Back in 1996, Chicago deejay Steve Cushing had been broadcasting his popular "Blues Before Sunrise" radio program every Saturday night for 17 years on Chicago's public radio station WBEZ-FM. For six of those years, the show had been syndicated nationally, and each week tens of thousands of blues fans tuned in at midnight to catch a listen to a vital mix of blues music, old and new.
Cushing had taken the program independent in 1995, and the following year he was looking for sponsors to help underwrite the costs of producing the show. A benefit concert was held at Chicago's B.L.U.E.S. club on October 20, 1996 to raise money to keep the show on the air, the line-up including artists like Billy Boy Arnold, Lurrie Bell, John Brim, Jimmy Burns, and many others. The following year, Chicago's legendary blues label, Delmark Records, released a small part of the evening's entertainment on album as Blues Before Sunrise: Live, Volume One.
Blues Before Sunrise
The album opens with a fine set from blues harpist Golden "Big" Wheeler. Backed here by guitarists Dave Waldman and Rockin' Johnny Burgin, Big Wheeler is an old-school harp blaster in the vein of Little Walter, a decades-long fixture on the Chicago blues scene even at the time of this 1996 performance. As such, when he tackles a well-worn tune like Willie Dixon's "I'm Ready," it's like slipping on a comfortable pair of shoes.
With the band providing a languid beat behind him, Wheeler launches into a spicy harp intro that swings from the rafters. The Georgia-born bluesman's Southern drawl is quite apparent on his reading of the lyrics, but he pops them out with strength and enthusiasm. It's Wheeler's harp that speaks the loudest, however, the notes flying like darts out into the audience. After a handful of energetic songs, Wheeler jumps into a spry performance of Little Walter's "I Gotta Go," the band choogling along behind as he joyfully romps through one of his former mentor's trademark songs.
The Lost Chicago Bluesman
In many ways, singer and guitarist John Brim is the "lost Chicago bluesman." Reference books often gloss over his contributions to the city's blues scene or, if they remember him at all, it's for his enduring composition "Ice Cream Man" (a hit later for Van Halen, believe it or not). Signed to Chess Records, Brim had the opportunity to record with some of the city's best players, including Little Walter, bassist Willie Dixon, guitarist Robert Jr. Lockwood, and drummer Fred Below. With little-or-no-promotion from the label, which obviously lacked confidence in Brim's abilities, he never broke out from the pack.
While songwriting may have been Brim's strongest asset, as shown by the four original songs included on Blues Before Sunrise, he was nevertheless an entertaining performer. Influenced by the first generation of Chicago bluesmen like Tampa Red and Big Bill Broonzy, Brim's songs like the stomping "Lonesome Man Blues" are a curious cross between the earlier, Delta-dirty sound and the more urbanized blues of the 1950s. The macho stammering of "Tough Times" would have been a great Muddy Waters song, built on a similar Bo Diddley beat and featuring a solid vocal performance by Brim. His trademark "Ice Cream Man" is bawdy good fun with a swinging rhythm and a bellowing of cold harp blasts.
Blues Harpist Billy Boy Arnold
Harpist Billy Boy Arnold has become known as a bona-fide Chicago blues legend. As a youth, he received harp lessons from the great John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson before the blues legend's death in 1948. Arnold would make a name for himself by lending his high-flying harp skills to Bo Diddley's early hits, which in turn led to a recording contract for Arnold, whose initial singles would sell moderately, but would make their way across the pond to be covered by British blues-rock band the Yardbirds.
Sadly, Blues Before Sunrise includes only two performances by Arnold, but one of these - a three-song, eleven-minute medley - is worth the price of admission alone. Beginning with T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday," Arnold's sturdy, soulful vocals rise above the fast-walking, jazzy rhythmic backdrop provided by drummer Kelly Littleton's cymbal-brushing and Rockin' Johnny Burgin's tremolo-tinged fretwork. Arnold dives into a blistering harp solo that evokes the best of both the blues and jazz. "Broken Hearted Blues" and "Sonny Boy's Jump" are two of Williamson's classic songs, delivered reverently here by his former student.
Out Of The Spotlight
Singer and guitarist Jimmy Burns was a familiar face on the West Side blues club circuit throughout the 1960s. After a decade of semi-retirement, Burns jumped back into the blues with a fervor, and his energy and vitality can be felt in the two songs included here. A respectful cover of Jimmy Rogers' "You're The One" is a textbook example of the Chicago blues, with Burn's hearty vocals and fluid guitar lines backed appropriately by harpist Martin Lange's constant punctuation.
Burns' other song is the original "Leaving Here Walking," a mid-tempo, dark-hued song of heartbreak with deep, soulful vocals and a maddeningly hypnotic droning riff. Burns' guitarplay here is elegant and emotional, with plenty of energy and passion. It's a great way to close out Blues Before Sunrise, a fine example of how the Chicago blues sound had evolved by 1996.
The Reverend's Bottom Line
Kudos to Delmark Records for reissuing this essential piece of Chicago blues history. By showcasing three of the city's lesser-known blues artists in Wheeler, Brim, and Burns, as well as Billy Boy Arnold who is, truthfully, better known today that twelve years ago, the album was forced to rely entirely on the strength of the music rather than the personalities of the musicians.
Nonetheless, if you're a fan of Chicago-styled blues (and honestly, who isn't?), you owe it to yourself to grab a copy of Blues Before Sunrise. This is the honest sound of the city as performed by four unsung heroes of the blues. (Delmark Records, released May 8, 1997)
