The 20th annual W.C. Handy Awards, the Grammys of the Blues, have come and gone, and once again, the winners were about as surprising as the sunrise. Don’t get me wrong: unlike their big-money counterparts, the Handys (which graced Memphis’ Orpheum Theater this past May 27th) are always given to worthwhile artists. It’s just that they sometimes have an inbred, been-there, done-that quality. In fact, the biggest news out of this year’s ceremony was that Koko Taylor had snagged her 18th award (this time for Traditional Blues-Female Artist), putting her in a tie with Buddy Guy for most Handys ever.

The rest of the awards were similarly anti-climactic: B.B. King snagged the top award, Blues Entertainer of the Year, as well as Best Contemporary Album for Blues On the Bayou. Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers walked away with Blues Band of the Year honors, and Susan Tedeschi went home with both Best New Artist and Contemporary Blues-Female. Sure, maybe the man on the street doesn’t know Piazza or Tedeschi, but in blues circles they’re already household names. And that may be changing, too, given Tedeschi’s recent appearance on Letterman.

In other non-surprises, the always-dependable Keb’ Mo’ took home Acoustic Artist of the Year and Contemporary Male Artist of the Year, as well as a co-writer credit on the Song of the Year, "Soon As I Get Paid." The Instrumentalist winners were filled with familiar names like Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Pinetop Perkins and Charlie Musselwhite, while Etta James and Bobby "Blue" Bland split the Blues/ Soul category (with Etta taking home the Best Album prize as well). And sadly, Louisiana blues artists didn’t get near the stage this year; the closest anyone came was Shreveport’s Kenny Wayne Shepherd, who didn’t win anything but did coax his guitar into an excellent tribute to mentor Stevie Ray Vaughan, with the able assistance of Vaughan’s famed backup duo, Double Trouble.

There were a few fresh announcements from behind the podium. Although he may be in a field of one, it was still nice to see Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown pick up Instrumentalist of the year in the violin category. It was likewise good to see Robert Lockwood Jr. sweep the Traditional category on the strength of his fine I Got To Find Me A Woman album. The nicest surprise was the addition of the new "Artist Deserving Wider Recognition" award, which was nabbed in its first year by Austin mainstay (but relative unknown) W.C. Clark.

That’s probably just as well for the Tennessee crowd, for while Clark is an icon in his native Texas, he’s got one hell of a lot of Memphis in him as well. Clark has a soulful sound, best evidenced on 1998’s Lover’s Plea, that combines the warmth of an O.V. Wright with the darkness of Bobby "Blue" Bland and tops itself off with just a light frizzle of country twang. It’s a direct result of his upbringing. "I was raised up in the gospel neighborhood," he told OffBeat recently. "There was always gospel quartets singing, and that’s all we listened to. Whenever I had a chance to hear the blues guys, I’d sneak off somewhere and find them. We sometimes listened to blues at home, only when my stepfather decided he wanted to listen, but we mainly only listened to hillbilly and gospel."

Was it that hard to hear the blues in 50’s Texas?

"The old rules, the old way, was if you playin’ the blues, then you doing the devil’s work. Eventually, people figured out that there’s still the same notes there, and they’re true. The notes don’t tell lies, they just make sounds. They’re not true or false, they’re just sounds. Besides, everyone’s just talking about love."

Love is a central ingredient of what Clark does. On Lover’s Plea, like his version of Johnnie Taylor’s "Changing My Life With Your Love," or the stately, heartbreaking original "Are You Here, Are You There," which was supposedly written after the tragic 1997 death of W.C.’s drummer and fiancée in a single accident.

Clark disputes that notion: "Actually, I didn’t write that song after the accident, it was before," he says. "I wrote it because I had a dream, the kind that when you wake up you all shaking, ’cause it’s real. I had one of those kind of dreams, the accident just followed that," he says, cryptically.

Still, he soldiered on, as all great bluesmen do. "The whole reality was that actually it was so heavy, I just had to go ahead on and do what I had to do. The reality was around me at all times. No way you can just cut it off."

Although he emphasizes positivity and exudes warmth, especially through his infectious cackle, tragedy is no stranger to Clark’s life. The KWS/Double Trouble set at the Handys must have been especially poignant, given W.C.’s close relationship with Stevie Ray. He was a part of Stevie’s band and even co-wrote one of his biggest hits, "Cold Shot."

"[I had] a wonderful friendship," says Clark, "not only with Stevie but the whole family. It was a neat experience for me, who had been up and down the road, it was like watching the same movie over again, just different characters but the same dialogue."

Nevertheless, it’s a script the veteran bluesman doesn’t mind revisiting. "Lately I been at it eight, nine years pretty steady," he says, laughing. "It’s just that you gotta do something before you die! So I might as well be traveling and playing my guitar. And I got one of the most loyal dogs you ever wanna see in your life. He’s here right now. He’ll say ‘gimme a little hug,’ and I’ll hug him for a little bit, and he’ll wet-nose me."

So all you need is a guitar and a dog, sometimes?

"Yeah," he cackles. "He’s wet-nosing me right now." (You can find out more about W.C. at wcclark.com and more about the Handys at handyawards.com.)

While Clark traverses the country, other Handy awards recipients and performers are keeping busy. The aforementioned Susan Tedeschi is on the NASCAR Rocks Tour with The Allman Brothers, Mary Cutrufello and Mark May. This blues-rock feast rolls into the Saenger on July 21st.

Soul/Blues Male and Female Artists of the Year, Bobby "Blue" Bland and Etta James, will be in the Superlounge area of the Essence Festival in the Superdome on July 2nd and 4th, respectively. Also, Double Trouble back up another Texas guitar slinger, Debbie Davies, on her new Shanachie CD, Tales From the Austin Hotel, due out July 20. (Davies, it should be noted, received the Handy for "Best Contemporary Artist-Female" in 1997.)

Other notable happenings around town: Mem Shannon and the Membership bring their blues-verite soul into Storyville on July 1st and also perform at the Montreal Jazz Fest; Tab Benoit hits the Rock’N’Bowl (Mid-City Lanes) with his Cajun-fried take on the blues on the 10th, and the legend of legends (and fine Chicago bluesman in his own right) Chuck Berry serenades the Boomtown gamblers on the West Bank on July 3rd. You boogie-woogie freaks may also wish to stop by Margaritaville on the 23rd for the release party of the new CD, Whiskey and a Beer To Go. It’s a covers-filled party album that features locals Joe Krown and John Carey.