The
new CD, Long Time Thing, is finally here!
click to hear 30 second
samples...
The
Butanes
featuring Willie Walker
Long
Time Thing
Long
Time Thing has 14 songs (plus an additional 2 bonus tracks)
and contains over 58 minutes of music. Included is a 16 page booklet
with new photos of the band by photographer Doug Knutson as well
as historic photos and snapshots from the band's closet.
A
much shortened version of the liner notes from Long Time Thing's
16 page booklet:
You could build a credible rhythm and blues record collection following
the list of artists the Butanes have supported on stage: Gene Chandler,
Sugar Pie DeSanto, Otis Clay, James “Thunderbird” Davis,
Bettye LaVette, Johnny Copeland, Phil Guy, Percy Sledge, Bo Diddley,
Lee “Shot” Williams, Don & Dewey, Fenton Robinson...
They’ve made numerous trips to Europe, traveling with Earl
King on a seven-country tour and again to the Vin Expo in Bordeaux,
France. They backed Willie Walker and Laura Lee at the Blues Estafette
in Utrecht, The Netherlands and performed again with Willie on a
handful of shows at the Lucerne Blues Festival in Switzerland. Their
travels took them as Far East as Japan and as near east as Wisconsin.
The Jazz Festival, the Black Top Blues-A-Rama and other New Orleans
venues were regular stops for many years. There were also ports
of call in Alaska, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. Wherever
they were summoned, they have delivered some of the finest blues
and soul.
Their respect for their craft has made the cold climes of Minnesota
a warmer place for visiting musicians, knowing they have a band
of honor backing them in the Twin Cities. It was Butanes’
leader Curt Obeda’s veneration that brought many artists to
the Twin Cities. While the Butanes were turning us on to guys like
Dalton Reed, Dalton got to see something not very common in his
hometown of Lafayette, Louisiana: a basement.
Supporting an artist visiting the Twin Cities often meant more than
playing along side of him on stage. Obeda spent most of 1982 in
Chicago and came back to the Twin Cities from time to time with
a musician in tow to play a gig. Hubert Sumlin, Chico Chism, Hip
Linkchain, Sammy Redmond and Steve Arvey were all guests in the
home of Obeda’s parents. Several times Jimmy Dawkins
used the family’s well-outfitted garage to repair the band’s
van in order to make it to the next gig.
Long Time Thing is a reflection of Obeda and the Butanes’
career in music. It travels across the same varying terrains of
blues and soul the band has traveled over the years. It draws upon
the music they’ve played, musicians they’ve encountered,
legends they’ve created and truths they’ve lived. After
almost thirty years in the business, it is safe to say that the
band is still in a long-time thing. And they have taken no shortcut
to achieve a short-term gain.
Mike
Elias - 2011
We
have been playing
around with a new set of tools that has told us that we have many
more visits to our website than previously thought. I guess that
means we ought to update the site more often and get to work adding
a few more of the "star stories" that you get when clicking
on a star's name on the homepage...
on
9/13/2010 we added a page detailing
the Butanes' start that tells the story of our 1st advertised gig.
A Mudsharks' logo was added to the Butanes page.
Images were added to the Bo Diddley page
and we put up a short story and some images for Milwaukee
Slim.
Hip
Linkchain's story and another photo was added on 9/6/2010 to his
page.
We
are
also making a better effort to send out at least a monthly e-list
message so please consider signing up to
receive it.
Our
schedule is updated as soon things change. Look often!
Please
e-mail
us with any corrections or additions you may have.
Thanks
for visiting,
The Butanes
