Musicians

	WAYNE CHARLES picked up the harmonica a few years ago. He was a member of the Delta blues band the Tombstone Bullets and often plays with Bo Basiuk (an old friend of mine) and others. I first met Wayne a couple of years ago when he was working as a bar tender in Kensington Market. It was a slow night and he was listening to Bukka White, so we got talking and I invited him to one of my gigs. Since then we've played together occasionally, and for a little while I served as vocalist for the Bullets.
	WALTER MACLEAN is a versatile drummer who works with a variety of blues, rock, funk and African bands around Toronto. He often plays with Snooky Tynes, whom I've known since the 1990s. But I first got to know Walter when he was playing with David Rotundo's band. Walter is the drummer on David's first CD.
	MADAGASCAR SLIM, also known as Randriamananjara Radofa Besata Jean Longin, is an amazing guitarist and a leading exponent of both blues and Malagasy salegy music. He's won a Juno Award and has been nominated for a couple of others, and has toured Europe with the likes of Taj Mahal. I first heard Slim play at a benefit at the Rex in 1996, but didn't get to know him then. In 1997, I was playing piano at Graffiti's in Kensington Market. Slim was there and sat in with me. We've been friends every since. Though he's usually on tour, I sometimes see him in Robert's kitchen.
	BOB MOVER is a jazz saxophone legend from Boston who bounces around between Toronto and the US. He has played with a long list of major musicians, including Charles Mingus (with whom he toured), Chet Baker, Sonny Rollins, and even Lightnin' Hopkins. He can tell you lots of stories about all these cats. Bob has recorded several CDs as leader or sideman. I first heard Bob at Robert's bar in Kensington Market in 1998, but didn't get to meet him until 2000, when we were both playing at L'Arte. Bob used to play with me nearly every week at L'Arte for more than a year.
	PAUL REDDICK is best known as the virtuoso harmonica player, vocalist and songwriter of the Sidemen, a band he's led, through various incarnations, for ten years so. His latest CD, Rattlebag, won a stack of Maple Blues awards and was nominated for a Juno and a W.C. Handy award. He's opened for the likes of B.B. King and Buddy Guy and tours all over Canada and the US. I met Paul in 2000, when he was playing with Brian Blain at the Tranzac. They let me sit in, and since then, Paul occasionally comes to jam with me at my gigs, and we've done a couple of trio gigs with Brian. The Sidemen are going to add some of my songs to their repertoire
	MIKE ROBERTSON is a very talented guitarist and knows a lot about pre-war blues and hillbilly music. I first heard him play at a bar on College Street in 1997. In 1999, Mike and I had a memorable trip to Chicago. After a couple of duo gigs we teamed up with Ken Yoshioka to form an acoustic trio (which sometimes turned into an electric 5-piece band). Mike suggested calling it "Dark Holler", after a Clarence Ashley tune. "Dark Holler" recorded a demo CD in 1999 and still plays around town.
	DAVID ROTUNDO has a rapidly growing reputation as a harmonica player, singer and leader of the Blue Canadians. His first CD, Blowin' For Broke, won the TBS Talent Search award for 2001. David and I met in Kensington Market in 1997. I was playing piano at Robert's bar, when David walked in with his harps. From then on we jammed whenever we ran into each other, which was often, because we both lived in the Market. Since then we've often worked as a duo, and sometimes I join his band. (I play piano on his CD.) In April of 2002, L'Arte sent David and me on a tour of Russia.
	BOB VESPAZIANI is a versatile drummer who plays with a variety of jazz, swing, blues and rock bands around Toronto. He used to be a member of Tyler Yarema's band and can be heard on Tyler's CD, Gotta Bran' New Suit. Bob has also recorded with Little Bobby, Pete Schmidt & Shane Scott and others. I first met him when he was playing with David Rotundo.
	KEN YOSHIOKA is a versatile harmonica player who plays with a variety of blues, rock, pop, country and Celtic bands around Toronto. He's a member of Jay Clark & The Jones and has recorded two CDs with them. I first met Ken in 1998 when he was playing with a very good guitarist. After jamming a few times, Ken and I teamed up with Mike Robertson to form "Dark Holler". We still play around town, and occasionally, Ken and I work as a duo.