| Steve | |
Arvey |
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| John Vilardo |
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| Steve with Bo |
Arvey eventually returned to Chicago, where he worked as a sideman on the Chicago Blues scene playing bass guitar, guitar, and drums behind such Blues Legends as Hubert Sumlin, Jimmy Rogers, Big Smokey Smothers, Homesick James, Andrew Brown, Lefty Dizz, Big Moose Walker, BB Big Voice Odum, Detroit Jr, Lovie Lee, Carey Bell, Big Jack Johnson, Sam Carr, Frank Frost, Lester Davenport. Eddie Taylor, Sam Lay, Eddie Clearwater, Sugar Blue, Abb Locke, Hip Linkchain, Sammy Lawhorn, Jr Wells, Sammy Fender and others.
Then Arvey formed a band called West Side Heat and Released his first Album. The band was very active between 1981-1991 and toured all over the world, sometimes backing up Notable blues artists. The Highlight of the Group was their Performance on The Crossroads Stage at the 1990 Chicago Blues Festival.
I guess I just got burned out on that after a while, and shortly after the band quit, I started up with Kraig, Arvey said. We would basically go and play acoustic sets all day at Blues Fests, and on the streets.
While I really like playing on the Crossroads stage and all, it was just a lot more fun to be on the street. It's a lot more relaxed atmosphere.
In that time period, Arvey was also approached by the publicists for the
Irish beer, Harp Lager. And while he had never performed Irish music, he
took the opportunity to perform for them.
It was sort of unfortunate at first, because they told me they didn't really
want someone to play Irish ballads and slow songs, and I had told them
I didn't play Irish music, Arvey said. But then when I showed up at the
clubs they sent me to, the people were shocked, and wondered where the
Irish band was.
So I went to the Old Town School of Folk Music, and totally immersed myself in everything I could. I found all these folk guys, like (Tommy) Makem and Tommy Clancy, and I really fell in love with it. Steve spent two years performing Blues, Rock, and Irish music, sponsored by Harp, at almost 150 dates a year at clubs throughout the Chicagoland area.
Steve is again playing the Blues, and Blues/Rock music regularly around the Chicago area.
The Following
Interview
with permission - The Blues Stalker
@ LA HORA DEL BLUES
STEVE ARVEY’S
INTERVIEW
BY MONTE ADKISON, "THE BLUES STALKER"
Photos by "The Blues Stalker"
MONTE ADKISON’S BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Monte Adkison,
aka "the Blues Stalker," has been listening to the blues for over four decades.
Along with many other teenagers who grew up in the southern United States in
the early 60’s, she listened to powerful Nashville, Tennessee WLAC radio deejay
"John R’s" popular blues radio show after midnight every night. Currently a
high school social science teacher in Florida for over thirty years, Monte was
the recipient of a scholarship in 1995 from the Florida Humanities Council to
study blues music at the University of Tampa where she met the late Tampa Bay
harmaniac, Rock Bottom, and the late "Diamond Teeth" Mary McClain. Amazed that
"Diamond Teeth" Mary had been written up in European blues magazines but not
in American, she vowed to change that.
Taking a summer pilgrimage to the Delta to study at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, she spent time researching Mary in the Blues Archives and met David Nelson, then editor of Living Blues which is based there on the Ole Miss campus. She asked David if he knew Mary and he said he had seen her perform at the W.C. Handy Awards in Memphis in ’92. When asked if indeed his magazine was true "Living Blues", if she wrote about Mary performing on her 95th birthday, would he publish it? The answer was yes and Living Blues did and then went on to write an article on Monte’s Blues in the Schools program in a ’97 issue. Monte began writing a regular column for the Suncoast Blues Society newsletter, the Twelve Bar Rag under the moniker "the Blues Stalker." Five years later, the "Blues Stalker" is still writing about talented blues artists who are under appreciated and often ignored by the mainstream press. She also covers other aspects of the blues music industry besides the musicians themselves. Her photographs can be viewed on the Suncoast Blues Society web site www.suncoastblues.org as well as photographs of the popular annual Tampa Bay Blues Festival.
