Note: Usually this section summarizes the significance of the work of a particular blues artist.  However, this week it will be used to outline the efforts of someone who has given everything to the blues over the radio airwaves for what is approaching four decades.  Enjoy!

It’s a few minutes past 1pm on a Saturday afternoon, and the NPR News has concluded on Elkhart, Indiana’s WVPE FM 88.1, when the well-known notes of Freddy King’s 1961 Federal label classic “Hide Away” begin to take over the station’s airwaves.  About a minute and a half into the song when the tune hits King’s guitar break, the volume on the cut lowers and the familiar voice of Harvey Stauffer buoyantly takes over with, “All right, it’s blues time!”  And with that exhortation, a multitude of blues lovers from across the area, region, and around the world settle in for what will be three hours of traditional and contemporary blues on a radio journey named the Blues Revue, all hosted by a man who has devoted himself to this weekend excursion on Saturdays and Sundays going on now for 39 years. 

Much like “Sunshine” Sonny Payne who hosted a blues radio show on KFFA as the host of the King Biscuit Time Radio Show for roughly 59 years, Pervis Spann “The Blues Man” in Chicago on WVON for 60 years, and in more modern times like Steve Cushing who has hosted his “Blues Before Sunrise” for 43 years, the same drive to both keep the blues alive and offer a respite from life’s pressures and ordeals for his audience fuel Stauffer’s ongoing weekend blues gift to his broad audience, one he is determined to see through, as he says, “…until the day I die.”

A typical Blues Revue show, if there is such a thing, is an ever-evolving organism, for again, Stauffer has been at this for a very long time, and certainly the challenge has to be centered around how does he keep it fresh.  Certainly, between WVPE’s blues collection and Stuaffer’s personal assemblage of blues, coupled with the fresh releases coming out, there is always something new to be played, presented, or framed.  Yet, Stauffer’s highly successful show is one of quite reassuring constants. 

First, there’s the man himself.  From someone who has known Stauffer for the better part of 35-40 years now, this writer can affirm with conviction that the man behind the radio microphone is the same man you would meet out on a Saturday night somewhere, in a grocery store, or on the street.  One of the foremost appeals of Stauffer to his rabid weekly radio audience is his easy-going folksy manner.  He delights in mentioning that a blues song came at the request of a particular listener living in Anywhere, Indiana or some other locale, doing so in a manner that surely makes that audience member feel like a million bucks when they hear their name on the radio.

Also, Stauffer’s extreme love for the blues cannot be hidden.  To know him personally and see and hear his fervent adoration for the blues in person is one thing, but that enthusiasm likewise seeps through his listeners’ speakers and leaves no doubt as to his devotion and passion for the blues.  The man is 100% authentic in his zeal for the music.

Stauffer pulls out all stops in the studio, bringing in blues men and blues women and their bands with a humble threefold purpose in mind.  First, he absolutely delights in giving local, regional, national, and international blues talent a “live” opportunity to play and spread their unique brand of blues to his vast radio audience, providing them an exciting opportunity that is quickly fading from the radio landscape.  You just simply don’t find this type of “live” in-studio exposure up and down the radio dial anymore.

Two, Stauffer then digs deep with the artist in the studio into what is going on with their respective blues career by interviewing them with the same downhome approach he brings to his listenership, offering the performer the chance to tell their story, putting a human being behind the blues music being played or heard on recording.

Third, Stauffer knows full well the exposure allotted to blues artists across the media and touring settings is narrow, and he acts as a de facto blues promoter doing all he can to keep “live” blues music opportunities well-attended, and ultimately, ongoing.

And one can hear the true, valued appreciation that acts have to be able to spend time with Stauffer in the WVPE studio; spotlights such as that are truly few and far between in the blues field.  And one would be wholly mistaken to believe that the artists visiting the radio station’s studio to perform are mainly comprised of local or regional acts, though they most certainly are very important for Stauffer to present and interview, as well.  However, many of the blues giants have visited WVPE.  None other than blues titans such as Lonnie Brooks, Eddy Clearwater, and Luther Allison, among many others, have entered WVPE’s studio and offered their blues for an eager audience.  They know the exposure that can be achieved from visiting Stauffer; they know his show’s reach.

But, Stauffer’s studio work doesn’t stop there.  Fondly remember by many are his genuine energies in telephone interviews with the likes of blues geniuses such as Koko Taylor and Charles Brown, plus a special remote broadcast one year from the Elkhart Jazz Festival when Stauffer had a superb conversation with none other than Ruth Brown.

