The Reigning Queen of Beale Street Memphis, TN / Pittsburgh, PA Pittsburgh PA native Barbara Blue doesn’t remember life without music. Her answer to the question “When did you start singing?” will always be “since the day I was born and I plan to exit this life the same way”. “There was always music in our house growing up. I taught myself to play guitar… I would put on concerts in our back yard from 13 years on up…I left home June 1977 for Phoenix, AZ.”
That’s when Barbara’s professional musical career began. Playing a solo show (vocals & guitar) Barbara Blue played every club, biker bar, party and corner possible. From 1980-1987 Barbara lived in Detroit, MI and was playing gigs all over the city solo, trio & with a few bands around town, esp the “City Limits Blues Band”. In 1987 Barbara Blue returned to her hometown of Pittsburgh, PA where she put together a band and played 6 nights a week at various clubs for 10+ years — “We would travel up to 3 hours each way out of the city to do one night stands… I had so many gigs in those years I can’t begin to remember them all”. She opened shows for locals and road acts — Delbert McClinton, Jeff Healey, Marcia Ball, Billy Price, on and on and on …
In 1994 Barbara recorded her debut CD Out Of The Blue at The Control Room in Pittsburgh, PA. Ms. Blue (now has 13 Independent CD releases) also traveled with her band playing gigs in Memphis, Clarksdale & NOLA (Hogs Breath) to compete in the very early conception of the IBC. During this time, Barbara began taking the Ultimate Rhythm and Blues Cruises (approx 13 in total) meeting and jamming with elite blues artists.
See for more.
I Never Stopped Loving You
Too Far
Don’t Mess With My Man
From the Delta to the Golden Gates
Too Late Blues
Drunkin’ Angel
Careful blues
at Silky O’Sullivan’s
Heartbreak Hotel
Drunkin’ Angel