Monte’s commitment to keeping the
blues alive is evident in her article, her photography, and in her classroom
in Ocala, Florida where every inch of her walls are covered with snapshots and
autographed posters of blues musicians that she has met. As she puts it, "It’s
my way of sneaking the heritage in----when you’re bored with the lessons and
look up on the walls and see a Kenny Neal, or Eddie Kirkland, or Sista Monica—you
might just give a listen later in live and fall in love with the music just
like I have. It is another small way of keeping the blues alive."
You can visit her site at www.bluesstalker.com
This is the reason why I am really satisfied and proud to have at "La Hora del Blues" staff, directly from USA, the valuable suport, help and collaboration of this great blues expert and lover, known as "The Blues Stalker". I am sure you will enjoy this page with all her interesting and juicy interviews and photographs, so I can only encourage you to visit it regularly. Welcome aboard!, Monte....
Vicente Zúmel
Interview with Steve Arvey, September 2002. Steve answered questions on a train while he was finishing up his UK tour.
Blues Stalker: You currently live in Chicago
and have been based there for years. You attended the University of Florida
in Gainesville in the 1970’s where you met Bo Diddley. Can you tell us how you
met Bo and what he was like?
Steve Arvey: I first hooked up with Bo Diddley in 1979. I was living in Gainesville
at that time. I was introduced to Bo through 2 girls that were living on Bo
Diddley’s farm Bo had just moved from Albuquerque, New Mexico, to Hawthorne
with his family. I was playing with the Robert Hunter Blues Band at that time
and Ben Andrew, the guitarist, and I took a ride out to Bo’s farm. Turned out
that Bo needed some construction help so Ben and I helped Bo out with his new
house. Not only did Bo help me with my bass playing but he also helped me out
with my carpentry skills. Bo also needed a band to help back him on some gigs
around the area. I was more of a guitar player but Bo needed a bass player.
I had just purchased a Hofner Beatle Bass and the Waldo flea market for $75.
I was rusty but Bo had patience and I became a bass player. Bo Diddley is the
best. No ego, had patience, and is just a great guy to hang out with.
BS: In addition to the blues, you also
played with the Chicago Rovers, an Irish band. How did that come about?
SA: While playing for tips on the streets at the Chicago Bluesfest, I was approached
by publicists for Irish beer, Harp Lager, to play Irish music, sponsored by
Harp. I seized the opportunity, immersed myself in the Old Town School of Folk
Music, and played 150 dates a year at clubs in the Chicago area. I played and
recorded a disc with the Chicago Rovers, one of Chicago’s top Irish bands. The
music is a challenge but I love playing it and I get the same feeling in my
soul that I get when I sing and play the blues.
B.S: You have worked with
Honeyboy Edwards and Homesick James. What insight can you give us about these
legendary artists?
SA: What can I say about Honeyboy Edwards? Here is the last link to Charley
Patton and I get to play with him! It’s too much. I just like driving to gigs
with him and listening to his stories. I have played with a lot of the old timers
and a lot of them would bullshit a lot. Lots of these guys get asked so many
questions about whom they played with that they just get sick and tired of telling
the same story over and over so they just start talking bs. Now, Honeyboy Edwards
is different. I just let him talk. He knows I love Charley Patton stories so
he throws in some Patton stories and Tommy Johnson tales. Honeyboy is the real
thing and is honest and a true American icon. Homesick is the bomb! Lots of
people have criticized his timing. Who cares if you change and play a 7 bar
blues or go to the four chord whenever you want? Breaking time—I love it! Yes,
if you are a musician backing him, it was tough. But it taught me about writing
songs and different phrasing. If you visit my website, you will see a photo
of him and I in 1982 when I was laying bass behind him. When I first started
playing with him, I was so confused with his style ‘cause I was playing very
definite bass patterns and it was hard to break out of the patterns and follow
him. I was reunited with him again at the Chicago Bluesfest in 1999 and backed
him up on acoustic guitar.
BS: What advice would you give to today’s
struggling blues musicians?
SA: Struggling blues musicians—be real. This music is real. I love being real.
Sing from your heart. Let your soul come through. Hey, you got problems? Let
it out through your music. Hey, you are happy—let it out through your music.
Forget going to jams—try something new. Sit down with at home with your instrument
and find new paths. Look at B.B.King—he is still working on new stuff and studying.
