Steve Arvey

For years I have been touring the UK and Ireland.
I have performed both Acoustic and Electric shows
from the south of Cornwall to the far north Scottish Isle
of Orkney. From Dublin all the way to Belfast.
I have also performed on the Isle of Man.

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In 2002 it was announced that I would be doing a UK tour
with the group Blues Move. I mentioned to a friend of
Mine in Chicago Gary Burton who is from England that
I would be performing in Cleethorpes.
” Cleethorpes!!” the magic started.
Always amazing in the USA when you run into somebody
from England and you mention that you perform
in Cleethorpes. I was looking forward to performing
in Cleethorpes since so many english people had
great memories of vacationing thier. It was a great gig
in 2002 and I could not wait to get back for 2003.

The following are the tracks for this album;
1. Hip Hop Arvey Risque Music
2. Stranded Arvey Hoekstra Baker Risque Music
3. How do you spell Love Kraig Kenning
4 Love Aint Easy Arvey Hoekstra Baker
5 Chains Arvey Hoekstra Baker
6 Mr Nobody’s Somebody
“Cold Wind Opus”
7 Cold Wind From Chicago Arvey Vilardo
8 Cleethorpian Sunset Arvey, Innes, Hellier, Grudgings, Hoekstra
9 Roger Gets Funky Innes
a Sex Machine James Brown
b Chicken Heads Bobby Rush
10 Soul of a man Arvey

This is the place we recorded the CD.

This was my first tour with Roger Innes. I rank Roger
with any of the top Elite Bass players in the world.
From his great Improvisational solos on Roger gets
funky to his Rock Bottom Groove on Cleethorpian Sunset
Roger sets the standard for Bass Players.
Roger spent many years touring with the Climax Blues Band.
He has also toured with Mick Taylor of the Rolling Stones,
Chaka Khan, Snowy White from Pink Floyd
and Thin Lizzy, Ruby Turner and Edwin Starr.

Chemistry is what makes great Music. Since I travel
the world over I get a chance to play with great Musicians.
Blues Move is no exeption. I first heard of the drummer
Mike Hellier while on a solo tour of Scotland in 2001.
I was staying at the Legendary Scottish Promoter Chris Simmonds
house in Aberdeen Scotland when Chris put on the Blues Move disc.
I knew at that moment that I needed to meet Hellier and make his life Hell.
Mike has had a incredible career as a drummer. He has recorded
with Johnny Thunders from the New York Dolls, Billy Duffy from the Cult,
Sherman Robertson, The legendary band Wamma Jamma and Mick Pini.

This was my second tour with the multi-faceted Jules Grudgings on keyboards.
No matter what style of Music Jules can come up with
a great Keyboard part. Jules also adds great Harmonies.
Jules comes from a great tradition of Gardeners and his whole family
has incredible flowers and shrubbery. Jules has recorded with
the Country Star Lucie Diamond, Albert Lee, Sherman Robertson and Mick Pini.

Mark Hoekstra has been performing with me for over 20 years
with the band West Side Heat. I decided to fly mark over
for part of the tour to Make this recording. Marks Vocals
on Stranded, Love Ain’t Easy and Chains added a lot of depth
to this recording. His harmonica and slide playing
add a lot of texture to this CD.

Here’s my buddy Jools Grudgings

Here I am in front of the gate for a Highschool for girls it was cloudy but I was in a GREAT MOOD…Yeah!

MOVIN MUSIC
“Blues and Blues Related Tours in Europe”

www.movinmusic.co.uk

Running Horse

www.therunninghorse.ukpub.net

T-Shirts
RV’s Memorial Concert BBQ
25th July 2002, Guisborough, England
Cost $15 US
(details on Merchandise page)

Review submitted localy and to Blues Matters by Michael Mee

Make mine an Arvey wallbanger

Steve Arvey
Barrels, Saturday August 31
by Michael Mee

I SUPPOSE you could call Chicago’s Steve Arvey a blues musician, you could call a cat a dog if you like. In truth he’s more a force of nature, a force that the basement of Barrels, Berwick on Tweed struggled, and at times failed, to contain. The cocktail of blues/rock and even some ‘home-grown’ country left the audience punch drunk but thirsty for more.

Some people play music and look like accountants, some look like they were born to play. With 13 gigs in 12 days Arvey could be forgiven for looking a little crumpled but it all added to the bar-room blues feel.

As the opening of It’s My Soul attacked the nervous system of the audience, the thought struck that, in less politically correct days, Arvey would be described as having a ‘black voice’ full of raw, undiluted emotion. And, as the band moved into A Deep Elum, any concerns at how ‘tight’ they would be with less than two hours rehearsal was quickly dispelled. Drummer Mike Hellier and keyboard player Julian Grudgings are well known and admired but alongside Arvey, as the new boys, was Kevin Jefferies on bass. As the song rose and fell like a series of tidal waves Jefferies lived up to the expectations of a guitarist who has played with the likes of Brian May and Steve Harley.

Arvey is a high-octane, testosterone-fuelled performer, probably more a man’s bluesman, How Do You Spell Love (Misery) was typical of the “if she hasn’t done him wrong yet, she’s about to’ nature of the music. It also introduced the growling Arvey, this is how Wolfman Jack would have sounded had he taken up the blues. It was not really a night for great introspection, Arvey attacked the audience with the likes of Chicken Heads (not literally of course). While all this mayhem was taking place Hellier and Jefferies held firm and Grudgings looked on indulgently rather like the music teacher roped into the 6th form band to keep an eye on things. But we knew it was all a facade and the night was peppered with magic Grudgings moments, Going Down Slow being simply the first of many.

As with all performers whose staple diet is live music, ‘if you can’t play there’s no pay’, and Arvey demonstrated often and with some style that he knew his way round a guitar, Love Ain’t Easy and the rock ‘n’ roller When I Get Drunk were prime examples. As if to show those enjoying a drink upstairs what they were missing, he joined them during a rousing ‘hellfire’ St. Peter’s. You can picture the scene: “That’ll be a pint for me, a gin and tonic for the wife and you’d better get the blues guy one as well”.

The second half was introduced as something different! Different? After what had gone before, well he managed to draw the emotional rack tight with Blues Messiah a song that mentioned crossroads, who could he have been on about? After the pure stadium rock, with obligatory guitar solo, of WRFG it was time for the audience to earn their corn during You Can’t Always Get What You Want,they passed with flying colours. The encore was the title track of It’s A Fine Line and Arvey by now was playing it for all he was worth, you could see the man was loving it. Was it loud? Well I don’t envisage sinus trouble for a while.

Speaking afterwards Arvey said he’d like to come back and play some acoustic blues and that’s a mouthwatering prospect. Me? I’m off to Cleethorpes, by-passing Guisborough.

Michael Mee
Chief Sub Editor
The Southern Reporter