Joanna Connor - Live On 11/11

Album: Live On 11/11
Size: 147,3 MB
Time: 63:59
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2026
Styles: Blues/Funk/Rock mix
Art: Front

1. Cissy Strut (6:16)
2. Shake Your Money Maker (7:29)
3. The Sky Is Crying (6:06)
4. Further On Up The Road (4:28)
5. You’re So Fine (5:52)
6. Are You Going With Me (5:59)
7. I Just Wanna Make Love To You (6:05)
8. Magic Sam Boogie (6:52)
9. Can't Find My Way Home (5:57)
10. When The Levee Breaks (8:50)

On Live On 11/11, Joanna Connor shows exactly why she has earned a reputation as a formidable live performer. Recorded at The Fallout Shelter in Norwood, Massachusetts, Connor and her band deliver an energetic mix of blues, rock, funk and blistering slide guitar. The album is packed with powerful performances, emotion, virtuosity and, above all, the raw energy of a band captured in its natural habitat: onstage.

Joanna Connor, born August 31, 1962, has finally released another live album with Live On 11/11, following Living On The Road from 1993 and Nothing But The Blues from 2000. The recordings for the new album were made at The Fallout Shelter in Norwood, Massachusetts. Born in Brooklyn and raised in Massachusetts, Connor made a move in 1984 that would prove decisive for her musical development: she relocated to Chicago. There she became part of the city’s blues scene and shared stages with artists including Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, James Cotton and A.C. Reed. Connor formed her own band in 1987 and two years later released her debut album, Believe It, through renowned blues label Blind Pig Records.

Between 2002 and 2016, Connor released no new albums, devoting much of that period to raising her children. But anyone who has experienced her onstage knows where a major part of her musical identity lies. Joanna Connor is a live performer through and through. And Live On 11/11 makes that abundantly clear. [---]

Live On 11/11 ultimately works as a showcase for everything Joanna Connor and this band can bring to a stage. There is plenty of spectacular guitar playing, particularly for listeners who love Connor’s fierce slide work, but reducing the album to guitar fireworks would miss the point. There is dynamics here. Funk. Chicago blues. Rock. Restraint. Emotion. Musicians listening to one another and then knowing exactly when to push harder. Most importantly, it sounds alive. Live On 11/11 is a powerful snapshot of a great guitarist and a strong band doing what they do best. /The Blues Magazine

Personnel: Joanna Connor (guitar, vocals); Shaun Calloway (bass); Jason Edwards (drums, vocals); Dan Souvigny (keyboards, guitar).

Live On 11/11 mc
Live On 11/11 gofile

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Joanna Connor - Best Of Me

Size: 91.3 MB
Time: 38:49
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2023
Styles: Electric Blues, Blues Rock
Art: Front

01. House Rules (Feat. Josh Smith, Eric Demmer, Grooveline Horns) (3:43)
02. Pain And Pleasure (Feat. Josh Smith) (3:30)
03. Best Of Me (Feat. Grooveline Horns) (3:54)
04. Highway Child (Feat. Joe Bonamassa) (3:32)
05. I Lost You (3:57)
06. Two Of A Kind (Feat. Grooveline Horns) (3:55)
07. All I Want Is You (3:33)
08. Mercury Blues (Feat. David Abbruzzese) (3:33)
09. Shadow Lover (Feat. Mike Zito) (3:01)
10. Greatest Of These (2:34)
11. Shine On (Feat. Gary Hoey & Jason Ricci) (3:29)

Special guests on Best of Me by the acclaimed Joanna Connor include labelmates Eric Demmer (saxophone) and Jason Ricci (harmonica) and guitarists Joe Bonamassa, Josh Smith, Gary Hoey and Gulf Coast president Mike Zito (guitar) David Abbruzzese on drums and the Grooveline Horns. Best of Me was produced by Shaun Gotti Calloway, Jason J Roc Edwards, and Joanna Connor, and recorded at Studio2424 in Chicago.

Joining Joanna Connor (guitar and vocals) on the recording is her regular “Wrecking Crew” touring band with Shaun Gotti Calloway (bass) Dan Souvigny (guitar and keys), Curtis Moore Jr. (keys) and Jason J Roc Edwards (drums and vocals.)

“There are musicians that play together and may do it extremely well,” Joanna said about the Best of Me recording sessions. “Then, there are musicians that move as one, that share moments of creating music that is mystically telepathic. The group of musicians we assembled here created a free-flowing and fiery blend of soul, rock, funk and country, all rooted in the blues.”

Joanna continued. “Making this record with the go ahead from Mike Zito and Gulf Coast Records to have free rein was uplifting and inspiring. This recording definitely brought out the’ best of me,’ and solidified my band as a force to be reckoned with. Guitar power and nuance is evident on this record but so are convincing vocals, soul-stirring keyboard work, tighter than tight horns and a rhythm section that propels and compliments each song. The album touches on my maturing as a woman, facing mortality with grace and thanks, celebrating love won, love lost, lust and passion, the pain and pleasure of having this human experience. I hope the listener enjoys this record as much as we had making it.”

