Sam (Lightnin’) Hopkins, one of the great country blues singers and perhaps the greatest single influence on rock guitar players, was a contemporary of Muddy Waters, B.B. King and John Lee Hooker. He was one of the last of the original blues artists. If anyone is able to do his music justice, it is UK Blues legend Big Joe Louis, who first and foremost comes to this project as a labour of love.
Big Joe is a massive Ligtnin’ Hopkins fan and an expert on his songs and style. In this exclusive show, he will perform for the first time his favourite Hopkins songs with a first class rhythm section of Brian Neville on drums and Matt Radford on acoustic bass. This is a very special show.
Big Joe Louis is a dynamic performer and one of the busiest musicians in the UK. Born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica, he made London his home as a young man and quickly established himself through live shows, soon earning record contracts with the legendary Blue Horizon and Ace Records labels. Acclaimed albums, as well as a string of dancefloor-dynamite 45s in the US and Europe, spread his name and reputation far and wide and he’s taken his music around the world, touring North America, Australasia, Africa, the Caribbean, Russia and virtually every European country. In addition, he’s recorded, toured and performed with dozens of veteran blues and gospel artistes, both famous and obscure.
Never one to follow the herd, he’s built a strong and distinctive style over the years, writing deep, original and powerfully personal true-life songs and playing guitar in a style all his own. His ultra-tight group are Lewis Fielding (guitar) and Peter Greatorex (drums), two fantastic musicians who are among the most in-demand and experienced instrumentalists around today. After many years playing together, they lay down deep feeling and great grooves, making a sound you won’t hear anywhere else.
London, Arch 46, Ropewalk, Maltby St, London SE1 3PA, UK
Thursday 11th November, 6pm – 10pm. Tickets: £10. Booking: malted-shake-presents-big-joe-louis-celebrates-lightnin-hopkins
Photo: Leo Gabriels