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LJ Mounteney often draws comparisons to Bonnie Raitt and Susan Tedechi, and she delivers the goods with her rich, soulful voice and high-energy performances. She has toured all over BC, fronts major music projects and shares the stage with some of Vancouver’s top musicians. For this special VIFF show she’s joined by an all-star Vancouver lineup: Jerry Cook on sax, Tim Porter on guitar, Linda Kidder on bass and Allan Dionne on drums.
Mounteney made a transition from jazz to blues in 2022 with her sophomore album Mama Danced produced by Canadian Blues legend Jack Lavin. Mama Danced features 13 songs and a stellar roster of award-winning West Coast Blues and Jazz musicians. The album pays homage to many pioneering women of blues and rhythm & blues, including Memphis Minnie, Tina Turner and Irma Thomas.
About Big Mama Thornton: I Can’t Be Anyone But Me (Robert Clem, USA, 2025, 88 min, featuring Lynnee Denise, Charlie Musselwhite, Mike Stoller)
After LJ’s set, enjoy the Canadian premiere of a brand new documentary about the legendary blues singer Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton (1926-1984). Leiber and Stoller wrote the song Hound Dog for Thornton and it went on to sell 500 000 copies… (when Elvis covered the song a few years later, it was no longer about a cheating partner, but an ode to a dog… that version sold over 10 million records. Thornton received a one-off payment of just $500 for the song that launched rock n roll. Sadly this was typical of the lack of respect Thornton encountered over the course of her career.) Clem has done a masterful job in piecing together her story to make what will likely be seen as the definitive documentary on Big Mama.
Q&A with filmmaker Robert Clem
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LJ Mounteney
Aug 24
5:00 pm
VIFF Centre, VIFF Cinema
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Credits
Producer
Robert Clem
Cinematography
Robert Clem, J. Alan Hostetter
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