I received a notice from Swamp Water Bluz that they were having a "triple" today and the first artist up was someone I had not seen or heard of before, so thought I would go over and have a listen. When we got to Swamp Water, the new artist, Rogue™ (Rogue Galaxy) was doing a fine job of "Shaky Ground" by Delbert McClinton. I was impressed by the deep resonance of her voice and the confidence of her vocal style that showed a good range and very smooth delivery. I decided just before the end of this tune that I needed to get a blog going.
As she slipped into "Sweet Home Chicago," the Blues Brothers' version, I knew this would be one of those sets full of the Blues, and one that I was already enjoying 100%. Rogue coasted through a couple of old standards, including "Big Ten Inch" and "Got My Mojo Workin'" when I decided that she is definitely a Blues vocalist that pulls it out of her soul and gives our ears a treat. She has her own band that she performs with in RL and apparently she also steps up and sings in other RL bands when the need arises. She has worked with DaBluezPreacher (sadly no longer performing in Second Life), who Roxie turned me onto back in July. Because backtracks are sometimes hard to find for Blues, he made her a few backing tracks, like the one for the next offering, "Voodoo Woman", where he played all the instruments and layered it up, live, as they did the recording. I was getting more and more into the magic that Rogue can conjure up as she presented her set, and when she broke into "Bang Bang Bang Boom Boom Boom Boom" by Beth Hart, I was grinning at her interpretation.
"Flip. Flop and Fly" by Downchild Blues Band had my feet tapping and I was chair dancing and singing along with this Canadian Blues institution currently celebrating their 50th year of performing and described by most as "the premier Blues band in Canada". Rogue has a great song mix and she had us rockin' to this one as well as to Stevie Ray Vaughan's "Pride and Joy" before she slowed it down for some cuddles with Buddy Guy's rendition of "Feels Like Rain" written by John Hyatt, and one of my all time favorite blues numbers.
I was very impressed with this whole performance. Rogue gets the job done, and takes some time to share some history of the tunes she does. I could listen to her all day or night or both.
More classics followed as she gave us "Born Under a Bad Sign" and "Built for Comfort" with an easy, enthusiastic delivery and relaxed style that shows just how much she loves what she does and how she does it with excellence for every track.
She then took us into a section of her set where she gave us a warning that it was the "...naughty song..." of the set and for Adults only. (She wasn't kidding...lol). It included Beth Hart's "Close To My Fire", a very naughty tune sung with feeling and some very risque lyrics that aren't included in Ms. Hart's version.......
As she moved on to "Sinner's Prayer" it was announced that the next artist scheduled would not be able to make it and she offered to do a few more tunes. We were then treated to a great series of three: "Black Betty", "Heard It Through The Grape Vine", and "Rock Me Baby".
All in all, Rogue Galaxy puts on a great show. She is a fun and an accomplished performer... with a naughty streak... that should not be missed! She's also a fellow Canuck! She will be back at Swamp Water Bluz on September 25, 2021, at 5pm slt, and I will definitely see you all there!
In the meantime, check out her RL website at ( https://www.roguegalaxymusic.com )
THANKS ROGUE GALAXY (Cathie Timian) and
THANK YOU TO SWAMP WATER BLUZ FOR TAKING A CHANCE ON THIS SUPERB ARTIST! Swamp Water LM:
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Webster%20Parrish%20Park/196/205/23