Alvin Youngblood Hart: where have I been all of your life?

In June I had the remarkable privilege to sit in awe at the Double Door Inn, a cool, vibe-filled old building in Charlotte NC where the hallowed walls echo with the music of all who had played there...the walls themselves are littered with (or more appropriately: papered with), the signed promo shots (mostly in black and white ) from artists who had graced the stage throughout the years.

On this particular night, I was totally stoked for a musical adventure that I knew would be of monumental importance.
Earlier in the day a friend ,blues guitarist, songwriter Tony Rogers had posted a video of one ALVIN YOUNGBLOOD HART.
It was sent to him by an avid AVH Fan & Junkie, and another friend, Mike Dew, known in the Carolinas for his love of  blues & host of WNCW(the last truly great independant radio station left on Terra) "Saturday Night House Party".

I was rivoted.  Throughout the day I tackled projects that were on my desk, and the music haunted me.  Somewhere deep inside, I knew I could not allow this opportunity to pass by.  Sometimes, you just have to go with your gut.  This was one of those times.

 I had a long day behind me, and a longer one ahead, but the music I heard could not be denied, and I was poised for a night that I would neither forget nor regret.
Two quick additonal cups of coffee, a shower to shake off the cobwebs, and I was out the door.

Tony & Mike were already there, and Dew was grinning from ear to ear: fully aware that I was about to experience a master of the craft.

He could not be more correct.

My musical soul took flight from note one.  Not only was this man someone who pulled magic from the strings effortlessly, but his vocal tone was unmatched.  He moved effortlessly from one style to another, the passion never wavering, and the sound distinctly his own.  It was powerful, soulful, bluesy, sensual and playful, intertwined and woven anew from moment to moment. 

Just when I thought that I could not hear anything new, I discovered I was wrong...again.

How could I have lived on this earth without having heard or seen him before?  What rock was I under?  oh, that's right, terrestrial radio(which I had once been a part of) had long ago abandoned the notion that music should be played on the air just because it was great and deserved to be heard.  Consultants had invaded the airspace like cockroaches and left their toxic stench all over planet Radio.   (Then rare exception was WNCW out of Spindale, NC)

The Internet has become the new bastion of unsigned, undiscovered talent, and YouTube is a way for us to "discover" music again.
It was that YouTube video that put me front and center in downtown Charlotte that night, with the help of a couple of friends.

Finding it an impossibiity to sit down when my body said "boogie", I finally stood, and jammed on the sidelines, digging every note, and thrilled to be in the same room as this Magic Man.

I cornered him between sets.  A quiet,\ soft spoken man, with this light of creativity in his gaze, he had a humble attitude that made me just want to ask him "Do you have any idea how you just shook me, and this whole room to the core?"  I asked where he played in New Orleans (having lived there briefly myself in the past), he gave me a few moments of undivided attention, and I asked what music he had with him that I could buy...In what I have since learned is an unusual situation, he had CD's with Muscle Theory, a live recording from the Jazz Fest in New Orleans.  Score!

I don't recall driving home that night, because the music continued to swirl around me.  and then I went online and began to surf.

Now, I could paraphrase what I read there, but it would just be someone else's words rearranged.  Instead, do yourself a favor and check out his site yourself:  http://www.alvinyoungbloodhart.net/

Go there....read about him.  Gawk at those that have sat in with him...and then go to the tour page, and highlight on your calendar ANY date that is nearby...and GO!!

You can write me long loving thank you letters later...