The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Italian blues guitarist Morbioli plays area venues
Italian blues guitarist Roberto Morbioli is taking a big tour, with multiple stops through the region. Morbioli was born in Verona. He started playing the guitar at an early age, and discovered the blues at the age of 15. He has played in some of the biggest European festivals as well as many blues spots around the U.S., including Antone’s in Austin, TX.
In 1991 he set up his own band, Morblus, playing in all the biggest national and international blues festivals and events, which has brought him much recognition and many awards. In 1998, he toured with Morblus around the U.S., playing at the B.B. King’s Blues club in Memphis and in other popular American blues clubs. He writes and arranges the music and lyrics of all the original songs recorded by Morblus and published on various CDs
Morbioli’s personality and unique playing style are evident in all his interpretations, while at the same time recalling the styles of blues greats such as Freddy King, Albert King, B.B. King, Albert Collins, T. Bone Walker, Steve Ray Vaughan and Eric Clapton.
Morbioli is a passionate and commanding guitarist, demonstrating great groove in every song he plays. Each note comes straight from his heart. As a singer, his powerful voice recalls the styles and tones of Sam Cook, O.V. Wright, Little Milton, Otis Redding, Robert Cray, and Donny Hathaway.
Friday, Morbioli will be at the Tipping Chair Tavern, and continues his tour Saturday at Black-Eyed Sally’s and Thursday at J’s Crab Shack. Morbioli is also the featured artist at The Sunday Jam at Greendale’s Pub in Worcester. Thursday, he will be at Pub on Park in Cranston, RI.
Eran Troy Danner is keeping busy with a his acoustic duo on Saturday at Tavern 42. Thursday, he joins again with friend Marty Q at the The Shamrock Pub & Grill.
The Hungry Tiger brings in Neal Vitullo & the Vipers on Saturday. The rockin’ blues player from Rhode Island has been playing the Tiger for 20 years. Lots of amazing originals, songs from your past and great entertainment. and Again another not to miss. They playing real music in a nice small club setting.
Not quite blues, but certainly a lot of fun is Kinky Friedman. He is bringing his Resurrected Tour for a couple of stops in Connecticut. A renowned raconteur and political candidate, Friedman, has been resurrected. Known as a legendary outlaw country singer/songwriter, novelist, he has a new CD, “The Loneliest Man I Ever Met.” The album has received rave reviews across the board, making it Kinky’s best and most popular release ever. Yes, the Kinkster has been resurrected. And new chapters of Kinky’s fable life are just around the corner, literally. Coming soon from Backbeat Books will be Connecticut’s award winning writer Mary Lou Sullivan’s comprehensive Kinky bio (450+ pages).
Then Friday, April 14 and Saturday, April 15, Friedman will be at 41 Bridge Street, again with Brian Molnar.
The Knickerbocker Café has a Sunday show benefitting the Jonnycake Center of Westerly. Headlining the event is Sugar Ray and the Bluetones with special guest Greg Piccolo. Also playing are Johnny and the East Coast Rockers, Shiny Lapel Trio, and The Sidewinders.
The mission of the Jonnycake Center of Westerly is to provide a continuum of services in cooperation with other agencies in their service area to assist people through crisis situations & work with each individual to find a path out of dependency toward self-sufficiency.
Grammy-nominated, Chicago blues icon Lonnie Brooks, who is known for an energetic style while at the same time being witty, passed away last week. Often playing with his sons, he can best be described as a fire-and-brimstone preacher, testifying the blues from the bottom of his soul.
An interesting show takes place at Temple Emanuel Sinai (Worcester, MA) on Saturday: Jews ‘n Blues. Jews and Blues with Jeff Klepper tells the story of how the music of the two cultures on the outside of American mainstream came to appreciate each other.
It is time to start preparing for the festival season. While you can travel throughout the region, there are some good fests right around the corner here in Connecticut. The Meriden Daffodil Festival is set for April 29-30. Some state favorites are ready to take the stage: Kal David and Lauri Bono will be there, as well as Christine Ohlman and Rebel Montez. Get the full music line-up at http://daffodilfest.com/music-line-up/.
Fast forward to August, when Stafford Springs hosts its annual fest. And don’t forget: 2 Left Feet is coming back stronger than ever.
Get the complete Blues Beat schedule on Thursday at the blog http://bluesbeatnews.wordpress.com/. Any questions or comments should be sent to Domenic Forcella at TWBlus@aol.com.