A Bangkok Blues & Beyond column by Jeff T.
The first annual Bangkok Blues Festival to be held at Tokyo Joe’s Blues Bar & Restaurant is set for March 16 - 18, 2006 with 12 bands confirmed over the three nights. The live music will begin each night at 8.00pm featuring a wide variety of blues bands, from Bangkok and beyond. Bangkok Blues Festival 2006 kicks off with Showtime, a group fronted by the newest female talent on the local scene, playing R&B, Soul and a sprinkling of blues. Showtime will be followed by the Georgia Blues Band of Ad Here the 13th in Banglamphu fame, and will feature Georgia on vocals and Pong on his trusty old Tele. Pong, also the owner of Ad Here, is widely regarded as one of the top blues guitarists Bangkok has to offer and the band can usually be seen five nights a week at the club. Blue on Blue, featuring “Pepper” Mint on vocals and scorching guitar are up next. A band that regularly appears at the top live music venues in Bangkok, including Tokyo Joe’s, Blue on Blue are not to be missed. Thursday night headliners The Blues Machine will be traveling to Bangkok from their home at The Blues Factory in Pattaya and promise to deliver the knock out punch of the evening. Featuring a band of seasoned musicians fronted by the versatile Mary on vocals and the award winning Snowman on guitar, Bangkok’s blues fans are in for a real treat.

Friday March 17, is not only the second day of the festival but St. Patrick’s as well. Guinness has organized some party gear and the line up for the night ensures the best of both. The evenings live music kicks off with Blues Junior, a band with an average age of 22, yet they play a regular gig at Tokyo Joe’s every Friday night. Hoochie Coochie features the talented Ped on guitar and vocals, as well as Bangkok’s only blues violinist doing double duty on both piano and violin. Cannonball, the city’s favorite groove blues band are up next with the fiery Keith EZY Nolan on keyboards and vocals delivering a set of finely crafted originals. The Friday headliner is Glenn Patrik who is joining the Bangkok Blues Festival from LA where he has just completed work on a forthcoming album. With a resume of gigs that looks like the who’s who of blues, Glenn will be backed by some of Bangkok’s favorite players.

Saturday sees Bangkok’s very own Doctor Blues strike the first note of his signature groove to start off the evening. The good Doctor will be followed by diverse solo artist Adam Ryan, who has recently released the CD “Play 2 B”. For the blues festival Adam will be featuring many of his more blues based compositions from his earlier live CD. Full House, a five piece band fronted by the lovely and talented Hanni, takes over next. Full House features the only two Japanese blues men in Bangkok with Jay on bass and Takashi on some of the cleanest blues guitar you will ever be privileged to hear. Last but not least, Soi Dog Blues Band has the pleasure of delivering the final performance of the first annual Bangkok Blues Festival. SDBB is fronted by Jeff T on vocals and guitar and boasts one of Bangkok’s hottest young blues guitarists, Dang, who will soothe your soul or feed your fire, whatever the case may be.
The Bangkok Blues Festival is partially sponsored by Phuket Beer, Thera Vitae and local Fender and Gibson dealer Music Concept. Bangkok Jungle, this website, is a media sponsor of the event.

###Southern Blues
A mere 120 kilometers from Bangkok is the teeming seaside resort of Pattaya. Loved by many, loathed by others, Pattaya is many things to many people. One thing for sure though, in Pattaya the blues is alright. For over half a decade The Blues Factory has been keeping the blues alive in fine style while also featuring Thailand’s “Guitar King” Lam Morrison. Fronted by the award winning Snowman on guitar and Mary on vocals, backed by a team of seasoned players (see picture & Info below) The Blues Machine is the hottest blues/R&B/Soul outfit on the eastern seaboard. The Blues Machine plays 6 nights a week except Wednesday and Lam Morrison plays 6 nights a week except Monday. Hit it!

Bangkok’s Drunken Munkees are currently the house band at CoCo Blues on Koh Samui. Drop in a say hello if you’re on the island.

Down Phuket way, Tony “Chainsaw” Wilson and the Groove Doctors play the blues every Thursday night at Tai Pan.

Yoonique Stone Music Cafe in Nai Harn beach offers a Tuesday night open jam, not only blues but well attended. Check out the sandwiches at the bakery next door while you’re there.

###Blues Spawn
Stone Head, fronted by Golf T-Bone and featuring the T-Bone rhythm section of Lek on drums and Nor on bass will have the Saturday night jazz residency at Tokyo Joe’s for the time being, beginning March 11, 2006.

###Mo’ Blues
Without question, Tokyo Joe’s is undoubtedly Bangkok’s hottest spot on the blues scene, while many would say on the live music scene in general. The Sunday night open jam session has been running successfully for over two years and has turned into the place to be if you’re out on a Sunday night. Apart from the staple of talented resident musicians and local enthusiasts, the jam is almost constantly joined by new players from all over, either resident in Thailand or just passing through. For some of the best live music in town on a Sunday night, look no further.

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