And perhaps there’s the beauty of Stuaffer’s in-studio style; it’s always a conversation, one among friends, laidback and upbeat.  People, no matter who they are, feed off of his sincerely welcoming, curious nature.

Even during the radio station’s community fund-raising campaigns (WVPE is public radio), Stauffer’s zeal to do all he can to keep the dollars rolling in is tendered with that same zeal he affords his weekly audience.  He gleefully acknowledges on-the-air those who pledge their heard-earned dollars to keep the blues alive on the station, again making the listener feel appreciated and special, because in his eyes, they truly are.  He even goes the extra mile to give deserved shout-outs to the folks who donate their time to man the telephones during the pledge drives, again, making Stauffer’s dedication to the folks behind the scenes and the blues firmly cemented in the minds of all.

With all this said, what drives Stauffer?  Who is the man who has been behind the WVPE microphone for so many years?  What influenced and continues to influence him?  In what does he rejoice?  While his doting radio audience clamors to get to their radios and stereos by 1pm each Saturday and Sunday to hear his cheerful manner and blues visions, the man behind it all has a story to tell, one uniquely framed to lend him the impetus to find the blues’ ability to heal and provide redemption as his drivers to ensure the blues is kept alive via his resounding, long-tenured efforts.

Stauffer was born in 1952 on the near southwest side of Chicago at Cook County Hospital to a young biological mother.  The situation being what it was, he was put up for adoption, and at the age of two days old was adopted into a Middlebury, Indiana family.

Stauffer has said that there was not a lot of music to be heard in his adopted household other than that played by a sister on the family’s upright piano.  However, as Stauffer’s adopted household was a very strict Brethren environment, with Mr. Stuffer being a preacher, only church music was allowed to be played.  However, he does indicate that he was able to hear some Top 40 music on the radio when the situation presented itself.

As Stauffer grew toward his teen years, there was obviously a disconnect between the firm religious value system in his adopted household and the value system that Stauffer himself was formulating.  Ultimately, there came a time when, as Stauffer puts it, he became too “worldly” in the eyes of his adopted family, and he was placed in a couple of boys institutions in an attempt to point him in a more positive direction, as defined by his adopted family.  The establishments he spent time in were located in Albion, Michigan and Wabash, Indiana.  Stauffer maintains that his adopted family’s goal was to see him get the help they thought he needed in these places, but as he attests, it was akin to throwing him to the lions, witnessing things and situations that the majority of teens never would or should, though his family staunchly believed what it was doing was necessary.  Essentially, Stauffer lost the years 14-17 in these boys’ residences.

It was in the Michigan facility, however, where Stauffer’s first exposure to “live” music occurred when he was able to see The Ramsey Lewis Trio.  And, as fate would have it, it was at the Wabash institution where he heard an album by John Mayall and the Blues Breakers.  As such, it would seem reasonable to suggest that these early musical exposures in the long run helped structure his avid love of music, one that finally led him to the blues.

As already mentioned, the take away from these boys’ home experiences was that Stauffer essentially lost his teenage years, something he regrets, but he has since made peace with that circumstance.  To bring it full circle, his adopted family did apologize to him years later, and he made amends at Mr. Stauffer’s funeral.  Healing is a big part of Stauffer’s existence.

Stauffer continued to delve further into his love of music in his late teen years.  He did attend concerts by Jethro Tull, Leslie West & Mountain, and The Grateful Dead.  However, he had sensed something in the music of The Allman Brothers, the J. Geils Band, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, and Jimi Hendrix, among other artists, that struck a chord in him; something felt right.  Something moved within his heart and soul.  Through his friends, Stuffer learned about Muddy Waters. B.B. King, Freddy King, and Albert King, and the blues torch was lit within him.

The first blues recording that Stauffer ever purchased was the seminal Live At Cook County Jail by B.B. King.  He picked it up at an Elkhart, Indiana record store.  Now, he was hooked, and hooked hard.  King’s guitar playing and singing moved and captivated him, and there was no looking back.  As a personal aside, this writer and Stauffer made the trek into Chicago so many years ago to one of the iterations of Bob Koester’s renowned Jazz Record Mart where Stauffer bought his first CDs; Sins by Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets with Sam Myers, and Showdown with Albert Collins, Robert Cray, and Johnny Copeland.

