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History
Of The Band
TRADITIONAL BLUES WITH A UNIQUE SOUND. . . As band
leader and composer, Pierre's vision has never wavered
since he founded his band in 1991. His mantra is
clear and focused. The band has always had an ensemble
sound: all musicians are featured and welcome to
contribute on stage and on recordings. His music
is traditional because it is steeped in Chicago's
golden sounds of the 1950's, Muddy Waters, Howlin'
Wolf, Jimmy Reed, Jimmy Rogers, all the great harp
players... Big and Little Walter, The Sonny Boy
Williamsons, Junior Wells, George Smith, and many
extraordinary contemporaries such as Kim Wilson,
Rod Piazza and Paul deLay. On the other hand, Pierre's
blues is unique because he dislikes to tread on
old beaten paths. He always writes new stuff.
MISSISSIPPI HEAT emerged in 1991 on a night at the
Cafe Lura in Chicago. Guitarist Jon McDonald invited
Pierre to play harp for him with Robert Covington
on drums and vocals. It was a great night, with
a raucous crowd in this Polish neighborhood. Pierre
looked happy, and the band played with such inspiration
that his brother Michel was drawn to say he would
find gigs with little efforts. A man of his word,
Michel did find gigs for the band. He was wrong
about the effort part, but was right about the fact
that he could manage such a band. ... Pierre and
the Heat have now finished 7 CDs (as well as a DVD
for Delmark Records in 2005).
Some of their recordings have won awards such as
"BEST CHICAGO BLUES CD OF THE YEAR" and
"BEST BLUES PRODUCTION OF THE YEAR" (e.g.,
Handyman, and Footprints On The Ceiling by Real
Blues Magazine ).
Over the years., MISSISSIPPI HEAT has been the subject
of several TV and movie features. French TV has
released a documentary on Blues featuring the band.,
and our vocalist for a prestigious program called
ARTE. Soon after a concert was filmed in Montreal.,
Canada., and was sold to an Italian TV company.
French Canadian TV also featured Pierre and his
brother-manager Michel on one of their regular programs
called "BAISERS D' AMERIQUE". This half-hour
segment was viewed in 35 countries worldwide. MISSISSIPPI
HEAT has also been featured in countless trade magazines
such as Living Blues and Blues Review.
Mississippi Heat: Greatest
Events
ECAUSSINNES SPRING BLUES FESTIVAL: One of our favorite
place to perform. Fans, medias, family members and
friends in Belgium are intense and welcoming. We
have last returned in May of 2002 for the official
release of our CD Footprints On The Ceiling (CrossCut
Records, ccd-ll071). We have performed at Ecaussinnes
many times since 1994. Our first appearance there
drew Belgian TV as well as a private movie crews
to capture the band on film. "BACK TO THE ROOTS",
a full-length made-for- TV movie, was partly made
out of that show (Salammbo, Videopool, Brussels,
1994).
CHICAGO BLUES FESTIVAL: We have appeared THREE times
at this Festival since 1994. We have performed on
the MAIN STAGE in 2000, on a Saturday night.
LUCERNE BLUES FESTIVAL (Switzerland). 1995, 1996,
2000 . .. A LIVE recording at LUCERNE was made in
1996 (Unreleased as yet).
MONTREAL INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL: First concert
there was in 1994 . . . 27,000 fans waiving during
the band performance. The newspaper LE DEVOIR called
MISSISSIPPI HEAT's performance "the best show
we've seen in memory". Since 1994, we have
appeared FOUR times at this Festival, the last performance
being on July 1st, 2005. We were the Headliners.
CARACAS INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL: (Venezuela,
1998). Mobbed by fans on stage. We were set to play
subsequent years as well, but the political climate
in Venezuela is too volatile for us to return at
this time.
NOTODDEN BLUES FEST: (Norway, 1996). Great welcome
and organization. Huge crowds attend this Festival.
... AND MANY MORE IN EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA: France,
Belgium, Germany, England, the Netherlands, Switzerland.
. . Pocomo Festival...Baltimore. . . Columbus. .
. Toronto. . . Montreal. . . Quebec City. . . Syracuse.
.. ). |
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