The Tampa Delta

April 14, 1997

Even though the Tampa area is not the largest urban blues landmark, the folks over there certainly know how to put together a festival. It was the third annual blues fest and definitely their best. For two whole days, there was non-stop blues with a variety of styles that just kept getting better as time went by and beers went down.

The first day opened with Rock Bottom and the Cutaways, a seasoned band led by harp player and singer, Rock. From what I hear, he is one of Florida's musical treasures. Up next was T.C. Carr and the Catch, another favorite local blues band, headed by smooth harp smoocher, T.C., and backed by a tight and colorful band consisting of Lenny Austin on guitar, Pat Jeffrey on keys, Dennis McCarthy on drums and Mondo on bass. Together they delivered a powerful set of blues that had a wide range of moods. Soon after came Lucky Peterson and his band. A real showman, Lucky pranced not only around the stage, but also roamed around the festival crowd, playing his guitar feverishly. He not only played the guitar and sang, but also played a little keyboard too. Supposedly, he plays a lot of different instruments.

Chris Duarte, a festival favorite, came on with his small band and large guitar rig. With John and Eric holding down the rhythm on bass and drums respectfully, Chris lashed out his repertoire, playing a couple of recognizable songs, and then launched right in with new material that will be out very soon. After Chris came Elvin Bishop who has been playing the blues longer than I've been alive. And he's still got it. His guitar licks were razor sharp which may come from playing alongside Hendrix, Clapton and B.B. at the beginning of his career. To top off an already complete day of blues was the Queen of Blues, Koko Taylor. Just her presence kinda gives you a chill. It's probably because she has played with just about every major blues musician who has been around. She strutted slowly around the stage hootin' and hollerin' the blues, bringing the festival crowd to its feet - an outstanding finale to a great day.

The second day produced more greatness starting with local blues bands, Rhythm Review and Backtrack Blues Band who I didn't get to see. Following them was Trudy Lynn who is considered Houston's best kept R & B secret. She was good and her band looked like they were having a blast. Then came Jimmy Thackery who was very energetic and played almost nonstop for an hour and a half. After him was Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers who, quite honestly, I didn't pay much attention to. Hey, a guy's gotta eat. Anyway, I couldn't miss Buddy Guy, who closed the festival out in a grandiose way like he always does. I've seen Buddy a few times before and he really knows how to win the crowd with his beautiful playing and his big perma-smile. He is a true legend in his own time.

Eric Levy
My main focus in life is my music. I have been writing and playing music for over a decade, and it has been my labour of love. My main instrument is 6-string guitar, lead and rythym. I listen and play everything from low-down, dirty blues (B. Guy, BB, Howlin' Wolf, J. Winter, SRV, etc.) to more aggressive and heavier stuff (Soundgarden, A.I.C.,Pantera, Sacred Reich, etc.) to many that are somewhere in the middle, (Black Crowes, Stones, STP, Allman bros.) Bottom line is that I love music more than life itself. Well, almost.