Blues Jams Every 2nd & 4th Thursday!
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Don't forget the BLUES JAMS every 2nd & 4th Thursday, at the MUSIC DEPOT IN Downtown Rogers, Ark. Next one is FEB. 27TH! FREE ADMISSION, ALL AGES, PRO BLUES JAM SPONSORED BY THE OZARK BLUES SOCIETY, MUSIC MOVES, AND SPRINGHILL SUITES. HOSTED BY THE DOWNTOWN LIVEWIRE’S ROGER THOMAS, WITH DAWN CATE AND SPECIAL GUEST LACEY SCHAFFER-THOMAS. CORE PLAYERS: ROBERT SPOON - GUITAR, BRUCE BENNETT - BASS, VINCE TURNER - GUITAR, RICK ENDEL - KEYS, DAVE RENKO - SAX, STEVE BROOKS - DRUMS. DONATING AND/OR JOINING YOUR LOCAL BLUES SOCIETY HELPS US CONTINUE TO HOLD THESE FREE COMMUNITY EVENTS. ONLINE AT: www.ozarksbluessociety.org
BLUES JAMS ARE FREE AND OPEN TO ALL AGES.
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Celebrating Arkansas Heritage Blues Musicians
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Did you know that the Blues is the only American original art form? It was created in the Arkansas and Mississippi Deltas, by known and unknown musicians back in our history. This month of Black History is the perfect time to feature some of the iconic Arkansas artists in Blues history. Here are just a few, and there are links provided at the bottom of this article. The ones featured here are just a few of your editor's favorites, but there are many, many more.
Robert Nighthawk, also known as Robert McCollum, was born in Helena in 1909. He and his brother, Percy McCollum, worked together playing for local gatherings in the early 1930s. During the 1940s and 50s, he appeared on the “Bright Star Flour” show and “Mother’s Best Flour Hour” show on KFFA radio in Helena. He died at the Helena Hospital in 1967 and is buried in Helena’s Magnolia Cemetery.
Sam Carr, the son of blues great Robert Nighthawk, was born in 1926 near Marvell. A mainly self-taught drummer, Carr played extensively throughout the Arkansas/Mississippi Delta region. He played often with bluesman Frank Frost and also periodically played as a member of the King Biscuit Entertainers. He died in 2009. (This is Sam and Willie having fun at the Blues Foundation's Music Awards.)
 Willie 'Big Eyes' Smith was born January 19, 1936 in Helena, Arkansas. He died on September, 16, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois, where through the years he influenced what is now known as “Chicago Blues”. He started playing harmonica at age 17, shortly after moving to Chicago. His harmonica first appeared on record in the 1950s gracing recordings by Arthur "Big Boy" Spires, and Bo Diddley (Willie played the harmonica on the Diddley classic "Diddy Wah Diddy"). A brilliant drummer, harmonica player and vocalist, he was an alumni of the Muddy Waters band.
Roosevelt “The Honeydripper” Sykes, who authored the essential “West Helena Blues,” was born in Elmar and grew up near Helena. He played piano and made his first recording for OKeh records in 1929. His first release, “44’ Blues,” is considered a blues standard. He continued recording and touring until his death in 1983.
 Sister Rosetta Tharpe was born in 1921 in Cotton Plant and learned to sing and play guitar from her mother, Katie Bell Nubin, a traveling Holiness Church evangelist. She performed both gospel and secular music. In 1938 she signed with Decca Records, making her the first gospel artist to sign with a major label. Over the years, the accomplished guitarist and vocalist also performed with blues artists such a s Muddy Waters and Louis Jordan, and jazz groups such as the Cab Calloway Revue. She became known as “the godmother of rock ‘n’ roll.” Tharpe died in Philadelphia in 1973. She was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an Early Influencer in 2018.
Arbee Stidham was born in DeValls Bluff in 1917. He played harmonica and other instruments and performed at clubs and dances in the Little Rock area in the 1930s. He formed his own band, the Southern Syncopators, before he was in his teens which backed Bessie Smith on tour during 1930-31. He also appeared on KARK radio in Little Rock in the early 1930s. In addition, he made several recordings in the 1940s in Chicago and continued recording into the 1970s. This multi-talented musician died in 1988 at the age of 71.
 Robert Lockwood Jr. was born in 1915 at Turkey Scratch and was an original performer along with Sonny Boy Williamson on the “King Biscuit Time” radio show at station KFFA in Helena (which still airs live today, on the air and online). An accomplished blues guitarist, he was taught guitar by Robert Johnson, one of the most influential figures in blues history. Lockwood would build on his early training in traditional blues to create a unique jazz-tinted style of his own, which garnered him accolades from serious blues guitarists over his nearly seventy-year career as a performer.
