Blues in the 'burbs

It wasn't so long ago that seeing live blues in metro Atlanta involved a trip to either Blind Willie's or the now-defunct Blues Harbor. The last few years, however, have seen a proliferation of new blues venues. With the notable exception of the Northside Tavern, many of these are satellites of the Atlanta community, operating on the fringes of suburbia and beyond.

These suburban blues venues include Chip's, a former convenience store on a quiet road just off Highway 316 in Winder; the Blue Sky Tavern in McDonough; the Peckerhead Brewery in Douglasville; and Darwin's, the Blue Raccoon and the Bayou Room, all in Marietta.

Chip's has been booking blues since 1995 and will host its sixth annual Harvest Moon Festival this fall. The Blue Raccoon, anchored by Bill Sheffield and the Ringtail Rounders, celebrated its first anniversary last weekend while Darwin's is preparing to host its second annual Back Porch Blues Festival.

The Darwin's festival, a benefit for WRFG (89.3 FM), begins at 1 p.m. Sat., June 16, and will feature a dozen acts. Look for 75-year-old harmonica player Neal Pattman — a Madison County native who lost his right arm to a wagon wheel at age 9 — to be one of the highlights of the show. Also scheduled are E.G. Kight and Heaven Davis with Michael Pierce, the Electromat-ics, Delta Moon, Michael Lowry and John Paskoff, Steve Arvey and friends, Joel Williams, The T Band, Slim Fatz, Forrest McDonald, the Liz Melendez Band, and Bluesolution, featuring Michael Storm and Nicole Petersen.

The age of many of the performers is notable. Pierce and Lowry are 19, Paskoff and Storm are 17, and Williams is 18, says Darwin's owner Kay Rowedder.

"I'm very supportive of young people getting into the blues, because I think there are not too many of them that do that," says Rowedder. "It's important to keep their interest piqued, to keep them into the blues, so it'll live on through the people that come on behind us."

Like last year's event, the festival will be recorded for a CD. Last year's recording, WRFG Presents: The 1st Annual Back Porch Blues Festival, Live at Darwin's, includes performances by the Breeze Kings, Little Joey's Jumpin' Jive and others.

Rowedder says she appreciates WRFG in particular because of the emphasis the station places on local blues, primarily in its weekday "Good Morning Blues" program.

"And they've chosen to play CDs from local blues groups," Rowedder says, "I think it's really just over-the-top for them to support local blues. They could just choose to play national blues artists."

WRFG's Back Porch Blues Festival begins at Darwin's in Marietta at 1 p.m. Sat., June 16. For information, call WRFG at 404-523-3471 or Darwin's at 770-578-6872 or visit www.darwinsblues.com.

Recommended: Armed with the bluest guitar you'll ever see, wafer-thin Italian loafers and a piece of plywood to stomp on, acoustic guitarist Chris Smither returns to Blind Willie's Wed., June 6. Smither perhaps is best known as songwriter of Bonnie Raitt's hits "Love Me Like a Man" and "I Feel the Same," but he's a convincing performer in his own right. Smither blends the confessional airs of the singer/songwriter with the stark imagery of Skip James, Robert Johnson and others, and absolutely plays the hell out the guitar. For information, call 404-873-2583.

Motor City Josh & The Big 3 — one of the busiest bands in those satellite blues venues mentioned above — just released a new CD, Live in Atlanta, which was recorded at the Blue Pig in Woodstock in December. Bandleader Josh Ford has added an acoustic show on Monday nights at Brewsters on Canton Highway in Marietta. Shows start at 7 p.m. For information, call 770-591-1291.

The Blues Foundation in Memphis, Tenn., announced the winners of its annual W.C. Handy Awards. Local artists Sean Costello and Beverly "Guitar" Watkins both were nominated for Best New Artist of the Year, but the North Mississippi All-Stars won that award. Costello also was a presenter at the awards. B.B. King won Entertainer of the Year and his collaboration with Eric Clapton, titled Riding With the King, won Best Contemporary Album. Alligator recording artist Shemekia Copeland, 22, won Contemporary Female Artist of the Year. Her recording, Wicked, won Blues Album of the Year, and a cut from that release, "It's 2 a.m., Vito" won Song of the Year. Etta James was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame and won as Soul Female Artist of the Year.

Talkin' Blues is a monthly column on blues and related subjects, with an emphasis on local artists, venues and events. Please e-mail or send your blues news to Bryan Powell, 830 Josh Lane, Lawrenceville, GA 30045-3156.??