The strangest thing anyone could ever ask you to do is write a story about yourself. Believe it or not, I am actually quite shy. I have been doing what I love the most...Playing and listening to Blues. Listeners from all over the Southland have given me that opportunity and it has been a dream come true.

With this job I have met some of the greatest talent in the industry, W.C. Clark, Jimmy Dawkins, B.B. King and Eddy Clearwater just to name a few. Let's not forget to mention the local talent of Armando Cortez, Dave Riley, Pauline York and Nick Laramie. I don't think people realize how incredible the talent is out here and how Blues keeps expanding in Joliet and Kankakee. There have been new clubs popping up every month bringing in talent both locally and nationally (Magic Slim, Sean Costello, Rockin Johnny).

I got started listening to Blues when I was about eight years old. I was listening to the radio and I came across a college radio station. I was listening to a disc jockey by the name of Leon Brown. He was playing music from people I never heard of - Junior Wells, Freddie King, Albert King, Robert Johnson, Bessie Smith. I had to know more... so I studied, watched documentaries and learned. People have said to me that, "I don't know what I am talking about when it comes to Blues music, because I don't play it". That is the most ignorant statement in the world. Arnold Rothstein, the great gambler, knew more about baseball than any player in the game and he never played a day in his life. Same thing with me when it comes to Blues.

If you have been a long time listener of my show, you know I try to pull out all the stops by playing the dirty-nasty Blues, classic Chicago, Post and Pre World War II Blues as well as playing the new stuff from the up and coming people. But there is one rule I will never break. I will never play SRV, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Jonny Lange or anything from someone who is just hacking off another person's success.

Yea, I don't like SRV. So what! I have never understood it, and I have heard every song, saw every video and it doesn't do anything for me. I have accepted this fact over time; SRV did bring Blues to a whole new crowd of people that never thought they liked Blues. That I will give him. But, don't expect me to play his music when every station across America plays it. I don't want to waste the time. If that offended some of you...well sorry. I have been called the Hitler of Blues and a purist because I won't play this polished over dubbed garbage. I have always stood my ground when it comes to what the Blues is and I have lost plenty of jobs because of it. Believe it or not, I am proud of that.

I wish I could say where I think the Blues scene is headed. Honestly, I do not know. I think the Blues scene was best summed up by my good friend David Riley when he said, "I remember several years ago when a black man couldn't drive into Morris or Streator to get a drink of water...Let alone play Blues and charge people $5 dollars at the door to do it".