Date #2: Respect The Maze; Drown In The Corn

By mid-1967, Aretha Franklin had released nine albums and 34 singles. Some were soul covers, most were schmaltzy and Bing Crosby-esque, and one (“Rough Lover”) was specifically about yearning for an abusive boyfriend. Most significantly, only one of those singles cracked the top 40, peaking at #37. Then, Ahmet Ertegun signed her to Atlantic Records, […]

Date #1: Smoke(d Sausages) Stack (of pancakes) Lightnin’

When Chester Burnett – Howlin’ Wolf to us lesser mortals – opens his mouth, what emerges is nothing short of animalistic. It was a fitting soundtrack as we omnivoraciously devoured two platefuls of blues-brunch delight at Johnson’s Café, located inside the reconstructed Selkirk Hotel at Fort Edmonton Park, a local historical site. We kept things […]