R. Crumb's "Truckin' My Blues Away" now available in a Hoodie

Keep on Truckin' Mama, Truckin' my Blues Away....

"Truckin' My Blues Away" a song popularized by early blues pioneer, Blind Boy Fuller, is said to have inspired R. Crumb, to create the one page comic strip "Keep On Truckin" which went on to became a moniker for a generation. This strip appeared in Zap Comix No. 1 in 1967. Robert Crumb later immortalized Blind Boy Fuller in the Yazoo Records "Heroes of the Blues" trading card collection.

Our plush hooded pullover sweatshirts are made from a blend of sustainable fibers, 55% organic cotton and 45% post consumer recycled polyester. This no fuss blend is soft to the feel and goes from dryer to your back with ease. Keeping you looking great with the added bonus of being environmentally responsible. A no pain way to make a better world for you and me!

If you plan to layer under your cool new hoodie you may want to size up one size—we do.

A Keep On Truckin' Apparel exclusive design.

R. Crumb's Blues Tour now available in a Hoodie

Our popular "Blues Tour" is now available for the first time in a hoody style, in colors White or Heather Grey, sizes S-2X. The image, just a man and his guitar, hitting the road to play his music. All soul and no money.

Our plush hooded pullover sweatshirts are made from a blend of sustainable fibers, 55% organic cotton and 45% post consumer recycled polyester. This no fuss blend is soft to the feel and goes from dryer to your back with ease. Keeping you looking great with the added bonus of being environmentally responsible. A no pain way to make a better world for you and me! Enjoy!

If you plan to layer under your cool new hoodie you may want to size up one size—we do.

Music Maker Relief Foundation & The Heroes of the Blues

We here at Keep on Truckin' Apparel are so excited and thrilled to be donating a portion of the proceeds from sales of our "Heroes of the Blues" T-Shirt Collection to Music Maker Relief Foundation. Music Maker is based out of North Carolina, their mission to "keep the bluest of the blues alive", through offering support to musicians living in poverty, and launching careers with a hand up, not a hand out. As well they preserve and present American musical traditions for the benefit of local communities, worldwide education and future generations.

Their mission seems to go hand in hand with the spirit of the "Heroes of the Blues" series. These color portraits where commissioned by Yazoo Records founder Nick Perls. Nick spent time traveling through the South, visiting second hand shops and knocking on doors to track down old blues records in the 1960's. He then remastered and preserved these old 78-rpm. His work was part of the revival of the Blues in the 60's, and brought attention to these unsung heroes.

For the "Heroes of the Blues" artwork he turned to Robert Crumb, musician and cartoonist, and for the historical text Stephen Calt, author and blues historian. The 36 card trading card set first appeared in 1980, and includes:
Charley Patton, Son House, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Mississippi John Hurt, Memphis Minnie, Blind Blake, Willie McTell, Big Bill Broonzy, Gary Davis, Skip James, Roosevelt Sykes, Cannon's Jug Stompers, Blind Willie Johnson, Tommy Johnson, Sleepy John Estes, Peetie Wheatstraw, Bo Carter, Ed Bell, Barbecue Bob, Buddy Boy Hawkins, Papa Charlie Jackson, Memphis Jug Band, Ramblin' Thomas, Sam Collins, Furry Lewis, Bo-Weavil Jackson, Rube Lacey, Mississippi Sheiks, Whistler & His Jug Band, Curley Weaver & Fred McMullen, Leroy Carr & Scrapper Blackwell, Jaybird Coleman, Frank Stokes, Clifford Gibson, Peg Leg Howell, and William Morris.

KOT Apparel - New "Heroes of the Blues" Trading Tees

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Keep On Truckin’ Apparel Launches R. Crumb “Heroes of the Blues”
T-Shirt Collection

Carlton, Oregon. Friday, November 5, 2010. Today, Keep On Truckin’ Apparel, LLC of Carlton, Oregon, announced the acquisition through Denis Kitchen Publishing of the exclusive rights to reproduce the “Heroes of the Blues” trading card color portraits as part of their apparel line. Online at www.kotapparel.com, “KOT Apparel” features the cartoon artwork of Robert Crumb.

R. Crumb of underground comics fame combined both his passions as an artist, as well as a musician, when creating the original “Heroes of the Blues” Trading Card Set for Yazoo Records in 1980. These thirty-six, beautifully detailed color portraits, feature the early great musicians and singers who were among the first to record the Blues. The original text on the back of each card was penned by famed Blues historian and author Stephen Calt.

Keep On Truckin’s website, at www.kotapparel.com, will begin the introduction of the collectable “Heroes of the Blues” t-shirts in Mid-November, planning to release them in the order in which the musicians where inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame. First releases will include: Charley Patton, Son House, Memphis Minnie, Blind Lemon Johnson and Big Bill Broonzy. Part of the proceeds from the sale of each t-shirt will be funneled back into the Blues community through a donation to Music Maker Relief Foundation.

Keep on Truckin’ currently offers two additional t-shirt collections: the “Classics Collection” featuring iconic R. Crumb illustrations; the “Mr. Natural Organics Collection” featuring Crumb’s infamous character and related imagery. All KOT Apparel is printed on-demand – based on the customer’s design preference and t-shirt style, color, and size choices. Shoppers can choose from conventional or organic cotton.

For more information, please contact:

E.R. Stephens
Founder, Owner
Keep On Truckin’ Apparel
info@kotapparel.com
http://www.kotapparel.com/

Denise Stephens
Operations Manager
Keep On Truckin’ Apparel
denise@kotapparel.com
http://www.kotapparel.com/