BMA Week Events

(Memphis TN) – The Blues Foundation has announced the winners at the 45th Annual Blues Music Awards that took place May 9 in Memphis.

Guitarist Christone “Kingfish” Ingram was the night’s biggest winner, taking home four awards, including “Album of the Year” for Live In London. Mike Zito, Bobby Rush, Ruthie Foster and John Primer also garnered multiple awards. Congratulations to all this year’s winners!

Doug MacLeod performs during the 45th annual Blues Music —photo by Roger Stephenson.

2025 Blues Music Awards Winners

B.B. King Entertainer of the Year
Mr. Sipp (Castro Coleman)

Album of the Year
Blame It On Eve, Shemekia Copeland

Band of the Year
Rick Estrin and The Nightcats

Song of the Year
“Blues In My DNA,” Written by Ronnie Baker Brooks

Best Emerging Artist Album
Revelation, Piper & The Hard Times

Acoustic Blues Album
One Guitar Woman, Sue Foley

Blues Rock Album
Life is Hard, Mike Zito

Contemporary Blues Album
Blues In My DNA, Ronnie Baker Brooks

Soul Blues Album
Fine By Me, Curtis Salgado

Traditional Blues Album
Crawlin’ ‘Kingsnake, John Primer & Bob Corritore

Acoustic Blues Artist
Keb’ Mo’

Blues Rock Artist
Tommy Castro

Contemporary Blues Female Artist
Ruthie Foster

Contemporary Blues Male Artist
Ronnie Baker Brooks

Soul Blues Female Artist
Thornetta Davis

Soul Blues Male Artist
Curtis Salgado

Traditional Blues Female Artist(Koko Taylor Award)
Sue Foley

Traditional Blues Male Artist
John Primer

Instrumentalist – Bass
Bob Stroger

Instrumentalist – Drums
Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith

Instrumentalist – Guitar
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram

Instrumentalist – Harmonica
Billy Branch

Instrumentalist – Horn
Vanessa Collier

Instrumentalist – Piano(Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Award)
Eden Brent

Instrumentalist – Vocals
Ruthie Foster

BMA winner Ruthie Foster receives her award for Instrumentalist- Vocals during the 45th Blues Music Awards—photo by Roger Stephenson.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE INTERNATIONAL BLUES CHALLENGE’S TOP SELECTIONS FOR 2026!

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French Band The Wacky Jugs Win the IBCs Band Division

Phoenix Artist Eric Ramsey Triumphs in the Solo/Duo Division

THE WACKY JUGS
©Roger Stephenson

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — One act came from France and the other from Phoenix, but they both proved to be outstanding at this year’s International Blues Challenge finals, which took place May 9th in Memphis’ historic Orpheum Theatre.

The Wacky Jugs, representing France Blues, left Memphis with a first-place finish in the Band Division, while T.C. Carter took home the Gibson Guitar Award for Best Band Guitarist (Piedmont Blues Preservation Society.) Eric Ramsey from the Phoenix Blues Society triumphed in the Solo/Duo Division and also took home the Memphis Cigar Box Guitar Award.

Jhett Black from The San Angelo Blues Society picked up the Lee Oskar Harmonica Award for the Best Harmonica Player and also came in second place in the solo/duo division. Winning the Best Self-Produced CD was Memphis Lightning for their album, Borrowed Time.

Receiving recognition too at this year’s IBC Awards in the Band Division was Cros (Phoenix Blues Society), capturing 2nd place, and coming in third was Soul Nite featuring D.K. Harrell (Mississippi Delta Blues Society of Indianola).

New President and CEO, Judith Black effused, “It’s been a great return for the IBC. Congratulations to all of the winners and everyone who competed. We hope that this year’s IBC was the launch of many amazing blues artists’ careers.”

ERIC RAMSEY
©Roger Stephenson

While the Challenge served as a centerpiece of IBC Week, The Blues Foundation also presented a varied line-up of unique events. This year’s recipients of the Foundation’s highly esteemed Keeping the Blues Alive Awards were celebrated at a special ceremony. Other highlights included screenings of the documentaries, Blues Trail Revisited, and Blues on Beale, the Jérôme Brunet Into the Light photography exhibit, and the IBC Silent Auction.

On Thursday, May 5th, The Blues Foundation presented its other signature event, the Blues Music Awards. The winners for the 43rd annual BMAs can be found at Blues.org.

The International Blues Challenge is sponsored by Americana Music Association, ArtsMemphis, Blues Festival Guide, Blues Matters, BMI, Canadian Consulate, European Blues Union, Folk Alliance International, Hohner Harmonica, Lancit Digital Media, Lansky Bros., Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, Living Blues, Memphis Airport Authority, Memphis Music Hall of Fame, Memphis Tourism, Rock n’ Soul Museum, Silky O’Sullivan’s, Ted Reed Productions, and the TN Arts Commission.

The Blues Foundation is a world-renowned Memphis-based organization whose mission is to preserve blues heritage, celebrate blues recording and performance, expand worldwide awareness of the blues, and ensure the future of this uniquely American art form. Founded in 1980, the Foundation has approximately 4,000 individual members and 173 affiliated blues societies representing another 50,000 fans and professionals worldwide. Its signature honors and events — the Blues Music Awards, Blues Hall of Fame inductions, International Blues Challenge, and Keeping the Blues Alive Awards — make it the international hub of blues music. Its HART Fund provides the blues community with medical assistance for musicians in need, while Blues in the Schools programs and Generation Blues Scholarships expose new generations to blues music. The Blues Hall of Fame Museum, located in Downtown Memphis, adds the opportunity for blues lovers of all ages to interact with blues music and history. Throughout the year, the Foundation staff serves the global blues community with answers, information, and news.

