***Norman Sylvester, King of the Blues, watches out for his kingdom***

**The Boogie Cat**

Article by Claire Levine
*Color photos by Norm Eder*
The last sentence on Norman Sylvester’s website bio page is this: The Boogie Cat is your friend.
And that about sums it up. Just by nature of you breathing and walking this earth, Norman, The Boogie Cat, will consider you a friend and do whatever he can to help. We are so lucky that he lives in Portland, and that he brings his music and his love to all of us following his 80th birthday, as he has done all the previous years of his life.

Family, Community, Music

In 1957, 12-year-old Norman left the Louisiana bayou with his family to live in Portland. While the move from an all-Black rural southern community to a predominantly white northern city was a jolt, the family settled in quickly.

In 1959, his parents bought the North Portland house they would live in for the rest of their lives, and in which one of his sisters lives today. And Norman found himself in the middle of one of the most music-rich neighborhoods on the West Coast. From the numerous clubs to the Black service organizations to the churches, music was everywhere.

Norman said, “You knew every family member in your neighborhood back in the day, and it seemed like everyone could play instruments and sing really well, too.”

Norman 1963

In high school, Norman and his friend would get to Jefferson High School early to play music in the hallways while the students entered. He continued performing in blues, funk and soul while working in the trucking industry, using the skills he learned at Jefferson High in heavy equipment mechanics. Full-time jobs allowed him to help raise his seven children.

After the last company he worked for folded, Norman decided 9 to 5 was no longer the way to go. He set up Boogie Cat Production.

“It became my production company, my record label, and when people found out I was free from a day job, the phone started ringing. I’m 80 years old – and the phone is still ringing.”

Norman & BB King

Norman soon became a leader in Portland’s music scene. And despite opening for national greats like B.B. King, James Cotton, Buddy Guy and Tower of Power, Norman never was tempted to leave Portland.

That’s because his first priority has always been family and community. The promise of fame and fortune aren’t anywhere on his top 10 list.
But health care for all is way up there.

A soldier in the army fighting for medical assistance

For years, Norman and wife Paula have dedicated hours of their time taking on an unhappy fact: that we, in the richest nation on earth, fail to make sure everyone has access to health care. They are tireless volunteers for Health Care for All Oregon.

That organization: “ . . . educates about and advocates for an equitable, affordable, comprehensive, high-quality publicly funded universal healthcare system . . .”

Certainly not what we have today. And that situation motivates the countless hours he has spent in hopes that Health Care for All Oregon will become a fact, not just the name of an organization. The goal is to make Health Care for All into Oregon law, either through legislation or a ballot measure.

For about 10 years, the couple organized and promoted the annual Healthcare Blues Festival. While Norman had the musical contacts, he said, “Paula is the wind beneath my wings,” keeping everything on track and running smoothly.

The couple organized production and planning meetings, and Norman drew on his years of good will in the music community to recruit performers. “A dear friend donated the cost of the budget every year.”

While all the musicians got paid, Paula and Norman donated all their organizational skills and time. “We’ve been doing it as a labor of love.”

They no longer run a festival, but they are still dedicated contributors to the effort. His song, Healing the Healthcare Blues, has become the organization’s anthem.

About his belief in the need for universal health care, Norman said, “I've played so many celebrations of life.

“I've played benefit concerts for musicians who didn't have healthcare and had not had routine physical checkups or medical checkups because of lack of money. So, when they were told they had a problem, it was in stage four or whatever, it was really serious. And the powerful musicians community had to come together to do benefits and support the families as much as we could,” he said.

“I’ve lived it myself,” he said, struggling when he couldn’t perform because of two hip replacements. (He says he’s the bionic man.”)

And while Medicare is an attempt at health care for all, Norman said, it doesn’t cover dental and vision care – important aspects of our health that become ever more important as we age.

For all these reasons and many more, Norman said, “I've been a soldier in the army fighting for medical assistance in our country. Healthcare is a human right.”

Norman on MLK Blvd. during the Pandemic/ BLACK LIVES MATTER social justice marches.

Meeting The JWF: a perfect match

Greg Hyatt, Norman Sylvester and David Lipkind perform at last years JWF annual event, **The Next Waltz.**

In recent years, Norman has delighted The Next Waltz audiences in the Muddy Waters role. He performs Caldonia and Mannish Boy, giving us some education and making sure every one of us chimes in.

Here’s how he hooked up with The JWF and the Musicians Health & Services Program.

“I had a wonderful relationship with Adam East at the Alberta Rose Theater. I was booking shows there, like the History of Blues and Gospel. “

And Adam recruited him for The Next Waltz. That connection with the JWF and the Musician Health & Services Program became an important relationship.

When Norman’s late keyboard player, Frankie Redding, fell ill, “I reached out to the foundation. They gave Frankie a caseworker and helped him out.”

*Norman and daughter Lenanne Miller perform at LaRhonda Steele’s benefit.*

The foundation helped Norman during the Covid pandemic. And most recently, Jeremy’s team worked with Norman to organize a sold-out benefit concert in support of LaRhonda Steele’s battle with cancer. The JWF also established an on-line, tax-deductible fund specifically for La Rhonda and her family and raised $20,000 dollars for her ongoing assistance.

(Years ago, Norman saw LaRhonda perform as a back-up singer at the Waterfront Blues Festival. He recognized her talent and set her on her path to become Portland’s leading lady of the blues. They have been friends and collaborators ever since.)

Building on Norman’s long-standing commitment to health care, his understanding of how vulnerable musicians are, and his years raising money with and for other musicians, his relationship with The JWF is a match made in heaven.

**Norman Sylvester, JWF Navigator Melanie Bobbett & Jeremy Wilson - LaRhonda Steele Benefit**

“Jeremy is this wonderful, wonderful man. He's surrounded by a wonderful, wonderful staff. His mission is strong, and he's approachable and he's present for the community. I love that about him and his organization.” - Norman Sylvester

What drives him to help

At the heart of Norman’s motivation is empathy.

“That’s what my grandmother always said: ‘Walk out in their shoes and you’ll understand their pain.’

“She also told me that I was as good as any man. But, she said, ‘know one thing. Being an African American, you’re going to have to do things better than the guy standing next to you. But that’s all right. Put your best clothes on, comb your hair, shine your shoes, and walk into that room like everyone in the room owes you rent!’”

Norman said, “And that’s the way I carried my life to this day. So, walking forward with Jeremy Wilson, walking forward with Healthcare for All, with my head held high, like everyone owes us rent – good things will come from that!”

You can keep up with Norman’s busy schedule at his website. Learn more about Health Care for All Oregon, and find out how you can support this important effort.

And subscribe to TheJWF newsletter and learn how you can support The Musicians Health & Services Program here.