Blues man does double duty in Kalispell
Blues harmonica great Norton Buffalo brings two bands to the Eagles in Kalispell in one evening.
The Sept. 30 show begins with Norton Buffalo and Friends taking the stage at 8 p.m., followed by Norton Buffalo and the Knockouts.
Buffalo is fresh from a tour with the Steve Miller Band, of which he's been a member for 25 years.
Buffalo is regarded around the world as one of the greatest harmonica virtuosos of all time. He is also a successful vocalist, songwriter, producer, actor and onstage performer.
Buffalo has been playing the harmonica for 45 years and has been singing all of his life.
"This will be the first time for my acoustic group Norton & Friends to visit the Flathead Valley," Buffalo said in an e-mail. "The show will be an evening of music that will cover everything from blues to bluegrass, country to Latin, reggae, folk, lots of storytelling, some good ol' foot stomping fun and more styles of harmonica playing than you'll ever hear in one night anywhere on this planet."
Norton & Friends was born out of Buffalo's desire to get back to his musical roots. For years, Buffalo has performed with various San Francisco area folk, country and roots music talents, while expanding and improving his acoustic repertoire.
"Norton & Friends is probably probably best described as a folk, world music acoustic group, with lots of great lyrical songs, great melodies and vocal harmonies," Buffalo said. "This group will be especially fun for those who were fans of my first LPs on Capitol records back in the '70s."
The band plays mostly new songs, along with new arrangements of a few of his older favorites, that together represent some of Buffalo's best lyrical and melodic songwriting.
Expect to hear Buffalo's smooth and soulful vocals, harmonies and harmonica. Their music covers many styles, including, folk, story-telling songs, gorgeous ballads, Latin sambas, reggae, rhythm and blues, a little bluegrass, and a taste of country.
Norton & Friends includes Buffalo's wife, Lisa Flores, on guitar and vocals, and David Aguilar on guitar and vocals.
Flores' soulful and diverse guitar styles, along with her vocals, have helped bring Norton's songs a beautiful new touch.
Aguilar's vocals and his rhythm and lead guitar blend perfectly with Flores and Buffalo to round out the trio.
Norton and the Knockouts have a much longer history, with close to three decades of touring and recording behind them.
The members include bass player David Brown, who ha recorded with the Allman Brothers, the Boz Scaggs band, Elvin Bishop and Blue Oyster Cult.
On guitar, John Vernazza's professional music career as a guitarist began in 1963 at age 14. Vernazza's guitar playing transcends the ordinary as he adds to his incredible rhythm, lead and slide guitar chops, an undeniable energetic charisma.
Drummer Tyler Eng has been playing with Norton Buffalo and the Knockouts since 1994. His career got cooking in the mid-seventies, touring with, among others, legendary harpist Charlie Musselwhite, and with Elvin Bishop and later touring and recording with Greg Kihn. Tyler adds a strong punch and solid groove as well as a great dynamic touch to Norton's music.
Austin De Lone on keyboards is also a soulful singer. The veteran musician has recorded and toured with Elvis Costello, Bonnie Raitt, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Boz Scaggs, Nick Lowe, Loudon Wainwright, and many others.
Tickets for An Evening with Norton Buffalo are $20 in advance and $25 at the door and are available at Top 40 Video in Polson, Sportsman & Ski Haus in Kalispell and Whitefish, Sunshine Tapes & CDs and the Eagles in Kalispell, and Electric Avenue Books in Bigfork.
Room discounts are available at the WestCoast Kalispell Center Hotel for those attending the Norton show. Call 887-2376 or 752-7265 for more information.