New Directions

It's not easy to find something different in the wake of not being able to do what I do, perform. I've decided to revert back to my studio days and I've rebuilt my home studio. Not to record a band or even music at all but to record podcasts. I've purchased and installed Harrison Mixbus software on my computer to handle the recording. Mixbus is more complicated than most DAWs (digital audio workstation) so it has a fairly steep learning curve but I think it's worth it. Sounds great. My podcasts will be mostly but not exclusively about music. I'm working on the first one now.

How I'm spending my time during the pandemic

As you all know, Covid 19 has almost killed the music business. Live music is forbidden. Venues are shuttered, many of them forever. Musicians are doing what they can to survive. Some have taken outside work, some as security guards, some work in warehouses. Some have taken to Facebook and some are home in depression. Having one’s profession taken away is a traumatic shock that I, for one, have a tough time getting over. I’ve done music as a profession for nearly fifty years and to have music banned is hard to handle. I’ve been trying to re-invent myself as something else but the loss of the ability to play holds me back. I have been writing a from of memoir from my years of experience in the music business as player, performer, producer and emgineer. I’ll keep you posted on that. I’m also rebuilding my studio and plan to record podcasts. That’s how I’m spending my time these days and while writing and recording are interesting challenges I miss being on stage playing and performing. Oh well, maybe someday.

Johnny Beaudine and Deep Blue - House of Jazz Montreal - Every Monday This Summer

From Richard Burnett of the Montreal Gazette:

Bluesman Johnny Beaudine and his band ‪#DeepBlue‬ at the House Of Jazz rank among the very best to see and do in ‪#‎Montreal‬ "

Let the good times roll every Monday! Party with us at "The House" and catch Deep Blue playing hard driving Chicago style jazz and blues with touches of New Orleans. A blend of jazz, blues and soul that's perfect for spicing up your Mondays. "We come to play" is our motto and we'll be pushing the envelope, so drop by and join us. You won't regret it!

We're the original band that brought the fusion of blues and jazz to Montreal. It'’s a band whose members have played with James Cotton, Buddy Guy, Otis Rush, Big Mama Thornton, Brian Lee, Junior Wells, Nina Simone, Cleanhead Vinson and many other blues and jazz greats

Deep Blue fields one of the best teams in blues and jazz. An all-star band with Peter Mika, Johnny Beaudine, James Challenger, Jeff Simons!


Music professors from McGill and Concordia universities send their students to listen to Deep Blue as part of their course work. 

"We come to play". That motto comes from an article written about Chicago musicians. "They don't so much let their hair down as much as they never put it up, they come to play not to pose." Although not everyone in the band is from Chicago, that spirit pervades Deep Blue and all we do as a group.

On our Mondays we get a great audience coming from all over the world. We've had fans from Vancouver, Miami, Ireland, Iceland, China, Japan, Korea, Paris and die-hard jazz fans from New York City. We've gotten fans from my hometown, Chicago, and a groups of Brazilians grooving to the music. Over our Mondays we've added Singapore, Germany, Belgium and Turkey, Switzerland, New Zealand and Australia to our list of international fans. Last Monday they were dancing in the aisles. The Deep Blue Band is very proud to play for such an audience and proving that music unites the world.

We've developed a style that cross pollinates Jazz, blues, soul and New Orleans funk.

Here's some posts from our recent shows.

Claudel Proulx, a Concordia University journalism student wrote:
"As I told you before, I am far from being a jazz fan. However, spending those nights filming at the House, I was exposed to different genres of jazz. I got to discover facets of it. I also want to thank you for the interview as you still took a few minutes of your break for me! 

By the way, I loved the diversity among your different songs. You manage to switch from smoother jazz to groovier jazz while still entertaining the audience no matter if a change in the type of jazz occurs. I have to admit the energy you and your group have on the stage is highly contagious!"

