USA

Anthony Bourdain/cook: I loved his show Cook's Tour and have read one of his books....he definately thinks outside the "box"! Tony

Bootsy Collins: Always a favourite, I know most of you know who he is but I just had to include him as a major Funk influence! You can find him at either Bootsy or Collins

Buddy Moss: No longer with us, Buddy was the first living Blues player I met. He played the clubs in Atlanta when I was starting out, using piano wire for guitar strings! You can find info on him at Buddy.

Christine Steele: Artist, Poet and long time personal friend. She creates wonderful books of verse. Her poem "The Question" has haunted me since the first time I read it and now appears on Mystic Bridge along with Cassius singing a verse from Darbari Raag. She has joined a Bulgarian Womens'Choir as well! You can reach her at Christine

Claude Chalhoub: (USA/LEBANON) Violinist with Lebanese roots, classicaly trained in both Eastern and Western traditions. He is a composer as well and has one cd out that I know of called just Claude Chalhoub. You can find him at Claude

Corey Harris: I first saw him at the Winnipeg Folk Festival 2001 and he blew me away with the ease at which he switches from Reggae to Delta Blues to name a few of the stylings in his repertoire. Then I found out through the PBS film series The Blues that he indeed has lived in many places close to the origins of the many styles and they really do spring straight from his Heart. You can find him at Corey

David Lindley: The most accomplished and versatile master of any slack-key stringed instrument(s!)of our time...and a sense of humour to boot! Always exploring and pushing the envelope he never ceases to amaze us! This Edmonton Folk Festival he was playing an electric Oud!! You can find him at David

David Moss: No-holds-barred percussion and vocals, totally unbound and unrestricted by anything, even gravity! The cd I have and love is called My Favourite Things. You can find info on him at Moss

Del Rey: One of the best Resophonic Guitar players of our time, Del Rey is also an incredibly knowledgeable musicologist specializing in Women in American Music as you will see from her website, is a big fan of Memphis Minnie in particular, has her own record label, and tours almost all the time. We must ask ourselves why she also is not a "household name"! You can find her at Rey

Diamanda Galas: I only have one of her albums, called The Singer, but her rendition of I Put a Spell On You is unforgetable. Rarely have I heard anyone let go and lay it all out like this right there in public so to speak! She also plays piano and has many other albums out as well. You can find her at Diamanda

Eddie Kirkland: Eddie is from Georgia and drives a huge old Cadillac with a TV antenna on the back. We've been on the same circuit for years. You can always count on a great show from Eddie and he's always in the best shape of any guy in the club! Eddie

Etta James: I hope there is not a person alive that has not heard of Etta James. She has conquered great adversity, never losing her wonderful musical sense, her powerful and emotional voice, and her grip on that magical source of her music. She has been on the scene since she was a teenager and is still churning it out...better than ever! You can find her at Ms. James

Franklin Drake: Franklin's mother Pan Copeland was my manager from around 1970 to 1974. He was like a brother to me. He was also a wonderful artist/painter/scultpor. You can find his website at Drake

Gap Band: My favourite band from the seventies and early eighties living in Atlanta. You can hear their influence in many acts today; Prince, among others. Get ready to dance! Gap Band

George Duke: Another major influence from my early days in Atlanta. Not only a recording artist, writer, performer but also a producer: see Rachelle Ferrell below. I know most of you know who he is but I just can't leave him out. For those of you who don't know...you will enjoy this voyage! He is at Duke

Hassan Hakmoun: (USA/MOROCCO) I met Hassan at the Salmon Arm British Columbia Festival last year and was blown away as was the rest of the audience and was also fortunate enough to lead a workshop that he was part of with all his wonderful drummers. He playes a bass register instrument from Morocco called the Sentir which has such a soulful voice and he sings as well. You can find him at Hassan

Isley Brothers: One of my all-time-favourite Rhythm and Blues groups...a big influence during my earlier years in Atlanta. They are a great band with great singers and they write great songs...what else can I say?! My favourite song of theirs is Fight the Power and my favourite version was recorded live at a gig in California. Get up and dance! You can find them at Brothers

James Blood Ulmer: Guitar player and singer who played in Ornette Coleman's band and then released many albums on his own mostly under the Jazz catagory, lately delving into the Blues. My favourite is the very funky Black Rock. He has moved back to the States from Europe and is touring again. I could not find a website for him but found a professor/fan who has posted data on him at Blood

Jennifer Batten: Queen of the "hammer-on" technique of guitar playing, Jennifer has toured with Michael Jackson and more recently Jeff Beck, recording with him as well. She also travels the world giving technical workshops and wrote a column for Guitar Player Magazine for many years. We jammed together at one of the Pacific Music Exhibitions in Vancouver: she is a fabulous guitarist and song writer, one of the few female guitarists who don't sing, and one of the funniest women I have ever met! You can find her at Batten

