Mojo's music is coloured by the blues

BEING a good blues man is not about where you happened to have been born.

"Feeling the blues" is about feeling the music, and destitute or not, you either have it or you don't.

Coventry has been blessed with some great blues men such as Tim James, Joe Beale, John Warwick, John Alderson and the great Mojo Morgan.

Mojo Morgan was born in Gulson Road Hospital, in 1952. As a young man his chosen instrument was to be the bass guitar. He joined the popular 80s ska band EMF.

"The blues gives me a feeling, which no other music can," reveals Mojo. "When I was a kid, I was listening to Robert Johnson, Bessie Smith, Muddy Waters, then all the 60s blues from the UK such as Alexis Corner, John Mayall, and the Electric Blues, that came out at that time. As I grew, so did my love of music."

EMF supported the likes of The Specials, Bad Manners, The Beat, and the Bodysnatchers.

"Even in EMF, a ska band, I was doing a lot of blues riffs," said Mojo. "We played all over the country, we just had a great time. But after 2½ years I had itchy feet to get back to my blues roots and I formed a band with John Alderson called the Travelling Riverside Blues Band, and my bass playing took on a different meaning when playing with such a great musician as John."

The Travelling Riverside Blues Band was formed in 1980 by Mojo and blues guitarist extraordinaire John Alderson. They played their blues heavy, and built up a huge reputation on the circuit.

"We played all the universities around Britain, supporting Paul Jones Blues Band, Dr Feelgood, Tony Mcphee's Band, Chicken Shack, and many more," said Mojo. "I also played in a drunken rock 'n' roll band called Sammy Earthquake and the Volcanoes with Roddy Byers from The Specials, and a good time was had by all."

By 1996 Mojo had moved to Pembrokeshire, and formed the The Hoochie Coochie Band four years later. From then on Mojo took his love for blues music to another level.

I said in my introduction that you don't have to have been born in Southe