12 ALLIGATOR ARTISTS RECEIVE 25 BLUES MUSIC AWARD NOMINATIONS

 

Tommy Castro Leads All Artists With Six Nominations, Including B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year, Album Of The Year and Song Of The Year.

Chris Cain Follows With Four Nominations, Curtis Salgado With Three.

Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Carolyn Wonderland, Selwyn Birchwood Receive Two Nominations Each.

Lil' Ed & The Blues Imperials, Tinsley Ellis, Billy Branch, Derrick "D'mar" Martin and Christoffer "Kid" Andersen (of Rick Estrin & The NIghtcats) and Regi Oliver (of The Selwyn Birchwood Band) Receive One Nomination Each.

 

On Thursday, February 10, 2022, the Blues Foundation announced the nominees for the 43rd Annual Blues Music Awards. A total of 12 Alligator Records artists received an astounding 25 nominations. Leading all artists with six is guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Tommy Castro. His nominations include the coveted B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year, Album Of The Year (for Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came To Town) and Song Of The Year (for Somewhere). Additionally, Tommy Castro & The Painkillers were nominated for Blues Band Of The Year. West Coast guitar master Chris Cain followed close behind Castro with four nominations, including Album Of The Year (for Raisin' Cain) and Best Instrumentalist -- Guitar.

Soul blues vocalist Curtis Salgado received three nominations. Young blues guitar phenomenon Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, guitarist/lap-steel master Selwyn Birchwood and Texas guitarist/vocalist Carolyn Wonderland received two each. Chicago's world-famous Lil' Ed & The Blues Imperials, Southern blues rocker Tinsley Ellis and harmonica giant Billy Branch each received one nomination.

Saxophonist Regi Oliver (of The Selwyn Birchwood Band), guitarist Christoffer "Kid" Andersen and drummer Derrick "D'mar" Martin (both of Rick Estrin & The Nightcats) also received one nomination each.

The awards ceremony will be held in Memphis, Tennessee on Thursday, May 5 at the Renasant Convention Center. The full list of nominees can be found here. Alligator artists and their nominations follow:

 

B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year
Album Of The Year: Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came To Town
Band Of The Year: Tommy Castro & The Painkillers
Song Of The Year: Somewhere (written by Tommy Castro and Tom Hambridge)
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year: Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came To Town
Blues Rock Artist Of The Year

Album Of The Year: Raisin' Cain
Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year: Raisin' Cain
Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year

Chris Cain:
Best Instrumentalist - Guitar

Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year: Damage Control

Soul Blues Male Artist Of The Year

Curtis Salgado:
Best Instrumentalist - Vocals

Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year: 662

Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year 

Contemporary Blues Female Artist Of The Year

Song Of The Year:
Fragile Peace And Certain War (written by Carolyn Wonderland)

Contemporary Blues Male Artist Of The Year

Song Of The Year:
I'd Climb Mountains (written by Selwyn Birchwood)

Regi Oliver:
Best Instrumentalist - Horn

Band Of The Year









Blues Rock Artist Of The Year

Billy Branch:
Best Instrumentalist - Harmonica

Christoffer "Kid" Andersen:
Best Instrumentalist - Guitar

Derrick "D'mar" Martin:
Best Instrumentalist - Drums