good to be back in Clarksdale. The people are friendly and very relaxed and my goodness the weather is great (can walk around in t-shirt)!

Tomorrow it’s off to explore the Delta!

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January 30, 2016: BIG BO – IBC16 – FINALS –

On our last day in Memphis we headed over to the Orpheum to see the Finals of the IBC16. The Orpheum is a huge theatre in classic 20’s style. The finals would take 8 long hours so we didn’t get the chance to see all of the acts performing there when we went outside for some food and do a little shopping, but we saw most part of it.

The Orpheum was almost sold out and we saw The Delgado brothers perform a great set. What I thought would be the winners proved right: The Delgado Brothers won the IBC16 in the band category.

I had high hopes for Ben Hunter and Joe Seamons, an incredibly talented duo who played in real traditional style using various traditional instruments such as fiddle, banjo, mandoline and acoustic guitar to win the contest in the category soloists/duos. We really liked what they did. Quality of the acts performing was of high level and though I didn’t quite understand the choice of the jury for 2nd place we were happy to see Ben and Joe win the contest.

Heading for the hotel we looked back on a great time in Memphis. We met a lot of wonderful people and enjoyed the music and atmosphere. The next morning we’d check out of the hotel and head for the airport to go rent us a car and drive south, direction Delta, Clarksdale MS.

Thank you Memphis!

January 29, 2016: BIG BO – IBC16 – SEMI FINALS –

This morning we went downtown to see where I would be playing the Semi-finals of the IBC. At 12 noon they announced the venues and I was happy to see that I was playing at 12 BAR club, a cozy place just upstairs of Jerry Lee Lewis’ venue. I was up last in line, at 11 pm. We went over there to see if all the equipment had arrived (bassdrum and hihatt). Since it wasn’t there I got a little worried so we headed over to the organization to see if it could be arranged. They told me they would do the best they can, but couldn’t guarantee. “This is a challenge, so if itś not there you will need to improvise”… Ok I am good at improvising so whatever happens, it didn’t worry me too much. It was just good to see that finally I got the stuff I asked for.

11 PM showtime and a full house at 12 BAR. Judges were sitting at their tables and we saw some good competitors playing their show. I was up last in line and set up my things. I decided to stick with the same set I played the nights before. We all had 5 minutes extra time so half an hour each. This way I could play some nice soloś too and the gig was superb! I really felt good about my playing that night. Got a great response from the audience, they clearly loved what I did.

Exciting and the moment we all waited for! The announcement of the winners semi-finals!

At 1 AM we all gathered in the Tin Roof venue. The board director Ms. Neuman, of the Blues Foundation then announced the winners.

Too bad, I didn’t make it to the finals, but I was so happy with the result. Imagine out of 2500 bands worldwide having reached the 32 best in place, thatś quite an achievement to be proud of. I been there, done it (and got the t-shirt!). We had a wonderful time in Memphis at the IBC16 and I was so happy to meet all the lovely people and talented musicians there. What a great atmosphere!

Thank you Memphis, thank you Bluesfans, thank you Blues Foundation for making this happen.

Special thanks goes out to THE DUTCH BLUES FOUNDATION for their support. You guys have been amazing!

Tomorrow itś time to go see the finals at the Orpheum Theatre!

 January 28, 2016: BIG BO – IBC16 – QUARTER FINALS – 2nd round

That night we picked up my stuff from the hotel and headed to The Pig On Beale club for the second round of the Quarter Finals IBC16. The joint was already packed when we arrived and the new judges were sitting at their tables. We saw some great artists playing there and the audience was just fantastic paying respect to all the wonderful musicians who performed.

I was up at 9 PM and by that time it was so warm in the venue that I already sweated when setting up my equipment. My fingers got moisty and already in the first song my fingerpicks started to move off my fingers. I had to improvise to get it right but I think I managed to do it in a way that solved the problem by inviting people to clap their hands while I put on my fingerpicks, playing my drums only… Phewwww.

The rest of the set was pretty ok although I felt I played better the night before (I played the same set). Once again the audience reaction was overwhelming. What a great audience. You can feel their passion for the blues and I once again met a guy named Seth, who was so moved by my playing that he had tears in his eyes. He told me he came from the Delta and that I was playing the music he grew up with. I got lots of compliments from the audience and I was humbled to play for them. What a fantastic night!

Then it was off to the hotel to bring back the equipment and then head to Club 152 to wait for the announcement of the winners for the Semi-finals. There was a great band playing there, followed by a superb jamsession. It is good to see all the artists chatting, playing together and jam! Good atmosphere!

Then a big guy with a paper in his hand walked up to the stage. He had a long list of winners and announced them… Big Bo and Phil Bee’ s Freedom band representing the Dutch Blues Foundation are going to the Semi-finals! Whoa!

