RIP, RL Burnside

[chiliD]

I was at a club in LA called the Knitting Factory this past May to see my stepson-in-law's band "Orbit Service". During the intermission before they went on, the sound engineer was playing this great blues stuff over the PA. I went to the sound booth and asked him who that was...he showed me the CD...R.L. Burnside. (who I'd never heard of before...shocking, considering my love of "da blues") Well, I was immediately hooked.

The next day at work, I told a buddy of mine about it...we went to a local record store during our lunch hour and he found 4 or 5 of R.L.'s CDs and bought them...went online that evening, he told me, and ordered the rest of his catalogue. (he's like that with just about every artist)

When I read the news earlier today that R.L. had passed away, I was stunned. Sure, he was in his late 70's (79, I believe), but, he was still "new" to me.