Joanna Connor was born in Brooklyn, New York, raised in Worcester, Massachusetts, and after beginning her career there at the age of 17, packed a suitcase, a Fender Twin Amp, a guitar and bought a bus ticket to the Blues Mecca of Chicago, where her goal was to be in a cracking blues band learning from the best . A mere month after moving to the Windy City, Delta blues heavyweight Johnny Littlejohn hired her.

Dion Payton then enlisted her to be a part of his 43rd Street Blues Band, where they held residencies at the hallowed Checkerboard Lounge and the Kingston Mines blues clubs, and were the backing band behind every major talent in the city. Joanna went on to tour with sax great AC Reed before starting her own band at the urging of the Kingston Mines owner. Blind Pig Records signed Joanna in 1989 and released several records on her before she went on to become the second artist to sign with Ruf Records, subsequently releasing many records for the German-based label, which led to a decade of touring throughout Europe.

In 2002, The House of Blues in Chicago offered Joanna and her band a weekly residency, and with her additional residency at the Kingston Mines, Connor made the decision to come off the road touring grind for a while and work locally four nights per week, while raising her two children as a single mom. Joanna also recorded several albums for the highly-respected MC Records during that decade.

In 2019, one of the videos of her fierce guitar work caught the eyes and ears of one of the most prominent guitarists of the modern era -Joe Bonamassa – as well as director Adrian Lynne (Flash Dance, Fatal Attraction). Lynne offered her a scene performing in the movie, Deep Water, starring Ben Affleck. At the same time, Joe Bonamassa and his KTBA Records label gave her the opportunity to make a studio album. Both projects happened right before the COVID 19 epidemic and subsequent lockdown. The KTBA album, 4801 South Indiana, was released in February of 2021 to immense critical acclaim and a number one spot on the Billboard blues chart. The Deep Water film was released on Hulu in March, 2022.

Now being a part of the Gulf Coast Records family, Joanna Connors career path is in full-bloom, playing with sympathetic musicians and a support staff all in lock-step, along with a common purpose and goal of reaching for the top of the blues world. Joanna’s tsunami of musical energy and passion is now unleashed on record with Best of Me. ~Martine Ehrenclou

Best Of Me MP3
Best Of Me FLAC

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Joanna Connor - 4801 South Indiana Avenue

Size: 102.7 MB
Time: 43:56
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2021
Styles: Electric Blues, Blues Rock
Art: Front & Back

01. Destination (Feat. Jimmy Hall) (3:32)
02. Come Back Home (4:26)
03. Bad News (6:27)
04. I Feel So Good (3:36)
05. For The Love Of A Man (4:22)
06. Trouble Trouble (3:41)
07. Please Help (4:15)
08. Cut You Loose (4:08)
09. Part Time Love (Feat. Joe Bonamassa) (5:05)
10. It's My Time (Feat. Joe Bonamassa) (4:18)

Singer, songwriter and Blues slide guitarist, Joanna Connors new album is produced by Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith and sees the Blues mistress pouring emotion and energy into every song found here.

Bonamassa, alongside Smith, keys player Reese Wynans (Stevie Ray Vaughan), bassist Cavin Turner, and drummer Lemar help Connor cast her Blues spell.

Her unique writing and playing style gives Blues music a new and exciting edge.

The album name comes from the legendary Chicago blues club, Theresa’s Lounge, an infamous place where Blues players came from all around to play.

First track, `Destination’ was originally performed by The Assassins, sees Connor raising hell with fiery guitar playing and a powerful, dominant vocal that means business.

Come Back Home’ takes on a real vintage feel, resplendent with honky tonk piano from Wynans and Connors distorted vocal tone and wailing blues lines. This is back to basics Blues at its very best.

As the bell tolls for Luther Allison’s `Bad News’ you just know this track is going to be amazing. Emotional slide guitar playing vies for centre stage against Connors evocative vocal delivery that oozes power and intensity.

A fast paced, rollercoaster boogie pounds along in the shape of `I Feel So Good’ as speedy licks leap off the fretboard only to be followed by zippy bottleneck work. Guitar lover’s heaven sits right here!

Taking a more modern feel onboard comes `For The Love Of A Man’ which drives along like a freight train and showcases just how much talent is contained in this band.

Trouble Trouble’ pours out its soulful blues next as it swings along and encompasses a gritty mean n moody vocal that is oh so good.

A deep bass line pounds out the path for `Cut You Loose’ pushing near to the Blue Rock boundary as everything thickens up and kicks ass. Things clam down as the smooth `Part Time Love’ seduces with tasty Sax parts sweet talking with the Hammond organ and Connor’s blistering vocal.