T.C. CARTER
©Roger Stephenson

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BLUES MUSIC AWARDS 2022 WINNERS
ANNOUNCED AT FIRST IN-PERSON BMA EVENT SINCE 2019

Tommy Castro is the big winner with three awards
with multiple honors going to Sue Foley & Christone “Kingfish” Ingram

MEMPHIS, Tenn. —The Renasant Convention Center was packed with blues musicians, fans, and music-world luminaries on May 5th, anxious to see who would be the winners at the 43rd Annual Blues Music Awards. Besides awarding honors in 25 categories, the BMAs, as is its tradition, featured performances from many nominees, with the gala ending in a jubilant all-star jam.

Tommy Castro was the evening’s top award winner, earning three BMAs, first for the B.B. King Entertainer of the Year (which he won previously in 2010 and 2008) and for Album of the Year for Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came to Town, and lastly for taking home the honors for Band of the Year with his band, Tommy Castro & The Painkillers.

This year, Sue Foley was one of the two double winners, capturing Traditional Blues Album for the first time and winning Traditional Blues Female Artist – Koko Taylor Award, repeating her 2020 win. Fresh off his Grammy win, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram took home Contemporary Blues Male Artist for the third consecutive year. He was also awarded Contemporary Blues Album, which he previously won a BMA for in 2020. 

Song of the Year was awarded for the first time to Selwyn Birchwood with “I’d Climb Mountains,” which he also recorded. Making their BMA debut for Best Emerging Artist Album was Rodd Bland & The Members Only Band for LIVE ON BEALE STREET: A Tribute to Bobby “Blue” Bland.

Tommy Castro

Photo credit: Andrea Zucker

Retaining their titles were seven-time BMA winners Keb’ Mo for Acoustic Blues Artist and Curtis Salgado for Soul Blues Male, Danielle Nicole won Instrumentalist Bass. Jimmy Carpenter captured Instrumentalist – Horn and, Mike Zito claimed the Blues Rock Album with Ressurection.

Re-gaining their BMA crowns were Eric Bibb for Acoustic Blues Album, Albert Castiglia for Blues Rock Artist, Annika Chambers for Soul Blues Female, and Jason Ricci for Instrumentalist – Harmonica.

Winners of multiple BMA Awards making their debut in a category were Taj Mahal for Traditional Blues Male Artist, Tom Hambridge for Instrumentalist – Drums, and Eric Gales for Instrumentalist – Guitar. In addition, Mike Finnegan won Instrumentalist – Piano (Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Award), and John Nemeth took home Instrumentalist – Vocals. Lastly, Zac Harmon was awarded Soul Blues Album for Long As I Got My Guitar.

Sue Foley

Photo credit: Andrea Zucker

2022 Blues Music Awards Winners

B.B. King Entertainer of the Year
Tommy Castro

Album of the Year
Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came To Town, Tommy Castro

Band of the Year
Tommy Castro & The Painkillers

Song of the Year
“I’d Climb Mountains”, written & performed by Selwyn Birchwood

Best Emerging Artist Album
Live On Beale Street: A Tribute To Bobby “Blue” Bland, Rodd Bland and the Members Only Band

Acoustic Blues Album
Dear America, Eric Bibb

Blues Rock Album
Resurrection, Mike Zito

Contemporary Blues Album
662, Kingfish

Soul Blues Album
Long As I Got My Guitar, Zac Harmon

Traditional Blues Album
Pinky’s Blues, Sue Foley

Acoustic Blues Artist
Keb’ Mo’

Blues Rock Artist
Albert Castiglia

Contemporary Blues Female Artist
Vanessa Collier

Contemporary Blues Male Artist
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram

Soul Blues Female Artist
Annika Chambers

Soul Blues Male Artist
Curtis Salgado

Traditional Blues Female Artist(Koko Taylor Award)
Sue Foley

Traditional Blues Male Artist
Taj Mahal

Instrumentalist – Bass
Danielle Nicole

Instrumentalist – Drums
Tom Hambridge

Instrumentalist – Guitar
Eric Gales

Instrumentalist – Harmonica
Jason Ricci

Instrumentalist – Horn
Jimmy Carpenter

Instrumentalist – Piano(Pinetop Perkins Piano Player Award)
Mike Finnigan

Instrumentalist – Vocals
John Németh

Rodd Bland and Jimmy Carpenter

Photo credit: Andrea Zucker

The Blues Music Awards represented just one of the many highlights of the Blues Foundation’s exciting Blues Music Week, kicking off on May 4th with its Blues Hall of Fame induction ceremony. The BHOF inductees included pre-war performer and songwriter Lucille Bogan, the soul, blues, rock ‘n’ roll star Little Willie John, renowned songwriter, artist Johnnie Taylor, and legendary songwriter Otis Blackwell.

Classic recordings that the Blues Hall of Fame honored this year were Sonny Boy Williamson II’s “Eyesight to the Blind,” Bobby “Blue” Bland’s “Farther Up the Road,” Roy Brown’s “Good Rocking Tonight,” B.B. King’s “Rock Me Baby,” “Rollin’ and Tumblin’” by the Baby Face Leroy Trio as well as Bo Diddley’sclassic album, Bo Diddley. This year’s non-performing inductee was Mary Katherine Aldin, who worked as an editor, disc jockey, compiler, and annotator of blues and folk reissue albums. The Classic of Blues Literature entrant was Red River Blues: The Blues Tradition in the Southeast, written by British author Bruce Bastin.

