AllenWhitley.com

iBook is Here

adminallen — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:54:20 +0000

The book is now available as an “i” version. Check your ibooks.

Site Back Up

adminallen — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:50:49 +0000

For anyone interested, the site has been down for several weeks. However, thanks to the great work of the guru from American Blues Scene we are back up and running. Now, some information is missing, in particular, Austin’s best dive bars. If we can’t find the original posts, I will recreate summaries so you know where to go…

BTW, the book has been discounted again on Amazon…check it out…Where Southern Cross the Dog.

Feb – African American History Month

Sat, 18 Feb 2012 15:06:56 +0000

While most of the blues folks I know pay tribute to the tribulations and successes of African Americans every day of the year, for some, this month is especially important since it brings attention to the great triumphs of African Americans. Last year, I was lucky enough to attend two great presentations at the Smithsonian. First, I attended a presentation at the Anacostia Museum titled Black Seminoles: The Gullah That Got Away. The history of African Americans who escaped slavery and eventually became part of the Seminoles in Florida, is as they say, stranger than fiction. Great history lesson. Next, I attended Douglas Blackmon’s presentation of his book, Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II. A Pulitzer Prize winning book, it was also made into a PBS documentary. And if you read the book, or others about that time, you’ll know why it was that era that birthed the blues. Make sure to learn something new this month about African American history since what you’re listening to while reading this probably has its roots there. Allen

Holiday Sale

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 15:05:07 +0000

Friends,

Amazon has reduced the price of the book by over $8. Great holiday gift for the blues lover in your family.

Allen

http://www.amazon.com/Where-Southern-Cross-Allen-Whitley/dp/1934572411

Hubert Sumlin – Friend of Antone’s

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 17:14:24 +0000

Another great passed on earlier this month. A friend of Antone’s for so many years, he will be missed. A couple links for perusal.

http://hubertsumlinblues.com/

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/hubert-sumlin-dead-at-80-20111204?link=mostpopular3

Dementia Guilt

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 15:21:42 +0000

The other day my mom wouldn’t keep the door to her tiny waiting room closed after she was injected with some radioactive diagnostic fluid. Normal reasoning wasn’t working. She wasn’t concerned about needlessly exposing workers, her son, etc. to the effects. I tossed out the orphan grandchildren argument and the ill effects to young people who were exposed every day in their work environment. When I tried to close the door, she complained that I hit her foot. Finally, in my exasperation, I dropped an expletive which also didn’t do any good except cause me to calm down since I try not to curse at my mother. Don’t most of us? My dad would have been horrified and probably popped me in the head.

After the test and the next day I knew she would never remember my slight. In fact, she probably forgot about it 2 minutes after I said it. Such is the mind which undergoes a regression in memory and logic.

But she’s getting the last laugh…my guilt lingers…usually composed and level headed I had veered off course due to lack of sleep, too many plane flights and rental cars, and knowing there is no one else but me. The last line of defense.

So be careful all you care givers, their memories might not remember the ill will in your voice or bad language, but you will.

Good luck!

Heaven done called another blues-stringer back home (lyrics from Six Strings Down)

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 02:42:23 +0000

The blues world lost two more of its sons recently. David “Honeyboy” Edwards (June 28, 1915 – August 29, 2011) from Shaw, MS and Willie “Big Eyes” Smith (January 19, 1936 – September 16, 2011) from Helena, AR both passed away within the last month. If you’ve been to a blues festival in the last few years I’m sure you had a chance to see and hear them. But while their passing will be missed from a musical perspective, what we’ve really lost is the same thing we’ve been losing with all of the bluesmen and women who came to their craft during Jim Crow, before Civil Rights. I touched on it in my tribute to Pinetop, but to reiterate, they are our bridge to a past that seems to grow more distant every day. The trials, tribulations, and privations they endured and that were the foundation for their music and lyrics no longer exist in the same form as they did in the early part of the 20^th century and will probably never be revisited.

Many still walk among us today, but their numbers are dwindling and our link to another era is growing weak. When the last one is gone, we’ll still be able to hear their voices and music in what they’ve left behind, but a connection will be lost and that will certainly be cause for singing the blues.

Is Alzheimer’s ever a good thing? Maybe a little.

Sat, 06 Aug 2011 23:01:24 +0000

A diversion from the blues…or maybe a reason to sing them…

While sitting in an Austin diner a few weeks ago, a friend recounted her parents’ social group and running buddies of the last 30 to 40 years. Eight couples, sixteen in all – they worked, partied, raised families, vacationed, and basically lived wonderful lives. But now there are just 4 remaining and they must bear the memories and pain with each passing member and what was and will never be again. I don’t believe any were married so all their spouses are gone. Imagine 12 of your best friends and spouses passing, one by one, slowly, from a variety of ailments. The only time any had lost as many friends was during WWII.

So as I considered my friend’s stories, and the fact my mother has some memory issues, I thought maybe having a little Alzheimer’s to ease the pain of losing so many loved ones may not be a bad thing. Yes, you will mourn them on their burial day, but as time passes the lingering thoughts and memories fade quicker and you can carry on without the sadness and burden of a past that was so enchanting yet unattainable again. Memories of the good times will also fade, but those are distant, and today must be lived here and now. Just thinking about something to take the edge off, however I may reconsider in a few years.

Growing old’s not for wimps, but what’s the alternative…

TC’s – Austin’s Own Juke Joint

Sun, 24 Jul 2011 23:54:20 +0000

If you watched the final episode of Friday Night Lights, then you saw Coach Taylor find Vince’s dad in a somewhat (?) rough looking bar. Well, if you looked close you saw that it was none other than Austin’s own TC’s Lounge, the background for the author’s cover photo taken in the spring of 2010. Looks like we’re in good company. See Great Austin Dives for a quick review.

TC's

Author

New Review on American Blues Scene

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 01:06:08 +0000

Read Matt Marshall’s new book review here…