al blake

Al Blake, born as Alan Blake Eliel, shot into the world January 16, 1945 on a marine corps base near Klamath Falls, Oregon. While later growing up during the early 50s in Oklahoma, the Blues began tugging at his heart under the influence of his black nanny Ruby Anderson. She used to pack him over to the other side of the tracks where her small house sat nestled near Oklahoma City. Down the street from Ruby's house was a small general store where a hi-fi, with a large outdoor speaker, loudly played the Deep Southern Blues while people listened and danced there on a daily basis. continue reading...