City Blues Connection Discography

Favorite Recording Sessions, Vol. 1

Norbert Egger>

City Blues Connection featuring Anne Bischow & Steve Baker>

Natural Blues & The Berchtesgaden Blues Band>

Link to product information

Released: August 15th 2023

Album (Vinyl), Price 19,90 EUR

April 28th 2023

AAA Culture presents: Norbert Egger & Bands featuring Anne Bischow (Vocals) & Steve Baker (Blues Harp)

Norbert Egger’s 50th Stage Anniversary Album

2022 marked the 50th anniversary of his first live performances as a Blues musician. As he explains, it was a great pleasure and honor for him to work with his bands and so many great musicians on recording sessions and live performances as part of the 50th stage anniversary.

A special experience for him was working with the young singer Anne Bischow and the star on the Blues harp, Steve Baker. While Steve and he have known each other for over 40 years and performed together in jam sessions in Hamburg in the 1980s, he discovered Anne in 2021 during his casting among more than 50 singers.

The main part 1 of the album presents the great stylistic range and dynamics of City Blues Connection:

In addition to the songs A Sunday Kind Of Love and At Last, which have already been released as vinyl singles, All I Could Do Was Cry, also rearranged by Norbert Egger and released here for the first time, completes the album's Blues and Soul ballads, also sung by Anne Bischow. In the new arrangement of the latter song, Steve Baker's sensitive Blues harp accompaniment deserves special mention.

With the wild Rattlesnake Blues, somewhere between Blues Rock and Soul, the band offers a power song between the gentle ballads for a change. Particularly noteworthy is the wild, harmonious ride of the soloists Florian Kemper on solo guitar, Lutz Krajenski on the Hammond organ and Kurt Gersdorf on the saxophone.

After the second ballad, the musical journey through time takes the listener back to the 1920s with the autobiographical I'll Sing The Blues For You through Benny Brown's spherical trumpet intro and the fills and solos of the horns in New Orleans Blues style. Years. In the slow Blues End All These Horrible Things, in which the lyrics address the core problems of our time, the soloists Florian Kemper on the solo guitar and Lutz Krajenski on the Hammond organ shine again - supported by the wind section. After this stylistic leap into the big band Blues of the 1950s, the band's journey through time continues with the Boogie Woogie She's Great with piano, dobro and another brilliant blues harp entry by Steve Baker, recorded in a 1930s juke joint could, not without leading the listeners back to the present at the end of the City Blues Connection Sessions with the hard-hitting blues rock number What My Boss Wants with a hard beat and the wild slide guitar by Norbert Egger.

With the exception of the ballads, all of the City Blues Connection songs heard here were composed and written by Norbert Egger.

This is followed by main part 2 with the recordings of the Natural Blues sessions.

Here you can hear Steve Baker's great blues harp again in the first three songs.

Queen Bee is (like She's Great before it) an ode to his wife (whose name Anna Liza was on the first Rhythm & Blues Big Band album) in Chicago blues style. Here the emotional fills and solos by Steve and Norbert complement each other perfectly. The same applies to the following instrumental version of Dust My Broom, another wild number with a lot of power and, by the way, two accompanying pianists. In the again autobiographical 50 Years Norbert Egger offers a brief outline of his life story up to the beginning of his professional music career.

After the Chicago Blues-style songs, the following two numbers offer hard blues rock: Unite with lyrics calling for peace, humanism and social justice, crowned by great solos, again by Florian Kemper on solo guitar, Lutz Krajenski on the Hammond organ and the driving shuffle Leave You In The Morning.

Afterwards, Natural Blues offers a change of scenery with the gentle Trouble In Mind, which again takes up the idea of the musical journey through time by City Blues Connection and revives the Blues and Swing of the 1930s with the great saxophone playing of guest Franz Neumeier.

Finally, The Berchtesgaden Blues Band takes the listener back to the earliest beginnings of the blues more than 100 years ago with the archaic version of the Fishing Blues with sousaphone, clarinet and dobro.

The vocal version of Dust My Broom, which was also created during the sessions, should not be withheld from the listener and is therefore included with the album as a bonus version.

All titles of the second part, except Dust My Broom, Trouble In Mind and Fishing Blues, were composed and written by Norbert Egger.

All tracks are arranged by Norbert Egger.

