Some Favorite Blues

I'm planning on going to Friday Night Blues tomorrow night. I haven't been before (since there are usually more convenient and more Graham-compatible dances on Friday nights) but I'm looking forward to it. So to get myself into the right frame of mind, here are a few blues songs I like:

• Delbert McClinton - Everything I Know About the Blues (73 bpm) (Amazon | eMusic | Last.fm)
  One of the first blues songs I recall dancing to. It had me from the first line: "I learned to swim when Daddy threw me in the river."
• Ike Turner - Cold Day in Hell (72 bpm) (Amazon)
  Seven minutes long and no vocals, but the instrumentation is fascinating.
• Etta James - The Sky Is Crying (64 bpm) (Amazon | Last.fm)
  I've heard a few versions of this song, but this one is my favorite so far. I love it when her voice sort of goes underwater at the end of the scat section.
• Celine Dion - Le Ballet (85 bpm) (Amazon | Last.fm)
  "The ballet is almost over, and real life will begin."

Trailer Park Trio

The Trailer Park Trio is billed as the largest trio in the world, with 5 members. Because everybody knows that bigger is better when it comes to trios. In this case it certainly seems to work, because their whole self-titled album is great, and it's all danceable. They play a lot of classic swing songs from the 20's - 40's and have a great sound. A good three quarters of the entire album is actually available to stream or download on their site, so you can check it all out (and then buy the CD anyway). Some of my favorite tracks are "King of the Road," "Reet, Petite & Gone," and "Nagasaki." There are a few blues songs as well: "If I Had You," "Red Light," and "Someday You'll Be Sorry."

Jim Smith, the lead singer and tenor guitar player, also has some solo albums called "Same Old New Hair" and "Bad Then... Worse Now." I love his voice, guitar playing, and even whistling, but I only have a few tracks from these albums. (Some good ones are "Half Moon Eyes" and "I Double Dare You.") I can't find any information about them anywhere online, though. If you're in the Philadelphia area, I guess just look for him at a live gig or something and get the CDs that way.

Insomniac Blues

A few months ago RA Blues had a live band night (their first, I think). It was a great success, so more's the shame that the venue got lost to tango dancers. Anyway, the band we had was The Insomniacs, from Portland, OR. The three songs I most remembered, and later bought, were:

• Serves Me Right (Serves Me Wrong)
• Stuttering Blues
• I'm Not Sorry

You can get all of these on their "Left Coast Blues" album via Amazon CD, Amazon MP3, or eMusic. You can also listen to some of their songs on their MySpace page or to the whole album on Last.fm. (I just love it when artists are so internet-friendly. It makes these posts so easy.)