Judith Black, President and CEO of The Blues Foundation, effused: “What an amazing reunion after nearly three years of separation. It was an awards evening filled with awesome music, wonderful fellowshipping, and exciting honors. It was apparent everywhere you looked that people were thrilled to be back and, I am sure they could tell we were ecstatic to welcome everyone back.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 17, 2022

LUCILLE BOGAN, LITTLE WILLIE JOHN, JOHNNIE TAYLOR, OTIS BLACKWELL, AND MARY KATHERINE ALDIN WILL BE CELEBRATED  AS NEW BLUES HALL OF FAMERS ON MAY 4, 2022

Landmark recordings by: 
Bobby “Blue” Bland, Roy Brown, Bo Diddley, B.B. King,
Baby Face Leroy Trio, and Sonny Boy Williamson II

To receive Hall of Fame recognition at The Blues Foundation’s ceremony in Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The 12 honorees of The Blues Foundation’s Blues Hall of Fame’s 42nd class encompass over 70 years of music, spanning from Lucille Bogan in the 1920s & 1930s, Little Willie John in the 1950s & 1960s, and Johnnie Taylor from the 1950s through the 1990s. This year’s inductees in the Blues Hall of Fame’s five categories — Performers, Individuals, Classics of Blues Literature, Classics of Blues Recording (Single), and Classics of Blues Recording (Album) — demonstrate how the blues intersects with a wide variety of American music styles: soul, blues, R&B, and rock’ n’ roll.

The new Blues Hall of Fame performers aren’t just exceptional musicians, but they also are educators, innovators, entrepreneurs, and activists determined to leave their mark on the world.

Lucille Bogan recorded some of the most memorable songs of the pre-World War II era, recording from 1923-1935 for Okeh, Paramount, Brunswick, Banner, Melotone, and other labels. Her songs were covered by B.B. King, John Lee “Sonny Boy” Williamson, Jimmy Rogers, Memphis Minnie, and others, ​but she became more well known for the controversial themes her music embodied. Little Willie John was a soul, blues, and rock ‘n’ roll star whose meteoric rise and tragic fall ended when at age 30 he died in prison. Labeled as a “singer’s singer” by none other than B.B. King, this blues and ballad vocalist extraordinaire had his first national hit while still a teenager. Ten of his records crossed over to the pop charts, which landed him three appearances on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand. Johnnie Taylor spent his early years as a solo performer singing gospel, although his first recording was as a member of the doo-wop group, The Five Echoes. ​While signed to Stax from 1966-1974, he recorded his breakthrough single “Who’s Making Love.” His next biggest hit came with the 1976 platinum-selling “Disco Lady.” Later, Taylor took his gospel-influenced blues, soul, and funk to Malaco, where he found a new home for his music until the end. 

While he never met Elvis Presley, Otis Blackwell is best known for writing Presley’s massive hits, “Don’t Be Cruel,” “All Shook Up,” and “Return To Sender.” He’s also credited as writing “Breathless” and “Great Balls of Fire” for Jerry Lee Lewis as well as the Little Willie John/Peggy Lee hit, “Fever.” He recorded for RCA Victor, the Jay-Dee label, and others but avoided the limelight finding his niche in songwriting. Mary Katherine Aldin has spent the past 60 years behind the scenes in the blues and folk music worlds, as a voice on the radio and as compiler or annotator of blues and folk reissue albums for Rhino, Vanguard, MCA/Chess, Columbia, and other labels. She was nominated for a GRAMMY® for her liner notes for The Chess Box by Muddy Waters. Aldin also served in various editorial positions at Living Blues, Blues & Rhythm, and others and secured publishing rights for artists at Folklore Productions. She was inducted into the Folk DJ Hall of Fame in 2018 and is still broadcasting for KPFK’s “Roots Music & Beyond.” 

Bo Diddley’s Bo Diddley is 2022’s Classic of Blues Recording: Album, which compiled 12 of his groundbreaking singles on Chess Records’ Checker subsidiary. There are five Classic of Blues Recording: Singles receiving Hall of Fame induction: Sonny Boy Williamson II’s 1951 single “Eyesight to the Blind” the first release by the master harmonica player and singer, Bobby “Blue” Bland’s 1957 hit “Farther Up the Road,” Roy Brown’s 1947 release “Good Rocking Tonight” hit No. 1 on the R&B charts when covered by Wynonie Harris, B.B. King’s “Rock Me Baby” released in 1964 was one of his biggest hits on the Billboard pop charts, and the exuberant “Rollin’ and Tumblin’” released in 1950 by the Baby Face Leroy Trio.

Entering the Blues Hall of Fame as a Classic of Blues Literature is Red River Blues​: The Blues Tradition in the Southeast, written by British author Bruce Bastin and hailed as an acclaimed work of blues scholarship.

Due to the global shutdown in 2020 that forced The Blues Foundation to cancel in-person fundraisers, the celebration of the 2020 Blues Hall of Fame Inductees will officially take place along with the 2022 ceremony. Honorees include Billy Branch, Eddie Boyd, Syl Johnson, Bettye LaVette, George “Harmonica” Smith, Victoria Spivey, Ralph Peer, and more. Read the original 2020 press release here.  

Bo Diddley’s Bo Diddley is 2022’s Classic of Blues Recording: Album, which compiled 12 of his groundbreaking singles on Chess Records’ Checker subsidiary. There are five Classic of Blues Recording: Singles receiving Hall of Fame induction: Sonny Boy Williamson II’s 1951 single “Eyesight to the Blind”was the first release by the master harmonica player and singer, Bobby “Blue” Bland’s 1957 hit “Farther Up the Road,” Roy Brown’s 1947 release “Good Rocking Tonight” which hit No. 1 on the R&B charts when covered by Wynonie Harris, B.B. King’s “Rock Me Baby” recorded in 1947 was one of his biggest hits on the Billboard pop charts, and the exuberant “Rollin’ and Tumblin’” released in 1950 by the Baby Face Leroy Trio.