Luther Allison was born in Widener, about 30 miles west of West Memphis, in 1939 and moved to Chicago at age 11. A self-taught guitarist, he started out playing with Howlin’ Wolf’s band and backed James Cotton. Allison was at the height of his career when he died on Aug. 12, 1997, of cancer. He was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1998.
 Frank Frost, born in 1936 in
CeDell Davis was born in Helena in 1927 and passed in September 2017. He performed throughout the country and overseas for many years. Crippled by polio as a youngster, he is known for his unique style of playing guitar with a butter knife in a manner similar to slide guitar. He is featured on “Keep It To Yourself,” an album issued by Rooster Blues Records that contains recordings by Arkansas blues artists.
 Louis Jordan was a major recording star in the 1930s and 40s. Born in Brinkley in 1908, Jordan grew up in this east Arkansas town and was taught by his father to play clarinet. He toured with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels in the late 1920s and gained fame in the 1930s with his “jump-blues” style. He made many recordings, including such hits as “Is You Is or Is You Ain’t My Baby,” and “Caldonia” with his Tympany Five band and appeared in several films. He died in 1975 in Los Angeles and is buried in St. Louis.
Arkansas Blues Musicians
Delta Blues Museum-Willie Big Eyes Smith
You Tube-Performance, Sam Carr and Frank Frost
Robert Lockwood Jr. Website
Sister Rosetta Tharpe-You Tube Video Performance
Cedell Davis Documentary
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Enter to Win Full Studio Production of Your Original Music
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Entune is an exciting joint venture happening here in NWA, offering some incredible opportunities for interested artists. Entune is a community Initiative that bridges the gap between music artists and professional studio production, through an innovative prize draw. We empower local musicians by providing accessible studio opportunities, fostering a shared space where up-and-coming artists can turn their artistic dreams into tangible works.
Sign up to win, using this link below:
The monthly random drawings ignite creative momentum, blending musical craft, fresh ideas, and cultivation to amplify our dynamic Northwest Arkansas's music scene and beyond.
1st Random Drawing will be done March 1st Saturday, announced on Crisp’s channel. Submission deadline: Friday, February 28th end of day
Eligibility Requirements to be able to enter to win: 1) You must be at least 18 years of age; 2) your song choice must be an original song. (No covers or samples from other works.)
And here's what you can win, the Grand Prize, or the Runner-Up Prize:
Runner-Up Prize includes:
This series is brought to you in partnership with Crisp Recording Studios
and Aenimate Media Productions LLC
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OBS Board Annual Officer Election
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The Board of Directors will have its Annual Election of Officers at the end of April. The date and venue TBD. This year we will be nominating and voting on candidates for President and Treasurer. We will be accepting nominations from our Members up until April 1st. Meanwhile, look for updates on how to nominate persons who you know would be an excellent Board Member or Officer. Through the years, we have always enjoyed bringing on people with particular skills and experience on our mission to Keep The Blues Alive in NWA!
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Want to Join a Committee?
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OBS is planning a really big year of events, and we are inviting volunteers to help with promotion, marketing, production, and so much more. If you have a particular interest or experience and would like to enhance our efforts for having a GREAT year, please email ozarkbluessociety@gmail.com. We love and appreciate our volunteers (you know who you are), and we want to share the fun and good feelings with even more of you!
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The Pinetop Perkins Foundation Workshop Is Now Taking Applicants
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Ozark Blues Society is pleased share application information to musicians of all ages, young and old, to attend the Pinetop Perkins Foundation Workshop! The 4-day workshops are led by Grammy-winning Blues Artists for drums, guitar, bass, keys, and vocals. Scholarships are available. The workshops fill up fast, so don't hesitate to sign up as soon as you can. The sessions are held at the Hopson Commissary and Shack Up Inn in Clarksdale, Mississippi, and lodging is available on site. It's a party!
The sessions end on Saturday night with a performance at Ground Zero in Clarksdale, MS, with all students jamming with their instructors throughout the night. Soon we will send out a newsletter with a feature article about founder Pinetop Perkins and his dream of Keeping the Blues Alive through these annual workshops. Several of your Ozark Blues Society board members volunteer for events supporting the Pinetop Perkins Foundation as part of our mission for Blues Education. Here's the application, and you'll find more information about Pinetop and the organization there as well.
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Let Google Blues News Guide You
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Google has assembled a page dedicated to Blues news and articles. It's good stuff! It contains news about upcoming Blues festivals, and links to music journalists' blogs.