The album finishes with `It’s My Time’, a totally different track with slightly psychedelic drum patterns, a sixties sounding vocal vibe and slow pace which lets Connor’s slide guitar mastery take centre stage.

Joanna Connor has truly hit the bullseye here. Surrounding herself with world class musicians, she has created a masterpiece which takes the Blues at grassroots level and redefines it into an emotional, powerful monster of an album that confirms Connor’s place in the halls of the Blues elite. This is destined to be a future classic. ~Paul Sabin

4801 South Indiana Avenue MP3
4801 South Indiana Avenue FLAC

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Joanna Connor Band - Joanna Connor Band

Size: 112.6 MB
Time: 47:57
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 1992
Styles: Electric Blues, Blues Rock
Art: Full

01. Texas (5:22)
02. Walkin' Blues (4:22)
03. Child From Two Worlds (3:34)
04. No Good For Me (3:23)
05. Heaven (3:36)
06. Lost (3:27)
07. Read My Lips (4:01)
08. Your Love Was Never Mine (4:01)
09. I Got Love (4:07)
10. Fight (3:57)
11. Living On The Road (4:14)
12. Walk Away (3:51)

What sets Joanna Connor apart from the rest of the pack of guitar-playing female blues singers is her skill on the instrument. Even though Connor has become an accomplished singer over time, her first love was guitar playing, and it shows in her live shows and on her recordings.

Brooklyn-born, Massachusetts-raised Joanna Connor was drawn to the Chicago blues scene like a bee to a half-full soda can. Connor, a fiery guitarist raised in the 1970s -- when rock & roll was all over the mass media -- just wanted to play blues. She was born August 31, 1962, in Brooklyn, N.Y., and raised by her mother in Worcester, MA. She benefitted from her mother's huge collection of blues and jazz recordings, and a young Connor was taken to see people like Taj Mahal, Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder and Buddy Guy in concert.

Connor got her first guitar at age seven. When she was 16, she began singing in Worcester-area bands, and when she was 22, she moved to Chicago. Soon after her arrival in 1984, she began sitting in with Chicago regulars like James Cotton, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy and A.C. Reed. She hooked up with Johnny Littlejohn's group for a short time before being asked by Dion Payton to join his 43rd Street Blues Band. She performed with Payton at the 1987 Chicago Blues Festival. Later that year, she was ready to put her own band together.

Her 1989 debut for the Blind Pig label, Believe It!, got her out of Chicago clubs and into clubs and festivals around the U.S., Canada and Europe. Her other albums include 1992's Fight for Blind Pig (the title track a Luther Allison tune), Living on the Road (1993) and Rock and Roll Gypsy (1995), the latter two for the Ruf Records label. Slidetime on Blind Pig followed in 1998 and Nothing But the Blues, a live recording of a 1999 show in Germany, appeared on the German Inakustik label in 2001. Connor left Blind Pig and signed to small indie label M.C. in 2002. Her first release for her new label, The Joanna Connor Band, finds Connor expanding her sound a bit in an attempt to reach a more mainstream audience.

Connor has blossomed into a gifted blues songwriter. Her songwriting talents, strongly influenced by greats like Luther Allison, will insure that she stays in the blues spotlight for years to come.

Joanna Connor Band MP3
Joanna Connor Band FLAC

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Joanna Connor - Live 24

Size: 150,4 MB
Time: 65:24
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2011
Styles: Electric blues, blues-rock
Art: Front

1. Statesboro Blues (9:56)
2. Rock And Roll Gypsy (5:56)
3. Stormy Monday (8:40)
4. Little Wing (6:31)
5. Born Under A Bad Sign (6:06)
6. Here I Am Baby (4:59)
7. Walkin' Blues (9:48)
8. Howlin' (5:16)
9. Boogie Woogie Nighthawk (8:08)

What sets Joanna Connor apart from the rest of the pack of guitar-playing female blues singers is her skill on the instrument. Even though Connor has become an accomplished singer over time, her first love was guitar playing, and it shows in her live shows and on her recordings. Brooklyn-born, Massachusetts-raised Joanna Connor was drawn to the Chicago blues scene like a bee to a half-full soda can. Connor, a fiery guitarist raised in the 1970s - when rock & roll was all over the mass media - just wanted to play blues. She was born August 31, 1962, in Brooklyn, N.Y., and raised by her mother in Worcester, MA. She benefitted from her mother's huge collection of blues and jazz recordings, and a young Connor was taken to see people like Taj Mahal, Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder and Buddy Guy in concert.

Connor got her first guitar at age seven. When she was 16, she began singing in Worcester-area bands, and when she was 22, she moved to Chicago. Soon after her arrival in 1984, she began sitting in with Chicago regulars like James Cotton, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy and A.C. Reed. She hooked up with Johnny Littlejohn's group for a short time before being asked by Dion Payton to join his 43rd Street Blues Band. She performed with Payton at the 1987 Chicago Blues Festival. Later that year, she was ready to put her own band together. Her 1989 debut for the Blind Pig label, Believe It!, got her out of Chicago clubs and into clubs and festivals around the U.S., Canada and Europe. Her other albums include 1992's Fight for Blind Pig (the title track a Luther Allison tune), Living on the Road (1993) and Rock and Roll Gypsy (1995), the latter two for the Ruf Records label.

