Canadian - born singer, guitarist Jimmy C learned his chops playing on the West Coast of America, from home-town Vancouver to San Francisco. Having moved to Japan in 1996 Jimmy eventually linked up with American singer Mississipi John L Watson and was persuaded to record with him in London in 1999. Since then Jimmy has promoted his own brand of electric blues with a smile and Jimmy and the band are earning a deserved reputation as one of the most entertaining and hard-working bands on the London circuit.
Playing a repertoire which includes blues classics from Robert Johnson and T-bone Walker, various Kings of the blues, that is Albert, Freddie and BB, they follow through to the music which the British Blues Invasion of North America left in its wake, from the Rolling Stones to Cream, from Jimi Hendrix to the Doors and even Steppenwolf They freely admit they are not blues purists but as they point out neither were the blues greats - their mission is to do what Muddy Waters did, and what Rufus Thomas did, to entertain and get you dancing. As Bill Thomas said " this is a band that really knows how to warm up a room!"
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REVIEW from
BLUES in BRITAIN
Canadian Jimmy C, all smiles, mop top hair and energy, distributes great guitar licks' vocals and occasional harp playing such as on "Mojo Working". His happy demeanour is obviously infectious to both band and audience. His playing was a joy to hear, switching between the slow blues of "Texas Flood", the quicker pace of "Every Day I Have The Blues" and the Hendrix tributes of "Hey Joe" and "Fire". He was also just as good in support of the surprise package (to me at least), Antonio Lorenzo on sax. Antonio's obvious classical / jazz training has adjusted well to filling out the sound in the good time blues based menu served up this evening' sometimes with understated backing, such as on "Wang Dang Doodle~ and "Woke Up This Morning", or producing the main course on "Peter Gunn" and "Mustang Sally". Having the sax adds an extra dimension to the overall sound from the band.
The set was mainly covers, which I'm sure will go down a treat with a larger Saturday night audience' although Jimmy C and the Blues Dragons put their own spin on them, to keep the purists on their side. The nice thing is their invitation to shake and dance along is difficult to refuse. They had a knack of hitting a groove and carrying the audience along with them, as on their version of "Tore Down". On top of this' they were adept at leaving space in the overall sound to enhance the overall effect, as on the understated version of "Sweet Home Chicago". Plus any band that can chuck in "Born To Be Wild" as part of their finale' without coming across as too serious gets my vote!
If you live in London, they may be playing in a local pub near you soon. I know I'll be back!
...Darrell Parsons
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INTERVIEW from Soundcheck Magazine
Putting the fun back into the blues
Jimmy C. & The Blues Dragons
Jimmy C & The Blues Dragons. The name kind of sums it up. Sharp snappy blues, with a litle bit of edge and an element of fun. But what the name also disguises is a jovial Canadian guitarist who mixes T Bone Walker style blues with the sounds of late 60's / early 70's when blues sat side by side with bands like Cream, Stones, Hendrix and even Steppenwolf.
Occassionally a new name slips onto the circuit, quietly makes inroads and then suddenly takes off with a mix of quality gigs and a great debut album. Well in truth the'Vancouver Axe Wielder' has built a career in Japan. taken his first tentative steps onto the UK blues circuit, and the album is only half finished !!!
Jimmy explains:"I worked a lot on the West Coast as a hired guitar player, because you don't get to sing much of your own stuff in bars over there. Although I played with George Thorogood and opened at the Commodore for Otis Rush, it was mainly the old Top 40 syndrome. But I was working steadily in a couple of bands when I got the chance to go to Japan through being asked by some friends - who were a top 40 type band ! -but I guess you take whatever chance comes along.
"When I first got to Tokyo in particular I coundn't believe the number of blues clubs there! And there were good clubs such as The Bright Blues Club and The T Saloon. At first I used to sit in with a bunch of blues heads in a few clubs in Tokyo, but pretty soon it all became a little more than that. I headed for the Japanese blues scene rather than the foreign scene.
"There are some good players over there like "Tad", who is Japan's answer to BB King, and then there's US ex-pats like High Tide Harris. So I kinda stumbled onto this blues scene. I quietly made my excuses to the top 40 band and headed right for the blues scene. Things went well, I made a bit of a name for myself and got the chance to cut a live album.
"We didn't even have a regular set list, each night you'd end up jamming with several different musicians so we just went for standards we all knew, a handful of songs that I'd written and rock classics that almost all evolved from a blues base. The kids over there loved it, especially the connection between blues and rock. Our set evolved as a direct consequence of the audience response. We always tried to play great blues, to entertain and to have a lot of fun.
"High-Tide Harris (an American blues legend over there) once told me "You could be sitting behind an office desk, but you are out to enjoy yourself and entertain". He'd go on stage as this 60 year old and come off as a teenager..he's amazing. His message was simple but one I always carry with me and if people get off on the band having fun then we're doing our job.
"Anyway we nearly recorded this live album (he chuckles) By the time I made it to London the album was half finished... in other words only half was really useable (laughs) and I hit the ground running. I was originally going to work with John L.Watson but that didn't work out so I pretty much started doing what I'd been doing in Japan. I'm going to finish the album next trip hopefully, or maybe even record a couple of live dates here.?
After an early stint with The Odyssey Blues Band - including a belter of a gig fronting the band to an impressed, capacity John Mayall audience at the Shepherds Bush Empire - Jimmy found the guys he needed to form his own combo. "It was an important time for me as I had to find out where the gigs were and what kind of stuff people were into. Working with Odyssey was fun 'cos it's a big blues outfit, well suited to my T- Bone Walker style of guitar. But I always wanted to get back to my own project."
As a result the Lazy Hopefuls were born with the original line-up including fellow Canadian vocalist Steve Richards and a hired rhythm section. The band cut a fair self penned 4 track CD, but in truth it lacked direction.
"I was wanting to play the blues but kind of trying to keep on the gig circuit and doing what other people wanted. I was playing my own songs, but you have to strike a balance between that and getting gigs to build up your profile."
As things turned out, Jimmy found himself with a number of rebookings but also that Steve Richards couldn't always be there.
A line-up change led to the current band, "I decided that since I sang in my own band before, I might as well properly front my own band here".
With those words JimmyC has created just that:his own band that he fronts Properly!As Willie Dixon would often say"Every one's got the right to play the Blues"
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