Uppity Blues Women true to form
By Anita Sherman
Saturday night's performance of nationally acclaimed Saffire was a huge success."The concert was a smash hit, drawing a capacity crowd of 700 that had a rollicking time as Saffire put on a blues tour de force that had the audience swaying rhythmically in their seats and laughing out loud to songs like "Too Much Butt," said Michael Zitz Beckham of Saturday's concert at the Daniel Center at Germanna Community College in Culpeper.
Coming full circle, Saffire - The Uppity Blues Women - returned to their roots. During their 25-year career, the sassy women's band has gone from obscurity to national success as one of the premiere acoustic blues groups around.
Pianist/guitarist/songwriter Ann Rabson was on faculty at Germanna, teaching computer science, when one of her students had a death in the family and missed an exam. When Rabson took the exam to the home of Earlene Lewis, she discovered that Lewis had a piano and a bass. From that mixed exam, Saffire was conceived.
Rabson and Lewis convinced singer Adegbalola, a Virginia Teacher of the Year at James Monroe High School in Fredericksburg, to join them. The rest is blues history. Saffire—The Uppity Blues Women - developed a cult following, not just in America, but around the globe. And they remain relevant after a quarter of a century of touring and recording. Adegbalola has just been nominated for honors as 2009 Best Contemporary Female Blues Artist at the 30th Annual Blues Music Awards to be held May 7 in Memphis.
According to Beckham, fans came from both Culpeper and Fredericksburg, and prior to the show, downtown Culpeper restaurants were packed with out-of-towners there for the concert.
Coinciding with their farewell tour in Culpeper, The Uppity Blues Women celebrated with the release of their final CD, Havin' the Last Word. A new documentary film on Saffire's incredible story, Hot Flash, will be shown at select film festivals and will also be available on iTunes.