michael packer: News

Michael Packer has some great gigs coming up this month. Every Tuesday he will be hosting a jam session @ Alor Cafe in Staten Island NY. He will be playing the Turning Point Cafe in Piermont NY with guests Earwig recording artist guitarist Tim Woods and 16 year old harmonica ace Jay Gaunt. He will be back @ BB Kings/Lucilles and The Stanhope House (Stanhope NJ) opening for Guitar World Magazine editor - guitarist Andy Aledort and The Groove Kings. Michael will also be sitting in with blues guitarist Michael Powers @ Terra Blues in NYC. September ends with an outdoor concert in Keyport NJ and a Gospel Show with the Alexis P. Suter Band in Woodstock NY! Honeyboy Edwards returns in October! (please go to the calendar section for dates and times)...

On Saturday October 9, 2010 in Bedford,NY Michael Packer will be inducted into the Fox Lane High School Sports Hall Of Fame along with the Fox Lane Cross-Country team who in 1965 were New York State Champions!

Michael Packer just completed 3 days of festivals with the legendary Delta bluesman Honeyboy Edwards. They played the Black Potatoe Festival in New Jersey at a sold out show which also featured the incredible guitarist Duke Robillard. On Saturday afternoon Michael played guitar with Honeyboy and Michael Frank (harmonica) on the Back Porch stage @ The Briggs Farm Blues Festival in Pennsylvania. That night Honey Boy and Michael Frank were joined by Michael (guitar), Ed Jackson (bongos), Guy Powell (drums) and J.B. Becton on bass where they played the main stage to thousands of people. It was amazing! On Sunday the weekend concluded with a gig in Harrisburg PA. called The Mississippi Railroad Picnic where the trio played another set and the band got a chance to play some Michael Packer music joined by Earwig recording artist Tim Woods. What a blues weekend. Thank you Honeyboy!

The other night (June 24th) I had the honor of hanging out with the blues legends @ Lincoln Center in NYC, thanks to my good friends from Woodstock Joanie & Rob. It was a celebration of James Cotton's 75th birthday featuring Hubert Sumlin, Pinetop Perkins, Shamieka Copeland, Taj Mahal and another good friend the great blues piano player David Maxwell. What a night! Next week I'll be playing 2nd guitar with Honeyboy Edwards and Michael Frank on harmonica....the blues just keeps getting better and better....Michael Packer

The Free Beer CD (Blue Skunk Records) is #61 this week on the New York State Radio Charts. The CD is also #33 on the Airplay Direct Global Blues Charts and #50 on the Texas Blues Charts @ Emusic!

Windmill Music is proud to announce we will be representing two fabulous artists from Detroit, The Front Street Blues Band and soul-singer Sweet Claudett. Both artists have received radio airplay throughout the country and the world. The Front Street Blues Band have charted on Roots Music Report while Sweet Claudett charted #17 @ Living Blues magazine. We are thrilled to be working with these very talented artists. In other news The Michael Packer Blues Band continues receiving airplay throughout the country with chart success @ emusic #84 Texas Blues Charts and #76 on The Rhapsody Country Blues Charts.

Windmill Music's Singer-Songwriter Sonya Kahn was selected to audition for NBC's popular television show "America's Got Talent". Sonya may well be on her way to becoming a super star! We have no doubt. She is that good! Plus Roots-Blues Vocalist Cee Cee James is also making some noise in the Blues world. Her current CD on Blue Skunk Music is #15 @ Living Blues Radio Charts and #8 @ Roots Music Report! Congratulations to these very talented ladies!

