As reported by our pals over at Blurt magazine, legendary Memphis musician Billy Lee Riley is in a bad way. Riley is suffering from stage four bone cancer (which is about as bad as it gets, folks), and although the MusiCares organization is providing for Riley's rent and utilities, he and his wife Joyce are literally broke and are having trouble scraping up enough money to eat.

Riley was born in 1933 to a sharecropper's family in Arkansas, and he was taught to play guitar by the African-American farmers he worked alongside. After a four-year bit in the Army, Riley landed in Memphis during the mid-1950s, where he recorded for Sam Phillips' storied Sun Records label. Riley's influential early rock 'n' roll singles include songs like "Trouble Bound," "Rock With Me Baby," "Flying Saucers Rock and Roll," and "Red Hot," which featured Jerry Lee Lewis on piano. When Phillips allocated his meager promotional funds to Lewis' recordings, Riley's career came to a full stall.

After his brief 1950s commercial peak, Riley would launch his own independent record label, work as a session musician in Los Angeles for folks like Dean Martin and the Beach Boys and, of course, continue to tour and record on his own. He gave it all up in the early-1970s to begin his own construction business in Arkansas, but returned to music full-time by the end of the decade. In the years since, Riley has pursued his own unique vision of rockabilly, blues, and country-blues music; the guitarist's affinity for the blues could have made him a hot property in the blues world if he'd have focused exclusively in that genre. Riley's 1997 comeback album Hot Damn! was nominated for a Grammy Award.

A donation of $10 or $20 could make a large difference in the Riley's lives right now, so if you have a few extra dollars that you can part with, please consider assisting this worthwhile musical legend. Send your donations to:

Billy Lee Riley
723 Crest Drive
Jonesboro AR 72401

Photo courtesy Price Grabber

On this day in 1897…or maybe it was 1893, or even 1889…and it might have been September rather than July, or possibly December…Blind Lemon Jefferson was born in Couchman, Texas. Like so many bluesmen from the late-1800s and early-1900s, records are spotty at best in providing the exact details of many poor people's birth, and the differences in census records and draft registration records put Jefferson's actual birth date in question.

It doesn't really matter, because any day that we can celebrate the life and music of Blind Lemon Jefferson is a good day! Considered by many to be the "Father of the Texas Blues," Jefferson was born blind to a sharecropper's family. After teaching himself to play the guitar, he became a familiar figure in Central Texas, playing parties and picnics as early as 1912; five years later he made the move to Dallas and could often be heard playing on street corners for tips.

During the 1920s, Jefferson was signed to the Paramount Records label, where he recorded over 100 songs in just three years, including blues standards like "Matchbox Blues" and "See That My Grave Is Kept Clean." At the peak of his popularity, Jefferson was one of the label's best-selling artists, his sales rivaling (or exceeding) those of contemporaries like Blind Blake and Ma Rainey. So, won't you join us in wishing Blind Lemon Jefferson a happy birthday…whenever it might be!

Related Content: Blind Lemon Jefferson Profile

Photo courtesy Price Grabber

Over the past few years, blues and roots-rock guitarist Shane Dwight has been quietly making a name for himself. A native of San Jose, California, Dwight taught himself guitar and honed his chops playing in different rock and jazz bands before jumping headfirst into the blues. In 2002, he won the Monterey Blues Festival Battle of the Bands, and while performing live whenever and wherever possible in the years to follow, Dwight also released several self-produced albums.

On June 23, 2009 Dwight released not one, but two debut CDs on the VizzTone Records label. The blues music-oriented Plays The Blues album features ten original Dwight tunes as well as a guest appearance by former Muddy Waters' axeman Bob Margolin. On the same day, Dwight also released a fine album of guitar-driven roots-rock titled Gimme Back My Money, a twelve-song collection of rock, blues, and R&B music.

To support these two new albums, Shane Dwight and his road-tested band will be touring like crazy to get his music out to the fans. Considering that Dwight's musical reputation rests primarily on his electrifying live performances, it would be worth your while to check him out when he comes through your town.

Shane Dwight Tour Dates

July 10 @ Friday’s On Third, Carson City NV
July 11 @ Jessie’s Grove Winery-Groovin’ In The Grove, Lodi CA
July 16 @ Lassen County Fair, Susanville CA
July 17 @ The Sands Pool Party, Reno NV
July 18 @ Mojo Lounge, Fremont CA
July 23 @ Biscuits & Blues, San Francisco CA
July 24 @ Foster City Concert Series, Foster City CA
July 25 @ Gilroy Garlic Festival Amphitheatre, Gilroy CA
July 28 @ Squaw Valley Concert Series, Squaw Valley NV
July 30 @ Mount Angel Summer Concert Series, Mount Angel OR
July 31 @ Mt. Baker Rhythm & Blues Festival, Bellingham WA
Aug 7 @ Friday Night Music Series, Morgan Hill CA
Aug 8 @ Fire On The Mountain Blues Festival, Sonora CA
Aug 14 @ Louie’s Cocktail Lounge, Rancho Cordova CA
Aug 16-23 @ San Mateo County Fair, San Mateo CA
Aug 27 @ Biscuits & Blues, San Francisco CA
Aug 28 @ Banker’s Casino, Salinas CA
Sep 5 @ Harrah’s Concert Series, Reno NV
Sep 12 @ Sunbanks Rhythm and Blues Fest, Electric City WA
Sep 18 @ Po’ Boyz Bar and Grill, Folsom CA
Sep 19 @ Shasta Blues Society’s Blues By The River, Redding CA
Sep 24 @ Biscuits & Blues, San Francisco CA
Sep 26 @ Sutter Creek Blues & Brews Festival, Sutter Creek CA
Oct 17-24 @ Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, West Coast México
Oct 29 @ Biscuits & Blues, San Francisco CA
Nov 25 @ Biscuits & Blues, San Francisco CA

Photo courtesy VizzTone Records

More blues artists tour dates

Remember, you read about it here first! Alligator Records has announced an August 11, 2009 release date for Hard Believer, the label debut from Tommy Castro, the 2008 B.B. King "Entertainer of the Year" Blues Music Award winner. Working with noted blues producer John Porter (B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Keb' Mo'), Castro stayed in his hometown of San Rafael, California to put together a twelve-song collection of his trademark blues, rock, and soul music. Read more....

Photo courtesy Alligator Records