Second Month in the Top 20 in France

"Royal Spa Blues - Live from Temperance" has now spent two consecutive months in the Top 20 of the official Collectif des Radios Blues airplay chart in France, climbing from #17 to #15. Merci beaucoup! 

 

 

#2 in British Charts!

The new album "Royal Spa Blues - Live from Temperance" is officially #2 in the Independent Blues Broadcasters Association's February airplay chart in the UK!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And #17 in the Collectif des Radios Blues francophones February airplay chart in France!

Soul Bag Review

Christophe Mourot has labelled Andres Roots' "Afternoon" EP "pure acoustic pleasure" in the French Soul Bag magazine: "No one mixes worlds like him, merging blues and classical music and thereby giving astonishing life to certain titles such as the superb "Bye Bye Berry" that combines ancient and modern blues with classical or Spanish phrases." Read the complete Blue Planet section HERE!

Blues Again Review!

"Five titles of rare intensity. The musicians give it everything, as if their lives depended on it," writes César Sezer in the French Blues Again! webzine about "Tribute to Elmore" - the new live CD EP from Ismo Haavisto, Andres Roots & Matias Partanen. "Here is a CD which makes you want to move, which recharges the batteries and which helps us come out of the torpor, certainly a very good medicine."

Read the whole story HERE! 

Blues Airplay Top 20 in France - Again!

The split EP with with Black River Bluesman and Red Mouth is #18 in the Collectif des Radios Blues francophones' airplay Top 20 that collates data from blues DJ's in French-speaking countries around the world. That's TWO months in the chart and a step up from February! Check out the full chart HERE!

Blues Airplay Top 20 in France

The split EP with with Black River Bluesman and Red Mouth has reached #19 in the Collectif des Radios Blues francophones' airplay Top 20 that collates data from blues DJ's in French-speaking countries around the world. Check out the full chart HERE! 

Soul Bag Review!

Christophe Mourot has reviewed the "Mississippi to Loch Lomond" and "Tartu Lockdown" albums for the French Soul Bag magazine: "Chicago blues, Mississippi blues, western swing... An incredible mix of sweetness and aggressiveness."

Read the whole thing HERE!

Blues Again! Review

The French webzine Blues Again! has published a fantastic review of "Tartu Lockdown", the genre of which they cleverly describe as "blues confiné". César writes: "His river is not the Mississippi, but the Emajõgi, which makes no difference in terms of the blues, this guy is a real bluesman and moreover, gets better with time, like an old Bordeaux... This is Roots Art." Read the whole thing HERE (in French, but there's always Google Translate!).

Meanwhile, last week saw the last confirmed gig this autumn - COVID is on the march again, so it's almost impossible to plan more than a few days in advance... So please check back often: as soon as there are any live shows to announce, this is where you'll find the info!

Here's a photo from Rapla Blues Club on September 24th.  

Number 9 in the French Airplay Chart

"Mississippi to Loch Lomond" has reached #9 in the Collectif des Radios Blues Francophones most-played blues albums chart for France, Belgium, Quebec and Africa, moving up from the 12th place it held in April. Merci beaucoup!

Powerblues: Top Releases for May

"Mississippi to Loch Lomond" is included in this month's Powerblues - the monthly list of recommended blues releases compiled by Le Collectif des Radios Blues francophones which unites blues radio presenters in France, Belgium, Quebec and Africa. See the complete list HERE!

French Airplay Chart!

Le Collectif des Radios Blues that unites blues radio presenters in France, Belgium, Quebec and Africa have just published their monthly airplay chart and "Mississippi to Loch Lomond" is at #12 - see the TOP 20 for April HERE!

Back in March, "Mississippi to Loch Lomond" was #16 in the UK's Independent Blues Broadcasters Association's airplay chart.

IBBA Chart & Blues Again Review

Released March 6, "Mississippi to Loch Lomond" is #16 in Independent Blues Broadcasters Association's most played albums chart for March in the UK - and reviewed in the current issue of the Blues Again! webzine in France!

Blues Again! Interview & Tallinn Show

The French blues webzine Blues Again! has published a lengthy interview with Andres Roots in the April issue - read it HERE!

In addition, a double bill with Robert Johnson (USA) at Barbar in Tallinn has been announced for Friday, April 12th.

Album Reviews & Arcari in Tartu!

The French Soul Bag and the UK's RnR Magazine have both published reviews of "Breakfast in September". RnR states that "Andres is a fine player with a sense of fun - some tracks just raise a smile" and Soul Bag adds that "as always, there is an unstoppable hit, this time it's "The Sheik of Hawaii"." Cheers!

In other news, Dave Arcari will soon be returning to Estonia, with Roots, Piik & Wilson joining him for the May 23 show at Illegaard in Tartu!

 

 

Blues Again! Review & Tartu Show

The February issue of the French blues webzine Blues Again! includes a review of "Breakfast in September" by César Sezer, who writes: "Here is another real artist who not only plays the blues but lives it... No need for vocals or percussion, his playing is sufficiently expressive and the atmosphere so different from one title to another that we can listen to this work several times in a row without weariness, the sound is current and the spirit timeless." Click here to read the whole thing (in French!).

The Tartu Bluusikuu festival will end with a solo act night at the Kolm Tilli restaurant on Thursday, February 7th, featuring Andres Roots, Randal Randoja and J.D. Addams (Italy). And then on Saturday, February 9th, Andres Roots & Anneli Kadakas will head to the Savonsolmu Winter Blues Party in Pieksämäki, Finland... 

Sawmill Reviews From France & Holland

Photo by Leif Laaksonen.

The French publication Blues Again! has reviewed the Sawmill Roots Orchestra album: "Andres Roots is one of the best blues artists in Eastern Europe... The Sawmill Roots Orchestra is an experience to discover." Read the entire piece HERE (in French - scroll down!).

And in the Netherlands, the Blues Magazine has this to say about the disc: "Unpretentious and stylish, with youthful energy and zest and respect for the old blues ancestors... The best of both worlds, so to speak. Cheerful, uncomplicated and very rewarding." Read the review HERE (in Dutch!).

Palivere This Saturday!

A big thank you to everyone who attended the Tornimuusika concert in Tartu yesterday and helped turn it into such a wonderful evening - the next solo show is on Saturday, July 22 in Palivere near Haapsalu, as part of the Wild West extravaganza "Closing Time". And then on Tuesday, July 25, Roots & Terep will appear at Philly Joe's in Tallinn.



In other news, Le Collectif Des Radios Blues, the organization of French blues DJ's, has just published its monthly Powerblues chart with "Mono" very much in it - check it out HERE!

And below are a few photos from the Pärnu Harmonica Festival - with Ismo Haavisto at the Pärnu Concert Hall.

Tornimuusika July 18!

The Pärnu Harmonica Festival over the weekend was a blast - next stop: Tornimuusika up in the tower of Tartu's St. John's Church on Tuesday, July 18! Seats are limited, so act fast ;)

Meanwhile, Blues Again in France has reviewed "Mono", which includes two tracks recorded in that very tower in 2015: "It's Roots in every sense of the word and in all its splendor."

 

Airplay Charts & TV Footage

Incredibly, "Winter" has now spent two months in the French blues airplay Top 20 and in the UK blues airplay Top 40 - cheers! And below are the three live Roots & Terep numbers and an interview that aired on the Latvian Re:TV this Sunday (starts approximately 29 minutes in).

 

January Powerblues

Le Collectif des Radios Blues francophones has published their January Powerblues chart: the monthly 'recommended albums' list, compiled by French-speaking blues DJ's around the world. And Andres Roots "Winter" is #9!!!