VENDS + VIBE Arts Marketplace at the Artist Block

50th Anniversary of B.A.G. • The Black Arts Guild 2020

miles davis.. birth of the cool

I didn’t have a ticket 2 the SOLD OUT 
showing of the new documentary  movie..   

miles davis 

         birth of the  cool..

                       a film by Stanley Nelson

which premiered at the  Gene Siskel Center in Chicago 
on Friday Oct 4, 2019

  
all I can say is …

it was an interesting vibe..

So I chilled… 

             I was cool… real cool....😎

there was NO WAY I wasn’t going in…

then...

Miles… smiled  

and let me in..

Songs My Grandmama Sang!

Raybon Myers 

Basso-Profundo 

presents 

"Songs My Grandmama Sang," 

a family-oriented concert performance of 

African-American spirituals and Sacred songs 

Aki Antonia  • Music Director

Rhonda Gray • Vocalese

Master Drummer Tyehimba  Mtu • Congas

Perniall Rekoj Gaddis • Drums

John Wesley • Saxophone

at the 

New Spiritual Light M.B. Church, 

7566 S. South Shore Drive, Chicago, IL, 

September 27, 2019. 

Doors open at 7:00 pm.

 For more info: 773-315-3465

HaPpy Heavenly Birthday! Kanika Kress..Lioness on a Stratocaster!

A HaPpy Birthday letter 2 Kanika Kress..
a Leo.. and a Lioness on a Stratocaster!

Oooh .. Ooooh.. Ooooh Oooooh .. Ooooh.. OOOOOH  
'Cause  We MISS YOU...


Cosmic: I was just looking for a little something..something on the net ... and I stumbled across a video of u playing.. Kanika! 

 Kanika Kress 

Playing in Germany ...

Miss You - Rolling Stones 5:58 

 40 Days and 40 Nights - Muddy Waters 12:30 

Playing one of my favorie Rolling Stones songs.. MISS YOU..

and just killing it!

Oooh Oooh Oooh Oooh  Ooooh ' cause  I Miss you! 
What 'chu doing Girl?
Then you went on to  play 40 days  and  40 nights! 
by  Muddy Waters ....
and I was haPpy... 'cause I had never seen these videos... 
of you playing these songs.  

It was sO mystical to see you all over again... smiling and doing your thing..Just playing that Stratocaster with the long strips of leather on your  guitar strap just swinging...in the wind...
It was so uncanny to hear your voice and your sound... and to remember how you phrased your riffs on your guitar...and made it just talk!

Kanika... I just went to a Rolling Stones concert ... a coupla months ago in Chicago at Soliders Field ...and they killed it..Girl...

MICK ... Jagger was running all over the stage and it was on!!...

So...

I went looking for more music and photos to add 2 the collage 4 a shout out 2 your sons.. Shomari, Gynyasi and Nkosi 2 your family, fans and the universe.. 4 your birthday...‘cause we miss you! 

Kanika rocks  at the 1988  Chicago Blues Festival

I just kept remembering Kanika how you used to rock out with your  groups  Girlathon and  Peace Flower in the 70's when you all played Rock, Folk, and your original songs..

You and I , we would mix it up with some FUNK, R&B and JAZZ and play our originals songs all day!

Cecile Savage, Tony Robinson, 

Kanika Kress, Aki Antonia

And while I was thinking about  all that

I ran across a picture of Tony Robinson...

the drummer in your band when we played in the 80's.

These photos were from the Taste Zodiac Room in Chicago..

where we played Blues Mondays hosted by Ralph Metcalf Jr.

Back 2 the  Future... Cosmic Convergence...
Years later... Tony married  our cosmic musical sister, Tiona the flautist... and you played at their wedding... Wow..

I knew that you and Tiona had gone to South Shore High and she has told me all about how you tore it up with your guitar in the talent shows back then...

Because you and Tiona chanted as Buddhists I found it it interesting that all of our mystical connections flowed with 
Nam Myo Renge Kyo .. cause you sure did try to shakabuku me
into the principals by encouraging to chant.. back in the 70's. 
It was interesting to find out that we all had a musical and cosmic mystical connection over many decades but we just didn't know it at the time. 

And in the spirit of Cosmic convergence I wound up  chanting at the Buddhist Center and playing at a few festivals with  Tiona and Tony  in  Tiona's band named Melodious Communique. 

Then we had some 😎 cool moments with merging with my band AKIBOARDS 🎹🎹🎹

Ray Ripperton, Tiona Toni, Aki Antonia, Julie Jam, Lothario Lee, Tony Robinson

Akiboards & Melodius Communique

Writing this letter made me pull out my Some Girls album..

just thinking 'bout  the Blues in my soul''  'cause we miss you!

Now.. Tony Robinson... the  Funkateer..  drumaster of the Funk is up there FUNKING up the grooves..'cause he 's playing on that heavenly plane with you as well.   

Go 'head ON... Y'all! 
Stay ON the 1 now!

HaPpy Heavenly Birthday! 

Kanika Kress.. 

Aug 17.. 

Leo.. the Lioness..
Gone way too soon...in 1993..

We miss you in the 'Chi! and in the world... and in the  Cosmic Universe...
Keep on playing the Blues up there with Lefty Dizz! 
Muddy Waters! Jimi Hendrix! and ere'body else! 

We know you're killing on that Stratocaster, girl! 
Kosen-rufu. Peace! ☮️

AA 8172019 by Aki Antonia c2019 
All photos by AA c 2019
All rights Reserved. 

