In the week that the voting for the 2014 British Blues Awards kicks off, it seems quite possible that he was talking about our Demanding Mistress. That fickle disguise expert, that sneaky shape-shifting exhausting love of ours. The unreplaceable, unreliable, beautiful, multi-faceted, shouty, secret love that can go on forever, shut you up with a glance, send you out of the door when she has had her wicked way with a daft smile and outrageous gobby promises of more to come. Yep. The Blues Ain't goin' Nowhere without you and now especially it needs your declaration of undying love and support AND your vote.
Every year, when The Hat writes about the British Blues Awards, two things happen. First, there is always a ripple about who's in and who's out and someone - who is never likely even to get nominated - feels obliged to question the point of the awards, the mental health and parentage of the preliminary judges and whether the Meaning of Life is really 42. The second thing that happens, I am pleased to say, is that The Hat, amongst many others, rejoices in the fact that once again British Blues has shown that it is as strong, all-embracing and flourishing as never before.
Just look at the facts. This year there were nearly 1000 preliminary nominations across the board in 18 categories including, for example, 73 different bands, 83 guitarists and 68 albums. The final line up of just over 100 nominees is an extraordinary collection of pretty amazing blues talent and they need your support right now.
Hat followers will know that I have never been slow in coming forward with my encouragement for both young and emerging blues talent. These are the people who keep us looking forward, the generation of the future who right now are learning their chops, sitting on amplifiers in the backs of vans, borrowing the funds for a late night pizza and some new strings and yet despite daily disasters, insecurities, cash crises and moments of darkness, they get up in the morning and do it all over again.
The Young Artist of The Year Award always brings a spring to the step. Every single nominee, Alex McKown, Blues Boy Dan Owen, Laurence Jones, Lewis Hamilton, Lucy Zirins and Tom Gee is overflowing with the kind of talent most of us can only dream of. It is frightening. If they are this good now, how brilliant will they be in the future? If you do nothing else during the voting period, make a point of looking out every one of them, drop your jaw in awe, and get voting. This is the future and it is in pretty good hands.
This year the Blues Awards Organisers have introduced a new category - that of Emerging Artist. I like the apt way the organisers have tagged this category with a dictionary definition "to come forth from obscurity"...and don't we all know what that means!
For most blues fans and musicians there is no escape from the truism of the Hard Grind. Gig to gig, hand to mouth, pub to pub, leaflet to lost leaflet. ploughing a lonely furrow in pursuit of excellence and love of your music. To acknowledge those many out there, always on the fringe, almost on the point of a breakthrough to the next level, always seeking encouragement and help, always without the funds or mass publicity that will get you up that hill, the organisers have, with great success, installed this category. Sponsored by the wonderful Blues in Britain, we already know that the winner will get a spread in a national blues magazine. So - check this list: Brothers Groove, Gary Grainger, Half Deaf Clatch, King Size Slim, Mark Pontin Group and Thomas Ford - go to their sites, listen to their music, wonder why you hadn't seen them before - and do your bit and help them "to come forth"..
This is not Britain's got Xtalent. We already know that the British Blues scene is bursting with talent. Here is your chance to participate and you don't have to pay British Telecom or Simon Watsit a penny....
All the information is on the BBA website. Go now. Go NOW!
The Blues Man in The Hat
P.S In The Hat's usual unbiased, no-payola-thank-you, corruption free style...I will be expecting y'all to be voting for my friends at the Hebden Bridge Blues Festival as 2014 Festival of the Year again this year...