Michael Packer will be playin 2nd guitar with Honeyboy Edwards and Michael Frank @ the Briggs Farm Festival and The Missisippi Railroad Picnic this summer (go to calendar). More dates TBA. Joe Rutan from Blue Skunk Music will be booking the Michael Packer Blues Band in the Northeast. The just released "Free Beer' CD by Michael Packer has hit The Roots Music Report Blues Charts @ #35, New York State Radio Charts @ #7 and Michael Packer remains steadily in the top 100 on the Rhapsody Country Blues Charts. Windmill Music artists Chaz Depaolo and Ron Hacker have releases coming out on Blue Skunk Music this spring. Windmill has just added the brilliant singer-songwriter Sonya Kahn and are currently shopping her CD to major labels. We are making moves but we can't do it alone. Please get out and support live music...Thank you!!!

It might have been billed as a concert but it turned into an unforgettable blues party par excellence @ the Larry Holmes Ringside restaurant friday night in Easton Pennsylvania.The Michael Packer Blues Band warmed up the crowd and it was hot in there by the time David 'Honeyboy' Edwards was announced to do his set. Backed by harmonica player/manager Michael Frank and Michael Packer on guitar, "Honeyboy" hit the stage and mesmerized the audience with his guitar and haunting vocals. You can't get anymore authentic then this. Delta blues at its finest! He played with Robert Johnson and he hasn't slowed down @ 95 years old. Honeyboy then joined the Michael Packer Blues Band for a jam which lasted into the wee hours of the morning. He was having such a good time he didn't want to leave the stage. The band had a hard time keeping up with him......simply an amazing night of real deal blues! - Steven Siegel Morning Call Newspaper

Michael Packer will be playing 2nd guitar with one of the last of the living delta blues legends Honey Boy Edwards @ Larry Holmes restauraunt in Easton PA on Friday March 12th. Mr. Packer will also be playing rhythm guitar for Marc Benno famous for his guitar work with Stevie Ray Vaughn and the Doors as part of the support band for Honey Boy Edwards @ BB Kings in NYC on Thursday March 11th. This is the blues. The real deal...

The Free Beer CD by Michael Packer is now available in stores across the country Barnes & Noble, Borders Books, Amazon, Itunes and soon coming to a radio station near you!

You guys sounded awesome last night. Your band has the formula for success. An older white guy who's definitely got da' blues (Michael Packer). A little Ugandan guy on bongos (who the fuck has ever heard of bongos in a blues band) who can sing his ass off provided he can reach the microphone (Ed Jackson). A bass player (King Bear) who looks like he was the strategist who orchestrated the bombing of Pearl Harbor. A sick run down harp player who looks burned out and tired (Felix Cabrera)from swimming from Havana to Key West and an excellent blues drummer (Bad Eddie Suozzo)who can probably sprint faster than Carl Lewis, having run from the law so many times. Looking forward to seeing you again. - MARK DIAMOND owner of the Blue Parrot, Wilmington Delaware

Michael Packer's story about the 2010 International Blues Challenge in Memphis is published on The Blues Foundation website www.blues.org and will appear in the "Chitlin Circuit Magazine.

WHAT A WEEKEND! SIMPLY PHENOMONAL! MICHAEL PACKER & ED JACKSON ARE BACK FROM MEMPHIS.THEY PLAYED SOME GREAT SETS @ SILKY O'SULLIVANS ON BEALE STREET AND MICHAEL PACKER GOT TO SING WITH AN OUTSTANDING PICK-UP BAND @ BB KING'S ON BEALE STREET. WINDMILL MUSIC'S OWN CEE CEE JAMES WAS TERRIFIC @ THE HARD ROCK CAFE. MICHAEL PACKER GOT TO MEET MANY BLUES LUMINARIES MICHAEL FRANK (Honey Boy Edwards manager), GUITARISTS BOB MARGOLIN, HAWKEYE HERMAN, TAS CRU, BARBRA BLUE (blues singer), BRAD STEWART FROM THE INTREPID ARTISTS BLUES AGENCY, DETLIV HOEGEN WHO COVERED MICHAEL PACKER'S SONG 'I'M IN LOVE' AS A TEENAGER WITH HIS BAND IN GERMANY. DETLIV IS NOW PRESIDENT OF CROSSCUT RECORDS AND RECEIVED A KEEPING THE BLUES ALIVE AWARD. ANOTHER RECIPIENT OF THAT AWARD WAS ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE'S SENIOR EDITOR DAVID FRICKE WHO MICHAEL ALSO GOT TO MEET. HE ALSO GOT TO HEAR THE LATVIA BLUES BAND WHO ARE AMAZING LIVE AND WILL BE REPRESENTING THEM FOR WINDMILL MUSIC. THERE WERE SOME INCREDIBLE ACTS SUCH AS HARRISON KENNEDY (stella guitar-spoons), RICKY NYE (piano), DIVINA AND THE VAGABONDS (great band) AND THE LIST GOES ON AND ON. IT WAS A COMPETITION BUT THERE WERE NO LOSERS IN MEMPHIS. JUST SOME FINE MUSIC FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD! THANK YOU TO THE BLUES FOUNDATION FOR ORGANIZING A TRULY MARVELOUS EVENT....

