Bluesman checks in at Citadel (From St Helens Star)

Bluesman checks in at Citadel

9:53am Thursday 16th October 2008

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IT has been said that had Ian Siegal been around in the sixties he would today be accorded the same reverence as artists such as Van Morrison, Joe Cocker and Eric Clapton.

Instead, he is a child of the seventies who dropped out of art college in the late eighties to go busking in Germany. From the streets of Berlin, Siegal progressed to clubs around Nottingham, then to London and ultimately to major stages around Europe.

Two successive European tours (2003/4) opening for ex-Rolling Stone Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings brought him to the attention of a wider audience.

This was followed by UK tours as a duo with Big Bill Morganfield.

In 2005 he topped the Soul/Blues/Jazz charts in Holland and in 2006 he debuted in the USA, appearing at major clubs and the largest music festival on the West Coast.

Ian’s earliest musical memories are of the likes of Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis and Chuck Berry.

This led him into a life-long passion for the Blues and all of its various branches, and most of all, the inimitable Muddy Waters.

At 16 he began to roadie occasionally for his cousin's band and one night, quite unexpectedly, he was asked to sing. The result was a blown-away audience and a delighted young vocal talent with a career ahead of him.

Two years later he picked up a guitar and taught himself to play. At 20 he dropped out of art college and travelled to Berlin, busking for a living.

This is where he says his playing dramatically improved as, if he didn't make money, he didn't eat! By the time he returned to England he knew that a career in music was the only one for him.

Ian quickly showed himself to be a gifted songwriter with a deep understanding of tradition, but with an eye on the future.

Moving to the capital, Ian was soon an established part of the London Blues community. That's where today's Ian Siegal band was born.

Ian Siegal performs at the St Helens Citadel on Saturday, October 18.

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