Eric Clapton fans rejoice! On December 8, 2009 Universal Music will be reissuing John Mayall's classic British blues-rock album Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton in a deluxe edition, two-disc set. Much like Universal's previous "deluxe edition" archival releases, Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton is filled to the brim with rare and unreleased material.

The first disc of this deluxe edition features the original twelve-song mono release of the album from 1966, along with the same songs in a stereo mix which was originally released in 1969. This is the same 24-track version of Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton that was released on a remastered CD on Universal's Decca imprint in 1998.

For Clapton fans, the attraction of this umpteenth reissue of Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton will be the second disc, comprised of a mix of rare studio tracks, live radio broadcasts, and club performances that showcase Clapton's raw, but still maturing blues guitar style. Disc two offers 19 songs, including eight from sessions for BBC Radio that were broadcast in late 1965 and early 1966, a handful of singles and studio tracks, and six songs from two Flamingo Club performances in London circa March and April 1966. Some of this stuff has been released before, but much of it has been long out-of-print, and nine tracks on disc two have never been previously released.

Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton is the album that established both the guitarist's reputation and the cult of personality that followed him around both the U.K. and the United States well into the 1980s. The album is a classic of British blues-rock, innovative and influential, helping to launch dozens of blues-rock bands on both sides of the ocean. If you haven't heard it, you've missed an essential piece of blues music history.

Related Content:
Eric Clapton Profile
John Mayall Profile
Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton CD review

Photo courtesy Universal Music

The Toronto Blues Society will hold its 13th annual Maple Blues Awards ceremony on Monday night, January 18th, 2010 at the brand new Koerner Hall at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto, Ontario. The Canadian blues scene is often overshadowed by that of its neighbors to the south, but in truth the country hosts a thriving, vital blues community and this annual event honors excellence among Canadian blues artists. See who has been nominated for the 2010 Maple Blues Awards....

Photo courtesy Ruf Records

Blues harpist Norton Buffalo, a mainstay of the Northern California blues scene for better than three decades, lost his short battle with lung cancer on Friday, October 29, 2009 at the age of 58 years.

A skilled harmonica player who was equally conversant in blues, rock, folk, and country music, Buffalo's distinctive harp tones can be heard on over 180 albums by artists as diverse as Bonnie Raitt, the Doobie Brothers, Elvin Bishop, Johnny Cash, and many others. Buffalo was a touring member of Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen, and had been a member of the Steve Miller Band since 1976.

Buffalo also enjoyed a unique career in the blues, releasing his debut album Lovin' in the Valley of the Moon in 1977, and King of the Highway, with his band the Knockouts, in 2000, with several albums appearing in between. Buffalo is best known for his association with slide-guitarist Roy Rogers, the two artists first playing together in 1987 and collaborating on three albums for Blind Pig Records, including 2003's Roots of Our Nature.

A couple of benefit shows are planned in honor of Buffalo, the first scheduled for November 22, 2009 at the Paradise Performing Arts Center in Paradise, California and featuring Roy Rogers and the Delta Rhythm Kings, Tom Rigney and Flambeau, and the Carlos Reyes Band. A larger celebration of Buffalo's amazing career will be held on January 23, 2010 at the Fox Theater in Oakland, featuring the Steve Miller Band and the Doobie Brothers with special guests Huey Lewis, George Thorogood, Charlie Musselwhite and Bonnie Raitt.

A quiet but influential presence in the roots-music community since the mid-1970s, Norton Buffalo's skilled playing and musical genius will be missed. Our thoughts go out to his family, friends, and many fans around the world.

Norton Buffalo & Roy Rogers photo courtesy Norton Buffalo website

The winners have been announced, and the readers of Blues Blast magazine, a free weekly Internet blues music magazine published by Illinois Blues, have voted, choosing the winners in the publication's second annual Blues Blast Music Awards.

Last year, over 11,000 readers from all 50 states and 40 other countries voted online for their award winners, which included Chicago blues legends Buddy Guy and Koko Taylor. Nominees in eight categories are chosen by the magazine's staff, music writers, managers, musicians and other industry professionals and voted on by Blues Blast readers. See who won this year's awards....

Photo courtesy Delta Groove Music