x120505 The Ellington: JOHN PRIMER BLUES BAND

On the eve of the Blues Music Awards presentations for which he is nominated in three categories, legendary bluesman John Primer and his band will appear at Lynchburg’s Ellington Fellowship Playhouse at 8:30 PM on Saturday, May 5.

Primer, one of the driving forces in keeping the traditional Chicago blues sound alive, is nominated in three categories: traditional blues male artists, album of the year, and traditional blues album of the year. The awards will be presented to category winners in Memphis on May 10. The awards ceremony will be carried live on Sirius XM's B.B. King's Bluesville and it will be broadcast on public television later in the year.

Both of his album award nominations are for Chicago Blues A Living History the (R)evolution Continues.

Born in Camden, MS, in 1945, Primer moved to Chicago in the early 1960s and spent many years playing rhythm and lead guitar behind such artists as Junior Wells, Louis Myers, Jimmy Johnson, Lonnie Brooks, Paul Butterfield, Johnny Winter, Bonnie Raitt and many others.

From there he joined Willie Dixon's band, The Chicago Blues All Stars in 1979. Six months later he was asked to join Muddy Water's band. It turned out to be Muddy's last band (with Lovie Lee on piano) and it was a shock to Primer when Muddy died. "Muddy was a great guy,” Primer says, “and I was ready to play with him as long as he wanted me to." He played for the next 13 years with Magic Slim & The Teardrops. In 1996, he set out on his own with his own band and his the first of what are now 10 solo albums.

All Music.com says of Primer: “His sound is rooted in the classic Windy City blues sound of decades past: rough-edged and uncompromising and satisfying in the extreme. He's one of the last real traditionalists in town.

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No children under 12 are permitted or this performance, and people under 21 must be with a parent.