This blues awareness led Stauffer to another component of his multi-faceted persona.  At the age of 18, he began to sing with his first band, The Fred Koeppel Review, a group he stayed with for roughly ten years.  The band presented a blend of blues and blues-influenced music.  The aggregation played across the northcentral Indiana area at places including the Partly Dave’s Coffeehouse in Elkhart.  Stauffer admits that it took him a bit of time to truly feel the music from deep within his heart and soul as any blues singer of note should.  He feels that his singing style and musical influences fall to Freddy King, B.B. King, Johnny Winter, and Howlin’ Wolf.  And this writer can confirm that watching Stauffer command a stage and belt out the blues is an experience parallel to the energies and conviction those blues men held.

To this day, Stauffer firmly knows that performing has been a wholly positive experience for him, during both good and bad times.  The stage has provided him a safe and satisfying space.  It has been his respite from life’s pressures and issues.

As Stauffer continued down the blues rabbit hole, he became a frequent presence on the local blues scene.  The South Bend, Indiana area has always had a significant blues existence.  In the halcyon days of the blues in the 1950s, with Chicago being only 90 miles west, the area enjoyed performers such as Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Howlin’ Wolf, and Muddy Waters, to name but a few.  None other than the great Albert King once called South Bend home.  The area has been dotted over the years with many clubs and joints that presented the blues, and in the late 1970s, the hallowed Vegetable Buddies was the place to be for the blues and related musical genres in downtown South Bend.  There Stauffer’s blues juices were further heated by seeing Junior Wells and Buddy Guy, Otis Rush, Jimmy Johnson, John Lee Hooker, Son Seals and J.B. Hutto. 

Also, with blues running mates including Perry Aberli and Brad Niedbalski, Stauffer could be found on South Bend’s west side taking in the blues at a joint named Ribs-N-Blues, a tough corner venue that presented everyone from Pinetop Perkins to Eddie Taylor.

In the mid-1980s, a major blues venue opened in Mishawaka, Indiana named the Center Street Blues Café.  This was the place to be in northcentral Indiana in the mid-to-late 1980s if one was into the blues.  And the regular cast of blues loving enthusiasts who called the club home included Stauffer.  Not only making new friends at the venue and reconnecting with old ones, Stauffer was frequently seen on-stage with different blues artists, sitting in and belting out his strong confident vocals, a commanding, charismatic performer, indeed.  This writer distinctly recalls him singing with the John Watkins Blues Band and Professor Eddie Lusk there.  It was like a blues heaven to Stauffer at the Center Street Blues Café, as he got to see and meet so many of his blues favorites there including Lonnie Brooks, Valerie Wellington, and many others.  And, it was special for another reason: It was the place where, during the evening of a Lonnie Brooks show, he met his future wife, Armida, someone he holds very dear.

A major turning point in Stauffer’s life was about to occur about this time.  David Alert, a jazz DJ at WVPE, approached him about being a guest host on the station’s Blues Revue show.  Stauffer himself has admitted that he knew nothing about radio when this opportunity arose, but he nonetheless took a chance on the prospect.  Not to make skinny of it, but that inquiry led to, again, what is now a roughly 39-year tenure as the show’s host.

All the while, Stuffer was continuing to forge his way in the blues radio circle, an event occurred that would forever alter the arc of his life.  In 1986, Armida found Stauffer’s biological mother.  In fact, seared in to my consciousness is a phone call I received one day at my parent’s home.  Stauffer was on the line, highly emotional, half crying and half elated, that his birth mother had been located.  I will never forget the call or how my friend was reacting. 

His mother., Kay Brown, owned a bar in Chicago named Family Ties, a place located at 43^rd St. and Kedzie.  Stauffer’s whole world was about to open before him.  When he first met Brown and her husband, he discovered that he had three half-sisters and a half-brother, along with many aunts and uncles.

But in a moving moment, his biological grandmother approached him in tears, grabbing him and apologizing for forcing her daughter to provide him for adoption; his biological mother indeed did not want to give him up all those many years ago.  It would only be one year later when his birth grandmother would pass away.  This led to 33 years with his biological mother, with her passing away in 2019.

Stauffer has continued to front blues bands throughout the years, with those being The Rhythm Kings, Ole Harv and the Blues News, the Elwood Splinters Blues Band (more on that below), and his most recent band, Ole Harv and The Blues Katz.

As if Stauffer’s life needed more reason to seek solace in the blues, he took over the singing duties with the Elwood Splinters Blues Band (for 20 years, by the way) after his good, dear friend James Wireman passed away.  This was a painful occurrence for him.

