Big Poppa E Tribute Tonight at Tobacco Road; Five Other Great Bluesmen Whose Music Influenced the World

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1948 - 2012

This August 25, the great bluesman Mutasim Ra'id "Big Poppa E" Faisal passed away suddenly from an apparent heart attack. At 64 years of age, he was a mere teenager when it comes to blues musicians. An eternal student of his craft, the tradition of blues was firmly cemented into Big Poppa's musical DNA, but it was also rife with sounds from around the globe.

To say his passing leaves a significant cultural void in South Florida is putting it simply. He touched the lives of so many with his music. Perhaps under-appreciated, his house was a frequent stop for national and international musicians who palavered with Big Poppa in the purest exchange of artistic idealism.

While some local talent like Felipe Lamoglia, Jowee Omicil, and Papa Joe will pay tribute tonight at Big Poppa's old stomping grounds, Tobacco Road, we'll take this opportunity to showcase other dearly departed bluesmen in hopes to expose the South Florida community to some great tunes and musicians. This is real American music.


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Jimmy Pagano Memorial Jam at America's Backyard Benefits Artists with Autism

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Denise Langella

In April 2011, Jimmy Pagano, a valued local drummer, promoter, and friend, was murdered trying to break up a bar fight at Fishtales Bar and Grill, where he himself hosted a weekly Pro Jam event. It was a huge blow for the Fort Lauderdale music scene and also for those who loved him. This Sunday, May 20, Pagano's friends and supporters will gather at America's Backyard for a memorial jam. There will be raffles and a silent auction to benefit musicians with autism.

Roscoe Peterson, his best friend and the guitar player in Jimmy Pagano's Untamed Band offered us a few words in remembrance of Pagano:


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Backstage in South Florida: Pondering the Loss of Two Legends, Dick Clark and Levon Helm

Categories: In Memoriam
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courtesy of Wikipedia
Music vet and
New Times scribe Lee Zimmerman offers his insights, opinions and observations about the local scene. This week: In memory of icons and institutions. 

It's been a hell of a week in terms of losing legends. Two of them in fact. Gone suddenly, though we knew it was inevitable, I suppose. And a third hanging on by a thread. A terrible week indeed.

Not surprisingly, Dick Clark's passing garnered the most notice. After all, the guy was iconic. He had a steady presence for the better part of the past 60 years, first as the amiable host of TV's first music showcase. This was prior to Ed Sullivan's showcasing the first wave of rock 'n' roll's emerging superstars and, of course, the 24/7 surge of MTV, and then later as a veritable television institution whose empire spread to award shows, game shows, a production company, and, inevitably, that New Year's Eve countdown from the heart of Times Square. 

He was so compelling a presence in that final arena that neither the horror of 9/11 nor a stroke could keep him away, even though when his speech slowed and he had to struggle to reclaim a semblance of his old self, it became almost too painful to watch.

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Whitney Houston's Grammy Performance Highlights

Categories: In Memoriam
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As the music industry and world mourns the untimely death of music legend Whitney Houston, it's been reported that tonight at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards various performers will pay tribute to her.

Whitney Houston herself is no stranger to being on stage at the Grammys. With a career spanning over four decades, she went on to receive 26 nominations and performed a total of 7 times.

In 1986, a 22-year old Whitney Houston took the stage, making her Grammys debut with a stunning performance of "Saving All My Love From You". As we remember one of our generation's greatest voices on the eve of the 54th Annual Grammy Awards, we look back on some of the highlights from Whitney Houston's award ceremony performances.


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Five of Metallica's Best Bass Songs for Cliff Burton 50th Birthday

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Jens Eriksson via Wikimedia Commons
A Burton memorial in Ljungby, Sweden
If you clicked on this, you probably already know the story: It was 1986, and Metallica released their third album, Master of Puppets to wild acclaim. They took their Damage, Inc. tour on a massive swing through Europe, only to have the excursion interrupted by a bus crash in Sweden. Everyone escaped the turned-over tour bus except for their bass player, 24-year old Cliff Burton, a classically trained metalhead with long hair, denim jacket, and a Misfits tattoo. He was crushed by the bus and died Sept. 27, 1986.

Though the remaining band members picked up Jason Newsted as a replacement by the end of the year and would go on to sell a zillion records, fans still readily point to the Burton era as the band's musical heyday (though Lulu doesn't make the distinction particularly hard to make). Today would have been Burton's 50th birthday -- in memory of the man behind the mustache, here are five of his best contributions to Metallica's early catalog.

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RIP, Jeff Stratton: Past New Times Music Editor & Friend Forever

Categories: In Memoriam
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The entire New Times family was hit with a tremendous shock Wednesday afternoon when we learned that our brother Jeff Stratton had passed away suddenly after apparent complications from a stomach ulcer in Honduras. He was 47.

As part of an accomplished journalism career around the country, Jeff served as New Times music editor between 2000-04 and then transitioned to a staff writer from 2004-07, and continued to contribute writing for every section of the paper up to the present. Most recently, he was spearheading his own paper, the Roatan New Times. Far greater than that, he was a dear friend, a loving father, and a brilliant, articulate thinker. Anyone who spent a few minutes with the guy could feel that warmth right away.

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Ingrid Pastorius Memorial Service Scheduled for Sunday

Categories: In Memoriam
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It has been a week of mixed emotions for the family and friends of Jaco and Ingrid Pastorius.

For weeks, the attention had been on a birthday celebration to herald what would have been the gifted bassist's 60th birthday at the Funky Biscuit, but things took on an entirely different light when Ingrid Pastorius passed away suddenly on Sunday from complications following a heart attack.

County Grind spoke to many of Pastorius' friends from the community since then, and plans are to turn Sunday into a double celebration of life.

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RIP, Ingrid Pastorius, Ex-Wife of Jaco Pastorius (1950-2011)

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jacop.net
Ingrid Pastorius with Jaco Pastorius' four children -- John, Julius, Felix, and Mary -- in 1983.
Ingrid Pastorius, who was married to virtuoso electric bassist Jaco Pastorius between 1979 and 1985, died on Monday from complications following an aortic aneurysm, according to a source close to the family. She was 61.

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City Link Expected to Close, Sources Say

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According to numerous sources, past rumblings that the South Florida alt-weekly City Link is closing are finally becoming factual.

The 20-year-old arts and culture paper, currently published by the Sun-Sentinel, is expected to cease publication within the next couple of weeks, according to reporting by New Times blog the Pulp.

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RIP, Heavy D (1967-2011)

Categories: In Memoriam
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Facebook.com
One of the few truly sensitive men in rap passed today. Known as Heavy D, Dwight Arrington Myers was one of the earliest and finest examples of the fusion of hip-hop and soul. He was 44.

TMZ reports that Heavy D died in Los Angeles after having difficulty breathing at his home.

From the time that Heavy D and the Boyz's 1986 signing to Uptown Records -- a label that later birthed Jodeci and Mary J. Blige and was home to an intern named Sean "Puffy" Combs -- things were going to be different in hip-hop from then on. The crudeness toward women exhibited in NWA's lyrics of the time would not be found in the material put out by the Mr. D. And this intentional lack of a hard edge won him a broad spectrum of fans and pop success. His booming voice ended up collaborating with Michael Jackson (and Michael Jordan) for "Jam."

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