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Please enjoy the following listings comprised of bands, venues, and/or organizations that support Ozark Blues Society of NWA (and vice versa).
ALL BLUES ARTISTS - For an individual listing, provide us with your Events Page link, and/or submit upcoming gigs in time for the publication prep deadline every Wednesday to:
Featured Performances
Please welcome Pete Miller to NWA. He recently relocated here from Texas, where he says started playing gospel music going to the Black churches in the area because the radio never resonated with him. He writes: "At 21, I was already an avid record collector, but really got to meet and learn from the great Pops Carter and that opened the door––including reconnecting to my father, blues legend Texas Slim, who still is a mentor to this day––along with greats such as Bobby Patterson, Jackie Don Loe, Pat Boyak, and Zac Harmon, who all in their own ways have taught me so much whether they knew it or not. Eventually I formed my own band, Son Slim & the Gems, where I played mostly original blues music and appeared at Bedford Blues Festival, Denton Blues Festival, House of Blues, and the legendary Poor David's Pub. After a hand injury prevented me from playing, I took a few years off to get re-centered."
Pete is debuting here in NWA at these venues and dates:
2/21/2025 at Pub on the Bricks 8-11 PM
2/22/2025 at Trailhead Recreation Parlor 7:30-9:30 PM
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If you've been in NWA long enough, you'll remember our great and talented friend, harp master RJ Mischo, who lived here for several years. We sure did regret it when he moved away. But he's back! He's doing a show close to our area, in Tulsa on Feb. 22nd. He and his band will thrill ya! If you get a chance to go, say HI from Ozark Blues Society!
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VENUE and PUBLICATIONS LISTINGS, many featuring Blues and Jazz performances and jams:
The Free Weekly Events Listing
The Fayetteville Flyer Events Listing
Top Concerts Listing-NWA
Meteor Guitar Gallery, Bentonville
Music Depot, Rogers
George's Majestic Lounge, Fayetteville
Magnolia House Events
The Music Education Initiative
NWA Jazz Society Events
Railyard Live at Butterfield Stage, Rogers
Arkansas Music Pavilion (The AMP), Bentonville
The Momentary, Bentonville
Pub on the Bricks (FB page)
Club 509, Fayetteville
Blues Festival Guide
Please Submit Dates or Website Show Links for Regional Blues Artists and Group Events here: EVENT SUBMISSION EMAIL |
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Live Blues Videos on TV 24/7
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Just a reminder that you can watch some of your favorite Blues artists recorded in live performance on Blues Music Television. It's a great way to warm up when the cold wind is blowing! Blues Music TV on Facebook HERE .
Want more? Check out their all-Blues channel on ROKU and FIRESTICK HERE! |
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Watch Blues Rock Review on YouTube
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Visit our website to renew or join!
Annual membership levels begin at $20/year for a single membership. Family membership is $30. And there are many higher levels of support offered. Membership gives you so much in return, including meeting new friends while enjoying the best regional and national blues artists. Your membership support of Ozark Blues Society of Northwest Arkansas helps us pursue our mission to preserve the Original American Art Form known as The Blues, supports live blues performances, and provides educational programs for all ages. Thank You!
Membership Benefits Include:
Weekly E-newsletter
Opportunities to win tickets to events
VIP seating at events (when available)
Social networking – meeting other people who also love the blues
Opportunities to volunteer on OBS committees and at events
Ability to attend board meetings and vote on upcoming organizational issues and elections
Visit our website to renew or join!
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Enjoy these weekly radio, streaming, and written blues sources!
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Generic Blues Show on KUAF
Hosted by Paul Kelso
The Generic Blues Show has been airing since the early 90's, playing tunes of all types of blues... whether it be country, rock, jazz, R&B or soul... it all links back to the blues.
Hear the show Fridays at 9 p.m. on 91.3 FM and Sundays 6 p.m. on KUAF 93.1
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Presented by
Big Train and the
Loco Motives
Find these weekly videos and more when you visit Big Train and the Loco Motives YouTube Page HERE:
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Check these out!
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On this day in
Blues History
For a daily dose of blues history, check out the daily Bluesland podcast HERE:
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Blues Music Television!
 Blues Music TV on Facebook HERE Want more?
Check out their all Blues channel on ROKU and FIRESTICK HERE!
Hangnail's Hollers
Stories From the Blues
By Hangnail Slim
Blues lovers! Check out the new Substack newsletter written by Hangnail Slim. To read his weekly edition, or to subscribe, check out Hangnail Slim's page HERE.. |
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