There isn’t a blues happening in northcentral Indiana or lower Michigan where Stauffer won’t be seen; if the blues is there, he is very likely to be present.  The guy is everywhere the blues is, and acts as a true ambassador for the music.  He works the crowds with his broad smile and highly affable demeanor, greeting all who want a word or two, perhaps even a photo or two, as well.  He makes valuable industry contacts at these events with musicians and blues industry types.  And, as is his will, he promotes his Blues Revue show.  He’s earned the right to do so.  The blues is Stauffer’s life in many respects.

One of Mishawaka, Indiana’s most unlikely landmarks is the famed Midway Tavern & Dancehall.  All the blues greats have played the place, with hundreds of blues artist photos lining the walls, and its back room being well-known as one of the best in the business.  Stauffer, obviously, is a regular show attendee there, and he similarly works the room continuously, glad-handing with everyone, making up for time with someone he hasn’t seen in ages, and taking a turn at the microphone when invited on-stage.  He’s appeared there with Michael Burks, Mississippi Heat, Deanna Bogart, The Blue Lunch Band, Barrelhouse Chuck, Pinetop Perkins, and Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers, a group who he counts among his most favorite to perform with; together they have set the room on fire! 

So, in addition to his radio work, performing, and being everywhere the blues is in the area, Stauffer also finds time to attend larger scale shows at venues like South Bend’s Morris Performing Arts Center, and the annual Chicago Blues Festival.  Didn’t I say that he was everywhere?  And, when he is performing on some stage or away at a blues festival, his devotion to his radio audience does not wane.  No, he pre-records his weekend show or shows so as to not let his eager audience down.

Stauffer was also instrumental in continuing the area’s strong blues backdrop by being greatly involved for a dozen years with the St. Joseph County Park’s Blues and Ribs Festival.  As if he needed even more blues in his life!

It should be noted here that while Stauffer has been busy with all his blues projects, he held down day jobs until just in the very recent past, having worked both in a railroad position (where he suffered a terrible leg injury), and then for the St. Joseph County Parks Department, from which he retired.

Asking Stauffer point-blank what are his favorite blues clubs and venues must be like trying to ask a kid what is his favorite flavor of ice cream; all of them, right?  However, he cites South Bend’s Vegetable Buddies, Mishawaka’s Center Street Blues Café and Midway Tavern & Dancehall, Chicago’s Kingston Mines, Biddy Mulligan’s, and Buddy Guy’s Legends.

His favorite blues artists?  If he had to pick two that especially move his soul, he says they’re Albert Collins and Koko Taylor. 

Through everything up to the present day in Stauffer’s life, it is obvious why the blues spoke (and continues to speak) to him.  His early adopted familial struggles, the loss of his teen years, the great combination of the highest joy and what must have certainly been difficulty into assimilating into his biological family (and the subsequent resulting losses thereof), the difficulties associated with his railroad injury, and the general day-to-day stressors all folks feel seem to fuel Stauffer’s ever-growing non-stop zest and love of the blues.  He has worked hard; very, very hard to overcome the struggles in his life, and continues to do so.  He has forgiven.  And, he continues to move forward.  Always, he moves forward.

The blues has been Stauffer’s constant companion through it all, and he firmly embraces it and nurtures it, as it touches way down deep in his heart and soul.  When he was commemorated by South Bend’s mayor in for his passion for the blues, no more a deserved honor could be rightfully bestowed.  Nor could his 2012 Blues Foundation “Keeping The Blues Alive” honor could’ve been more justly provided.  The man has given his life to the blues.

Stauffer truly believes that the blues is in a great place, citing the 50 years and 75 years of existence of Alligator Records and Delmark Records, respectively, and fully subscribes to the opinion that blues greats such as Muddy Waters would want the music to plow forward.

The Blues Revue on Saturdays and Sundays remains a passion of the highest order for Stauffer.  He aches to keep the blues alive through the medium.  He is driven by an almost fanatical desire to make his staunch listenership’s days better by allowing them a time and space to testify to the blues, wherever they may be. 

Stauffer is at that point in life where the lightbulb turned on with the realization that he is achieving his calling.  Yes, the music speaks for itself, but it’s so much more than that.  Stauffer is the channel between the music and the delivery of it to his broad fan base.  What you hear on the radio is the guy you meet in-person.  And, having done blues radio, I can tell you with certainty that that quality cannot be faked.

And, I can affirm that due to his travails in life, Stauffer has a calling to help others.  None other than this writer has been on the receiving end of his compassion when times were tough.

As Stauffer has been known to say, “Let’ testify to the blues!”  Hey, let’s testify to Stauffer and all he has overcome in his life and for what he does for all blues fans everywhere!  Almost four decades of presenting the best of traditional and contemporary blues has earned him our respect and admiration.  Here’s to 39 more!