Buffalo Blues Expect Magic Saturday When Roy Rogers And Norton Buffalo Play The Fox Theater

Harmonica great Norton Buffalo has fond memories of Spokane, and more specifically the Davenport Hotel.

It was back in October 1995, after a show at the Davenport, that Buffalo met a friend of a friend named Cindy Knutson.

The two hit it off and married in June of last year.

Buffalo comes back to Spokane Saturday with his longtime collaborator, slide guitar player Roy Rogers, for an acoustic show at another Spokane landmark — the Fox Theater.

It will be the first paid show in the Fox since the Spokane Symphony bought the art-deco movie theater in September with plans to turn it into a performing arts center.

“There’s something that happens when Roy and I get together that’s just magic,” Buffalo said in a recent phone interview from his home in Sonoma, Calif.

Buffalo, who has played in The Steve Miller Band for 25 years, first hooked up with Rogers in the ‘70s. Rogers’ band opened dozens of shows for Buffalo’s band between 1976 and 1978.

But it wasn’t until the early ‘80s that the two started playing together, without any other musicians.

“I don’t need the bass, the drums, the keyboard player,” Buffalo says. “Roy by himself, the two of us together, created enough music that there was nothing else necessary. It was just instantly very spontaneous, very musical, very spunky.”

Despite their Wild West-sounding names, Rogers and Buffalo steer mainly toward the blues, with some folk mixed in.

Rogers has been called the “reigning master of bottleneck slide guitar,” and has been nominated for two Grammys as a performer and another six as a producer. His producing credits include four releases for John Lee Hooker and two albums for Ramblin’ Jack Elliott.

He is working on his eighth solo studio recording, due out next spring.

Rogers and Buffalo released their debut album, “R&B,” in 1991 and the follow-up “Travelin’ Tracks” in 1992.

The two have played several sold-out shows at The Met in recent years, and opted to play the larger Fox this time for a little more elbow room.

Buffalo released his latest solo CD this fall, “King of the Highway.” Besides his solo work and performances with Steve Miller, Buffalo has played on some 100 albums with musicians like Bonnie Raitt (he plays the harp solo on “Runaway”), Johnny Cash and the Doobie Brothers.

He has also appeared in movies, including “The Rose” and “Heaven’s Gate,” and on TV shows and commercials.

“I was just a kid that played the harmonica,” Buffalo says. “I just really feel blessed.”

As for Saturday’s show, Buffalo wants the audience to know what to expect:

“Come prepared to hear a whole lot of music out of two little guys.”

This sidebar appeared with the story: Roy Rogers & Norton Buffalo

When, where: 8 p.m. Saturday at the Fox Theater, 1005 W. Sprague.

Tickets: $14 in advance, $15 door, $12 for Blues Society members, available through G&B (325-SEAT, 1-800- 325-SEAT, www.ticketswest.com).