“Classic Harmonica Blues,” out on May 21, features 20 tracks by the blues’ greatest harmonica players. Photo courtesy of Smithsonian Folkways Recordings In the early 20th-century, southern black ...

Among the harmonica’s many wonderful and unique traits, there is this: You have to really suck to be good at it. As one of America’s finest and busiest harmonica players, Denver’s Ronnie Shellist ...

The blues world was changed forever on a sunny day around 1960 when a little boy walked into a five-and-dime in Los Angeles. ...

Blues harmonica master Carey Bell died on May 6 of heart failure in his hometown of Chicago. He was 70. Bell – the 1998 winner of the Blues Music Award for Traditional Male Artist Of The Year – was a ...

One of the major transitions in the blues took place after thousands of Mississippians moved to Chicago, and drew upon the acoustic sounds of the Delta to create electrified Chicago blues. One of the ...

Mississippi blues harp player James Cotton was certainly considered lucky for the break he got joining Muddy Waters’ band in the late 1950s, taking over a spot previously held by such venerated ...

When it comes to blues harmonica, it’s all or nothing at all. In the wrong hands, the harp becomes a weapon of mass distraction, a screeching annoyance that can completely destroy any song. But, as ...

On Saturday, four of Southern New England’s best blues harmonica players will be appearing on one stage. Ryan Hartt, Kosher Kid, Johnny Marino, and Junior Krauss will appear at Black-eyed Sally’s as ...

The Center for the Arts is pleased to present Mark Hummel’s Harmonica Blowout in the Marisa Funk Theater on February 14, 2024. Mark Hummel’s Harmonica Blowout celebrates 31 years of touring in 2024.

Harmonica Shah has been a fixture on the Detroit blues circuit for at least 20 years and has been featured on a number of recordings with other local blues artists such as Hastings Street Grease. Shaw ...

Blues harmonica virtuoso and onetime Muddy Waters sideman James Cotton died on Thursday at a medical center in Austin of pneumonia. He was 81. A rep for the musician confirmed his death. Cotton, who ...