Slidetime on Blind Pig followed in 1998 and Nothing But the Blues, a live recording of a 1999 show in Germany, appeared on the German Inakustik label in 2001. Connor left Blind Pig and signed to small indie label M.C. in 2002. Her first release for her new label, The Joanna Connor Band, finds Connor expanding her sound a bit in an attempt to reach a more mainstream audience. Connor has blossomed into a gifted blues songwriter. Her songwriting talents, strongly influenced by greats like Luther Allison, will insure that she stays in the blues spotlight for years to come. /Biography by Richard Skelly, AllMusic

Live 24 mc
Live 24 zippy

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Joanna Connor - Rise

Size: 119,0 MB
Time: 51:11
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2019
Styles: Blues Rock
Art: Front

01. Flip (5:06)
02. Bad Hand (Feat. Mike Zito) (4:03)
03. Joanna In A (2:01)
04. Earthshaker (4:07)
05. Rise (5:24)
06. Since I Fell For You (4:28)
07. My Irish Father (2:34)
08. Mutha (3:28)
09. If You Want Me To Stay (5:47)
10. Cherish And Worship You (4:32)
11. Blues Tonight (3:53)
12. Dear America (5:42)

Joanna Connor takes her powerful guitar down new paths on "Rise," an album featuring some jazzier hues, her considerable acoustic skills and even a guest rapper while also doubling down on her reputation as a blues stalwart.

Connor, based in Chicago, released 2016's "Six String Stories" after a long break from studio recording even as she enhanced her status thanks to live performances. "Rise" is also characterized by a new backing band, "a bunch of younger men" credited by Connor for an extra dose of power, and several instrumentals, from the smooth tones of the title track to a cover of Sly and the Family Stone's "If You Want Me to Stay" featuring cracking solos from everyone involved.

Funky album opener "Flip" is a steamy take on what sounds like a May-September romance - "A woman can't live on guitar alone" - while "Mutha" features rapper Alphonso BuggZ Dinero toasting Connor with a dose of humor as she mercilessly shreds the strings.

"My Irish Father" is a galloping, Rory Gallagher-like acoustic showcase with poignancy added by Connor's discovery not long ago of her birth father's identity. "Cherish and Worship You" is probably the most rocking track on the album and "Earthshaker" is a glowing tribute to a Windy City bass player with some very special skills.

Intense closer "Dear America" combines an homage to Led Zeppelin's take on "When the Levee Breaks" with a topical dissertation by Dinero as Connor's dramatic vocals and fiery fret work, along with powerful work from drummer Tyrone Mitchell, provide an alarming soundtrack to a catalog of political ills and social challenges.

Connor describes herself as "that middle-aged lady with the scorching guitar" and "Rise" is a monumental testament to her skills. ~PABLO GORONDI

Rise

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Mike Zito - A Tribute To Chuck Berry

Size: 161,2 MB
Time: 67:42
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2019
Styles: Blues Rock, Rock & Roll
Art: Full

01. St.Louis Blues (Feat. Charlie Berry III) (3:20)
02. Rock And Roll Music (Feat. Joanna Connor) (3:08)
03. Johnny B Goode (Feat. Walter Trout) (3:49)
04. Wee Wee Hours (Feat. Joe Bonamassa) (5:25)
05. Memphis (Feat. Anders Osborne) (3:05)
06. I Want To Be Your Driver (Feat. Ryan Perry) (2:55)
07. You Never Can Tell (Feat. Robben Ford) (4:00)
08. Back In The USA (Feat. Eric Gales) (3:02)
09. No Particular Place To Go (Feat. Jeremiah Johnson) (2:50)
10. Too Much Monkey Business (Feat. Luther Dickinson) (3:13)
11. Havana Moon (Feat. Sonny Landreth) (4:21)
12. Promised Land (Feat. Tinsley Ellis) (3:29)
13. Down Bound Train (Feat. Alex Skolnick) (4:04)
14. Maybellene (Feat. Richard Fortus) (2:55)
15. School Days (Feat. Ally Venable) (3:02)
16. Brown Eyed Handsome Man (Feat. Kirk Fletcher & Josh Smith) (2:16)
17. Reelin' And Rockin' (Feat. Tommy Castro) (4:01)
18. Let It Rock (Feat. Jimmy Vivino) (2:27)
19. Thirty Days (Feat. Albert Castiglia) (2:56)
20. My Ding A Ling (Feat. Kid Andersen) (3:16)

Chuck Berry, the artist, was a genius. We owe just about everything great about rock and roll to Berry (and his pianist/collaborator, Johnnie Johnson). Singer/guitarist Mike Zito pays tribute to the artist on Rock ‘n’ Roll – A Tribute to Chuck Berry.

