Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Son House, Robert Johnson, Mississippi John Hurt, Willie Dixon, John Lee Hooker, BB King, Sonny Boy Williamson, Memphis Slim, Muddy Waters, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Count Basie, Oscar Peterson, Miles Davis, Sun Ra, John Coltrane, Thelonius Monk, Ray Charles, Nina Simone, Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, Stevie Wonder, Elvis, James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, Aretha Franklin, Bob Marley, Carlos Santana, Ralph Stanley, Bob Dylan, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, Roger Waters, Joe Cocker, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Elton John, Alabama, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Allman Brothers, Dr. John, the Greatful Dead, Taj Mahal, the Flock, Van Morrison, John Fogerty, George Clinton, Joni Mitchell, Carol King, Cat Stevens, Fela Kuti, Prince, Micheal Jackson, Bobby McFerrin, Jeff Buckley, Blues Traveller, Rusted Root, Ben Harper, Dave Matthews, Lauryn Hill, Bela Fleck, Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys, and everyone else I've ever heard playing music or singing, including my family and friends and about a thousand street musicians on the subway.
Slim Dixon, a.k.a. Cincinnati Slim, a self-described "hillbilly with the blues", comes from Washington C.H., a small town in southern Ohio, between Cincinnati and Columbus.
He was born into a musical family from West Virginia, including his father, a high school music teacher. In fact, his first performance was in his dad's high school marching band as a bass drum player- at the age of 4! By six, he was studying piano, and he composed his first song at eight. He continued studying piano until the age of fourteen, when he gave it up as an act of rebellion.
"A lot of kids start playing music in their teens to make their parents mad. But when you're a rebel who's been raised by a musician, and everyone expects you to be a musician, then there's no choice but to threaten getting a real job," he recalls.
And so, young Slim went to college, determined to find a respectable way to make it in the world. After years of trying every major known to man, a distraught and now in-debt Slim realized that all he liked to do was write poems and play music. By then, he had picked up a bit of guitar to impress people at parties, and this led him back to the piano, which he hadn't played in eight years.
As soon as he found the piano again, songs poured out of him- more than he could handle. He ended up buying his first electric organ and changing his major to Audio Production soon after.
Two years later, in the spring of 2001, he moved to Brooklyn to pursue his life as a poet and musician. After several years of struggling with rent and school loans and trying to find a rhythm section, Slim finally decided that it was time to share his music with the world, band or no band.
So, with a Shure 58 and a home-PC studio, he's begun to record his brand of country-blues rock.
"Recording isn't important anymore. Everyone's listening to MP3 anyway, sharing singles with each other, so why waste your time in a studio? My name will be built on the Slim Dixon show," he claims.
Slim continues to look for a band, while continuing to perform his songs solo whenever he can.
You can also catch him with Queens-based rockers "Rough'n'Ready" on the weekends, settin' fire to Irish pubs with hard-drivin' rock'n'roll, from James Brown and the Stones to the Chili Peppers and U2.
"My life is a celebration of American music- blues, appalachian country, R&B, folk rock, jazz- and more importantly, a celebration of the soul and the freedom found in love and peace. My life's goal is to bring people together using music, dancing and poetry. These are the sacred languages of the angels, and as the spirits whisper in my ears, I will share their songs with you, for as long as the wind fills my lungs."
I've already cleared my calender for 2010... Ive never done Bonnaroo before, but I definately will fight the traffic and crowds when you make your debut. Actually I may go to Lollapalooza in Chicago this year, you know, wherever Blues Traveler goes, I will follow...
I am very excited! My first book Passage to Freedom is available for purchase now, from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and bookstores worldwide. Passage to Freedom is a guide to happiness and spiritual fulfilment that provides exercises to help readers along the way. These techniques incorporate visualisation, intention, meditation and self-healing. You can find more information on my website at www.dawnmellowship.com. I hope you will decide to purchase the book and I hope that it helps you find the spiritual answers you need.
We just wanted to let you know that you can finish your christmas shopping by picking up a Delilah Why T-shirt and CD. We'll ship it right to your door within 24 hours! Check out our Blog section for details.
