Page 36 - Blues Festival Guide Magazine 2023 Digital Edition

Mr. Blue’s outlook on religion is philosophical. He says, I
was at church. The preacher said, “Every woman in here got a
damn wig on! Take their wig off, you don’t know how they gonna
look!” (laughter) If you’re a Black woman and you want to keep
your man, fix your hair, stop wearing that wig. I can’t tell if that
comment is literal or metaphorical. It works either way.
I put it this way, Mr. Blue says, judge ye not. Who am I
to judge? But I think that God must have something for me,
‘cause I’m still able to go down the Sand Dollar [legendary
blues bar]. He sums it up this way: I know the difference
between right and wrong.
If I wrote a song right now, it would be about love, says
Mr. Blue. That’s what the world needs right now, love. He then
saunters over to his piano, and gives me a personal concert,
starting with “I Can’t Stop Loving You.” Then an extended
boogie-woogie. Finally, it’s “Stardust.” They are all marvelous,
and that’s exactly what I’m experiencing – marveling at a
bonafide living legend, Mr. Leon Blue.

Editor’s Note: Mr. Blue is featured on the album Blue Las Vegas
available at LasVegasBlues.org/Store

Writer Dan D. Harrell, a lifelong blues fan, has published articles
in Blues Review, BluesWax, Big City Rhythm and Blues, and
others. He is a contributing writer for Blues Music Magazine,
Treasurer of the Las Vegas Blues Society and Executive Producer
of the album Blue Las Vegas. He holds a BS in journalism and
lives in Pahrump, Nevada.

34 Blues Festival Guide 2023