Berry, the man, was more complicated. He was an African American who perfected a largely white artform. His career stalled due to a Mann Act conviction, which many believe to be a racist statue. People have maintained that after his 20-month jail sentence, Berry came out a changed, meaner person. In the 1980s and 1990s, there were all kinds of allegations against Berry: assaulting women, video cameras in bathrooms, and videotapes of minors. He is both survivor and a perpetrator, easy to sympathize with but hard to root for.

There’s a fantastic scene at the end of Hail! Hail! Rock ‘n’ Roll, the documentary about the Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards efforts to organize a tribute show for Berry. Berry tortures Richards for most of the film, treating Richards more like a court-appointed dentist than as a huge rock star trying to honor Berry’s legacy. At the end of the show, Richards, who has seen some things, looks completely desiccated, totally broken by Berry. Altamont and Hells Angels were one thing. But Berry was next-level pain.

But people like Richards and Zito pay their respect because Berry’s music is just that good. Blasting this album over a weekend, my one-year-old daughter would consistently bop to Zito’s takes on these classic, instantly-recognizable songs. It says something when music resonates that powerfully with a person so young.

Zito says the album originated from his time living in St. Louis, Berry’s hometown, where he got to know Berry’s drummer and son. I suspect Zito also hoped to introduce Berry’s music to younger fans, who might not be familiar with many of these classic songs. Similarly, Zito features an impressive array of guests across the album, using this as an opportunity to promote lower-profile artists (although there are also big names, like Joe Bonamassa and Luther Dickinson, who finds time to appear on what seems to be thousands of albums a year).

There are also some cool surprises. “Downbound Train” is trippier than Berry’s original, featuring guitar right out of Led Zeppelin’s “Dazed and Confused.” The guitar comes courtesy of Alex Skolnick, best known for this work with the thrash-metal band Testament (but also an accomplished jazz guitarist). “Rock and Roll Music” is re-imagined with slide guitar and backing vocals from the amazing Joanna Connor. And “Too Much Monkey Business” features a laid-back Dickinson co-vocal that gives the song a different complexion than Berry’s higher-energy original.

Despite the stunning number of guests, Zito is never lost. His vocals and guitar are present on every track, gracefully allowing his collaborators to shine, but also not deferring to anyone. Zito never lets the songs stray too far from the Berry originals, but provides space for different takes on material that is canonically seared into the minds of many. For instance, “Brown Eyed Handsome Man,” one of my all-time favorite Berry tunes, here features singer/guitarists Kirk Fletcher and Josh Smith, but doesn’t deviate too far from Berry’s original. They throw in some slightly flashier guitar licks and put a little mustard on the vocals, but otherwise the performers know better than to mess with perfection.

The perfection of Berry’s music is the challenge of an album like this. Back to the Future, which wasn’t a documentary, features a scene where Michael J. Fox, having traveled back in time to the 1950s, performs Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode” at a high school dance, using all of Berry’s moves, both of the guitar and duckwalk variety. Berry’s cousin runs to call him, holding the phone up so Berry can hear the new sound he’s supposedly been looking for. It’s a goofy joke, but there’s a larger message: that Berry’s music is historically significant. The world would be a sadder place without the music of Cream or the Allman Brothers, but would things be that different? Now think about where we would be without Berry. What music wouldn’t have been written without his (and Johnson’s) coming first? Would we have a Beatles or a Stones without him?

And that’s what works about this album. It’s timeless music respectfully presented by talented artists. Zito uses his visibility not just to honor Berry, but to also re-introduce him to a generation (or two) of fans who might not be familiar with his work, which still stands up remarkably well, all those decades later. Adding on to the good deed, Zito also uses this as an opportunity to showcase contemporary artists who might not be as well-known as they should be (and many of whom have been produced by Zito, like the criminally good Albert Castiglia, who performs Berry’s “30 Days”). Great music and great intentions makes for a beautiful tribute. The Review: 9/10 ~Steven Ovadia

A Tribute To Chuck Berry

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Joanna Connor - Six String Stories

Size: 113,9 MB
Time: 48:32
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Blues Rock
Art: Front

01. It's A Woman's Way (4:13)
02. By Your Side (5:06)
03. We Stayed Together (5:32)
04. Golden (4:28)
05. Swamp Swim (4:10)
06. Love Coming On Strong (4:00)
07. Heaven (5:59)
08. Halsted Street (4:39)
09. The Sky Is Crying (5:48)
10. Young Women Blues (4:33)

M.C. Records is thrilled to welcome back The Queen of Blues/Rock guitar Joanna Connor to the label. Six String Stories will be released internationally on August 26, her first in 14 years. Joanna will be touring nationally and internationally to support her new recording.