Natalie Rabinovitch

Was at The House of Jazz on Aylmer tonight to see Johnny Beaudine and The Deep Blue band. Wow!! They were so amazing!!! I highly recommend you catch one of their shows. They usually perform there on Mondays. I can't wait to see them live again soon. Thanks guys for a fantastic evening!!

Lawrence Young

Saw John Beaudine and his band Deep Blue last night. Excellent group and loved the music. The food was great too!

Johnny Beaudine, Jeff Simons, Pedro Ullman - Sundays House of Jazz Laval

Every Sunday evening at the House of Jazz Laval we present a classic organ trio. Come on out and hear some great blues, Jazz, R&B and some classic tunes done in a gospel style.

A Track From Our New Live Album

This is a track from our new live album recorded at The House of Jazz.We're very proud of this album and you can get a copy from us or the House of Jazz. The CD contains some of the best of our repertoire and some greats solos from every member of the band

A tribute to my teacher Joe Daley

My teacher, friend and mentor Joe Daley. Follow the link and read about an influential Jazz musician.
Joe Daley was a Chicago Jazz Legend that taught a number of outstanding jazz musicians.


Check this link, it's worth your time.

"Cry Me A River" Recorded live by Deep Blue at Montreal's House of Jazz

Johnny Beaudine and Deep Blue - House of Jazz - Work Song

Here's our version of "Work Song". We've now had over 11,400 views! Thanks!

Our video of Nat Adderley's "Work Song" the video also features some great shots of Montreal and a very unique view of the House of Jazz. The video came to us in a very unusual way.

Ever hear this one?

An Irish TV producer walks into a bar…
Well one did. He was doing some shooting in Montreal and happened into the House of Jazz. He loved our band and shot some video of Deep Blue and the club. He returned a few days later and gave us this video on a key.


We'll be at the House of Jazz this Monday, 7:30-11 PM and we'll play "Work Song" and a bunch of other good stuff. Come on down and join us!

Recorded Live at the House of Jazz Montreal, Deep Blue plays
Benny Golson's great hard bop tune, "Whisper Not"

Saxophone and Jazz Lessons in Montreal by Johnny Beaudine

Jazz improvisation and Saxophone lessons given by Chicago blues and jazz veteran. 

For the last year or so I've been teaching saxophone and Jazz. I'm happy to say I enjoy teaching and the satisfaction it brings from seeing my students improve.

Here's the text for my teaching ad.

Learn to play sax and improvise jazz and blues from a working professional. If you can already play clarinet, trumpet or flute I can teach you to improvise. 

Learn to Improvise – My students follow a proven method to learn to master the saxophone or other brass and reed instruments  and train the ear and the mind to hear and improvise jazz and blues solos. 

I learned jazz/blues/R&B in Chicago’s Legendary South Side Blues clubs and I’ll give you a deeper understanding of the jazz and blues tradition. 

Beginner - Intermediate - Advanced, adult students welcome. 

Located in the Plateau or, I can come to you. 

Johnny Beaudine

Contact me at: Johhnyb57@gmail.com

Here's a new video recorded live at Montreal's House of Jazz. Our very unique version of "Comin'Home Baby"

From the Montreal Gazette

Seven Days, Seven Nights: From big city blues to loving cityscapes

RICHARD BURNETT, SPECIAL TO MONTREAL GAZETTE

Monday, Jan. 26

Chicago native and old-school tenor/soprano saxman Johnny Beaudine headlines the downtown House of Jazz tonight with his band Deep Blue, featuring pianist Peter Mika, bass player Ben Comeau and drummer Jeffrey Simons.

“What we’re doing here is a kind of blues/jazz I used to see in Chicago,” says Beaudine, who learned to play the harp from his mentors Junior Wells and James Cotton. “Lesser known than the electric Chicago blues scene, which I was a part of, this music is more upscale, with jazz and R&B influences, but was very popular in the black community. I used to hear this music in black clubs like the Burning Spear and the Tropical Hut. More Ray Charles, early Lou Rawls, with touches of Sonny Stitt and Gene Aamons, two of my saxophone heroes. I wanted to do this for years, but you have to have a really good band to even attempt it. Now we do.”