Find new avenues to play the blues. Blues is not a three-chord thing. I am so
happy that I chose this path in life and have been able to play with the musicians
that have changed the face of American music. Too many musicians try to recreate
something they did not experience firsthand. I cannot recreate the environment
of Dockery Farms in the late 20’s that Charley Patton experienced or the life
of a young worker experiencing the hardships of Dublin in 1876. I am moved by
this music and this history. Be real.
BS: You have teamed up
with Kraig Kenning on recordings and played for years on the street outside
the Chicago Blues Festival for tips. Now that you play onstage at the festival---how
is that different?
SA: Well, for the last four years we have been playing on the Best Buy stage
on Sunday. We start with "Amazing Grace" since it is a Sunday and people will
be coming to the Blues Fest from Sunday morning worship. After our set, we return
to the spot that we have been at for years. The stage is nice but I really enjoy
performing in the streets more. The stage show is just a condensed version of
that Kraig and I do for hours on the street.
BS: After playing as a sideman in Chicago,
you formed a band called West Side Heat and recorded your first album. Elaborate
on that please.
SA: West Side Heat was originally formed as a vehicle for me to take a lot of
other sidemen and play some different music. The early days of West Side Heat
were interesting with some notable players performing in the band. In 1984 we
recorded an EP called "Crazy Mixed Up World." That project had Tony Manguillo
on drums. Tony is now the owner of the Famous Rosa’s Lounge in Chicago. Ron
Sorin on harmonica. John Baker on bass. John played in West Side Heat all the
way to 1988 .Jon McDonald on guitar who just performed at the Chicago Blues
Fest with Homesick James and Honeyboy Edwards. Mark Hoekstra joined the band
that summer and has been with me off and on since then. Mark could sing very
well and became another front man in the band. West Side Heat really started
developing a unique sound in 1987. Most of these recordings can be found on
the "Best From the Vault" CD.
BS: You recently
toured in Australia and Tasmania and recorded your most recent CD Soul of a
Man there. Tell the readers about that experience.
SA: Boy, a lot to say about that region of the world. I encourage all readers
of this interview to visit this area at least one time in their life. Good people,
great food, fantastic beer, and very enthusiastic audiences. I have developed
a great fan base in Oz and I plan to tour the country at least once a year.
Actually, I recorded the CD in Chicago and Louisville and released the CD January
12, 2002 in Australia on the OnlyBluesMusic label.
BS: You are finishing your tour around
the UK. What venues have you beeb playing there and who is playing with you?
SA: My main performance has benn at the Great Rhythm and Blues fest in Colne
Lancaster. At that show I have done a two-hour show mixing both acoustic and
an electric performance. My tour has taken me through the Pubs of the Midlands
of England (Nottingham, Leicester, Northampton, Oxford) up to Yorkshire, Cleethorpes
in the Northeast, and then up to Scotland. This tour teams me up with two of
the members of the English band, Bluesmove. Mike Hellier on the drums, Julian
Grudgings on keyboards, and a wonderful bass player named Kevin Jefferies.
BS: After numerous
CDs, festival appearances, and international tours----what projects do you see
in the future? What are you currently working on?
SA: Good question. I am trying to get my original compositions in movies and
on TV. At the moment, I am getting my show together for the King Biscuit Blues
Festival in Arkansas this October. For future recordings, I am just trying to
collaborate with other musicians.
BS: What is your web site and how can
fans contact you?
SA: www.stevearvey.com
BS: Describe you favorite instrument and
amplifier.
SA: I have been using my Jeff Beck Stratocaster mostly these days . I have a
lot of guitars but I tend to play a guitar for three years then change up. My
amp configuration has been a 1965 Fender Super Reverb amp with a 15" Olson speaker
and a Fender Deville amplifier with 4 10" speakers in a stereo configuration.
For my acoustic performances, I have been using a Larivee 1933 Dobro and a 1979
National.
BS: Out of curiosity, what is in your
CD player right now?
SA: Mick Pini. He is a brilliant UK guitar player who also tours with Bluesmove.
Steve Arvey & Blues Stalker
Thank you for the great blues, Steve. I enjoyed your performance at the Atlanta Blues and Brews Festival sponsored by WRFG radio this summer and you know I will always be out there stalking you.
The Blues Stalker