Tracks:

1 A Sunday Kind Of Love (Barbara Belle, Anita Leonard, Louis Prima & Stanley Rhodes) mit freundlicher Genehmigung der EMI Partnership Musikverlag GmbH

2 Rattlesnake Blues (Norbert Egger)

3 All I Could Do Was Cry (Berry Gordy Jr., Gwendolyn Gordy Fuqua & Roquel Davis) mit freundlicher Genehmigung der EMI Partnership Musikverlag GmbH

4 I'll Sing The Blues For You (Norbert Egger)

5 End All These Horrible Things (Norbert Egger)

6 She's Great (Norbert Egger)

7 At Last (Mack Gordon & Harry Warren) mit freundlicher Genehmigung der EMI Partnership Musikverlag GmbH

8 What My Boss Wants (Norbert Egger)

9 Queen Bee (Norbert Egger)

10 Dust My Broom (Instrumental) (Robert Johnson)

11 50 Years (Norbert Egger)

12 Unite (Norbert Egger)

13 Leave You In The Morning (Single Version) (Norbert Egger)

14 Trouble In Mind (Richard M. Jones)

15 Fishing Blues (Trad.)

16 Bonus Track: Dust My Broom (Robert Johnson)

Arrangements von Norbert Egger

Total 54:14

Catalog number: AAA-2023-0007 - EAN (Audio CD): 0791732582772

January 09th 2023

The Blues Standard Series, Vol. 4 - 50th Stage Anniversary Sessions (EP)

For Blues and audio CD friends, AAA Culture GmbH presents new songs and instrumentals on this release together with previously released singles from The Blues Standard Series. The recordings were made as part of Norbert Egger's 50th stage anniversary sessions in 2022 with City Blues Connection, Natural Blues and the Berchtesgaden Blues Band.

The EP's tracks begin with 1960's Soul and Blues and modern Blues Rock, musically taking the listener deeper and deeper into the earlier world of 1950's Chicago Blues (Dust My Broom), early 1940's electric Chicago Blues (Queen Bee) through Country Blues and New Orleans Blues of the 1930s and 20s to the transition phase from Ragtime to Blues (Fishing Blues). The additional bonus tracks were also included in this very "extended" EP with a playing time of over thirty minutes.

It was a special pleasure for the "anniversary" that not only "his" three bands but also several guest musicians took part in the various sessions in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Working with some of them began in recent years, with Andy Winkler shortly after the millennium and with Steve Baker, Norbert looks back on joint sessions that date back more than 50 years.

In the first three songs At Last, Rattlesnake Blues and A Sunday Kind Of Love, City Blues Connection presents two Blues and Soul classics and one wild Blues Rock number. As a special guest, the young singer Anne Bischow took on the lead vocals for both ballads. In Rattlesnake Blues, the virtuoso Lutz Krajenski with his Hammond and Florian Kemper with his great guitar solo are guest soloists. In between, the long-standing City Blues Connection saxophonist Kurt Gersdorf can be heard in the sensitive solo in between.

The following three Chicago Blues tracks are from sessions with Natural Blues and guests. After the wild slide number Dust My Broom, Steve Baker can be heard with his outstanding Blues Harp playing in the instrumental version of Dust My Broom as well as the new song Queen Bee by Norbert Egger, which is played like the Chicago Blues of the late 1940s. In the two Dust My Broom versions, the two pianists Andy Winkler and Michael Alf also contribute to the sound typical of this subgenre.

In the two Natural Blues versions of the great classic Trouble in Mind, which take up the early blues style, Andy Winkler again plays the piano. Another guest and soloist is Franz Neumeier (saxophone) from the Berchtesgaden Blues Band.

Two versions of the Berchtesgaden Blues Band with significant Ragtime elements of the Fishing Blues together with Hubert Graßl lead back to the beginnings of the Blues. With his sousaphone, Hubert Graßl not only contributes the archaic sound and basic groove for this blues classic, but also a solo on this instrument, which is rarely heard in today's music world. In Take 2, Franz Neumeier completes the trio of the Berchtesgaden Blues Band and lends the track the sound of early New Orleans Blues with the ornate counter-melodies of the clarinet.

Catalog number: AAA-2023-0002

EAN (Audio CD): 0791732582802

EAN (Online Bundle): 0791732582802

Tracks:

1 At Last (03:04)

2 Rattlesnake Blues (02:43)

3 A Sunday Kind Of Love (03:10)

4 Dust My Broom (03:51)

5 Dust My Broom (Instrumental) (02:32)

6 Queen Bee (03:15)

7 Trouble In Mind 03:39

8 Trouble In Mind (Instrumental) (03:01)

9 Fishing Blues (Take 1 )(03:18)

10 Talk (00:13)

11 Fishing Blues (Take 2 )(03:22)

Total: 32:08

20.10.2022

The Blues Standard Series, Vol. 3

Vinyl Single, zum Download und Streaming.

