C/Z Records Online with Groovy Collectibles!

Legendary Seattle-based indie punk imprint C/Z Records has launched its very first webstore offering a slew of the label’s out-of-print albums as well as a few liver-quivering new titles that offer the C/Z legacy to a new generation of fans.

Started in 1985 by engineer/producer Chris Hanzsek and Tina Casale, C/Z Records hit the ground running with the 1986 release of the influential compilation album Deep Six. Collecting performances by Seattle-area bands like the Melvins, Soundgarden, Green River, Skin Yard, and others, Deep Six was the earliest documentation of the sound that would become known as ‘grunge’ a few years later when the Seattle scene conquered the world.

Unfortunately, Deep Six was about five years ahead of its time, and when the disc didn’t sell, Hanzsek and Casale decided to concentrate on their recording studio and sold the label to Skin Yard bass player Daniel House, the madman responsible for the label’s current resurrection. After the early ‘90s grunge explosion that was ignited by bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden, Deep Six would be reissued in 1994 through a deal with A&M Records.

During his tenure at the helm of C/Z Records, House proved to have an ear for rock ‘n’ roll talent, the label releasing groundbreaking (and influential) records by artists as diverse as the Gits, 7 Year Bitch, 10 Minute Warning, Love Battery, Built To Spill, Skin Yard, Monks of Doom, and the Presidents of the United States of America, among other artists. A series of various major label distribution deals brought the label’s vision to the average consumer but by the early 2000s, House reduced the label to part-time status.

The C/Z Records webstore offers a wide selection of the label’s releases, including rare original versions that command collectors’ prices. There are some bargains, though, on some hard-rockin’ music. “It’s funny that I’ve worked professionally in web development and e-commerce integration for so many years, and somehow never extended this skillset to my own czrecords.com website. That’s now changed!” C/Z Records President Daniel House states in a press release for the new webstore. “I have a garage full of inventory, and prior to making it available online, it’s been hard to find. I’m so psyched to finally provide the opportunity for fans to access that inventory, and most of it is on sale at super low prices. I’d much rather get the music out there instead of collecting dust.”

The website also offers the aforementioned new releases, including the limited-edition Skin Yard Select 7x7 box set and long-lost recordings circa 1984 from 10 Minute Warning, probably the earliest of the grunge bands that would put Seattle on the rock ‘n’ roll map. The webstore offers some cool CD bargains, too, like the $15 three-disc Alcohol Funnycar bundle, or bundles of CDs by bands like Treepeople and Porn Orchard. Quantities of some of these releases are limited and no new re-pressings are planned by House, so get thee hence to the C/Z Records webstore and get your grunge groove on!

Blues Music Award Winners 2016

The Blues Foundation held its 37th annual Blues Music Awards ceremony on May 5th, 2016 in Memphis, Tennessee. Blues fans, industry professionals, and talented musicians all gathered at the Cook Convention Center in downtown Memphis to honor the best of the blues. Legendary Chicago bluesman Buddy Guy won both “Album of the Year” and “Contemporary Blues Album of the Year” BMAs for his Born To Play Guitar album. Perennial Blues Music Award winners like Duke Robillard and Ruthie Foster were also honored, the former with the “Acoustic Album of the Year” award (for his album The Acoustic Blues & Roots of Duke Robillard) and the latter with her fourth Koko Taylor Award for “Best Traditional Blues Artist.”

The most satisfying story of the evening was the comeback of beloved blues-rock guitarist Walter Trout. After suffering from Hepatitis C and liver failure, and struggling through a life-saving transplant and subsequent therapy, Trout came roaring back in 2015 with the critically-acclaimed album Battle Scars. The album walked off with the well-deserved “Rock Blues Album of the Year” award, Trout’s song “Gonna Live Again” earning the “Song of the Year” award.

The late Otis Clay was posthumously honored with his first two Blues Music Awards for “Soul Blues Artist of the Year” and “Soul Blues Album of the Year” for This Time For Real. Pianist Victor Wainwright earned the coveted “B.B. King Entertainer of the Year” award, while the late New Orleans R&B legend Allen Toussaint won his first BMA, the “Pinetop Perkins Piano Player of the Year” award.

The night before the Blues Music Awards ceremony, the Blues Hall of Fame inducted musicians Elvin Bishop, Eddy Clearwater, Jimmy Johnson, John Mayall, and the Memphis Jug Band along with Malaco Records partners Tommy Couch Sr. and Wolf Stephenson, all worthy and influential members of the blues music community. We have a complete list of 2016 Blues Music Award winners below.

• Acoustic Album of the Year: Duke Robillard’s The Acoustic Blues & Roots of Duke Robillard
• Acoustic Artist of the Year: Doug MacLeod
• Album of the Year: Buddy Guy’s Born to Play Guitar
• B.B. King Entertainer of the Year: Victor Wainwright
• Blues Band of the Year: Victor Wainwright & the Wild Roots
• Best New Artist Album: Mr. Sipp’s The Mississippi Blues Child
• Contemporary Blues Album of the Year: Buddy Guy’s Born to Play Guitar
• Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year: Shemekia Copeland
• Contemporary Blues Male Artist of the Year: Joe Louis Walker
• Historical Blues Album of the Year: Slim Harpo’s Buzzin’ the Blues (Bear Family Records)
• Instrumentalist of the Year - Bass: Lisa Mann
• Instrumentalist of the Year - Drums: Cedric Burnside
• Instrumentalist of the Year - Guitar: Sonny Landreth
• Instrumentalist of the Year - Harmonica: Kim Wilson
• Instrumentalist of the Year - Horn: Terry Hanc
• Koko Taylor Award: Ruthie Foster
• Pinetop Perkins Piano Player: Allen Toussaint
• Rock Blues Album of the Year: Walter Trout’s Battle Scars
• Song of the Year: Walter Trout’s “Gonna Live Again”
• Soul Blues Album of the Year: Billy Price and Otis Clay’s This Time for Real
• Soul Blues Female Artist of the Year: Bettye LaVette
• Soul Blues Male Artist of the Year: Otis Clay
• Traditional Blues Album of the Year: Cedric Burnside Project’s Descendants of Hill Country
• Traditional Blues Male Artist of the Year: John Primer