Entering the Blues Hall of Fame as a Classic of Blues Literature is Red Rover Blues, written by British author Bruce Bastin and is the definitive study of traditional blues from the Southeastern United States.

The Blues Foundation’s 2022 Blues Hall of Fame Inductees

Performers

Lucille Bogan recorded some of the most memorable blues songs of the pre-World War II era, including some that were landmarks in blues and some that continue to sensationalize her reputation decades after her death. She was the first African-American singer to record blues at a session outside of New York or Chicago when she sang at sessions for OKeh Records set up in a warehouse in Atlanta in 1923, and several of her records were later covered or adapted by various artists who preceded her into the Blues Hall of Fame. But by far the predominant association now made with Bogan is the lewdness of two unexpurgated songs she recorded in 1935 that were not intended for public release. 

Sexual references were common in blues recording but the proprieties of the day called for them to be disguised in double entendre form. Bogan made a number of those, but presumably, for the entertainment of the recording staff and friends, she used explicit language in “Till the Cows Come Home” and an alternate take of “Shave ’Em Dry” that makes most hardcore rap lyrics seem tame. Though these were “private” recordings, bootleg pressings made their way into circulation and eventually were transferred to legitimate albums in more permissive modern times.

Bogan, however, had already long been a favorite among blues collectors and historians for the depth of her talent and recorded repertoire, and was a significant artist in the blues market of the 1920s and ‘30s. She lacked the name recognition of some of her contemporaries because most of her records were released under the pseudonym, Bessie Jackson.

Some of her songs embodied controversial themes including prostitution, lesbianism, and—since most were recorded during prohibition—drinking. Some veteran researchers doubt that she lived the rough street life she sometimes sang about, but her lyrics did reflect a familiarity with the underside of polite society. Bogan’s 1923-1935 recordings for OKeh, Paramount, Brunswick, Banner, Melotone, and other labels featured various notable accompanists including Will Ezell, Tampa Red, and Walter Roland. Among her influential records that survived via later artists were the first version of “Black Angel Blues” (later recorded by Tampa Red and Robert Nighthawk, and by B.B. King as “Sweet Little Angel”), “Sloppy Drunk Blues” (Leroy Carr, John Lee “Sonny Boy” Williamson, Jimmy Rogers, and others), and “Tricks Ain’t Walking No More” (Memphis Minnie).  

Railroad references also cropped up in her songs, not surprisingly since her father, brother, and husband all worked for the railroad in Birmingham, Alabama, or Amory, Mississippi. Both towns have been purported as her birthplace (as Lucille or Lucile Anderson on April 1, 1897). Misinformation and speculation on her life is rampant on the internet, where Amory is most often cited. She and other relatives did live in Amory at times, but most census entries indicate Alabama, and Bogan herself gave Birmingham as the site on her Social Security application. She returned to the Birmingham area in between stays in Amory, Chicago, and elsewhere. Her brother Thomas “Big Music” Anderson was a musician, as was her son Nazareth Bogan Jr., whose group Bogan’s Birmingham Busters she reportedly managed. A few months before her death on August 10, 1948, she had moved to Los Angeles and kept a hand in the music business, as a song posthumously crediting her as writer appeared on a record on the L.A.-based Specialty label by bluesman Smokey Hogg. 

The meteoric rise and tragic fall of William Edward “Little Willie” John, who died in prison at the age of 30, is one of the most dramatic chapters in rhythm & blues history. A “singer’s singer” in the words of some (including one of his early inspirations, B.B. King), John was a pioneer of soul music, a rock ‘n’ roll star, and a blues and ballad vocalist extraordinaire who burst on the national scene as a teenager with the hit “All Around the World” in 1955. Born in Cullendale, Arkansas, on November 15, 1937, John grew up in Detroit, singing with his family’s gospel group (including sister Mable John, who also became a blues and soul singer) before he started sneaking out to nightclubs and theaters. He cut his first record, a Christmas single, for the local Prize label, in 1953. “All Around the World” (later recorded by Little Milton as “Grits Ain’t Groceries”) was the first song he waxed for King Records and was followed by 16 more R&B chart hits for the label over the next six years, including “Need Your Love So Bad,” “Talk to Me, Talk to Me,” “Heartbreak,” “Take My Love,” and, most famously, the original version of “Fever.” Ten of his records also crossed over to the pop charts, and John rode the wave of success headlining shows across the country and appearing three times on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand.

Small (five feet four and 126 pounds, according to his biography by Susan Whitall and John’s son Kevin) and boyish in appearance, John was a sharply attired and exciting showstopper, recalled by fellow singers as mischievous, fun-loving, and generous. But offstage troubles, drinking, and drugs took a toll on his career and lifestyle. An altercation at an after-hours party in Seattle in 1964 led to a manslaughter conviction, and he died on May 26, 1968, at Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla. The official cause of death was cited as a heart attack, but other sources said John—who suffered from epilepsy—had contracted tuberculosis and some suspected he died from an assault in prison. James Brown, both a friend and rival, later recorded an album, Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things, and was one of many who have sung his praises and recorded his songs over the years. John was elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. The Susan Whitall-Kevin John biography is aptly titled Fever: Little Willie John—A Fast Life, Mysterious Death and the Birth of Soul.

Johnnie Taylor liked to emphasize that he could sing more than blues, as indeed he amply proved when performing gospel and soul, but among African-American audiences, he reigned as the top headliner of his era at blues events. Famed for his 1976 hit “Disco Lady,” Taylor set sales records for several labels and had more than three dozen hits on the national charts.  