MICHAEL PACKER & ED JACKSON WILL BE PERFORMING ON BEALE STREET IN MEMPHIS ON THURSDAY JANUARY 21 THRU SUNDAY THE 24TH....

Windmill Music would like to wish the world a happy new year! 2009 turned out to be a great year for The Michael Packer Blues Band. The "Rikers Island Blues" CD was nominated for best self-produced CD in Memphis. Michael Packer & Ed Jackson are returning to Memphis for the International Blues Challenge in January 2010. The band played some great shows: The NYC Marathon, Bettye LaVette show, Red Bank & Long Branch festivals, Logfest in Woodstock NY, Rutgers University and our regular club dates BB Kings, Turning Point Cafe, Ben's of NYC, Blue Moon Cafe, Adobe Blues and The Blue Parrot. We wish a special thank you to Gene Iandanza of The Jersey Shore Jazz & Blues Foundation for his support. Windmill Music has also established a working relationship with the Chicago blues label Blue Skunk in which we have secured distribution/promo deals for our artists Solomon King, Cee Cee James and Mr. Keith Little. Windmill also got a licensing deal for 'Sugarcane Collins" with the prestigious Blues Leaf records. Guitarist Ron Hacker who was featured on Tom Waits' "Orphans" box set has been added to the Windmill Music roster. We have received tons of airplay all over the world with our artists hitting both national and state radio charts. The Michael Packer Blues Band "Bleecker-Bowery" CD has been consistantly in the top 100 Rhapsody Country Blues Artists Charts and closes out 2009 @ #67. We look forward to a very successful New Year. Michael Packer's "Free Beer" CD is scheduled for a February 16th, 2010 release. We wish the world LOVE, PEACE and HAPPINESS. Not nescessarily in that order but you can't have one without the other!

WE WOULD LIKE TO WISH EVERYONE A HAPPY PEACEFUL HOLIDAY!!! THE MICHAEL PACKER BLUES BAND WILL BE APPEARING @ BB KING'S NYC www.bbkingblues.com ON CHRISTMAS DAY FRIDAY DECEMBER 25TH @ 8PM. WE WOULD LIKE TO INVITE YOU TO COME AND SPEND CHRISTMAS WITH US....

WINDMILL MUSIC WELCOMES THE SAN FRANCISCO BLUES MAN RON HACKER TO THE ROSTER. RON IS ONE OF HELL OF A GUITARIST AND SLIDE PLAYER. IN 2006 TOM WAITS ASKED RON TO PLAY SLIDE GUITAR ON A TRACK ON WAITS' "ORPHAN'S BOX SET". THAT ALONE SPEAKS FOR ITSELF . WINDMILL MUSIC WILL BE PROMOTING RON'S CD "MY SONGS" TO RECORD LABELS, BOOKING AGENTS, RADIO ETC. INTERESTED PARTIES PLEASE CONTACT US. RON HACKER IS AS GENUINE AS YOU CAN GET. ONCE YOU LISTEN TO HIM YOUR GOING TO SAY WHY HAVE I NOT HEARD OF HIM BEFORE.HE IS TRULY AMAZING! www.myspace.com/ronhackerandthehacksaws