You can only imagine how we partied that night until early morning. I am feeling honoured and filled with pride for making it to this point. What a night!

Tonight will be the semi-finals, I will be playing in the 12 Bar Club, just above Jerry Lee Lewis’ Club. Exciting!

Keep on keeping on!

January 28, 2016: BIG BO LIVE AT VINNIE MARINI’ S “MUSIC ON THE COUCH”

This afternoon we had some time to kill to we headed over to the 2nd floor above the Rum Boogie Cafe. From there Vinnie Marini runs a small mobile radio station, presenting his programme “BLUES ON THE COUCH”. Vinnie is a very nice and devoted guy who puts his heart into the music. I t was fun to meet him, sitting on his couch for an interview.

Entering the room it feels like you are walking right into a vintage bluesclub, with old posters and pictures on the wall of musicians and blues shows. It is just like stepping into an old Mississippi Juke Joint, a great atmosphere and I had a warm welcome by Vinnie who introduced me on his show.

We talked about how I came to play the Blues and I told him how my father used to play all these old bluesrecords at home when I was a kid. The first time I touched a guitar I was already trying to figure out how to play this strange music. The Blues hit me hard back then and I felt it was the music from the heart, to touch other people’ s hearts. We talked about my new cd: Traveling Riverside and about by trip alongside the Mississippi River a few years ago, and that we are going to head back to Clarksdale next week to feel the vibes of the Delta.

Vinnie thanked me for the interview and played one of my songs: The Devil Got My Woman. I signed his board and Vinnieś assistant was taking a few pictures.

I was honoured to appear on Vinnie’ s show that evening. We headed back to the hotel and picked up my guitars for the show that night at the Pig On Beale, starting 9 PM. We had a great dinner at a place called Friday’ s (great restaurant, I loved their spicy shrimp!) and then walked to the venue for my show that night.

I am ready as anybody can be!

January 27, 2016: BIG BO: IBC16 – QUARTER FINALS ROUND 1

Time for the quarter finals at the PIG ON BEALE. The Pig is a nice restaurant on Beale St. serving the best ribs in town. It also got a nice stage for live music and a good sound system. All musicians in the category Soloist/duoś gathered to sign up for the first round of the IBC. My show started at 6:30 PM, I was the third in line to perform. Setting up a full one-man-band in just 5 minutes (strictly according to the rules) was hard carrying a drumset, and 3 guitars around, but I managed to set it up in time. The professional Jury was sitting right in front of the stage and behind that a packed crowd of audience.

I played 7 song (25 minutes rule), had some trouble amplifying my dobro guitar, but the soundguy fixed it fairly quickly.

My setlist that night:

-Keep Your Lamp Trimmed And Burning

-Pony Blues

-Catfish Blues

-Traveling Riverside Blues

-Devil Got My Woman

-Pick A Bale Of Cotton

-Grinnin’ In Your Face

I could clearly see the judges enjoy my set and that gave me confidence. The audience reaction was overwhelming; clapping their hands to the rhythm and applauding, cheering. What a good set! I enjoyed playing there!

When I was finished (and I never seen them doing it the whole night) one of the judges walked up to me and said: “This is what we want to hear at the DBC. This is the blues and the way it should be played, you are doing a fantastic job, I really enjoyed your music”. Wow, I am so honoured!

Tonight I will be playing the 2nd round Quarterfinals, also at Pig On Beale. My show starts at 9 PM. Right after these rounds we get to hear who made it to the semi-finals so stay tuned!

Keeping the Blues alive folks!

 January 26, 2016: BIG BO: SHOWCASE ON BEALE STREET

Showcase on Beale Street. Blues Hall is one of Bealeś finest Bluesclubs and a great place to play. I was up at 6 PM and had to play a 1 hour show. It is nice to get a good warm-up before the IBC contest tomorrow! The place slowly poored with people and as I played my show I got a great response from the audience. They really liked what I did and the gig went very well. It is good to see the Memphis audience reaction.

Later that night I jammed at another club with some young guys from the US and the rhythm section of Phil Beeś Freedom. That was fun. A great first night in Memphis on Beale!

Tomorrow the IBC contest will start. I will play in Pig On Beale at 6:30 PM!