Six String Stories is the one that the fans who pack her hometown gigs have been waiting for. You ll still hear the scorching solos-- but there s more to Joanna Connor than that. The disc s ten tracks include tastes of gospel, rock, soul and funk; all with the gutsy singing and heartfelt playing that have always been her trademarks. Connor wrote eight tracks on Six String Stories with Marion Lance Lewis, a mainstay of her live band.

No doubt you have seen it by now: That viral video of a woman onstage in a bright purple dress, playing one absolute scorcher of a slide guitar solo. That s Joanna Connor in her home turf of Chicago, with the firepower she delivers to local crowds on a nightly basis.
That video has gone around the world a few times, getting millions of views and being re-posted in Japan, Russia and all over Europe. It was just a phenomenal thing that happened. I was getting calls from America s Got Talent and movie people reaching out. I think people loved the combination: Here is a woman who looks like somebodys mom, and she is playing like this. What I remember most was that it was 90 degrees that day, so I was wearing the coolest dress I had.

The viral phenomenon ironically happened while Connor herself has been off the road, being a mom and playing club residencies, to the tune of 200 local gigs a year. But a studio return was long overdue and Six String Stories, her first album in a dozen years. The disc s ten tracks all but two written by her with band-mate Marion Lance Lewis-- include tastes of gospel, rock, soul and funk; all with the gutsy singing and heartfelt playing that have always been her trademarks.

Connor admits that it took some coaxing to get her back into the studio. I have always been a live musician and going into the studio used to be a daunting, scary thing. But you know what, the older I get the more comfortable I am with myself. I don t listen to the outside voices in my head, I just go with it.

That sense of self-determination extends to tracks like the empowering It s a Woman s Way which gives her daughter a little romantic advice. She broke up with her first boyfriend before the prom, so I wrote that for her. Then there s the album s other cover, Jill Scott s Golden, which Connor makes her own with a forceful spoken part. It s about a woman taking control of her life, and praising the creator for giving it to her. I think the gift of approaching middle age is that you know who you are and become confident in yourself. For me that s been a real journey, and a lot of it is about your own attitude.

At the other extreme are guitar-slinging tracks like Halsted Street ( I went for a Metallica kind of sound on those power chords, she says) and the Bayou-inspired Swamp Swim. Then there s Heaven, which takes everything back to church. I wrote that as more of a political song with a West African feel, but Lance gave it more of a gospel sound. His brothers are pastors and have churches, so they brought that kind of feel into it.

With the album finished and her daughter at school, Connor is planning to hit the road, giving all the online fans an overdue chance to see her in real life.

Six String Stories

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VA - Blind Pig Presents: Ladies Sing The Blues

Size: 158,9 MB
Time: 68:06
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2016
Styles: Blues Rock
Art: Front

01. Sena Ehrhardt - Last Chance (6:23)
02. Robin Rogers - Color-Blind Angel (5:13)
03. Deanna Bogart - In The Rain (4:07)
04. Reneé Austin - Bury The Hatchet (4:16)
05. Deborah Coleman - I'm A Woman (4:49)
06. Joanna Connor - Big Girl Blues (3:44)
07. E.C. Scott - Funkafied Blues (4:22)
08. Sarah Brown - Devil's Best Disguise (4:17)
09. E.C. Scott - Sledgehammer (4:17)
10. Joanna Connor - Nothin' But The Blues (3:59)
11. Debbie Davies - Picture This (3:57)
12. Deborah Coleman - My Heart Bleeds Blue (4:25)
13. Sena Ehrhardt - Cry To Me (3:11)
14. Deanna Bogart - Blue By Night (7:39)
15. Robin Rogers - Second Time Around (3:20)

Blind Pig Presents: Ladies Sing The Blues

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VA - Blind Pig Presents: Slide

Size: 108,4 MB
Time: 46:11
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2015
Styles: Slide Guitar Blues
Art: Front

01. Roy Rogers - Walking Blues (4:32)
02. Damon Fowler - Fruit Stand Lady (3:14)
03. Studebaker John - Talk To Me Baby (3:07)
04. Joanna Connor - Meditations (4:05)
05. John Lee Hooker & Roy Rogers - Terraplane Blues (2:56)
06. Studebaker John - Shake (4:33)
07. Joanna Connor - Good Rockin' Daddy (2:28)
08. Damon Fowler - Devil Got His Way (2:47)
09. Studebaker John - Flame Of Desire (3:28)
10. Roy Rogers - Baby Please Don't Go (4:41)
11. Damon Fowler - Thought I Had It All (5:17)
12. Roy Rogers - Hellhound On My Trail (4:58)

Blind Pig Presents: Slide

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Joanna Connor - 2 albums: Rock And Roll Gypsy / Nothing But The Blues

Album: Rock And Roll Gypsy
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 47:23
Size: 108.5 MB
Styles: Rockin blues
Year: 1995
Art: Front

[3:25] 1. Never Been Rocked Enough
[4:04] 2. Rock & Roll Gypsy
[3:56] 3. Howlin'
[5:26] 4. Slipping Away
[4:54] 5. Rain On My Window
[5:14] 6. Think About Me
[3:46] 7. Driving Wheel
[5:09] 8. You're So Fine
[2:52] 9. Fire
[5:04] 10. You're Going With Me
[3:28] 11. Child Of Two Worlds

Joanna Connor came off of a Greyhound bus leaving a promising musiccareer in her hometown of Worcester, Massachusetts to pursue her loveof Chicago blues. Since that day of October 15, 1985, her Chicago journey has been prolific! Her latest accolade is being voted runner up to Buddy Guy in Chicago Reader's " Reader's Choice Awards 2014" as best blues artist, which was voted by the people of Chicagoland!

