Blues Traveler John Hammond’s Worldly Sounds Make Stop In Sandpoint

Long-time bluesman John Hammond has been around the world more than once. But on Wednesday he will make a stop in Sandpoint, using his versatile blues to carry the audience on a sonic journey from urban Chicago to the Mississippi Delta.

Hammond is an artist who has always remained true to the spirit of the blues and whose efforts have been twice nominated for a Grammy Award.

“Blues has never gone out of style; it’s always been there,” Hammond says.

He was born in New York City in 1942. As a teenager he tuned in to late-night radio as it blistered with the songs of Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Walter and Howlin’ Wolf.

His father, John Henry Hammond, was the Columbia executive who brought Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday and eventually Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen to America’s attention.

However, it wasn’t Hammond’s father who nurtured his musical aspirations. “He wasn’t thrilled when I began this career,” Hammond says.

He began performing when he was 19 after hitchhiking across the country to Los Angeles, where he started touring the nightclubs.

When Hammond returned to New York in the 1960s, he became part of the Greenwich Village scene that included Dylan, John Sebastian and Richie Havens. Jimi Hendrix joined Hammond for a two-week stint that ended up taking Hendrix to England, where he first became famous.

Over the years, Hammond has performed and recorded with Robbie Robertson, The Rolling Stone’s Bill Wyman and Duane Allman, among many others.

On his latest album, “Found True Love,” Hammond joins forces with Duke Robillard. (Catch Robillard at the Fort Spokane Brewery, also on Wednesday).

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: CONCERT John Hammond will perform at 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Panida Theater in Sandpoint. Tickets are $14 in advance and $16 at the door, available at Eichardts Pub and Java Adagio in Sandpoint; Small Potatoes in Bonners Ferry; The Long Ear in Coeur d’Alene; and Street Music in Spokane.