The Michael Packer Blues Band opened for Bettye LaVette to a sold-out show last Saturday night in South Orange New Jersey. Both Solomon King and Michael Packer have signed with Blue Skunk Music a blues record label out of Chicago. Michael Packer's 'Free Beer' CD has just been released digitally by Ioda and is available @ Itunes and other digital stores. Solomon King's 'Under The Sun' and Packer's 'Free Beer' are scheduled for a January 2010 release and will be distributed by Burnside Corporate Distribution (BCD) in the U.S.A. and Canada.

MICHAEL PACKER and ED JACKSON ARE RETURNING TO MEMPHIS! THEY WILL BE REPRESENTING THE JERSEY SHORE JAZZ & BLUES FOUNDATION IN THE SOLO/DUO COMPETITION. PACKER'S ' RIKERS ISLAND BLUES ' CD WILL ALSO BE IN THE BEST SELF-PRODUCED CD CATEGORY. LAST SATURDAY OCTOBER 24TH THE MICHAEL PACKER BLUES BAND FINISHED 2ND TO THE MATT O'REE BAND IN THE REGIONAL FINALS HELD IN NEW JERSEY. MATT O'REE WILL BE REPRESENTING THE FOUNDATION IN THE BAND COMPETITION IN MEMPHIS!

"The Cincinnati Blues Man", Mr. Keith Little is now being represented by Windmill Music and we are thrilled to have this extrordinary talent join our roster of artists. We will be shopping his new CD " Take It Off and Get Loose With It " to record labels. You can find out more about Mr. Keith Little @ www.klittle.com . The best in blues, R&B, Soul and Funk...

Live @ Lucilles NYC CD released in November 2007 is still making some noise. It was # 9 in MP3 album downloads for traditional blues with a Amazon sales ranking @ 6,000. The Best Of The Michael Packer Blues Band released in 2006 was also # 100 in the electric blues guitar category @ Amazon. Michael Packer's blues CDs have continued to be in the top 100 charts @ Rhapsody (country blues) and e-music (texas blues).

Windmill Music has negotiated a licensing agreement with Blues Leaf Records for Andy 'Sugarcane' Collins and his CD, 'Way Down The River'. A March/April 2010 release date is expected.

The Michael Packer Blues Band have reached the finals and will compete against seven other bands on Saturday October 24th @ Paul's Tavern, Belmar New Jersey. This event, the regional International blues challenge, is sponsored by the Jersey Shore Jazz and Blues Foundation. The winner represents the foundation in Memphis on January 20th 2010.

MICHAEL PACKER'S 'RIKERS ISLAND BLUES' CD HAS BEEN CHOSEN THE BEST SELF-PRODUCED CD BY THE JERSEY SHORE JAZZ AND BLUES FOUNDATION AND WILL REPRESENT THE FOUNDATION IN MEMPHIS FOR THE 2010 INTERNATIONAL BLUES CHALLENGE BEST SELF-PRODUCED CD COMPETITION!

WINDMILL MUSIC WELCOMES WEST COAST BLUES and SOUL MUSICIAN SOLOMON KING. WE ARE HONORED TO BE REPRESENTING SUCH A TALENTED ARTIST. HIS NEW CD "UNDER THE SUN" IS AN EXTRORDINARY COLLECTION OF SONGS FROM AL GREEN'S "LOVE and HAPPINESS", TO PROCOL HARUM'S "WHITER SHADE OF PALE". THE CD FEATURES SOLOMON KING ON GUITAR/VOCALS WITH SPECIAL GUEST RAY PARKER JR (GHOSTBUSTERS) ALSO ON GUITAR! WHO YOU GOING TO CALL? SOLOMON KING! THAT'S WHO! more information go to www.solomonkingmusic.com