Deep Blue headlines the House of Jazz (2060 Aylmer St.) every Monday night from 7:30 to 11. Admission: $10. Details: 514-842-8656 or www.houseofjazz.ca.

Johnny Beaudine and Deep Blue - Soprano Sax

As many of you know, I play the soprano sax. My horn is very special, it's a King, made in the late 1920's. It has a very unique sound, at times like a clarinet and other times a bit like a trumpet.
Over the last few years I many hours of practice with that horn to be able to use that sound in blues and especially, jazz. I love the way it fits in with Deep Blue.

I was watching a DVD today and Kenny G showed up.  I wondered, "How many people learned to hate the soprano sax from being forced to listen to Kenny G.

My new slogan: "Johnny Beaudine, taking the soprano sax back from Kenny G".

Johnny Beaudine and Deep Blue -------- The Chi-Town Hustlers

I recently reconnected with JW Williams, one of the founding members of the Chi-Town Hustlers

The Chi-Town Hustlers was/is (versions of the band are still active) a Chicago based blues/R&B band that I played and toured with. At the time I was with band, the members of the group came from the bands of BB King, James Cotton and Bobby Bland among others. One of the vocalists in the band is the great J.W. Williams who is still active in the Chicago blues scene. I checked the Chicago Reader music listings recently and you still see J.W. Williams and the Chi-Town Hustlers at clubs like the Kingston Mines.

One of my favorite Chi-Town Hustler tracks is a jazz/funk version of the War classic "The World is a Ghetto. This track has one of the best tenor sax solos I ever played that actually got recorded.  Check it out!

In addition to the Chi-Town Hustlers cover of the Meters classic, "Cissy Strut", I also posted
a great cover version by the Hustlers of the Sam Cook classic "Bring it on Home to Me." This track gets quite a bit of play on Soundcloud.

During my interview on CKUT radio and with Rick Kenne, several tracks by the Chi-Town Hustlers were played, during the course of the interview. They were, "Everyday I Have the Blues", "Rock Me Baby" and "Cissy Strut".

You can check out these and other Chi-Town Hustler tracks
at:
http://soundcloud.com/deep-blue- 1 

Johnny Beaudine and Deep Blue - House of Jazz - Video

Johnny Beaudine and Deep Blue - House of Jazz (Laval) - Sept. 20

Deep Blue keeps the spirit alive with hard driving Chicago style jazz and blues with touches of New Orleans. 

The Deep Blue gang played at the new House of Jazz (Laval) we were joined by one of our favorites Leanna White, a great soul and jazz singer.

The new club has a larger stage and a very nice lighting system. The band was greeted happily by the Laval audience even though we're new to the club.

They broke into applause when Leanna started Etta James classic "At Last" The band was very well received.

Johnny Beaudine and Deep Blue - Montreal Jazz Festival

Deep Blue does the Jazz Fest.

Don't miss this one! The band is geared up, fired up and ready. We'll be joined by Jeff Simons on drums and vocals. With Peter Mika on piano, and Ben Comeau on bass. We'll be putting some extra fire into our "Real Deal" Chicago style jazz and blues with our touch of funky New Orleans.

"We come to play" is our motto and we'll be playing hard and fast. Make sure to come down to "The House" for a memorable night. You won't regret it.

We're known as the "Real Deal" because we play hard every night. We'll be kicking it especially hard this Monday.

Come on down and have fun with us.

House of Jazz - 2060 Aylmer 7:30-11PM.  - 514-842-8656

Rock Me Johnny

I'm amazed about this, on my SoundClould page I posted one of the
Chi Town Hustler tracks, Rock Me Baby. I alway liked this
version but I just put it there and didn't really hype it or
anything. I've been surprised at the response It got played often
in the US but also in Lithuania and Venezuela, Columbia, Switzerland,
Brazil, Germany and the UK.

Click here for Rock Me Baby