Al Cook is the undisputed pioneer of the local blues scene. It was he who, as early as the mid-1960s, brought African-American Southern blues—which until then had been ignored as the music of a fringe group—into the mainstream in our part of the world. As luck would have it, the folk music boom of the late 1960s played a decisive role in facilitating this. The former rock-and-roll fan stumbled upon historic recordings by classic blues artists and made their personal styles an integral part of his musical career. While subsequent musicians often limited themselves to copying tried-and-true songs, Al Cook composed new material in the style of the interwar period. The blues must remain alive and must not be allowed to become a static cultural artifact. With this mindset, the Austrian blues pioneer has been pursuing his musical career for nearly 60 years now.

Al Cook has always appreciated the international atmosphere of the Porgy and Bess jazz club and is delighted to once again perform his annual gala concert with his Original Al Cook Band. For fans of authentic blues, seeing the longest-serving local blues pioneer perform live is practically a “must.” Al Cook takes the audience back to the era of archaic blues while remaining true to his well-known style. (Press release)