Fourteen Alligator Artists Receive 37 Blues Music Award Nominations
Tuesday, January 7, 2020 -- Today the Blues Foundation announced the nominees for the 41st Annual Blues Music Awards, the blues world's highest honors. A remarkable total of 14 Alligator recording artists received 37 nominations. Rick Estrin & The Nightcats leads all artists with eight nominations (including one each for guitarist Christoffer "Kid" Andersen and drummer Derrick D'Mar Martin). Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Billy Branch & The Sons Of Blues and The Cash Box Kings (including one for drummer Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith) followed with five each. The Nick Moss Band Featuring Dennis Gruenling received four, while Toronzo Cannon received three. Shemekia Copeland, Curtis Salgado and Tommy Castro & The Painkillers each received two, with Tinsley Ellis (whose new album Ice Cream In Hell is set for January 31 release) receiving one.
According to Alligator president Bruce Iglauer, "I’m very proud of so many Alligator artists getting the recognition they so richly deserve. I believe this is the largest number of Alligator records and artists to be nominated for the Blues Music Awards in any one year. The 2020 awards show will be even more exciting than usual!"
The Blues Album Of The Year category features four Alligator releases of the five nominees: The Cash Box Kings' Hail To The Kings!, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram's Kingfish, Toronzo Cannon's The Preacher, The Politician Or The Pimp, and Billy Branch & The Sons Of Blues' Roots & Branches: The Songs Of Little Walter.
The Band Of The Year category features three Alligator artists -- The Cash Box Kings, The Nick Moss Band Featuring Dennis Gruenling, and previous Band Of The Year winners Rick Estrin & The Nightcats.
The 41st Annual Blues Music Awards will be presented in Memphis on May 7, 2020 at the Cannon Center for the Performing Arts. The full list of nominees can be found here.
Alligator artists and awards are as follows:
RICK ESTRIN & THE NIGHTCATS:
Entertainer Of The Year
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Harmonica
Song Of The Year - Resentment File (written by Rick Estrin, Joe Louis Walker, and JoJo Russo)
Band Of The Year
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year - Contemporary
Instrumentalist - Guitar (Christoffer "Kid" Andersen)
Instrumentalist - Drums (Derrick D'Mar Martin)
CHRISTONE "KINGFISH" INGRAM:
Album Of The Year - Kingfish
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year - Kingfish
Best Emerging Artist Album - Kingfish
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Guitar
BILLY BRANCH & THE SONS OF BLUES:
Entertainer Of The Year
Album Of The Year - Roots & Branches: The Songs Of Little Walter
Traditional Blues Album Of The Year - Roots & Branches: The Songs Of Little Walter
Instrumentalist - Harmonica
Traditional Blues Male Artist Of The Year
THE CASH BOX KINGS:
Band Of The Year
Album Of The Year - Hail To The Kings!
Traditional Blues Album Of The Year - Hail To The Kings!
Song Of The Year - The Wine Talkin' (written by Joe Nosek, John Hahn, and Oscar Wilson)
Instrumentalist - Drums (Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith)
THE NICK MOSS BAND FEATURING DENNIS GRUENLING:
Band Of The Year
Traditional Blues Album Of The Year - Lucky Guy!
Song Of The Year - Lucky Guy (written by Nick Moss)
Instrumentalist - Harmonica (Dennis Gruenling)
TORONZO CANNON:
Album Of The Year - The Preacher, The Politician Or The Pimp
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year - The Preacher, The Politician Or The Pimp
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
TOMMY CASTRO & THE PAINKILLERS:
Blues Rock Album Of The Year - Killin' It Live
Blues Rock Artist Of The Year
CURTIS SALGADO:
Soul Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Vocals
SHEMEKIA COPELAND:
Contemporary Blues Female Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Vocals
TINSLEY ELLIS:
Blues Rock Artist Of The Year
According to Alligator president Bruce Iglauer, "I’m very proud of so many Alligator artists getting the recognition they so richly deserve. I believe this is the largest number of Alligator records and artists to be nominated for the Blues Music Awards in any one year. The 2020 awards show will be even more exciting than usual!"
The Blues Album Of The Year category features four Alligator releases of the five nominees: The Cash Box Kings' Hail To The Kings!, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram's Kingfish, Toronzo Cannon's The Preacher, The Politician Or The Pimp, and Billy Branch & The Sons Of Blues' Roots & Branches: The Songs Of Little Walter.
The Band Of The Year category features three Alligator artists -- The Cash Box Kings, The Nick Moss Band Featuring Dennis Gruenling, and previous Band Of The Year winners Rick Estrin & The Nightcats.
The 41st Annual Blues Music Awards will be presented in Memphis on May 7, 2020 at the Cannon Center for the Performing Arts. The full list of nominees can be found here.
Alligator artists and awards are as follows:
RICK ESTRIN & THE NIGHTCATS:
Entertainer Of The Year
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Harmonica
Song Of The Year - Resentment File (written by Rick Estrin, Joe Louis Walker, and JoJo Russo)
Band Of The Year
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year - Contemporary
Instrumentalist - Guitar (Christoffer "Kid" Andersen)
Instrumentalist - Drums (Derrick D'Mar Martin)
CHRISTONE "KINGFISH" INGRAM:
Album Of The Year - Kingfish
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year - Kingfish
Best Emerging Artist Album - Kingfish
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Guitar
BILLY BRANCH & THE SONS OF BLUES:
Entertainer Of The Year
Album Of The Year - Roots & Branches: The Songs Of Little Walter
Traditional Blues Album Of The Year - Roots & Branches: The Songs Of Little Walter
Instrumentalist - Harmonica
Traditional Blues Male Artist Of The Year
THE CASH BOX KINGS:
Band Of The Year
Album Of The Year - Hail To The Kings!
Traditional Blues Album Of The Year - Hail To The Kings!
Song Of The Year - The Wine Talkin' (written by Joe Nosek, John Hahn, and Oscar Wilson)
Instrumentalist - Drums (Kenny "Beedy Eyes" Smith)
THE NICK MOSS BAND FEATURING DENNIS GRUENLING:
Band Of The Year
Traditional Blues Album Of The Year - Lucky Guy!
Song Of The Year - Lucky Guy (written by Nick Moss)
Instrumentalist - Harmonica (Dennis Gruenling)
TORONZO CANNON:
Album Of The Year - The Preacher, The Politician Or The Pimp
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year - The Preacher, The Politician Or The Pimp
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year
TOMMY CASTRO & THE PAINKILLERS:
Blues Rock Album Of The Year - Killin' It Live
Blues Rock Artist Of The Year
CURTIS SALGADO:
Soul Blues Male Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Vocals
SHEMEKIA COPELAND:
Contemporary Blues Female Artist Of The Year
Instrumentalist - Vocals
TINSLEY ELLIS:
Blues Rock Artist Of The Year