January 26, 2016 BIG BO: A 36 HOUR TRIP TO MEMPHIS

This wasn’t quite what we expected. This trip surely gave me the blues folks… Right on the day before we left we noticed that in the flight schedule we had to do 2 plane changes instead of just 1. But thatś ok, as long as we made it to Memphis in time. Surprisingly we shared the same plane with the Phil Bee’ś Freedom band, that was fun! Crossing the Atlantic Ocean went smoothly and we had clear skies over the north-east coast of the US before landing in Philedelphia. It was nice to see the snowy landscape from the plane window. Changing planes in Philly went well, so then it was off to Miami. When we got on the plane to Memphis there seemed to be a problem. The co-pilot appearantly didn’t show up and we waited for more than 1,5 hours. We already knew we were going to miss our flight to Memphis enough to give us a bit of panic. Getting in Miami we didn’t know where to go and nobody could tell us anything or explain. We had to wait in line for 2 hours to get information and rebook the flight. They told us we had to spend the night over at the airport on some field beds and it was cold there. After 3 hours of sleep we checked in on a plane to Dallas and from there go to Memphis. Thatś another 7 hour trip. When we finally arrived in Memphis I was really unsecure if my guitars and equipment would have arrived in Memphis too. A few hours of excitement before finally the cases arrived at the airport! My goodness I was happy to see those flightcases, I can tell you that! Because of the cold in the luggage room the neck of the dobro was a little bent, but I managed to fix it so it doesn’t rattle. We made it to Memphis and had to get ready for the showcase performance that night, checked in the hotel and had 3 hours left to prepare for the show! 

January 23, 2016: BIG BO – PACKING BAGS and bit of a techy guitar blog

Getting excited and looking forward to IBC16, Memphis! Today, me and Vera (who is my partner, manager, PR representative and moral support) started packing our bags. Going over our checklists every hour we can only hope we didn’t forget any crucial luggage or paperwork. This is not like a regular holiday when you just throw some clothes in a bag, take your passport and hit the road. We had to make sure all the equipment can come aboard the plane, weighing cases and bags, stay in touch with people from The Dutch Blues Foundation and the Blues Foundation USA for whatever equipment I need that I can’t bring on the plane. Doing all the paperwork can be quite confusing at times… but I think all is arranged for, must be good old artist lament 

Some good news already came in from Beale Street! I am doing a showcase on Tuesday at the Blues Hall, Beale St. at 6 PM. This is one of Memphis’ finest blues clubs and I am so proud to play there again, after jamming with Brandon Santini there a few years back! This is gonna be fun!

The actual Blues Challenge will start on Wednesday. I hope I can appear in Vinnie Marini’s ‘Blues On The Couch’ live radioshow which will be held above the Rum Boogie Cafe.

SOME TECHY GUITAR STUFF…

Guitars, guitars… now this was a bit of a pain. I didn’t want to bring 8000 USD worth of guitars on a plane to see them end up in a luggage space at -40 C and see grumpy airport employees throwing them around. This would surely have ruined my precious instruments. So I decided to stick with some older guitars I still have, a Cort Parlor model (actually a very nice guitar that sounds pretty good and appeared to be in healthy condition) and a Airsi Tricone which I bought second-hand for 500 USD. I am taking my Cigar Box Guitar as hand-luggage so no worries there. In the Tricone I installed a pick-up but it sounded terrible, so I decided to buy a Highlander active Tricone pick-up and replace it. Had to have it fly in from the USA. When I installed it, it even sounded worse than ever, but it appeared that the top of the pick-up touched the T-bridge (where the strings run over). It’s supposed to have a gap there about 1,5 mm. between the bridge and pick-up. This is purely a constructional issue, so I had to adjust the guitar without damaging it or changing string height. I didn’t quite get it right the second time either after doing a test at a live show. I still have to look at this more closely tonite or tomorrow. Pfffff last minute work!

*UPDATE* Tricone didn’t work out the way I wanted to. I am afraid I will have to bring my good old Dobro, pray for me to have it arrive safely…

Tomorrow it is one last show to go in The Netherlands, before we fly on Monday. Getting ready for Beale Street and I am so excited to go!

Take care and keep the Blues alive!

December 22, 2015: BIG BO – PREPARATIONS FOR MEMPHIS –

Hey guys!  I won the Dutch Blues Challenge in October 2015. It is a great honour to me that I can represent my country in the category soloists/duo’s on January 26-30, 2016 during the INTERNATIONAL BLUES CHALLENGE in Memphis, TN. Preparations have already started. Got the tickets for the flight and the hotel was booked, a pretty close walk from Beale Street, where it is all going to happen. Filled in all the papers we are going to need and arranged for visa. Set up a new website and recorded a new cd too! We are working on new promo material such as posters, flyers and T-Shirts. What a busy month it has been. I am looking forward to meet all the people in Memphis down on Beale Street and play my shows there!

Some additional dates will be booked in and around Memphis, please stay informed through this blog post.

Ohhh and I still need to test some cheap guitars to bring on the plane. I hope they come out unharmed… More of that in a very techy guitarist post later!

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