Undoubtedly, for a quite large number of years, the reference website in the Spanish blues outlook is “La Taberna del Blues” www.tabernablues.com. One of the pioneers Spanish blues webs in Internet, it offers a wide and detailed information of a huge amount of subjects, all related to the blues. Gig calendar, articles, photographs, Spanish bands, news, blues history, blues in the media, pictures… are some of the sections you will find on this well documented site. One of the “cooks” of this enormous project is Mabel González Bolaño, “Lady Blues”, a great enthusiastic, good and tireless worker, the best traveller fellow I could find for this “crazy blues love” both share and who, kindly, answers to some exclusive questions for La Hora del Blues.

Roser: Hello Mabel, first of all I would like you tell us what was before in your life, the blues, computers or the web.

Mabel: There was exactly in the order you mentioned. At the age of 7 the Blues, when I was 19, computers and finally the web has combined all these interests in an almost perfect form.

R. ¿Do you remember which was the first blues record you got?
M: Well, yes, it was Koko Taylor’s “Earthshaker”. The song “I’m A Woman” really impressed me and since then on, I hooked on the Blues, but to be honest… there is nothing as the first time you buy your first record with your own money, or with “your Sunday pay”, that in my case curiously was also a Koko Taylor album, “From The Heart of to Woman”.

R. And today… what sounds in your record player? Which are your favourite bluesmen or blueswomen? What style of blues do you prefer? M. I wish I had a record player!. I am victim of the new technologies. I work with my computers in the network and in one of my playlist there sound a various wide range of different musicians of my favourite blues styles preferred, which answers your second question: I like Delta Blues, Texas, Chicago, Swamp Blues… and I hate British Blues (Is this politically wrong?).

R. Explain to our readers that still do not know “La Taberna del Blues”, what exactly is, which are its aims and it main objectives?
M. : “La Taberna del Blues” is a virtual tavern where blues sounds 24 hours a day, it never closes. The “Taberna” origins can be found on the wish of two friends of mine to last longer the blues nights doing and endless jam where you could learn, discover and to enjoy the blues together with other fans. And six years later, this main concept has not changed. We try to express in the screen of a monitor what you can learn, all the discoveries end enjoyment you can have. To do so, we have created different sections that month after month are fulfilled with the same thrilling commitment than the first day.

R.: How did you get to be an outstanding member of “La Taberna del Blues”?
M.: After some years of close collaboration with Chema and Ale, founders of “La Taberna”, I became a team member. That happened during a Bluescazorla Festival… impossible to find a more appropriated environment!. Since then on, we are like “the three musketeers”, although I am aware, at first they came they were afraid about the aesthetics of La Taberna del Blues… I could have painted it in rose, or fill it with small bow ribbons to give it a supposed “feminine” touch. Nothing to do with what happened!. The true thing was I got them mad with crazy new ideas about computers, complicated forums, Internet providers and many other technical terms that made them look at me with a certain surprise and astonishment, but they always trusted in me. In fact we never take a decision without asking beforehand for the other team members opinion.

R. Are you still being three people in the team or are there more people involved?. How do you distribute the work? How many hours do you spend in La Taberna per day?
M.: At this moment people working in La Taberna are Eugenio Moirón, Chema, Ale and myself. We are ñlucky to have help and collaboration of different people like Héctor Martínez, who shares contents with us, and also with other webs administrators, or David Garcia who always helps us with difficult translations. We have also some good friends and photographers who provide us if we need images for the web, or supply us different interviews, articles and other general contents.
As it normally happens, there is always some people who charges with more work than the others. This is a normal thing if you work in a team.
It is difficult to say how many hours we work in La Taberna right now, because we are still recovering ourselves after a quite radical change. Sometimes we spend many days working the whole day in it and sometimes we are in vacation. We closed the forum but I think it was a right necessary decision that will be an inflection point for La Taberna.

R.: Recently you have completely changed “La Taberna del Blues” web structure. How is the web distributed now? What sections have you included? Was it a difficult decision to close the Forum, after so many successful years?
M.: The new Web/Blog is leaving again standing. Basically it has the same sections than the old one but we have redistributed them. We still have to work hard on them and add new ones too. We are facing time of an intense work It would be pretentious of my site if I said we have a good structure now, because, honestly speaking, everything is now simply basted. But there is –and this is important- a good base.
A web with so many years on its back that has suffered so many technical changes, needs a devoted attention. And we are all applying to do so.
It was a sad decision to close the forum of “La Taberna del Blues” but it is more sad to keep a blues forum of blues where people did not talk about blues. I believe that was a wise decision. As wise as necessary. I know some people have not understood it and do no agree but it is not our job, we do not get a salary and e have not to account for what we do. It was a free forum that has stood the same time we have stood too.

R.: Do you know if you have non Spanish readers? If so, which is the approximate average and from what countries do you receive more visits?
M.: Spain, Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Peru, and from not Spamish speaking countries: France, Germany, USA, Belgium, Italy, Holland, England and Russia.

R.: Do you think blues is more popular now in Spain than it was before?. Do you think blues fans have increased by now?
M.: Blues is so popular as it was some years ago. The only difference is that before we did not have so many options to chose and now we put them aside. It seems like if, after so many years of hunger, now they have caused us indigestion. It makes no sense but things are like this. We have much more blues bands, festivals, clubs, gigs and venues, but all of us blues fans do not feel involved with and do not respond as it should be expected. Perhaps it is the economical crisis or the coffee. I have no idea.

R.: How are the economical expenses of “La Taberna del Blues”? Do you get benefits or do you lose money?
M: La Taberna is not a business so we do not get incomes. We willingly pay for upkeeping expenses. There have always been the most senseless ideas about our incomes. It is really curious.

R.: Which is the most original question or the funniest anecdote since you are in “la Taberna del Blues”?
M.: One funny thing is to be in other blues chats of talking with people who do not know who I am, and let the explain to me me that “La Taberna del Blues” is a great blues site, without knowing what means for me “La Taberna del Blues”.

R.: Which are your immediate and the medium term plans in “La Taberna del Blues”?
M.: We are now updating the Web. “La Taberna” began at a time that, technically speaking, Internet was a very limited tool. Nothing to do with the options we have now. To manage contents has become much more difficult than it was before and we need to gradually modify the old ones and at the same time, enter new ones. Now we are overbooked with work. On the next future we want to change the design and format. We also want to be able to publish news, articles and bands outlines. Some are becoming now visible and other ones are still waiting, like the Blues Bands section, Blues in the Media or the Links ones. We are doing a hard work in the dark, that cannot be seen yet which perhaps gives the impression of a certain neglection, but this is essential for “La Taberna” evolution that will certainly benefit all of us, fans, bands and the team too.

R.: Do you want to say anything more to our readers?.
M.: About Blues? About the Web? I say everything in “La Taberna”… ha ha. I do not want to abuse!.

R: Thanks Mabel for all your kindness and…. long life to “La Taberna del Blues” and all its “bartenders”!
M.: Thanks to you for your interest and for the good work you are also doing for the blues in your website “La Hora del Blues”. Let me finally say that if we want to do something good for blues, we should all of us collaborate instead doing it as a competition, as if we were a multinational firm only trying to strongly compete to be in the first places. My God, we are all in the same ship!

Long life to the Blues!