Heritage

THE SWAMP BLUES STORY

Born in the great African oral tradition, swamp blues rose up from the field hollers and calls of slaves singing call-and-response style about the hardships of life in the cane fields of south Louisiana. Unlike city blues, this swamp blues, inspired by the farm fields lining the Mississippi River as it lumbered past Baton Rouge, often featured simply a solo performer and his guitar, fiddle or washboard. This blues married West-African-rooted congas and wood block percussion with a southern spontaneity that often meant a song never sounded the same twice. In the 1920’s and ‘30’s, recordings of this Baton Rouge-born blues took the art form north. Louisiana recording studios like Crowley’s J.D. Miller label Excello Records thrust names like “Lightnin’ Slim” and the legendary Slim Harpo onto the American music scene with hits like “Rooster Blues” and “Rainin’ In My Heart.” Rejected by the establishment during the racially divided 50’s and 60’s, swamp blues crossed the Atlantic to Europe, helping to birth the British Invasion as artists like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, The Kinks and Eric Clapton performed music inspired by swamp blues artists Slim Harpo, Henry Gray and Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown. Swamp blues was instrumental in the development of jazz, zydeco, rock-and-roll, and hip-hop. Today, legendary south Louisiana musicians like Tabby Thomas and his son Chris Thomas King, Tab Benoit, Larry Garner, Big Luther Kent, Kenny Neal and his brother Lil Ray Neal tour the globe, bringing joy to blues fans everywhere, their catchy common-man lyrics irresistibly wrapped in the rhythms of a music born to turn even the hardest times in life into a celebration.

THE BATON ROUGE BLUES FESTIVAL COMES TO LIFE

The Baton Rouge Blues Festival is one of the oldest blues festivals in America. It originated in 1980, first held on the campus of Southern University on The Bluffs – the most beautiful view of the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge. The festival honors the legend of home-grown blues artist like Slim Harpo, Rudy Richard, Silas Hogan, Whisperin’ Smith, Guitar Kelly, Schoolboy Cleve, Chewin’ Gum Johnson and Raful Neal. Nevertheless, the festival has brought in nationally and internationally popular names like Bobby Blue Bland, Marcia Ball, Phil Guy, Larry Garner and Charlie Musselwhite — including recent Grammy-nominee Ruthie Foster, who won the hearts of festival-goers in 2009. Visitors and locals alike are encouraged to visit popular Baton Rouge blues-hangouts like Phil Brady’s (with the longest-running 21-year Thursday night blues jam around) and the inimitable Teddy’s Juke Joint in Zachary, Louisiana. Local high school blues bands traditionally perform, often rivaling the festival’s main stage in fan popularity. Free to the public, this family-friendly one-day festival runs Saturday from 12 noon to 10 p.m., and offers a full range of popular southern cuisine, including red beans and rice, fried chicken, bluesman Chicago Al’s hotdogs, jambalaya and homemade tamales.

THE BATON ROUGE BLUES FOUNDATION:  PRESERVING THE HERITAGE

Founded in 2002, the Baton Rouge Blues Foundation exists to promote, preserve and celebrate the Baton Rouge blues culture and to bring the best of Louisiana swamp blues music to the world. A non-profit organization headed up by then-President Johnny Palazzotto (now Executive Director), the Foundation opened its doors to general membership in 2006 with a very successful jam session at Phil Brady’s. Today the Foundation sponsors the Music in the Schools program, the annual Slim Harpo Awards ceremony, and the annual Baton Rouge Blues Festival.

Music in the Schools brings internationally-renowned artists like Deacon John, Bobby Campo, Mike Esneault, Buddy Flett and Herman Jackson into public and private K-12 school classrooms all over Louisiana. Students are invited to interact with the presenters and even participate in impromptu music lessons, where they learn the history of Louisiana swamp blues, how it is informed by and contributes to Louisiana culture, and more about careers in the field of music.

Each year, the Baton Rouge Blues Foundation hosts a star-studded Slim Harpo Awards evening, where the Foundation selects and honors winners in the categories of Baton Rouge Blues Legend, Pioneer and Ambassador. The night takes its name from the legendary Slim Harpo, who took his recording name from his beloved harmonica, or mouth harp. Harpo was born “James Moore” in the Lobdell community of West Baton Rouge, and today is buried right near what is now the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport. Past winners of the Slim Harpo Awards have included Buddy Guy, Lazy Lester, Henry Gray, Dr. John, Alvin Batiste, Larry Garner and current Baton Rouge mayor Kip Holden.