Joanna Connor: Equally skilled at Blues lead and slide guitar Joanna is also a singer and song writer. She has many albums out. We jammed together when she visited Edmonton and again in Calgary at local Blues clubs. I would encourage you to try to understand why she is not playing stadiums! Certainly it is not because of any lack of talent! You can find her at Joanna

John Hammond: John brought Jimi Hendrix to the Cafe au Go Go in New York City in 1966 as the guitar player in his back up band, where I was opening act for the World for about six months. He is the reason I met Jimi. I know most of you are familiar with John, but I wanted to mention my favourite album of his, a collaboration with Tom Waitts called Wicked Grin to which I am addicted! You can find him at John

Johnny Winter: One of my guitar heroes from way back, I even got to tour with him. He's had such an interesting life someone should write his biography: and what a wonderful person he is! He put slide guitar on the map way back when along with Billy Gibbons and Duane Allman. You can find him at Johnny

Kaki King: I was blown away at the Edmonton Folk Festival by this super talented young guitar player. She is a monster hammer-on player and is branching out into the world of lap-steel-under-the-influence of David Lindley...WOW!!! You will find her website at Kaki (click on the dots)

Keb'Mo': One of the nicest men you'll ever meet, one of the best accoustic Blues singers/players/writers around, I opened for him at an outdoor festival in Philadelphia and was blown away. He has many albums out, wrote the onetime background theme for the Martha Stewart Show and has a way of turning up where you least expect him..."Who was that?" It was probably Keb'Mo'! You can find him at Keb'

Linda Tillery: This woman is a strong wonderful Rhythm and Blues style singer. She also preserves the roots of African American Culture with her wonderful group The Cultural Heritage Choir. Linda has been singing for as long as I have, we share incredible road stories and a common Musical Auntie, Ms.Odetta! You can find her cd with that memorable performance by Linda and her Choir with Eric Bibb and Wilson Pickett here Linda

Little Axe, Skip McDonald: Skip and his group blew me away at the Calgary Folk Festival! Everything they did was sweet R & B-Funk...he calls is "Blues for the 21st Century...". Skip

Mary Flower: Accoustic Slide Guitar player extraordinaire, a singer and writer of songs as well. We also met at that Slide Guitar Festival in North Carolina: festivals being one of the few times that women appear on the same bill together! You can find her at Mary

Niyaz: (USA/IRAN) An interesting mixture of modern electronic music and ancient Persian vocal stylings accompanied by Tabla! Niyaz

Odetta: Mainstay of the Folk Music Scene in the fifties and sixties, Odetta has many albums out, appeared in the movie Sanctuary, has given brilliant concerts all over the world and is loved by so so many. She has always been supportive of new up-and-coming acts (one of which I used to be). When I was living in Atlanta she called me up on stage with her to sing and I observed first hand her powerful calm presence which I have tried to emulate over the years. I found two websites for her. One is Vanguard Records with her earlier recordings at Vanguard and the other is created by those who love her at Odetta

Phoebe Snow: Amazing vocals, great accoustic guitar, wonderful songwriting: she and I have deflected comments over the years that she copied me and I copied her, neither being the case. I don't think either one of us copied anybody!! It's always fun to exchange "war stories" backstage with her. She is kind and funny and very talented. You can find her website at Phoebe

Rachelle Ferrell: Jazz singer from the United States, does not play North America nearly enough, mostly appears in Europe with her wonderful band. The first cd of hers I heard was Individuality (can I be me?) , produced by George Duke: I was blown away! You can find her website at Rachelle

Richie Havens: I know you all know who he is, but I have to tell you what an influence he was on me in the early years in Greenwich Village. He is the first person I met who used tunings on the guitar, and he encouraged me to make up my own. A few evenings at the Cafe au Go Go where we all hung out backstage between sets, he played drums with me (Harvey Brooks was on bass). I looked up to him along with a lot of other novice players and always found support and encouragement from him. Richie

Sally Van Meter: One of the best players in the world of the Resophonic Guitar, sometimes referred to as the Dobro, ever so unassuming and full of Southern grace and charm. We met at a Slide Guitar Festival in North Carolina some years ago: what a treat! You can find her at Sally

Sonny Landreth: The smoothest, most melodic slide guitar player in the world who also plays very righteous standard lead as well. He tours and records with John Hyatt and on his own. Am learning one of his tunes. You can find him at Sonny

Taj Mahal: Master of many Blues-based stylings including his Carribbean Blues, Hawaiian Blues etc. He has many recordings out with different players as well as different collaborations, one of which he was kind enough to do on my latest album. He is a Music Historian as well, has published Taj Mahal: Autobiography of a Blues Man, and for many years was the solitary suspension bridge between the oldtime Bluesmen and other favourites like Corey Harris, Keb'Mo' and Eric Bibb. You can find him at Taj

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