Music photos 1998

This time we have a selection of photos taken in 1998. The first half dozen were on a trip to the US, kicking off with Jimmie Vaughan at the Grant Street Dancehall in Lafayette. This is Mavis Staples pictured in the Gospel Tent at the Jazzfest in New Orleans.

Quite a few of us Brits travelled up to Memphis for the Beale Street Festival and the Handy Awards. Here are Woodies John Howard, Lee Wilkinson, Tony Papard and Keith Woods pictured in the Rum Boogie Cafe in Beale Street. Anyone remember the name of the guy on the right?

Here's a photo of me with Jimmy Denson, who claimed to be a childhood friend of Elvis, taken outside the Shangri-La record shop in Memphis. Jimmy said that Elvis was a 'dope fiend' and a 'baby'.

This photo shows Anson Funderburgh and Sam Myers at the Beale Street festival. Sadly, Sam died in 2006.

Bobby Rush's show at the Daisy Theatre on Beale was one of the highlights of the trip. Here he is inspecting the backsides of some of his female dancers. Unfortunately his un-PC act didn't go down so well when he played at the Barbican in London a few months later.

Returning to London, here's a photo of British soul singer Lynden David Hall at the Borderline in Soho. Lynden had amazing talent, but sadly died of Hodgkin's Lymphona in 2006 aged just 31.

Finally we move to the Porretta Soul Festival of 1998. Here's a shot of excellent soul/blues singer Barbara Carr.

And here is another great soul singer, Bill Coday, who sadly died in 2008.

The great Solomon Burke was the headline act at Porretta that year, as he is this year. I'm looking forward to seeing him in two week's time.

Finally here's Swamp Dogg, aka Jerry Williams Jr, a wonderfully soulful performer and great producer of soul records for the likes of Irma Thomas, Charlie and Inez Foxx and the Exciters.