The Soul of John Black
Waterfront Blues Festival
Portland, OR.
July 4, 2014

Another year of WBF recordings. Recorded from KBOO FM in Portland, OR. A great lineup again this year. I was looking forward to Greg Allman's set, but he had to pull out due to sickness. Oh well, I wouldn't have been able to share him here anyway. Seems to be much more DJ talking this year, interrupting some music. I just left it in rather than trying to edit each show. Feel free to make any changes you wish for personal use.

I may need help with some of the set list's as I don't know all the bands.

Enjoy, twofthrs

FM> H2 Zoom in wave format> Flac w/TLH> torrent (SBE's checked)


The Soul Of John Black is the nom de musique of John Bigham, whose impressive resume includes a stint as percussionist with the Miles Davis band, eight years of guitar and keyboard work with the pioneering rock-funk-ska band Fishbone, and touring and session work with Dr. Dr�, Eminem, Nikka Costa, Bruce Hornsby and Everlast, just to name a few.

"I never intended to be a performer," Bigham says. "I loved music and wanted to be a part of it, but by picking up a guitar, coming to California and telling people I was a musician, I put things in motion. Somebody told somebody else I was a musician, then next thing I knew, I was in Paris playing with Miles Davis. When Miles first asked me if I could play percussion, I said yes, even though I'd never played percussion, because I knew how percussion should sound, and I knew I could do it. He said 'Show me,' and I did, and that was it."

Bigham's been doing it ever since and on new album Black John, there's more sex, more funk, and deeper, more complex rhythms than his previous work. The album's loose, friendly vibe is guaranteed to pull you out of your seat and onto the dance floor.

Bigham effortlessly blends blues, folk, funk, rock, country, classic soul, gospel and world music, but he doesn't spend a lot of time planning out his line of attack. "I have my own style, but I have no preconceived notions about what a song's going to sound like. I get it down by feel and instinct, just doing what comes naturally. It's the same approach I've taken to my entire career, and my life".

Set List
01 Magic Woman
02 Strawberry Lady
03 Beatiful Day
04 Bottom Chick
05 The Hole
06 The Moon Blues