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Album: Nothing But The Blues
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 72:18
Size: 165.5 MB
Styles: Rockin blues
Year: 2000
Art: Front

[ 5:59] 1. Rock Me Baby
[ 8:41] 2. Make Love To You
[ 4:55] 3. Howlin New
[ 3:59] 4. Big Girl Blues
[ 7:28] 5. Doctor Feelgood
[ 4:30] 6. Little Bit
[ 4:05] 7. Dust My Broom
[ 5:16] 8. You're So Fine New
[ 2:54] 9. Meditations
[ 4:39] 10. Got To Have You
[ 8:46] 11. They Love Each Other
[11:02] 12. Walking Blues

Brooklyn, NY-born vocalist/composer/electric slide guitarist Joanna Connor honed her craft, shedding and learning in Chicago's blues clubs. However, with several albums to her credit along with a seemingly hefty touring schedule, the artist has attained prominence in Europe and abroad, as the high-octane "Nothing But The Blues" was recorded live in Bamberg, Germany. Essentially, Ms. Connor once again demonstrates her exuberant blues-based convictions via her spirited vocals, electrified crunch chords and scorching slide guitar lines. Supported by a rock solid band, featuring bassist Darnell Wilcher, drummer Lance Lewis and guitarist Tony Palmer, Ms. Connor belts out a series of standard and original compositions amid a 70's style hard rock groove, brimming with fiery dynamics and strong soloing. And while the author of the CD liners boldly states; "This is the future of blues-rock", admirers of sizzling blues-drenched guitar licks, impacting opuses and bone-crushing interplay might reap huge benefits here. ~Glenn Astarita

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Various - Shout, Sister, Shout! A Tribute To Sister Rosetta Tharpe

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 66:14
Size: 151.6 MB
Styles: Gospel blues
Year: 2003
Art: Front

[4:01] 1. Joan Osborne With The Holmes Brothers - Nobody's Fault But Mine
[4:03] 2. Maria Muldaur With Bonnie Raitt - My Journey To The Sky
[5:07] 3. Toshi Reagon - Rock Me
[3:21] 4. Odetta With The Holmes Brothers - Two Little Fishes And Five Loaves Of Bread
[4:57] 5. Michelle Shocked - Strange Things Happening Every Day
[2:41] 6. Janis Ian - This Train
[3:00] 7. Marcia Ball - Shout, Sister, Shout!
[3:51] 8. Phoebe Snow - Beams Of Heaven (Feat. The Holmes Brothers)
[4:57] 9. Sweet Honey In The Rock - Precious Memories
[3:13] 10. Marcia Ball - I Want A Tall Skinny Papa
[4:22] 11. The Holmes Brothers - My Lord And I
[2:49] 12. Rory Block - Stand By Me
[3:44] 13. Maria Muldaur - Up Above My Head
[4:04] 14. Joanna Connor - Don't Take Everybody To Be Your Friend
[3:59] 15. Angela Strehli - That's All
[4:13] 16. Maria Muldaur - I Looked Down The Line (And I Wondered)
[3:43] 17. Marie Knight - Didn't It Rain

The music of the late Sister Rosetta Tharpe is one of those buried treasures of Americana periodically exhumed to delight the previously unaware. Nominally a gospel singer, she was in fact a triple-threat performer: singer, guitarist, and composer. Of course, the respectful and tasteful covers by the all-female roster here reveal only Tharpe's compositional contributions. Festival staples like "This Train," sung by Janis Ian (with some snappy guitar picking of her own), and "Precious Memories," done in haunting but near tuneless fashion by Sweet Honey in the Rock, are joined by spirited renditions of lesser known Tharpe originals like "Beams of Heaven" (taken to church by Phoebe Snow) and "Up Above My Head" (Maria Muldaur). Other contributors like Victoria Williams, Rory Block, Odetta, and Michelle Shocked bring Tharpe's repertoire into their own stylistic realms. Tharpe's former singing partner Marie Knight most closely approaches the fervor of her late friend on "Didn't It Rain," with Jimmy Vivino hinting at Tharpe's guitar style. Thankfully the CD includes an MPEG of the Sister herself singing and rocking out on electric guitar with an energy unequaled elsewhere on the record. This video and her fascinating story as told by Gayle Wald in the extensive notes make Shout, Sister, Shout! a must-have. ~Michael Ross

