Sunday, March 09, 2008

Downchild

Yesterday, I wandered into the kitchen for a snack....Tuffy P was in there, and she had the Downchild Blues Band blasting. I realized I can't remember a time when there was no Downchild Blues Band. It has undergone various incarnations, led by Donnie Walsh, who over the years has come to be Mr. Downchild.

Here's a great video featuring the late Jane Vasey and Peter Appleyard playing a delightful Boogie...


And here's the band featuring the late Hock Walsh, Donnie's brother, who co-founded the band and played with them at different times over the years. I've read that Donnie and The Hock were the inspiration for The Blues Brothers, and this may be true since The Blues Brothers recorded some Downchild material.


Here's today's incarnation of Downchild...


The band has had a number of vocalists over the years. I was hoping to find a video that featured the late Tony Flaim, another excellent addition to the band, who sang with the group for close to a decade.

The name Downchild comes from a song by harp great Sonny Boy Williamson, called Mr. Downchild (take this poor fool's advice, and don't let no one woman, man mistreat you twice).

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Another stroll down memory lane - thanks mister anchovy! I remember seeing Downchild live quite often in Winnipeg (late 70's?). Nice to see Jane Vasey again - as beautiful as she was talented. I had no idea that Tony Flaim had died. I dunno, he could never 'replace' The Hock for me - I loved that voice. Anyhow, nice to see Donnie still going strong. I think he was recently playing somewhere with my old pal Jack DeKeyzer.

Gardenia said...

Once again thank you - I'm a stranger to Downchild - where have I been all my life. That Vasey was something else again!

mister anchovy said...

Gardenia...sadly, Jane Vasey died way too early, of leukemia. She was a fantastic piano player. I believe that video was excerpted from a TV show called the Peter Appleyard Show. Mr. Appleyard plays the vibes, and as you can see from the video, he's quite a treasure. I don't know if he is still actively playing - he must be around 80 now.