By Rosalind Cummings-Yeates
CEDRIC'S BLUES
Cedric Burnside
M
usic lovers and critics who think
the blues is halfway dead (like
an ill-informed writer who
recently described the genre as “lying in a
grave, half-covered in dirt”) clearly have
not been listening to any contemporary
blues. Young artists like Marquise Knox,
Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Jarekus
Singleton, Jamiah Rogers, Melody Angel,
and Southern Avenue have been honor-
ing and enlivening the blues for years,
and it shows no sign of stopping. The
problem is that blues artists rarely receive
the promotion that other genres enjoy
14 illinoisentertainer.com december 2018
(see the Eddie C. Campbell take in File) so
some people mistakenly believe that the
genre isn’t producing anything new. Well,
there’s lots of beautiful new music mixed
with the old - you just have to look for it.
Cedric Burnside, the grandson of hill
country blues icon R.L Burnside, makes a
perfect case for this with his new release
Benton County Relic (Single Lock Records).
Although Cedric grew up steeped in the
centuries-old sounds of hill country
blues, playing with his grandfather as a
teen and surrounded by other legends
like Junior Kimbrough and Jessie May
Hemphill, he supplies a modern take on
the art form. From the driving funk and
catchy chorus of “We Made It,” to the tale
of microaggressions layered with aching
county blues on ‘Hard To Stay Cool,” this
is a contemporary blues album honoring
an essential legacy with passion and
insight. As a Grammy-nominated and
multiple Blues Music Award-winning
musician who has played blues for most
of his 40 years, Cedric Burnside is a stun-
ning rebuke to those who think blues is
dead.
His distinctive West Side blues style,
with glittering guitar riffs and thoughtful
lyrics, will always remain but the Chicago
blues community has lost another back-
bone of the genre in Eddie C. Campbell
on November 20. A fixture on the West
Side scene who made a flamboyant state-
ment with both his image and his guitar
playing, Eddie left his mark by being true
to himself and blues culture, despite
music industry pressures. See our full
tribute in the File section on page 6.
In August, the Chicago blues commu-
nity suffered a devastating blow. But
instead of an elder musician, one of the
youngest members of our blues family
was hit. Jameson Foreman, the 12-year-
old son of Ambery Stokes, a beloved
Chicago blues advocate who’s worked at
Rosa’s Blues Lounge for years, was struck
by a car on his way home from middle
school in Oak Park. Jameson spent nine
days in pediatric ICU and sustained mul-
tiple injuries. He will require several sur-
geries, but Amberly didn’t have to carry
the worry and financial burden alone. The
Chicago blues community stands with
her. On November 20th, at the House of
Blues, legends and master musicians
joined together for "Chicago Blues
Spectacular: A boy In Need." Ronnie
Baker Brooks, Toronzo Cannon, The
Kinsey Report, Deitra Farr, Anne Harris,
Mud Morganfield, Lil Ed and the Blues
Imperials, Lurrie Bell, John Primer, Lynne
Jordan, Rico McFarland, Guy King, Steve
Bell, Gerry Hundt and Marty Sammon
performed the best show of the year as a
fundraiser for Jameson. The family-
friendly show attracted a who’s who of
Chicago blues talent on one stage. Those
interested in contributing can go to the
Jameson Foreman Go Fund Me Page at
www.gofundme.com/jameson-foreman-
roadtorecovery to make a donation.
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