Gospel was Taylor’s forte in his early years, although he first recorded as a member of a doo-wop group, the Five Echoes, in 1954, in Chicago. Born on May 5, 1934, in Crawfordsville, Arkansas, Taylor was raised in West Memphis and Kansas City, where he sang gospel with the Melody Kings before he moved to Chicago. There he sang lead on most of the first songs recorded by the Highway Q-C’s gospel group in 1955-56 for the Vee-Jay label, and similarly took the lead role when he replaced Sam Cooke in the Soul Stirrers on their 1958-59 records for the Specialty imprint. Taylor became an ordained minister but followed Cooke into the secular world of rhythm & blues, cutting a series of records for Cooke’s SAR and Derby labels including “Rome (Wasn’t Built in a Day).” After Cooke’s death in 1964, Taylor, back in Kansas City with an uncertain future as an entertainer, enrolled in college. His career soon took an upturn when he signed with Stax Records in Memphis.  

While he once sounded much like Sam Cooke, Taylor developed a more identifiable style incorporating gospel-influenced blues, soul, and funk during his tenure with Stax from 1966 to 1974. The company touted his 1968 hit “Who’s Makin’ Love” as “the fastest-selling single in the history of Stax Records,” and Taylor kicked his touring activity into high gear displaying a mix of polish and grit while continuing to hit the charts with his Stax recordings. In 1976 Taylor’s chart success peaked with “Disco Lady” on the Columbia label. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) instituted its platinum record category, symbolizing sales of a million units, that year, and the first platinum single award went to “Disco Lady.” By then residing in Dallas, Taylor hosted a local radio show and traveled to studios around the country to record for Columbia, but sales tailed off. He only truly his stride again when he began recording for Malaco Records of Jackson, Mississippi, the flagship of soul-blues labels where he likened the atmosphere to that at Stax. With two heart attacks a drug rehabilitation stint behind him, he recorded and toured as the top star of the “chitlin’ circuit,” purveying a mix of Southern soul and blues. His “Last Two Dollars,” “Still Called the Blues,” and “Wall to Wall” were among the favorites of blues followers. His Good Love album eclipsed Z.Z. Hill’s classic Down Home as Malaco’s best seller. Malaco owners Tommy Couch Sr. and Wolf Stephenson had decided to sign Taylor after hearing him sing at Hill’s funeral in Dallas. He also sang at the funeral of Little Willie John, among others. Taylor was honored with a Pioneer Award by the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1996. 

Taylor, a Malaco artist until the end, succumbed to a heart attack on May 31, 2000, in Dallas. Among his children, he left several who carried on his music, including Floyd Taylor and Johnnie Taylor, Jr., who have both since passed on, T.J. Hooker Taylor in Kansas City, and Jon and Tasha Taylor in Los Angeles. The late Little Johnny Taylor, who recorded the Blues Hall of Fame single “Part Time Love,” was often confused with Johnnie Taylor, but the two were not related. 

Individuals – Business, Production, Media, & Academic

Mary Katherine Aldin began six decades of service to the music world when she worked at the Ash Grove, the legendary Los Angeles folk club, not long after she moved from New York in 1962. The first in a series of radio shows soon followed and she is still broadcasting on KPFK’s “Roots Music & Beyond” following long tenures on “Preaching the Blues” and “Alive and Pickin’,” which earned her entry into the Folk DJ Hall of Fame in 2018. While working at a record store specializing in blues, she began annotating and compiling albums for Rhino Records and has since worked on blues, folk, bluegrass, and country reissues albums for Rhino, Vanguard, MCA/Chess, Columbia, Decca, Mercury, Smithsonian Folkways, Hightone, and other labels. Her notes to The Chess Box by Muddy Waters were nominated for a GRAMMY. Her writings include chapters in Nothing But the Blues and other books, and she once served as associate editor of Living Blues magazine and U.S. editor of the British periodical Blues & Rhythm: The Gospel Truth, in addition to publishing a Blues Magazine Selective Index and contributing photos to various publications and record companies.

For 25 years Aldin worked for Folklore Productions, where her duties included securing publishing rights for the traditional artists the agency represented. A co-founder of the Southern California Blues Society, she served as a festival MC and organized fundraising benefits. Along with the way, Aldin developed friendships not only with Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, Big Joe Turner, Pee Wee Crayton, Long Gone Miles, George “Harmonica” Smith, Roy Brown, and others but also with many of their wives and children, who knew they could call on her for help if they needed to arrange or pay for funerals. Many archival materials from her historic body of work are now housed at the University of North Carolina and the University of Mississippi. Always intent on shining the spotlight on the music and performers and not on herself, one of her mottos has been “It’s the work, not the worker.” 

Otis Blackwell was a struggling blues singer in New York City when he struck gold on a different path—writing songs for others to sing, and in particular, Elvis Presley. A fortunate meeting with a music publisher led Blackwell to submit a demo of his song “Don’t Be Cruel,” and Elvis—singing it much like Blackwell—made it into a No. 1 single for RCA Victor in 1956. Many other hits, written wholly or in part by Blackwell, were to follow, including “All Shook Up,” “Paralyzed” and “Return To Sender” for Elvis, “Breathless” and “Great Balls of Fire” for Jerry Lee Lewis, “Hey Little Girl” and “Just Keep It Up” for Dee Clark, and “Handy Man” for Jimmy Jones. Because of a conflicting contract with another publisher, Blackwell also wrote songs under his stepfather John Davenport’s name, most notably the Little Willie John/Peggy Lee hit “Fever.” His catalog at Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI, the music rights organization that collects royalties for songwriters and publishers), numbers over 400 songs and he claimed to have written over 1000. 

