Living Blues Magazine

Living Blues #301 (March/April 2026) features 24-year-old blues phenom Sean McDonald. McDonald is turning heads and garnering praise everywhere he goes. His young career is full of hope and promise on the heels of his first release. Chicago native Fernando Jones has spent his life playing blues in his hometown but now dedicates much of his time to teaching with his Blues Kids Foundation’s Blues Camps. Over the past 20 years Karen Wolfe has established herself as the reigning Queen of Soul Blues. Mentored by her sister-in-law Denise LaSalle, Wolfe learned from the best. Vocalist Willy Jordan has recently taken his place fronting the Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra. The California native honed his chops in a Cajun band before switching to blues with Elvin Bishop. This issue’s Let It Roll! features Leroy Carr and Scrapper Blackwell. At their first recording session piano/guitar duo cut two of the most popular songs of the pre-war era. Blackwell’s Kokomo Blues (the model for Sweet Home Chicago) and their biggest hit, How Long – How Long Blues.
All of this plus Breaking Out with Aki Kumar, the latest in Blues News, and reviews including the latest from Lil’ Ed and the Blues Imperials, Selwyn Birchwood, and classic reissues from Chuck Berry and Etta James.