Blues Moments in Time...

On this episode, we trace March 15 as a fault line in American blues history—where politics, faith, and sound collide. From LBJ’s “We Shall Overcome” speech and the Voting Rights Act, to Ray Charles’s “I’ve Got a Woman” redefining Black music, to the intertwined legacies of Lightnin’ Hopkins and Ry Cooder, we explore how the blues becomes a living archive of memory, resistance, and survival.

IN THIS EPISODE:

[00:00] - Introduction

[01:23] - The Cultural Landscape

[02:02] - The Political Climate

[03:19] - Exploring The Music

[04:16] - Births

[06:35] - Passings

[07:35] - Conclusion

SUPPORT THE PODCAST:

If you enjoy Blues Moments in Time, leave a review on your favourite podcast platform — it helps other blues lovers discover the show.

You can also support the podcast by pledging a small donation. Every contribution helps us create richer episodes and continue shining a light on emerging and future blues artists.

Support the stories that shaped the blues. Help us keep the archive growing: Support this Podcast

Website: https://www.theblueshotel.com.au/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblueshotel

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblueshotel

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theblueshotel.com.au

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBluesHotel

©2026 The Blues Hotel Collective.

On this powerful episode of Blues Moments in Time, we trace the journey of the blues from the hardship of the Jim Crow South to the electrified streets of Chicago, uncovering how struggle gave rise to sound that changed the world. March 14 connects the dots between the Great Migration’s cultural upheaval and the personal legacies of icons like Buddy Guy, the revolutionary “Queen of the Organ” Shirley Scott, and the contrasting lives of songwriter Doc Pomus and Delta traditionalist Big Jack Johnson. From uncredited studio sessions to songs born from physical limitation and resilience, this episode reveals how the blues became both a survival tool and a storytelling force—transforming pain into rhythm, and history into something you can feel.

IN THIS EPISODE:

[00:00] - Introduction

[01:20] - The Cultural Landscape

[02:08] - The Political Climate

[02:55] - Exploring The Music

[03:55] - Births

[04:39.] - Passings

[06:10] - Conclusion

SUPPORT THE PODCAST:

If you enjoy Blues Moments in Time, leave a review on your favourite podcast platform — it helps other blues lovers discover the show.

You can also support the podcast by pledging a small donation. Every contribution helps us create richer episodes and continue shining a light on emerging and future blues artists.

Support the stories that shaped the blues. Help us keep the archive growing: https://blues-moments-in-time.captivate.fm/support

Hosted by: Kelvin Huggins

Presented by: The Blues Hotel Collective - your home for EVERYTHING BLUES.

Website: https://www.theblueshotel.com.au/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblueshotel

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblueshotel

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theblueshotel.com.au

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBluesHotel

©2026 The Blues Hotel Collective.

On March 13, two very different front lines—Selma, Alabama and swinging‑London—revealed how deeply the blues runs through global culture. As civil rights marchers faced state violence to secure the vote in 1965, a young Eric Clapton walked away from pop stardom to chase the raw truth of Black blues music. This episode traces how the blues, born from oppression and survival, shaped political resistance in the American South and ignited a musical revolution in Britain. A story of courage, conviction, and the enduring power of a sound that refuses to be silenced.

IN THIS EPISODE:

[00:00] - Introduction

[01:31] - The Cultural Landscape

[02:58] - The Political Climate

[04:19] - Exploring The Music

[07:02] - Births

[08:03] - Passings

[08:52.] - Conclusion

MUSIC USED IN THIS EPISODE:

Track: I'm Your Witchdoctor (1965)

Artist: John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

Album: Bluesbreakers feat. Eric Clapton - Deluxe Edition

Label: Fontana

SUPPORT THE PODCAST:

If you enjoy Blues Moments in Time, leave a review on your favourite podcast platform — it helps other blues lovers discover the show.

You can also support the podcast by pledging a small donation. Every contribution helps us create richer episodes and continue shining a light on emerging and future blues artists.

Support this Podcast

Hosted by: Kelvin Huggins

Presented by: The Blues Hotel Collective - your home for EVERYTHING BLUES.

Website: https://www.theblueshotel.com.au/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblueshotel

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblueshotel

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theblueshotel.com.au

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBluesHotel

©2026 The Blues Hotel Collective.

=Listener Discretion=

This episode of Blues Moments in Time, includes historical discussion of racism and systemic injustice in the United States and may include the names and stories of people who are no longer with us.. We approach these topics in a factual, educational context, but listener discretion is advised.

This episode traces how March 12 reveals the blues as a mirror of struggle — from A. Philip Randolph’s fight for fair employment and the pressure placed on Billie Holiday to the creative spark of Jesse Fuller and the Allman Brothers’ Fillmore East breakthrough. Together, these moments show how the blues evolves while staying rooted in the lived experiences of its creators.

IN THIS EPISODE:

[00:00] - Introduction

[01:47] - The Cultural Landscape

[02:32] - The Political Climate

[03:02] - Exporing The Music

[04:15.] - Births

[04:47] - Passings

[05:07] - Conclusion

If you're loving these daily blues history drops, leave us a review via your favourite podcast platform - it helps other blues lovers find the show.

Hosted by: Kelvin Huggins

Presented by: The Blues Hotel Collective - your home for EVERYTHING BLUES.

Website: https://www.theblueshotel.com.au/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblueshotel

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblueshotel

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theblueshotel.com.au

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBluesHotel

©2026 The Blues Hotel Collective.

From the Broadway debut of A Raisin in the Sun to the haunting "whoop" of Sonny Terry’s harmonica, March 11th is a day where the blues speaks the truth of the American experience.

IN THIS EPISODE:

[00:00] - Introduction

[00:46] - The Cultural Landscape

[01:27] - The Political Climate

[01:55] - Exploring The Music

[02:57] - Births

[03:23] - Passings

[03:46] - Conclusion

KEY FIGURES MENTIONED:

Sonny Terry (1911–1986)

Dusty Brown (1929–2016)

Lorraine Hansberry (1930–1965)

Fannie Lou Hamer (1917–1977)

MUSIC:

Sonny Terry - Lost John

Dusty Brown - Hurry Home

Harvey Mandel - Wade In The Water

Manfred Mann - I've Got My Mojo Working (Early B-Side, released shortly after the name change)

FURTHER READING:

Cultural - A Raisin In The Sun

Political - Reverend James Reeb

Music - Mann-Hugg Blues Brothers

Music - Sonny Terry

If you're loving these daily blues history drops, leave us a review via your favourite podcast platform - it helps other blues lovers find the show.

Hosted by: Kelvin Huggins

Presented by: The Blues Hotel Collective - your home for EVERYTHING BLUES.

Website: https://www.theblueshotel.com.au/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblueshotel

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblueshotel

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theblueshotel.com.au

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBluesHotel

©2026 The Blues Hotel Collective.