Blackwell was born in Brooklyn on February 16, 1932 (although other dates are sometimes cited) and began singing and dancing in local bars in his youth. He recalled that many songs he wrote were based on piano boogies and shuffles he devised. Blackwell began recording for RCA Victor in 1952 and for various labels thereafter. “Daddy Rollin’ Stone” on the Jay-Dee label was the best known of his records but none of them reached the national charts.  

Finding his niche as a songwriter and less enamored with performing, he tended to avoid the limelight–so much so that he never even met Presley or many other singers who recorded his songs. “We had just a great thing going and I just wanted to leave it alone,” Blackwell later said. “I just wanted to keep writing and let him do the singing.” 

Blackwell enjoyed a moment of fame when he sang “Don’t Be Cruel” on Late Night with David Letterman in 1984, and, capitalizing on the interest his songwriting reputation had generated, he began performing again in later years with a repertoire of his compositions made famous by the stars. A Brooklyn resident most of his life, he lived his final years in Nashville, where he died on May 6, 2002. 

Classic of Blues Literature

Red River Blues: The Blues Tradition in the Southeast was hailed as the definitive study of traditional blues from the Southeastern states when it was published in 1986, and it remains so today thanks to the thoroughness of author Bruce Bastin’s research. Bastin, an Englishman who earned a folklore degree at the University of North Carolina and co-founded the prolific Flyright record label in the U.K., covered all the seminal recording artists who emerged from the area as well as many who never recorded and were known only to local audiences. The biographies, data from record companies, census reports, sociological studies of various communities, and contributions of fellow researchers including Pete Lowry and Kip Lornell render this a densely packed volume, one of special interest to fans of Blind Boy Fuller, Reverend Gary Davis, Brownie McGhee, Sonny Terry, Blind Willie McTell, Josh White, Blind Blake and others who helped define the acoustic blues sound of the Carolinas, Virginia, Georgia and the surrounding areas.

(University of Illinois Press, 1986) 

Classic of Blues Recording – Album

Bo Diddley was the stage name of Ellas McDaniel and the title of both his debut single and this, his first LP, which compiled 12 sides from the groundbreaking singles on Chess Records’ Checker subsidiary that made him a one-of-a-kind rock ‘n’ roll icon. Along with the “Bo Diddley beat” rockers are blues (including the original version of “I’m a Man”) and brash and boastful novelties from the fertile Diddley mind. Several of the 1955-58 sessions represented on the LP feature Bo with a cast of stellar Chicago bluesmen including Willie Dixon, Jody Williams, and Billy Boy Arnold.

(Chess/Checker, 1958)

Classics of Blues Recording – Singles

Rock fans may recognize “Eyesight to the Blind” as the only song from The Who’s rock opera Tommy that was not written by the band. This paean to a woman who could bring eyesight to the blind and heal the deaf and dumb came from Sonny Boy Williamson No. 2 (aka “Rice” Miller among many other names), who recorded it as an evocative blues piece for the Trumpet label in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1951. It was, in fact, the first record released by the master harmonica player and singer, and one of many to feature his poetic lyrical talents. Accompanying him on the session were guitarists Elmore James and Joe Willie Wilkins, pianist Willie Love, and drummer Joe Dyson.

(Trumpet, 1951)

Though famed for soft, romantic blues ballads, Bobby “Blue” Bland could wail hard-hitting blues, too, as he did in 1957 with the Bill Harvey Orchestra on “Farther Up the Road.” Guitarist Pat Hare’s menacing fills and sizzling solo push the intensity even higher. The song was copyrighted by Joe Medwick Veasey and Duke Records owner Don D. Robey as “Further On Up the Road,” which is the way Bland sings it. Joe Medwick, who dropped the Veasey from his stage name, later recorded as a singer for Duke and other labels in Texas.

(Duke, 1957)

A contender for the title of first rock ‘n’ roll record—or at least one that paved the way to rock, “Good Rocking Tonight” was a product of Cosimo Matassa’s legendary New Orleans studio where blues shouter Roy Brown and Bob Ogden’s Orchestra recorded in July 1947. DeLuxe Records released it as a single with some success but it was a cover version by Wynonie Harris on the King label that went to No. 1 on the R&B—or, as it was known then, “Race Music”—charts in 1948. Brown was still able to make it part of his trademark jump-blues sound and generated more sales with lively followups such as “Rockin’ at Midnight.” Elvis Presley’s 1954 Sun version introduced new listeners to the song, which has since been recorded by many blues, R&B, and rock singers.

(DeLuxe, 1947)

Many blues have been recorded on the “rock me” theme, but it was B.B. King’s 1964 single that climbed the charts and solidified the song as a standard in the blues canon. King’s other hits featured larger combos or orchestras, but only a trio played on this staunch, straight-ahead blues. It was one of his biggest hits on the Billboard pop charts and made both the R&B and pop charts in the rival trade magazine Cash Box. Kent Records’ documentation of sessions was scanty, with no recording date to be verified, but it was released in 1964 while King was under contract to ABC Records. Sources at Ace Records, the U.K. company that acquired Kent and other labels owned by the Bihari brothers of Los Angeles, have speculated that “Rock Me Baby” and others may have been the products of “midnight sessions” King recorded under the ABC radar.