Norbert Egger & His City Blues Connection present The Blues Standard Series, Vol. 3., featuring Anne Bischow (vocals): With the new release, Anne Bischow, accompanied by the Rhythm & Blues Big Band City Blues Connection, can be heard singing on the great soul and blues standard At Last . The great classic, also known from Etta James, has been rearranged for this release with a six-member horn section. The young singer Anne Bischow was selected by Norbert Egger because of her excellent singing with her spectrum from sensitive to powerful singing in a casting from over 50 singers in 2020. In the context of the joint performance at the producer's 50th stage anniversary, several titles were recorded, which are to be released this year. The B-side song is the powerful R&B song Rattlesnake Blues, composed and performed by Norbert Egger and his & His City Blues Connection.

A-Seite: Norbert Egger & His City Blues Connection feat. Anne Bischow: At Last

B-Seite: Norbert Egger & His City Blues Connection: Rattlesnake Blues

Die Single kann über Fachgeschäfte und direkt beim Label AAA Culture bestellt werden.

EAN 0791732582765

2022/10/20

The Blues Standard Series, Vol. 3

Vinyl single, download and atreaming.

Side A: Norbert Egger & His City Blues Connection feat. Anne Bischow: At Last

Side B: Norbert Egger & His City Blues Connection: Rattlesnake Blues

The single can be ordered through record stores fairmondo.de and directly from the AAA Culture label.

EAN 0791732582765

2022/07/14

The Blues Standard Series, Vol. 2

Vinyl single, download and atreaming.

Norbert Egger, Natural Blues and City Blues Connection present The Blues Standard Series, Vol. 2., featuring Anne Bischow (vocals) and Steve Baker (Blues harp):With the new release, Anne Bischow, accompanied by the Rhythm & Blues Big Band City Blues Connection, can be heard singing on the great soul and blues standard A Sunday Kind Of Love. The great classic, also known from Etta James, has been rearranged for this release with a six-member horn section. The young singer Anne Bischow was selected by Norbert Egger because of her excellent singing with her spectrum from sensitive to powerful singing in a casting from over 50 singers in 2020. In the context of the joint performance at the producer's 50th stage anniversary, several titles were recorded, which are to be released this year.With the B-side song Natural Blues features Blues harp top star Steve Baker together with Norbert Egger and his slide guitar in a wild instrumental version of the blues classic Dust My Broom. The two musicians have known each other since the 1980s, when they performed together at various sessions in Hamburg.

A-Seite: Norbert Egger & His City Blues Connection feat. Anne Bischow: A Sunday Kind Of Love

B-Seite: Norbert Egger & His Natural Blues feat. Steve Baker: Dust My Broom (Instrumental)

The single can be ordered through record stores fairmondo.de and directly from the AAA Culture label.

EAN 0791732582734

2019/10/15

Double Album 40 Years. City Blues Connection - 1979-2019

As audio CD, download and streaming available. The audio CD is available in wb shops (Amazon etc.) and can be ordered directly from AAA Culture.

The double album 40 Years. City Blues Connection 1979 – 2019 offers remastered songs, released earlier in the 1980s, authorized bootleg recordings from early session and new recording from City Blues Connection - The Rhythm & Blues Big Band incl. songs from the 40th anniversary year 2019 including 32 songs and more than 120 minutes music out of the 40 years band history.

Audition: 40 Years from double album 40 Years. City Blues Connection 1979-2019

Audition: Shame On You, Mr. Trump from double album 40 Years. City Blues Connection 1979-2019

Audition: Mr. President from double album 40 Years. City Blues Connection 1979-2019

2019/08/31

Maxisingle City Blues Connection - 40 Years

As audio CD, download and streaming available. The audio CD can be ordered directly from AAA Culture.

Audition: 40 Years from Maxisingle 40 Years

2018/01/26		City Blues Connection album Anna Liza is the first release of City Blues Connection as The Rhythm & Blues Big Band. 18 songs with a total playing time of more than 75 minutes. As audio CD, download and streaming available. The audio CD is available in wb shops (Amazon etc.) and can be ordered directly from AAA Culture. Audition: This Angel from album Anna Liza Audition: Muddy Waters from album Anna Liza Audition: Goin' Out from album Anna Liza
2017, December		Preliminary release of two songs of production City Blues Connection - Anna Liza on Bluesnews sampler 2017 (Source: http://www.bluesnews.de)
2017/07/01		Followup release as remastered audio CD of the 1985 album Louisiana Red & The City Blues Connection - World On Fire. AAA Culture acquired in June 2017 the rights of the 1985 production and released in July 2017 this remarkable album.
2016		Release of sampler BGD ROCK CITY, Vol. 1 with two unreleased City Blues Connection songs: Tough Times from unreleased recording sessions Watch Your Step 2005/2006 This Angel (shuffle verision) from the swiss recording sessions 2013-2015 Audition Tough Times from sampler BGD ROCK CITY, Vol. 1: