Pat Blythe – The Women of Rock Redux Part 3 – Debbie and Cyndi……and music. Chapter 2 – Cyndi!

Hello everyone. Here’s Part 2 about Debbie and Cyndi. Two unique women who dance to their own drummers…..whose talents encompass a variety of musical fields in two decidedly different decades. These ladies can pop and rock, disco down or jazz it up, sing the blues, or pour their soul into a ballad. Their many talents run the full gamut and they have led the way for a new kind of woman in music, adding their own twist and turns to rock and roll.

Quirky, outrageous, individualistic, sexy, daring, entertaining, exuberant, clever, brilliant, artistic and ballsy. These two ladies continue to awe and inspire new generations of performers. Flexing their creative muscles, they’ve “pivoted” again and again, constantly pushing the envelope and challenging the norms…..breaking down barriers. But in the end…..these girls just wanna have fun!

You can find Debbie by clicking HERE

The Women of Rock Redux Part 3 – Debbie and Cyndi……and music. Chapter 1 – Debbie!

Hello everyone. Let’s give a warm welcome to Debbie and Cyndi. Two unique women who dance to their own drummers…..whose talents encompass a variety of musical fields in two decidedly different decades. These ladies can pop and rock, disco down or jazz it up, sing the blues, or pour their soul into a ballad. Their many talents run the full gamut and they have led the way for a new kind of woman in music, adding their own twist and turns to rock and roll.

Chef Tom – Meat and Potatoes The Blues …and a Whiskey

Call me old fashioned. Sometimes you just wanna go back to your roots. Doesn’t mean you can’t apply a smidge of sophistication.

Pat Blythe – The Blues and Jazz Brothers….instruments….and music….

Trying to touch on as many things as possible without boring you or losing everyone’s attention is challenging. Hitting the highlights, giving you a flavour without overloading everyone on the nitty gritty details is what I’m aiming for. There are musicians, the instruments that intermingle across all the genres and the endless music…. I am finding it fascinating to learn about how both blues and jazz evolved through the years. Every facet of music today has been touched and influenced by these two genres without many young musicians even realizing it. They don’t realize how lucky they are!

Pat Blythe – London Music Week, Canadian Musician Celebrates 40 Years …and Music!

I’m in London, Ontario attending Forest City London Music Week and the awards gala. Hanging my hat at home with my mom. Music was a huge part of my life growing up whether it was inside or outside the home. In the 1970s London was filled with clubs and bars covering everything from punk, rock, jazz, blues, folk to disco. Venues included The Cedar Lounge, The Diamond Club, Fryfogles Tavern (I celebrated my 18^th birthday there), Old City Hall, Kelly’s, Mingles, The Noodle Factory, The West End, Smales Pace, Ridout Tavern…..just to name a few. There was something for literally everyone. Major concert venues included Wonderland Gardens (my favourite spot), Centennial Hall and Treasure Island Gardens…..the latter located way out of town near Highway 401.

Pat Blythe – The Women of Blues Revisited, Part I….

I am swamped with another project that is sucking up all my time during the waking hours. I have less than two weeks to complete it and it’s seems to be growing arms and legs I wasn’t expecting. So…..just to rehash a bit of blues history, specifically the ladies, I thought I’d have my editor post this again as many of you have probably not seen it. I wrote three series, Women of Rock, Women of Blues and Women in Song. The Women of Blues was actually inspired by a contemporary whom I saw for the first time a couple of years ago. She had dedicated her latest album to a female blues artist I had never heard of. Read all about her and the women who contributed so, so much to the genre we call the blues. The famous and not so famous. They were tough, talented, single-minded, sexually liberated, passionate and most of them had more balls than the men. Read on, you might even learn something.

Pat Blythe: Keeping the music alive…one “note” at a time

It has indeed been a busy summer for everyone. 2016 has been a peculiar, curious and rather dramatic year. A year of extreme change, upheavals, death, excessive busyness, new connections, sheer stupidity, life transformations and adjustments — nothing has been minor. It’s all been “in our faces”, screaming and shouting at us, begging us to take notice, pleading with us to address whatever is coming at us.  I think many will be glad to see the back end of 2016 and look forward with hope to 2017. No, this is not a ‘year-end’ column, just a bit of reflection on the summer that seemingly whizzed by and all that happened in just that short timeframe.

Pat Blythe: Women of Blues 3 – Bessie Smith – The Empress of The Blues

“The blues is not about people knowing you, it’s about you knowing the people.” –– Ma Rainey, (from the HBO movie Bessie)

Pat Blythe: The Women of Blues

Prologue….

Anyone heard of Memphis Minnie? How about Ida Cox, Victoria Spivey, Lucille Hegamin, Julia Lee or Maxine Sullivan? Me neither. How about Bessie Smith, Etta James, Sarah Vaughan, Aretha Franklin, Big Momma Thornton, Dinah Washington or even Janis Joplin. The latter are a smattering of the ladies most frequently thought of or mentioned when we think of great female blues singers….the former, not so much.

Pat Blythe: The Women of Rock – Part Four

Hello everyone. Let’s give a warm welcome to Debbie and Cyndi. Two unique women who dance to their own drummers and whose talents encompass a variety of musical fields in two decidedly different decades. These ladies can pop and rock, disco down or jazz it up, sing the blues, or pour their soul into a ballad. Their many talents run the full gamut and they have led the way for a new kind of woman in music, adding their own twist and turns to rock and roll. Quirky, outrageous, individualistic, sexy, ballsy, entertaining, exuberant, clever, brilliant, artistic and really, really smart.