(Kent, c. 1964)

Few records can match the raw exuberance of the Baby Face Leroy Trio’s two-part “Rollin’ and Tumblin’ ” on Parkway, a small and short–lived Chicago label. Muddy Waters and Little Walter join singer-drummer Leroy Foster on this rambunctious 1950 rendition of an old Hambone Willie Newbern tune. Part 2 has no verses at all—just a mélange of the trio’s moans, hums and yelps. When Leonard Chess heard the record, he had Muddy cut his own two-part version on Aristocrat, the label that preceded Chess Records. Muddy added more verses and delivered the goods but his record not did have the wild abandon of the original. When Little Walter’s fame later rocketed as a solo artist, the Herald label reissued Part 2 of the Parkway single as a Little Walter record, “Rollin’ Blues.”

(Parkway, 1950)

KEB’ MO’, TOMMY CASTRO, TOM HAMBRIDGE, CHRIS CAIN, SUGARAY RAYFORD, ERIC GALES, ARE AMONG THE  DISTINGUISHED, DIVERSE GROUP OF NOMINEES  TO BE CELEBRATED AT THE 43RD ANNUAL BLUES MUSIC AWARDS 

The Blues Foundation will reveal the winners at its Gala Ceremony in Memphis on May 5
Blues Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony May 4

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — An impressive assembly of blues music masters, ranging from Blues Hall of Famers to rising stars, will gather in Memphis on Thursday, May 5th, for the 43rd Annual Blues Music Awards. Presented by The Blues Foundation, the BMAs honor the past year’s exceptional achievements in blues music recording, performance, and songwriting, as well as supporting the blues rich cultural traditions. This celebratory evening is recognized internationally as the blues world’s premier event brings nominees to town and many on stage to perform.
 
The event takes place at Memphis’ Renasant Convention Center, (255 North Main Street), where a Blue Carpet will lead to the theater. The Blue Carpet pre-show commences at 5pm. Tickets range from individual seats for $150 to Premium tables (seats 10) for $1800. Ticket sales are now open and can be purchased by clicking here.

Topping the list of talented BMA contenders is Tommy Castro, with five nominations, B.B. King Entertainer of the Year, Album of the Year, Band of the Year (with The Painkillers), Contemporary Blues Album, and Blues Rock Artist. Castro previously won Band of the Year (2010), B.B. King Entertainer of the Year (2008 & 2010), was a two-time winner for Contemporary Blues Album (2010, 2008), as well as winning Contemporary Blues Male Artist (2010). This is Castro’s fourth nomination for the B.B. King Entertainer of the Year award and his first nomination for Album of the Year.
 
And behind Tommy Castro in the nomination count is Tom Hambridge and Chris Cain, each receiving four nominations. Hambridge is up for Instrumentalist – Guitar, and has three entries for Song of the Year, a win he previously captured with a track co-written with Buddy Guy. Finishing the quadruplet nominations is Cain, with nods in both Contemporary categories (Male Artist and Blues Album). Further, this is Cain’s third nomination for Instrumental – Guitar and first nomination for Album of the Year (Raisin’ Cain).
 
Some of the past winners hoping to reclaim awards are Sugaray Rayford (B.B. King Entertainer of the Year), Eric Bibb (Acoustic Blues Artist), Mike Zito (Blues Rock Album), Kingfish (Contemporary Blues Album), Keb’ Mo’ (Acoustic Blues Artist), Ruthie Foster (Contemporary Blues Female Artist), Kim Wilson (Instrument – Harmonica), Danielle Nicole (Instrumentalist – Bass), and Kenny Neal (Contemporary Blues Male Artist).
 
Mike Finnigan, who passed away last August, was posthumously nominated for the Pinetop Perkins Player Award (Instrumentalist – Piano). In addition, Wee Willie Walker & The Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra have been nominated for Album of the Year and Soul Blues Album for Not In My Lifetime. Walker passed in 2019 just three days after finishing the album’s recording session.
 
The International Blues Challenge (IBC), taking place this year from May 6-9, has proved to be a fertile breeding ground for up-and-coming blues artists. Previous IBC winners nominated for this year’s Blues Music Awards include Altered Five Blues Band, Selwyn Birchwood, Eden Brent, Kevin Burt, Zac Harmon, Diunna Greenleaf, Dave Keller, Dave Keyes, Mr. Sipp, J.P. Soars, Gabe Stillman, GA-20’s Matt Stubbs, and Jontavious Willis. Freshman BMA nominees who once competed as IBC Solo/Duo Challengers are Veronica Lewis and Memphissippi Sounds. Lewis is also the youngest nominee this year at just 18 years old. 

The night before the BMAs, The Blues Foundation’s Blues Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony takes place Wednesday, May 4, 2022, at Memphis’ Halloran Centre at the Orpheum (225 South Main Street). Following a 5:30pm cocktail reception, the inductions begin at the Halloran Theater. Tickets, which include ceremony and reception admission, begin at $75 each and, as with any other musical event or charitable donation, they are non-refundable. The 2022 class of inductees will be announced in the coming weeks.
 
The complete list of Blues Music Award nominees can be found below. The ballot will be open for voting to current Blues Foundation members only until 11:59 pm CST on Friday, March 18th. To become a Blues Foundation member, visit www.blues.org. Upon membership confirmation, new and renewing members will be sent instructions on how to access the 2022 Blues Music Awards Ballot. 
 
Major funding for the 43^rd Blues Music Awards is provided by ArtsMemphis, Tennessee Arts Commission, and Memphis Tourism. Special thanks to partners Memphis Airport Authority and DittyTV.