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Various - The Best Of M.C. Records 1996-2002

Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 69:18
Size: 158.6 MB
Styles: Assorted blues
Year: 2003
Art: Front

[4:25] 1. The Oilers - We Got To Stop This Killin'
[7:31] 2. Kim Wilson - Oh Baby
[2:31] 3. Odetta - Please Send Me Someone To Love
[3:27] 4. R.L. Burnside - Hobo Blues
[4:50] 5. The Big Band - Think
[5:44] 6. Big Jack Johnson - Miss Magalee Hall
[5:11] 7. Luther 'Guitar Junior' Johnson - What You've Been Putting Down
[3:26] 8. Sleepy Labeef - Detour
[5:12] 9. The Oilers - Cherry Tree
[3:51] 10. Ann Rabson - Love Song (Ode To George)
[4:31] 11. Joanna Connor - Bourgeois Blues
[3:13] 12. Joanna Connor - Different Kind Of War
[4:39] 13. Wild Child Butler - Gravy Child
[2:44] 14. R.L. Burnside - Can't Be Satisfied
[4:10] 15. Big Jack Johnson - My Babe
[3:46] 16. Maria Muldaur - Up Above My Head

A 1995 club appearance by Big Jack Johnson led to the conception of a new independent blues label. Mark Carpentieri and his wife Catherine were so impressed with the bluesman's performance and personality, that they plunged themselves into the production of his first CD in four years. Carpentieri had minimal production experience with some regional bands but the Johnson recording appeared in June 1996. M.C. Records is still an artist-friendly roots and blues label with a couple of Grammy nominations and a dozen W.C.Handy Award recommendations.

The period of 1996 to 2002 saw the release of 15 successful CDs and the addition of a great variety of seasoned artists. Johnson was followed by Kim Wilson, R.L.Burnside and Odetta. The varied styles of electric, urban, rural and acoustic elements continues today enhancing the appeal of the label to a wide spectrum of blues fans. Having reviewed five releases over the past couple of years, I'm excited over the compilation album to hit the streets on February 25, 2003.

The Best of M.C. Records 1996-2002 features selected tracks from all fifteen issued albums plus a glance at things to come. An upcoming tribute to Sister Rosetta Tharpe will appear later this year and a tempting appetizer from that record is included. Maria Muldaur and Tracy Nelson perform the Tharpe original, Up Above My Head.

In addition to those mentioned above, this compilation offers you a chance to sample the music of Wild Child Butler, Joanna Connor, Philip Walker's big blues band and Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson. If you haven't already been smitten, as I have, by the explosive Ann Rabson, you're in for a treat! The country tinged Detour by Sleepy Labeef is a delight too. ~Richard Bourcier

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Joanna Connor - 2 albums: Fight / Believe It!

Album: Fight
Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 43:36
Size: 99.8 MB
Styles: Modern electric blues
Year: 1992
Art: Front

[4:18] 1. Walking Blues
[4:11] 2. Living On The Road
[4:01] 3. Fight
[3:58] 4. Walk Away
[3:31] 5. Heaven
[3:24] 6. Lost
[5:18] 7. Texas
[3:58] 8. Your Love Was Never Mine
[4:04] 9. I Got Love
[3:30] 10. Child Of Two Worlds
[3:19] 11. No Good For Me

To date, Joanna Connor's studio work has not lived up the live-wire energy of her personal performances. Fight takes a major step toward setting this right. This stuff wails, especially Robert Johnson's "Walking Blues" which Connor reinvents courtesy of some stinging slidework. While Connor's lack of dependence on cover material rates bonus points, not all her songs are memorable -- even if the guitar playing is. ~Roch Parisien

Fight

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Album: Believe It!
Bitrate: 320K/s
Time: 39:53
Size: 91.3 MB
Styles: Modern electric blues
Year: 1989
Art: Front

[3:17] 1. Texas Flyer
[3:59] 2. He's Mine
[5:03] 3. Doctor Feelgood
[3:28] 4. I'm Satisfied
[3:50] 5. When You're Being Nice
[3:38] 6. Pack It Up
[3:08] 7. Everybody I Know
[3:53] 8. Playing In The Dirt
[3:09] 9. Soul's On Fire
[3:53] 10. Somebody's On Your Case
[2:28] 11. Good Rockin' Daddy

On the surface, Believe It! is standard-issue bar-band blues-rock, but it is distinguished by Joanna Connor's passion for the music. Connor believes in the music so much, it can't help but appear in the grooves every once in a while. In particular, her guitar playing is noteworthy -- it's tough, greasy, and powerful. Believe It! suffers from a lack of memorable songs -- she's still trying to develop a distinctive songwriting voice -- but Connor's strong performances carry the album through any weak moments. ~Thom Owens

Believe It!

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