Featured Image by Ilona Berzups
Dan Hill photo

STEVE BAILEY

A multi award winning Harmonica player from Seattle with a long and successful career, whose grounding in the Blues came from sharing first hand experiences with legendary Chicago players coming through town during the early 1970s.

“I had Johnny Little John staying at my house, Carey Bell was sitting in my living room. I had Willie Dixon’s band sitting in my living room. Junior Wells was playing in town and we went up to their hotel room. It was an education, before I’d ever really done anything in the business.”

His greatest experience was playing with a good friend of Albert Collins, guitarist Isaac Scott, for seven years during the late 1980s and early 1990s, which was later recognized in 2017 by the Washington State Blues Society who awarded him Hall of Fame status for his work with the Isaac Scott Band. Today Bailey is good friends with fellow harp-bluesman Curtis Salgado and Robert Cray “he used to play at the back of my record store”.

Bailey has played regularly in Europe, as Steve Bailey and the Blues Flames, and with Tony de la Peña in Spain. Whilst in South America, where Bailey visits almost annually ,he continues to play the blues clubs and festivals in Colombia.

Ray Hartman

In 2019 Bailey landed in London performing with local blues guitarist Mississippi MacDonald, the pair having collaborated a few times before in both London and Seattle. This time Bailey had particular project in mind, to record a tribute to the prime influence in his career Sonny Boy Williamson II. And there was a reason Bailey wanted to record the music in London :

“I have met so many people in London that still remember Sonny Boy’s antics because of course he was here with the Yardbirds for a period. Eric Clapton has Sonny Boy stories, I’ve heard stories from different people. Somebody should put them all together, you know. So there’s still some energy for Sonny Boy in the UK.”

Steve Blood

A single from Crazy ‘Bout You, ‘Nine Below Zero’, was released just before the pandemic, the subsequent event leaving the album on the shelf. APM Records is pleased to now be able to present Bailey’s excellent interpretations of these classic tunes, which further benefit from the Albert Collins like blues stylings of Mississippi MacDonald, in a way that is traditional yet fresh and vibrant

“He is one great harp player”      modernbluesharmonica.com

Another Planet Music contribution,   anotherplanetmusic.net

 


Steve Bailey: harmonica and guitar. Steve spent over 7 years in the great Isaac Scott Band learning from the best. He has written many original songs and has over 20 CDs to his credit. He has traveled extensively, but has found time to mentor local youth in the Blues in Schools program and through his extensive teaching career.

Stevie and the Blue Flames are proud to announce they have a new band member in Dee Smith.
She brings a vast knowledge of blues and a lot of positive energy to the stage. The band is
impressed with the material she has chosen – deep blues and vintage soul from the southern
tradition.
Dee: I’m Darneshia “Dee” Smith, a Gainesville, Fl native living in the Pacific Northwest. My love
for blues first began in 2013, where I was introduced to blues at social dance event in
Pensacola, Florida. While living there, I came across some of the friendliest, advanced dancers
who were connoisseurs of the sacred genre. I used the knowledge provided to deepen my
understanding of artists such as Junior Kimbrough, R.L. Burnside, John Lee Hooker, and
Magic Sam. Pensacola is located in the ‘Bible Belt’ panhandle of Florida. To no surprise, you
may encounter overzealous Christians who were found at busy intersections preaching to
weary drivers who wanted to go home after a long, day of work. While listening to an Earl
Hooker record on my way home, I was targeted by a ‘bible thumper’ who chastised me while
waiting for a turn signal to flash green. This prompted my interest further into the forbidden
genre of blues. I was able to attend many blues gigs and concerts, including seeing the late
B.B. King, whom I saw in Atmore, Alabama.


Since I left the good ole days of Florida, I have been chasing the blues in the Pacific Northwest
where I would make lucrative connections within the dance scene in Seattle, WA. Following the
dance crowd, I was intrigued by many local venues that showcased phenomenal acts like
Robert Cray, Gary Clark Jr. and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram. When I can see living legends of
blues, I jump on the opportunity to see them before they go on international tours.
I’m grateful that between my career as engineer to have the opportunity to sing with Stevie and
the Blue Flames. It is an awesome extension of my growth here in Seattle to meet new people
who love blues as much as I do. My feature with this band motivates me to be a local bridge
between the past and future generations who developed a strong interest in blues.

Dee Smith

http://www.stevieandtheblueflames.com/contact