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April 2012:Join BENTROOTS for the Official Release of their 2nd CD entitled "Freshsmoke" When:
Where:
CD Specials:
Appearances by Special Guests. Best Regards and keep the Blues alive. Spread the word and looking forward to seeing you, Robert February 2012:The year of 2011 was not the best for us. Having continued our growth within the studio and working on our next album many challenges have continuously given us set backs This year in 2012 we are aiming at releasing 2 CD's. The first a wide range of different blues styles, once again stretching ourselves both lyrically and musically. On our second 2012 release (or 3rd album) we will be joined by a number of different friends of Bentroots who will be performing our music with their own interpretation. We are also working on revamping our entire website. This is a huge undertaking so stay tuned for a fresh new look from Bentroots and let us know your thoughts. We also recently joined Twitter so click here to follow Bentroots and stay in touch. Keep checking here regularly for up to date news and future announcements. Spread the word and keep the Blues alive. |
January 2010:First a couple sad notes to pass along; towards the end of last year two fellow musicians and personal friends of mine [Norm Welbanks and John Cleveland Hughes] passed away...Both of whom I played with in White Cane along with the late Rick James, Ed Roth [of BENTROOTS], Ian Kojima [from Chris Deburg], Dennis Gerard, [from the Paupers] and Bob Doughty [who worked with SCTV]. Norm Welbanks, [drums, guitar, bass, and sax] was everything you could ask of an individual…he always was team player and a fun loving guy…my Mister Congeniality to be sure…Secondly, John Cleveland Hughes also left us…a professional through and through. He certainly made me and anyone around him raise their musical bar…a magician on piano, organ and guitar. He will be missed. [NTB: Jan 25 at the Silver Dollar, there will a memorial held hosted by many of Toronto’s finest players such as Neil Chapman and Joe Agnello to honor John. It all starts around 8:00 and the cover of $10 will go to his family.] We seem to be surrounded by tragedy of late…I’m thinking of the current crisis in Haiti for instance…so we’re making everyone a special offer… for every BENTROOTS CD of “Tales of a Swamp King” you order, $5.00 will be contributed to the Red Cross on your behalf [with an enclosed receipt] to the Haitian Relief effort. It may be small but when you listen to the CD you’ll know that you helped out a bit….the blues may even lift your spirit. We [BENTROOTS] have very busy over the fall concentrating our efforts on finishing our 2ND CD entitled ‘Welcome to Club Bluenote’… And like all things that grow, we are in a constant state of evolution. This next CD musically still has ties to the Bayou, along with elements of Funk, Jazz and some Old School R&B thrown into the soul stew. It has become our labor of love. Also, a few guests lend a hand such as John Mays and Al Lerman [from FATHEAD], as well as Son Roberts [from the Son Roberts Bluz Band] and Roberta Hunt [noted pianist /vocalist]. The latter two performers have been sitting in on a regular basis at Gabby’s [on Eglinton east of Mt Pleasant], where we get together every other Sunday to jam and try out different ideas. It’s very informal but we welcome any one to come down…you can even sit in if you’d like. We hope to see you if we’re performing in your area…until then
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