“You have got to go to Buddy Guy’s Legends Blues Club when you get to Chicago” This is what everyone told us on our journey. It appears that Buddy Guy’s is the equivalent of BB Kings in Memphis. We are getting used to Blues Clubs by now and Buddy Guy’s was not a lot different. It had the usual collection of signed guitars and photographs but it was great to be there. I suppose that in many ways it was the end of the first part of our journey. We had followed the black musicians out of the delta on the great migration and into Chicago. Buddy Guy is one of the great exponents of the Electric Chicago Sound with the urbanisation and electrification of the country delta blues. He has been a role model for some of the greatest rock musicians such as Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton and many more. He was born in Louisiana and came under the spell of the great Muddy Waters when he moved to Chicago. One of the first Blues albums that I bought was by Buddy Guy.
The club’s programme runs every night until 2.00pm and it attracts many of the great names in Blues. Top of last night’s bill was the famous Sonny Rhodes with Sharon Lewis and the Texas Heat as a supporting act.
Sharon Lewis and her band were buzzing. Sharon had a great voice and stage presence. The combination of an excellent drummer and bass player produced an electrifying rhythm section. Take a look at the video (They stop all attempts to video the sessions, so this is all I got)
We were disappointed by Sonny Rhodes. Known as the king of the lap steel guitar, he has an international reputation but he did not look very well last night and was very unsteady on his feet. The Blues was sadly monotonous and unexciting. Still, it was a great night.
Special regards to the Teakle family that we met. Simon and Juliet were originally from the UK but now live in Connecticut.
Simon and Juliette Teakle with Lulu and Daisy
I have always wanted to visit the Chicago Institute of Art, which is known as one of the great collections of the world. The Impressionist, Post Impressionist and American sections are extraordinary. It’s a very impressive collection of Monet’s paintings, probably one the best that I have seen. The pre -900 European section is good but limited. I walked around the collection but felt that I need to come back here with Jacqui in order to examine it in greater detail. I was particularly taken by a wonderful portrait by Goya, a portrait of his elder sister by Gainsborough, a portrait of St Peter by Ribera and a sculpture of Balzac by Rodin.
The gallery has a special exhibition of work by Matisse between 1913 and 1917. This was an important and critical time in the development of his style and methods of working. Well worth visiting.
We walked around the Millennium gardens next to the Institute. This was typical of the fine attention pain in Chicago to architecture and civic design. This is a great city.
I walked 3-4 miles this afternoon to visit Maxwell Street. I just wanted to see this important street, which was for many musicians (moving to Chicago), their first experience of the city. Maxwell St is close to Illinois Central rail station and is mentioned often in the lyrics of blues numbers. Many would play their first music, busking for a living in this famous commercial street. It is now part of the University of Illinois Chicago University and appears totally soulless.
The first part of our journey is over. We leave for Northern Minnesota tomorrow to follow in the trail of his “Bobness”, Bob Dylan. Why are we doing this, when we have exciting Chicago at our feet? I am a Dylan fan but he also puts the last piece in the puzzle. Take yourself forwards to 1965 in the Newport Blues and Jazz Festival. Dylan astounded all present by coming on stage with an electric band. Nothing was ever the same after and I believe that this was the final link in what made the rock music that we know today.
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