Hold On I'm Comin' - no you're not

There's a certain irony to the legal threat that the family of Isaac Hayes has launched against Donald Trump's use of the Sam and Dave classic 'Hold On I'm Comin' at his rallies. Isaac Hayes' son, Isaac Hayes III, is claiming that Trump does not have permission to use the record to support his (surely doomed) election campaign and has filed a legal suit. He says in a statement "We demand the cessation of use, removal of all related videos, a public disclaimer, and payment of $3 million in licensing fees by August 16, 2024. Failure to comply will result in further legal action.” The irony, of course, is that one half of Sam and Dave, Sam Moore, sang at Trump's inauguration in 2017. I wrote at the time: "I was a little saddened to see the great Sam Moore singing at Trump's inauguration event. His rendition of 'America The Beautiful' was not his finest hour. It's a corny song and he sang it rather poorly I thought.' This time around it's the song, rather than the singer that's at the centre of the controvery. I'm pretty sure Trump has a mental disorder and that eventually the vast majority of Americans will see him for what he is - an unhinged, probably demented bully and he will lose decisively to Kamala Harris. I hope so anyway, as who knows what will happen if it's a close result or, worst of all, a Trump win..

Meanwhile, there have been a couple of music deaths to report. Blues guitarist Carl Weathersby has died aged 71. Carl played with Chicago blues great Albert King and went on to play with Billy Branch's Sons of Blues Band where he spent 15 years. His first solo record, 'Don't Lay Your Blues On Me' came out in 1996 and he recorded a further eight albums after that, as well as contributing to dozens of albums by fellow blues artists. Carl played at the Porretta Soul Festival and I remember seeing him at the short-lived Charlotte Street Blues club in London in 2009 (below) - anyone else remember that place? - and again at the King Biscuit Festival in 2013 (pictured above).

Another recent death is that of drummer Mike Underwood at the age of 78. Mike played with Jet Harris (including on the 1962 Sam Cooke/Little Richard UK tour), the Outlaws (including with Jerry Lee Lewis and Gene Vincent in Hamburg and on their own records), the Herd, Episode Six and the Ian Gillan Band. RIP to both.