My friends, I am not one of those artists who is afraid to praise “the competition.” I know good music when I hear it, and I give credit when it’s due. High Tone Shelter is one of the best (if not the best) Funky Bluesy Rock bands. Every member of the band is extremely talented – OK, they’re my friends - but this isn’t bias talking. Click here to see for yourself. I was invited to play Hammond organ on “Low Scene Woman,” the 9th track on Redemption Day (iTunes). I urge you to download, listen five times over, burn copies for friends, and join their mailing list. It’s that good.

Alanna will entertain during the first half, followed by 30 minutes of our new original tunes and interview!  The show airs live on 97.9 FM and local cable TV, and will be re-broadcast on Toccoa cable the following week!

Bo Diddley,
born Ellas Otha Bates McDaniel on Dec 30, 1928 in McComb, MS
Died Jun 2, 2008 in Archer, FL
“Bo Diddley gets a rocking sendoff at Fla. funeral” by Brendan Farrington, Associated Press Writer

GAINESVILLE — Bo Diddley’s funeral rocked and rolled Saturday with as much energy as his music. For four hours, friends and relatives sang, danced and celebrated the life of the man who helped give birth to rock and roll with a signature beat that influenced Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, the Rolling Stones and many others. As family members passed by the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer’s casket, a gospel band played his namesake song. Within moments the crowd of several hundred began clapping in time and shouting, “Hey, Bo Diddley!”
Diddley, 79, died of heart failure Monday at his home in nearby Archer. “In 1955 he used to keep the crowds rocking and rolling way before Elvis Presley,” Diddley’s grandson, Garry Mitchell, said before kicking his legs sideways, high up in the air, the way Diddley did onstage. Mourners cheered. “I’m just telling it the way it is,” Mitchell said.
Diddley, who was born Ellas Bates and became Ellas McDaniel when he took the last name of a cousin who raised him, was remembered for much more than his songs. Friends recounted his generosity, manifested in concerts for the homeless and work with youth groups and other charities; and the way he loved to talk to just about anybody he met. Gainesville Mayor Pegeen Hanrahan referred to one of his most famous hits as she told the crowd, “When the question is asked, “Who do you love?” it’s you, Bo.”
The funeral was followed by a tribute concert featuring his touring band and other musicians.
Eric Burdon, leader of the rock group The Animals, attended the service, and flowers were sent from musicians including Jerry Lee Lewis, Tom Petty, George Thorogood and others.
Burdon, also a member of the Rock Hall, called Diddley a big influence. “I’ve been a fan of his since 16, 17 years of age. Probably one of the first records I ever owned,” Burdon said, recalling that his attention was immediately grabbed when he saw an album cover with Diddley sitting on a scooter with a square guitar.
Burdon said he saw Diddley play last year at a concert in Australia, and even though he could tell his health wasn’t great, Diddley put tremendous energy into the show. He was known for his stage moves, which some presume influenced Presley.
“He’s always been jumping around and very aggressive; if he was onstage with the Stones, he was obviously putting Keith Richards in his place,” Burdon said. In describing the “shave and a haircut two bits” rhythm Diddley made famous, Burdon said, “I call it bone music, because it goes to your bone.”
But stories of another side of Diddley were told repeatedly at the funeral. A man who loved God and his family, who would always stop to talk in the grocery store and always was smiling.
His brother, Rev. Kenneth Haynes of Biloxi, MS, said Diddley always asked how he could help and what he could give.
“There was one thing he wouldn’t give me. That’s his hat,” Haynes said, referring to the black hat the musician was also known for.
But Haynes said his brother grew weary of life on the road. “But this is what God gave me to feed my family,” Haynes recalled Diddley saying. “I have to keep doing it until God says it’s enough.”
Diddley was born in McComb, MS. He moved to rural Archer in the early 1980s and had a recording studio on his 76 acres. Mitchell joked that Diddley got up so early, he would tap the roosters on the shoulder to wake them up. And he always sang at breakfast. Diddley’s friend Roosevelt Hutchinson described how the musician would wrap meat in several layers of tin foil, bury it and light a fire on top to cook it. Once the fire was lit, he would grab his guitar.
“He just enjoyed playing that thing under those trees,” Hutchinson said. But he enjoyed his family even more, friends said. He had four children, 15 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.
“Please know this, because I know Diddley,” the guitarist’s business manager, Faith Fusillo, told his family. “As much as you loved him, he loved you more.”

Athens music native Nick Edelstein takes the listeners on a terrific ride through the world of blues with an online release of live recordings held in venues throughout the Southeast.
A record chock-full of strong blues material including classic blues standards such as “Crossroads,” “Stormy Monday” and “Hound Dog,” the artist’s handywork on lead guitar is impeccably precise, as each live song spills with fervent balance, delivering punchy lead solos galore.
Edelstein also shows his intimate and personal side with soft-spoken material, on endearing works such as originals, “Sign From Above,” flawlessly recorded at Athens radio station, WUGA-FM, and “Ripple,” recorded at Pucketts Farm in Charlotte, NC.
Although much of the live recordings are very murky and muddy, what is most important is Edelstein’s craftsmanship on blues guitar.
“Crossroads” churns the album from the start, launching the album’s fiery energy and tenacity from the get-go. Certainly a highlight displaying his most superior guitar work falls in the intro and throughout “Red House,” a dazzling, mesmerizing statement of guitar-driven blues-rock.
Much of the record has some breathtaking guitar work, and his voice suits the blues man, with performances of liquid gold, compared to the swift speed of a dozen horses at Churchill Downs, as notes flourish like a roaring freight train.
Though he has much room to grow and improve, his potential is boundless. He even throws in some great riffs and chops that speak of his influences, possibly reminiscing Eric Clapton, Eric Johnson and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Santana’s artistry comes to fruition in a frighteningly well-spoken version of “Europa.”
It’s good to hear much of Edelstein’s background through short bits of interviews on WUGA-FM, as he dwells into his work, and his further studies in Comparative Literature. (NESS Records)  – Shawn M. Haney, http://www.performermag.com”
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Shufflejunkies, Georgia’s newest Blues-Rock trio, played Crimson Moon on May 2.  I grabbed my acoustic, rode shotgun in Andy’s truck, and did a riveting 45-min. opening set!  I got to see my friend Greer, and Dana’s staff was friendlier than ever. Thanks to Bob’s awesome engineering our sound was rockin’ all night.  My next Crimson Moon show is Saturday, May 31!!!

www.thecrimsonmoon.com

Related show(s)

• Date: Friday, May 2nd 2008
• Time: 9:00 PM
• City: Nick Edelsteinin Dahlonega, GA
• Venue: Crimson Moon Café
• Address: 24 N. Park Street, Dahlonega, GA 30533
• Country: US
• Admission: $12
• Age restrictions: All Ages