“Blues music is an American institution and should never be forgotten or tossed aside.  It is important to preserve the genre because it is really the root of all music today.”

Ernie Pinata: The Delta Wires Play Chess

The Delta Wires band was created out of a love of the blues, its beginnings in the Mississippi Delta, and the migration to Chicago of the Delta blues-men. Band leader, Ernie Pinata, started the band as a college project for sociology credit. It was a musical presentation with dialog, which followed the regional migration of the blues from the South [after the Cotton Gin came about] to Chicago, He wrote songs and received poetry credit. These studies culminated in the first performance of the Delta Wires. Delta Wires, celebrated longtime Northern California blues ensemble, are set to release "Searching For A Woman (A Tribute To Chess Records)," with the single dropping on Mudslide Records, Wednesday, September 23.

(Delta Wires / Photo by Clair Hawley)

Bandleader Ernie Pinata was a blues lover and collector, and an avid fan of the "Chitlin' Circuit". He was able to see many of the blues greats when they came to the Oakland/Bay Area. The band has stuck to its roots, always influenced by Chicago blues (with a horn section). Pinata had wanted to cover Albert King's “Searching for a Woman” and also wanted it to be a tribute to Chess Records, as the importance of the music that came out of Chess cannot be underestimated. He wanted to put our own spin on a classic Chess recording – Searching for a Woman.

Interview by Michael Limnios                   Archive: Delta Wires, 2023 Interview

Special Thanks: Doug Deutsch

Currently you’ve one single release titled “Searching For A Woman" (A Tribute To Chess Records). How did that idea come about? Do you have any interesting stories about the making of the new single?

A friend of the band, decided to form a partnership to reopen the old Record Plant recording studio in Sausalito CA, where many hit records were made, and where Delta Wires did their first live radio broadcast on KSAN Radio in San Francisco (Sly Stone was in the audience). They asked if we would be willing to come in and record a couple of songs to test out their equipment. We wanted to do Searching for a Woman, and put our own spin on it. It was written by Albert King and recorded at Chess Records.  

Why do you think that Chess Records' music legacy continues to generate such a devoted following?

Muddy Waters and everyone around him at the time, created incredible blues music with roots from the Mississippi Delta, and recorded at Chess. So, Chess was the reason the world got to first hear the blues. 

Why is it important to preserve and spread the blues? What is the role of music in today’s society?

Blues music is an American institution and should never be forgotten or tossed aside.  It is important to preserve the genre because it is really the root of all music today.

How can a band/musician truly turn the blues into a commercial and popular genre of music for today's audience?

Always stay true to your roots, keep true to your influences, and don't worry about it being commercial. People will appreciate authenticity!

You’ve worked in many different settings, from clubs and studios to open air festivals. How do you navigate between these different worlds?

We play from the heart every time we get on stage, no matter what the setting or the situation. We play the same for 5 people as for 5000...

“Muddy Waters and everyone around him at the time, created incredible blues music with roots from the Mississippi Delta, and recorded at Chess. So, Chess was the reason the world got to first hear the blues.”

(Ernie Pinata of The Delta Wires / Photo by Giacometti Rampagni)

Let’s take a trip with a time machine, so where and why would you really want to go for a whole day?

To be in the South Side of Chicago in the 50s and see the Muddy Waters Blue Band with Little Walter.  And, so many other great, and long since passed, musicians would be performing at the same approximate time.

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