Mojo Blues Band
The Mojo Blues Band is an Austrian blues band around Erik Trauner, which has been dedicated to Chicago blues in a changing line-up since 1977. Their idols include Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed, Sonny Boy Williamson and T-Bone Walker. However, the Mojo Blues Band always strives to develop and maintain its own musical signature. The band was also successful in the charts, for example with the number one hit "Rosa Lee".
Mojo
The name of the band comes from the term mojo, which describes a kind of talisman in voodoo magic. This word is used very often in blues and rock 'n' roll and was thus spread worldwide. Erik Trauner quotes Muddy Waters among others: I've got my Mojo working, but it just don't work on you.
History
In 1976 Erik Trauner started performing in Viennese clubs with pianist Joachim Palden. 1977 saw their first appearance as the Mojo Blues Band at Vienna's Jazzland. In the same year they won a record contract at a boogie-woogie contest in Zurich and got their first studio recording.
As the only blues band in Vienna at the time, they were repeatedly hired to accompany US artists on tour in Austria, and thus came into contact with those who had created this music. In Vienna's Jazzland, the band performed with legendary US musicians Johnny Shines, J. B. Hutto, Charlie Musselwhite, Louisiana Red, Sunnyland Slim, Champion Jack Dupree, Homesick James, David Honeyboy Edwards, Leon Thomas, Katie Webster, Hal Singer, Jan Harrington and Eddie Clearwater over the past decades. His frequent collaboration with Hamburg boogie-woogie specialist Axel Zwingenberger is documented on several CDs.
In 1980, Dana Gillespie, who later became a successful pop singer, joined the Mojo Blues Band, which at the time was moving stylistically towards R&B and rock 'n' roll. In the early 90s, Alligator Walk (to the band's later surprise) became one of the most popular songs on the US shag scene, leading to a successful tour of North and South Carolina in 1998.
In 1989, the band members took a "company outing" to Chicago. There they played with various musicians and brought back material from a 16-hour recording session. The album The Wild Taste of Chicago was created from this material. In 1993 Christian Dozzler left the Mojo Blues Band to form his own band. Since the harmonica player was missing, Erik Trauner took lessons from Christian Sandera and took over this part.
In 1999 Erik Trauner was awarded the Golden Decoration of Merit of the Republic of Austria, which may be somewhat surprising when one looks at the Austrian artistic landscape, which is characterized by high culture. It is true that at the end of 2001 the Mojo Blues Band (in the line-up: Erik Trauner (vocals, guitar, slide guitar, harmonica), Daniel Gugolz (bass), Markus Toyfl (guitar), Peter Müller (drums), Thomas Horneck (piano)) was announced to disband. In this line-up they gave their farewell concert on December 19, 2001. But Erik Trauner gathered musicians around him again soon after, and since 2002 his band, strengthened with Siggi Fassl, has been performing again.
The Mojo Blues Band open air, Vienna Jazzfest 2007
