The Blue Light Specials

By Angie Long
Saturday, October 28, 2006

There's Delta blues, country blues, swamp blues. How ‘bout some electric harmonica blues, jump blues, and St. Louis blues? And there's lots more where that came from.

Music lovers will get the chance to hear many different types of blues today at the Sweet Gum Bottom Blues Festival in downtown Greenville. Blues music is truly an all-American art form, Blues Fest musicians say.

“Without blues, we wouldn't have country music, or jazz or rockabilly. A lot of artists, from Eric Clapton to Led Zeppelin and Fleetwood Mac, were influenced by the blues,” Butler County resident Jeff Cummings, said.

Cummings' four-man band, “The Blue Light Specials” will be performing this afternoon. “Playing blues music is a great emotional release for us, a real creative outlet.”

Cummings said time spent growing up on a family farm in northern Butler County got him interested in the blues as a child.

“There was a wonderful black couple who lived on the farm. Limus "Noonie" Osborne and his wife Lucille. I'd go down there every chance I could get and sit on their front porch and listen to "Noonie" play the blues. He had an old beat up acoustic and used a broken wine bottle neck that he had sanded smooth to play slide. That intrigued me,” Cummings said.

After getting “too cool for the blues in my teens,” the musician played in a number of different types of bands over the years, eventually returning to the beloved blues of his childhood.

“This music lets you bare your soul. It's heartfelt and there's nothing you can hide behind. Audiences respond to that,” Cummings said.
His love of music led him to be involved as a volunteer with the Alabama Jazz and Blues Federation, where he spent four years helping promote those genres of music in the state.

“I got ‘volunteer burnout' after a while, decided to take a year off and get serious about the music.”

Cummings and his band mates, William Watson, formerly of Greenville, Warren Colter and Bill Duke, have put their focus on festival venues.

They entered a statewide battle of the bands blues challenge in Birmingham last year and came in second. This year, they won first place.
“We get to go to Memphis for the international competition. Just to have the opportunity to visit Beale Street and the places where B.B. King, Elvis and Muddy Waters played; that's the best,” Cummings said with a grin.

Butler County native Roc Killough, singer, songwriter and musician, will be performing with famed country songwriter Sonny Throckmorton, kicking off the live blues music at 2 p.m. today.

Killough has had several of his songs featured on top-selling albums by artists such as Randy Travis and the Oak Ridge Boys. Throckmorton has penned tunes for Tanya Tucker, Doug Stone, Merle Haggard and many others.

The Brewton-based band, Sweet Lovin' Daddy, featuring Greenville's Eric Fennell, along with Jason Gleaton, Shannon Brantley, Neil Jackson and Schwayn Bradley, will perform this afternoon.

Topper Price, Junior Thomas and the legendary Jerry “Boogie” McCain will round out this year's blues bash.

Gates open at noon today, with local contemporary Christian performer Ben Nelson kicking off the bevy of musical offerings.

“We might just have a few musical surprises in store, so you are definitely going to want to be a part of this event,” Cummings said.

A classic car show, children's rides and fun activities, arts and crafts displays and southern-style concessions are also all a part of the Sweet Gum Bottom Blues Fest, located downtown behind the Ritz Theater. Bring your lawn chairs to enjoy this open-air event.

Tickets are $10 in advance, $15 at the gate. Children under 10 free.


- The Greenville Advocate

News

Walkin' in Memphis

By Angie Long

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 9:35 AM CST




Butler County's Jeff Cummings, left, and his bandmates in The Blue Light Specials, seen here performing at the 2006 Sweetgum Bottom Blues Festival, will be representing the state of Alabama at the upcoming International Blues Festival in Memphis. A special fundraiser concert to defray the costs of their trip is slated for Tuesday night, January 16 at the "It'll Do" Tavern in Montgomery. The Montgomery event will also feature the Alabama Gravy Soppers and the Blues Farm.
The Blue Light Specials helped “tear the house down” during the Sweet Gum Bottom Blues Fest in Greenville last year.

The four-man blues and jam band is getting ready to take on the world - the world of top blues musicians, that is - as it represents the state at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis February 1-3.

Butler County's Jeff Cummings, on harp and vocals, Greenville native William Watson on guitar, Warren Colter on bass and Bill Duke on drums make up the band, which Cummings calls “a true blues band in the purest sense of the word.”

The group won the 2006 Alabama Blues Challenge in Birmingham, which earned the musicians their ticket to perform alongside acts from around the globe next month.

Needless to say, these local blues men are excited.

“To be able to actually perform on Beale Street in Memphis, where so many greats got their start, like Elvis Presley, Muddy Waters and others, is going to be an absolute blast,” Cummings said.


Bands from across the U.S. and Canada will join with performers from far-flung places like Finland, India and Taiwan for the international competition.

It will be a tough challenge, the local musician said.

“All these bands have won either a state or national competition. These are not run-of-the-mill musicians. Groups of eight to ten bands will each be assigned to a particular night spot on Beale Street,” Cummings explained. “Each band gets to perform two shows in front of two different sets of judges.”

According to Cummings, bands will be judged on such factors as blues content, talent, showmanship, originality and entertainment value.

“The top bands from each of the groups will go on to perform Saturday at the Orpheum. There is going to be some great, great music going on that weekend,” Cummings said.

The Blue Light Specials are working to raise funds to help offset the expenses of their trip to Memphis.

“It is causing us to dig into our pockets, when you consider food, lodging, travel expenses and time away from work. We all have day jobs we have to take time off from,” Cummings explained.

That's why the band and some of their musician friends are joining together to present the “Memphis Blues Blast” Tuesday, January 16 at the “It'll Do” Tavern at the Lagoon Park Shopping Center in Montgomery.

Doors open at 6 p.m. and the music starts at 6:30 p.m.

“Two outstanding bands are joining us that night and supporting our efforts: The Alabama Gravy Soppers, a great old-style acoustic blues band, and Blues Farm, a rock blues band. They will each perform a set and then The Blue Light Specials will go on at 9 p.m. at the latest. The cover charge at the door will be $5. We will use the funds for our competition expenses,” Cummings said.

Cummings encourages those who can to come and enjoy a night of good blues music January 16 in Montgomery.

“We would love to see lots of home folks there. And we encourage those who can to join us for the competition in Memphis next month. It's going to be a great event for music lovers.”

- The Greenville Advocate