Shout Outs
3-09: Nancy, Thank you for a great newsletter and resource!!! Don Workman
3-09: Nancy, I just wanted to thank for your help in getting this nailed down. We've already gotten several promising responses. Tom Gerrits, Bass Player/Webmaster, The DELTA WIRES
4/09: Hi Gordon, I enjoy receiving your Blues Festival guide - keep up the excellent work it is greatly appreciated. As the owner of a small record company that release Blues, in Australia, I wish to comment on your article re YouTube as I am familiar with a similar issue here in Australia. The main gripe that major record companies, and societies such as PRS and the equivalent in other societies is that Youtube is leveling the playing field for "free" music videos. Whereas prior to Youtube, there was no way that any commercial TV station in Australia, for example was going to show a clip of say, Joe Bonamassa. Now I can click on Youtube and see Joe, or heaps of other such Blues artists on Youtube. There is no way such artists would have appeared on MTV etc. Control the methods of distribution and you control capitalism - said Karl Mark. He may well have been talking about the music industry....and not just distribution, but more importantly exposure. Feargal Sharkey and such, are stalking horses for the major record companies who are struggling with the new technologies, and business models. Of course they don't want kids seeing a funky young Blues artist on Youtube, or old Freddie King clips for that matter - because the kids may prefer it!!! The issue of artist royalties is perfect for such interests, as who could oppose the argument that artists need to get more royalties from Google! Of course the claim is always for a blanket payment - and how many Blues artists, who usually don't have publishers etc, are going to get any honey from the pot. In my experience here in Australia- none. "It is too difficult to distribute to independent artists so we just give it to the big guys" goes the argument when the dividing up of such spoils are done. Keep Youtube as it is - free access means free exposure, surely the basic democratic right of all artists. Again - keep up the good work. Cheers John John Durr Black Market Music
1/09: Your magazine is the best detailed mag EVER on the blues. I always look forward to it turning up in my inbox. Keep up the fantastic work. CHEERS. Martin Waite
8/19/08: Just a "thanks" for your efforts on the Blues Festival E-Guide, I really look forward to reading my weekly e-mail. I'm a lifetime Alabama boy, been listening to John Lee Hooker since I was 10, I'm a young 54 now, and am now listening to Eden Brent as I type. Going to the Howlin' Wolf Memorial Blues Festival in West Point, Mississippi and would not have known about either without the info on the website. You take care, now David Porter, Montevallo, Alabama
2/18/08: Hi Nancy! Every week, I read through the Blues Festival Guide, and tell myself...."self...I love this site!" You do a fabulous job. Keep up the great work. Ciao, Christine
8/3/07: Thank you for the weekly Blues Festival E Guide. It's most informative, the articles are well written, and the variety, of your coverage, of blues news is vast. -bam_agal@
8/4/07: Hi Nancy, Just wanted to thank you for the wonderful job you do in putting this letter together. Always read it from top to bottom and thought why not send you an appreciation......so thank you very much............ Catch you on the turnaround. -Bill Noteman
7/20/07: I love this newsletter! That and the guide are great! Keep up the great work! -Jason Shane Mason
4/12/07: I went to the closing performance of the Reykjavik Blues Festival -- only because you had it advertised on-line!! It was very cool to fly from New Jersey (a huge blues fan - with mother and daughter) to Iceland (for 4 days) and find the blues in a church near our hotel. It's a small world -- and your newsletter really helps to bridge the continents! Thanks alot!!
Thank you for responding to my email and thank you very much especially for providing such informative news on a weekly basis. It sure lets me know what's going on in the blues world. I will continue to be a loyal reader as long as the interesting news keeps coming!!! -Mel
3/26/07: I just want to thank you again for a wonderful publication and the e-mail news that I receive from you all. It is such a pleasure to keep up on what is going on across the country and all over the world, and it certainly wets the appetite to pack the bags and go see some great shows all over!! Thank you!! -Chef Gail, Tuesday morning blues dj, Breakfast With the Blues, KRVM 91.9 FM
3/11/07: Hello Nancy, Just wanted to say "Thank you" to to you and the rest of the staff for doing such a great job in keeping me informed with the latest, and coolest, blues news. Keep up the great work!! -MEL
3/4/07: Dear Nancy, I just wanted to say that I really enjoyed reading the blues festival E guide this morning. I have a very busy career as a physician, and the blues provide with me with much needed relaxation and enjoyment. There isn't much of a blues scene here in Spartanburg, so I typically have to travel to Charlotte or parts further away to listen to live blues. Your newsletter will help me to keep a watch out for future opportunities to listen to my favorite form of music. I also appreciate learning about the history of the blues, and the article about Led Zeppelin being sued years ago was most interesting, as it was the recycled blues played by "rock bands" in the 60s and 70s that first drew me in to love music, and it was only in more recent years that I came to understand that it was the blues that is the foundation for so much of the rock and roll that I came to love. Please keep up the good work and please keep giving us a heads up to blues festivals and acts that are coming up in months ahead, as I typically need a month or more advance notice in order to arrange for me to get out of town to catch some live blues. Sincerely, Chris Patterson MD
11/10/06: I enjoy the weekly emails and think your concept is going to help the Blues artists' markets really grow. -Thanks, Dan Bacon, Blues Express
6/6/06: Just thought I'd drop you a short note that I look forward to your weekly guide. It has great information. Keep up the excellent work! Thanks Jo
4/18/06: No questions, just a huge thank you. Your guide is one stop shopping for fans. My sister and I have planned trips based on your information. We've never been disappointed in the performances or the people. It's a wonderful culture for middle aged women. Again, thanks and you deserve many awards.... -Cathy Silver
4/5/06: This is wonderful...thanks so much! -Feldheltz@"