Cuyahoga County Fair

Hare of the Dog, Rock and Blues
Linda Weise - Vocals
Jay Weise - percussion
Billy McConnaughey - guitar
Phil Merkun - guitar & vocals
Mike Daley - bass
Mike Yurik - drums
Tom Hoven - harmonica

Mr. Downchild and Kasimira met at a jam session when a mutual friend asked them to sit in. It was immediately evident that their musical styles worked well together. Later, Mr. D would invite Kassy to show up at his gig and invite her up to do a couple of tunes. Before long it became a real thing and Blues Meets Girl was formed.

The way they weave their separate influences and past experiences together is undeniable.. This is Down home, Smokin' Sexy blues. You can feel and relate to the soulful and passionate songs they write for and about each other as well as their unique renditions of the classics by Muddy Waters, Big Mama Thorton, Elmore James and Sonny Boy Williams making this duo original in their own right. Blues Meets Girl is bonefide Blues thru and thru!

Mr. Downchild:
Growing up in a musical family, Mr. Downchild began his singing career after hearing British Skiffle legend Lonnie Donegan and had his first paying gig at the age of 5. By age 15 he had performed on the London Theater stage and T.V. both acting and singing until he discovered the Blues of Sonny Boy Williamson. This changed everything. A self taught harmonica player and guitarist he discovered open tunings and learned to play slide guitar. He played in various bands in London until he came to the U.S. in 1985. There he met Robert Lockwood Jr. who became his close friend and mentor. They recorded together in 1994 and since then Mr. Downchild has toured 25 states and produces 6 CDs. He was equally influenced and encouraged by Pinetop Perkins and Junior Wells. Mr. Downchild plays Delta/Chicago blues and performs as a one-man-band or in his current project Blues Meets Girl (BMG) which is both a duo and a band.

Kasimira:
"Kassy" has been singing for as long as she can remember when her mother sent her to a voice coach at age 9. Her parents had a vast collection of albums that included Jazz, R & B, Folk and Blues that certainly influenced her greatly. By the time she was age 17, she had been on the theatre stage and graduated to studying music at The Dana School of Music. To her dismay, opera was the only option for vocalists. Secretly she went with friends in the Jazz program to the local Jazz clubs. When her voice teacher caught her performing at a downtown event, not singing opera, he confronted her saying "Miss Vogel, the reason I can not get from you the operatic qualities is because you are listening to that Jazz music." Shortly after that she decided to make her own path and designed a degree thru the University for Musical Theater, the first of it's kind there. Always searching for great female artist for inspiration she soon discovered Etta James, Big Mama Thorton and Koko Taylor ergo discovering The Blues. Life has never been the same.