B.B. King Entertainer of the Year
Tommy Castro
Eric Gales
Mr. Sipp
J.P. Soars
Sugaray Rayford

Album of the Year
Holler If You Hear Me, Altered Five Blues Band
Not In My Lifetime, Wee Willie Walker & The Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra
Pinky’s Blues, Sue Foley
Raisin’ Cain, Chris Cain
Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came To Town, Tommy Castro

Band of the Year
Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra
J.P. Soars and the Red Hots
Lil’ Ed & the Blues Imperials
Sugaray Rayford Band
Tommy Castro & The Painkillers

Song of the Year
“Fragile Peace and Certain War”, written and performed by Carolyn Wonderland
“Holler If You Hear Me”, written by Jeff Schroedl & Mark Solveson
(performed by Altered Five Blues Band)
“I’d Climb Mountains”, written & performed by Selwyn Birchwood
“Real Good Lie”, written by Christine Vitale, Larry Batiste, Anthony Paule
(performed by Wee Willie Walker & The Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra)
“Somewhere”, written by Tommy Castro & Tom Hambridge
(performed by Tommy Castro & The Painkillers)

Best Emerging Artist Album
GA-20 Does Hound Dog Taylor: Try It… You Might Like It!, GA-20
Just Say The Word, Gabe Stillman
Live On Beale Street: A Tribute To Bobby “Blue” Bland, Rodd Bland and the Members Only Band
Welcome To The Land, Memphissippi Sounds
You Ain’t Unlucky, Veronica Lewis

Acoustic Blues Album
Dear America, Eric Bibb
Land of the Sky, Catfish Keith
Let’s Get Happy Together, Maria Muldaur
Let Loose These Chains, Hector Anchondo
The Trio Sessions, EG Kight
 
Blues Rock Album
Alafia Moon, Damon Fowler
Dance Songs For Hard Times, The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band
Resurrection, Mike Zito
Tinfoil Hat, Popa Chubby
Unemployed Highly Annoyed, Jeremiah Johnson

Contemporary Blues Album
662, Kingfish
Damage Control, Curtis Salgado
Holler If You Hear Me, Altered Five Blues Band
Raisin’ Cain, Chris Cain
Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came To Town, Tommy Castro

Soul Blues Album
Let’s Have A Party, Gerald McClendon
Long As I Got My Guitar, Zac Harmon
Not In My Lifetime, Wee Willie Walker & The Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra
You Get What You Give: Duets, Dave Keller
You Gotta Have It, Tia Carroll

Traditional Blues Album
Be Ready When I Call You, Guy Davis
Bob Corritore & Friends: Spider In My Stew, Bob Corritore
Boogie w/ R.L. Boyce (Live), R.L. Boyce
Little Black Flies, Eddie 9V
Pinky’s Blues, Sue Foley

Acoustic Blues Artist
Eric Bibb
Kevin Burt
Guy Davis
Doug MacLeod
Keb’ Mo’

Blues Rock Artist
Albert Castiglia
Tommy Castro
Tinsley Ellis
Ana Popovic
Joanne Shaw Taylor

Contemporary Blues Female Artist
Vanessa Collier
Thornetta Davis
Ruthie Foster
Danielle Nicole
Carolyn Wonderland

Contemporary Blues Male Artist
Selwyn Birchwood
Chris Cain
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
Kenny Neal
Mr. Sipp

Soul Blues Female Artist
Annika Chambers
Trudy Lynn
Terrie Odabi
Kat Riggins
Vaneese Thomas

Soul Blues Male Artist
William Bell
Don Bryant
John Nemeth
Johnny Rawls
Curtis Salgado

Traditional Blues Female Artist
Rory Block
Sue Foley
Rhiannon Giddens
Diunna Greenleaf
EG Kight

Traditional Blues Male Artist
Cedric Burnside
Super Chikan
Taj Mahal
Sugar Ray Norcia
Jontavious Willis

Instrumentalist – Bass
Willie J. Campbell
Larry Fulcher
Jerry Jemmott
Scot Sutherland
Danielle Nicole

Instrumentalist – Drums
Danny Banks
June Core
Tom Hambridge
Derrick D’Mar Martin
Chris Peet

Instrumentalist – Guitar
Christoffer “Kid” Andersen
Chris Cain
Laura Chavez
Anson Funderburgh
Eric Gales
J.P. Soars

Instrumentalist – Harmonica
Billy Branch
Bob Corritore
Jason Ricci
Brandon Santini
Kim Wilson

Instrumentalist – Horn
Mindi Abair
Jimmy Carpenter
Marc Franklin
Regi Oliver
Nancy Wright

Instrumentalist – Piano
Eden Brent
Mike Finnigan
Dave Keyes
Veronica Lewis
Jim Pugh

Instrumentalist – Vocals
Thornetta Davis
Ruthie Foster
John Nemeth
Sugaray Rayford
Curtis Salgado

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GET READY TO VOTE!

Blues Foundation members are invited to vote for the Blues Music Awards. The ballot will be open to current Blues Foundation members only until 11:59pm CT Friday, March 18, 2022. To cast your vote, log in to your Member Portal and once logged in, the link to the BMA Ballot will be available at the top of the page.

To become a Blues Foundation member, visit www.blues.org and click on the Join button to learn about the different membership levels and how to easily and securely join online. Upon membership confirmation, new and renewing members will be sent instructions on how to access the 2022 Blues Music Awards Ballot.

If you do not remember your membership login or need assistance logging in, please contact [email protected] or 901-527-2583, ext. 10.

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The 43rd Blues Music Awards will be held on May 5, 2022 at the Renasant Convention Center in Memphis, TN. The Blue Carpet will lead to the theater with doors opening at 5:30pm.

TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW

Individual Tickets – $150 per person
Regular Tables for 10 – $1,500
Premium Tables for 10 – $1,800

Our host hotel for the Blues Music Awards is the Sheraton Memphis Downtown Hotel, conveniently located across the street from the Renasant Convention Center where the BMA Ceremony takes place.

 The room block at the Sheraton with discounted rates for BMA attendees is now open.