Shirley Jackson’s seven-piece blues band, The Good Rockin Daddys, are offering two days of workshops on the history and performance of blues music and wrapping up their visit to Shelburne with a concert at the Osprey that will feature some of the workshop participants.
The performance is Saturday, March 24 at 8 p.m.
Presented in partnership with the Black Loyalist Heritage Society and the Osprey Arts Centre, this project is what Jackson and her band call “Blues in the Schools.” Students from all three county schools are already signed up, but there’s room for more, and adult musicians are encouraged to get involved too.
David Harrison will start off the workshops with a history of the blues, tracing it “through the slave trade and the field hollers and work songs of cotton fields in the Southern United States.” Then participants will be divided into groups by instrument – guitar, brass, woodwind, bass and drums. Henry Bishop will be teaching the African roots of blues drumming.
Shirley Jackson and Her Good Rockin’ Daddys boast a four-piece horn section. Her style has been described as “jump rockin’ blues swing spiced with Tex-Mex. The band’s latest CD release, Comfort Food was nominated for an East Coast Music Award. From swing jazz to rhythmic blues to rock’n’roll, The Good Rockin’ Daddys serve up a wide menu of tunes both on Comfort Food and in concert.
Reviewer Eric Thom says this is one of the “most surprising and, ultimately, rewarding releases… the brainchild of award-winning Tenor Sax stalwart Shirley Jackson and her handpicked crew, comprised of the cream of the Maritime blues and jazz crops.”
Jackson won a Canada-wide 2003 Maple Blues Award for Horn Player of the Year following the band’s release of its first CD, Careful What You Ask For, also nominated for an ECMA.
The workshops are open to a maximum of 30 participants. Those interested must sign up by contacting Arlene Butler at the BLHS (875-1310) and bring their own instruments. The workshops take place at the Osprey on Friday March 23 starting at 3:30 p.m. and on Saturday, March 24 starting at 10 a.m.
This weekend of blues wraps up at the Osprey with a grand finale performance featuring the band and many workshop participants on Saturday, March 24, 8 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for students in advance at the Whirligig Book Shop (875-2359) and at the door within an hour of the performance.
