On the weekend of June 7th & 8th 2007, I played at the Limavady Jazz & Blues festival as part of my recent run of gigs in Northern Ireland. While killing time in the unbearably hot and humid afternoons, I had a chance to catch up with my old friend John Whitehill. John was with Paul Lamb and the King Snakes for a long time and the Blues Burglars before that. He recently came 7th in Guitarist magazines "top 10 UK blues guitarists of all time" poll. Eric Clapton and Peter Green were also in the list.
John was playing at the festival with his new band "The Real Deal" which features former Blues Burglars members Billy Sharpe on vocals and Eddie Bowman on drums. Another friend of mine John "Captain" Morgan is playing bass.I used to travel to London with these guys when I was a teenager, and was given the chance to get up and jam in many venues around the UK during the late 80's and early 90's. I found it refreshing and encouraging to know that we are all still out there playing the music we love, and enjoying it just as much as before, if not more.
Time marches on and I have learned many a hard lesson since those days, that now seem like part of a different life time.