Sunday Night On the Train....

I was riding on the train

on the Green line to 63rd and Ashland..

heading back from Downtown 
through Bronzeville to Englewood

just checking out my folks...

sketching in my sketchbook...

and listening to the sounds

of the train moving..  

& people talking on their phones...
& hearing the tracks go 
clack, clak, clak 

 feeling the rocking  motions..
thinking my thoughts...

& trying to get it all down 

before I heard the final sounds of 

"Doors closing

All passengers must leave the train!"

8 2019 AA c 2019 All Rights Reserved

I Got My Mojo Working!

I got my Mojo working…

Instead of sitting in my  bed ..

crying the blues

and wondering  ‘bout things, 

I don’t need to wonder about

no mo.

I decided 2 do mi own walkabout. ...

and wound up at the Motor City Mojo Jam

at the Motor Row Brewery on a Thursday night.

I went to go 2 sit in with Micheal Damani 

and the Chicago Blues All Stars

with Bassist, Deacon Freddie Dixon,  

Drummer, Dr Jimmy Lee Tillman,

Guitarist, Doktu Rhute Music,

Motor Row Bob

and several other  folks..

And it was so  good.. 
We wound up jamming with a harmonica player 

all the way from Australia…

Jay Moon..

That was fun!

The Original Chicago Blues All Stars were on fire.. 

Michael Damani has a deep wailing sound.. 
in his young bones and in his old soul.. 
as he moves around almost in a trance... 
going in deep....

The Chicago Blues All-Stars 
had a deep rich bottom.. 
as they laid a bayou-like foundation 
of solid bass, rhythm and drums.

It was great to sit in with the Blues jammers... but it was real cool when drummer,  Dr Jimmy Tillman invited me to play on keys with the 

Original Chicago Blues All Stars 

'cause

their sound

brought me back to my roots in Bronzeville

 back 2 a time

where I got a chance  

2 breath the Blues 

wafting out of  

Buddy Guy's Checkerboard Lounge

around the corner from my house..

smelling like some greens ... 

and beans cooking on the stove 

in the fall or the wintertime..

along with the smell of the 

cornbread baking in the oven 

2 go with  it.. 

that sound...
up in Motor Row Brewry

brought me back 2 my roots of being round the blues 

back to 43rd St 
(Muddy Waters Drive)

back 2 listening 
to folks playing at the Blues clubs like

Peppers and Theresa's

but even deeper ..

as I flashed back on 

playing the Blues and Jazz in 
Jam sessions at my home..

back in the day.. day

on an old Wurlitzer electric piano..

with B... 

and Bey the bassist from Koko Taylor’s band

as they taught me Jimmy Reed’s song

Baby, What You Want Me to Do

Jimmy Reed

You've got me runnin'

You've got me hidin'

You've got me run, hide, hide, run

Anyway you wanna let it roll

Yeah, yeah, yeah

You've got me doin' what you want me

Baby what you want  me to do

 I also flashed back on more  recently...

 when I've been jamming with the guitarist..

Mr. Oh Yeah from Tokyo ..

when he would come up to Bronzeville  2  43rd St 

with his blues students to see me.. 

and to learn about 

the Checkerboard back in the day..

He always likes to play Muddy’s ‘I got my Mojo Working’

So when the  musicians begin to play both songs
at the MOJO Jam

Yeah.. I felt right at home..

I  already knew things was gon’ be cool 

when  I started warming  up on my Melodica 

 in my Uber  ride to the club…

I had a cool older Nigerian cab driver 

who turned out 2 be a drummer 

and he was  jamming!! right with me ...

as we rolled down the Dan Ryan 

from Englewood 

2 Motor Row

and I was  playing that same Jimmy Reed  song 

and Muddy Waters’s...Got my Mojo Workin'

So ...

I was just a - smiling when they called them at the  Jam..

Um Um Umph!

I'm goin' up

I'm goin' down

I'm goin' up, down, down, up

Anyway ya wanna let it roll

Yeah, yeah, yeah

You've got me doin' what you want me

Baby what you want me to do

FYI:

Now Michael Damani 

This one right here?

This one is a youngin’ to watch 
y’all…better catch him while he’s here…

‘cause he’s got that Jimi spark…

and he’s such a  poignant and piercing player..

and 

he writes his own  music..

like ‘Black Bags’  … 

a song where the lyrics hit me hard  

when I first heard it… 

and even harder when  I played it…

  

It’s a Blues in A minor 

that  describes 

how it could be  any one of us

 in the black bags…today..

after the sirens and the shootings 

for any reason..

it could be any one of us..

Listening to him and playing with him and some 

veteran Bluesmen was  

Heaven for me..

Australian Hamonica player, Jay Moon, Guitarist , Michael Damani, Guitarist, Doktu Rhute, Keyboardist  and Melodica player, Aki Antonia.

The really cool thing was the jamming,  and the musical flow..

the sharing a vibe of music...

the tinkle of some keys..

a trumpet or two....

Some Bad azz  harmonicas..

lighting up the room

the  whine of  guitars.. 

howling at the moon...

Doktu Rhute shared his MUUZIC..

Deacon Freddie Dixon was holding  down that Bass...

The young players brought their energy... but the OLD school  players brought the stories and the grace....

Motor  Row Brewery

Chicago

8102019 by AA c 2019

All photos  by Aki Antonia c 2019. All rights Reserved

PEACE PROMISE PURPOSE - Commemoration of the Chicago 1919 Race Race Riots

Bronzeville Arts District Trolley 2019