Paper Jams: Playing the blues with Patrick McEwen of River House Band

FEATURE — Southern Utah’s live music scene is flourishing and the Canyon Media crew is back to highlighting local musicians. So gather around for another session of “Paper Jams.”

Coming to you from Cloud 9 Studios at Canyon Media, this month’s edition features Patrick McEwen.

Watch (and hear) Patrick McEwen perform live from Cloud 9 Studios at Canyon Media in the media player above.

McEwen stopped by Cloud 9 Studios to perform “A Face in the Crowd” by the late, great Tom Petty. He also treated listeners to his version of a classic blues recording from the late 1940s by Elmore James called “Madison Blues.”

“It’s actually about women’s shoe-shopping habits,” he said. “Women have a lot of shoes.”

McEwen has been chasing fingerstyle country blues and delta bottleneck since the early 1960s, when Mississippi John Hurt and Johnny Winter were soaring above the Byrds and nobody noticed.

Outside of a long career in critical care medicine, McEwen plays solo gigs throughout Southern Utah. He’s also the lead vocalist and guitarist for River House Band. With David Smith on bass and Gary Gautney on drums, this soulful trio serves up a blend of delta and Chicago blues mixed with American roots and outlaw country. Check them out on ReverbNation.

If you’re a musician interested in playing on a future episode of Paper Jams, you can contact St. George News in the Facebook comments for this article or email paperjams@stgnews.com.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!