Artist of the Week - Norton Buffalo, RIP

Absolutely saddened at the news of the death of Norton Buffalo, harmonica player extraordinaire, who died this week at an early age from cancer.

My heart goes out to his wife, Lisa Flores, who is a beautiful lady and musician. It is clear from his Web posts to fans that Norton loved her very dearly; and one look at her photos will provide the evidence why - she emanates such a beautiful vibe, and so did he.

Condolences to his entire family and friends as well. His career spanned five decades and he has played with so many great Bluesmen and women it is a terrible loss to the music world - and not just Blues... Norton played with rock greats such as Steve Miller and the Doobie Brothers - and even had a role as a private in Heaven's Gate.

As Norton enters Heaven's Gate now, with the burgeoning rock and Blues bands welcoming him with open arms (and some open tuning, too, I imagine!) we on earth will miss him and pay tribute in our small way.

The Blues Moon with Clair DeLune was proud to call Norton a friend, and will dedicate Tuesday's show as a tribute to Norton Buffalo, and the artists he played with through the years.

We'll start with two from Norton, then play some from his longtime partner, Roy Rogers, then go on to many of the artists he is pictured with on his Web site, such as Pinetop Perkins, robben Ford, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Elvin Bishop (with some remarks about the PB Band and days at the Fillmore with Bill Graham), James Cotton, Goeroge Thorogood, Maria Muldaur, Chris Cain, Sonny Terry, Taj Mahal, and Duke Robillard.

I'd be pleased if you would join us. Tune in Tuesday from 6-8 ET/USA at http://wusc.sc.edu for the Blues Moon Radio Show.