"Little Walter Jacobs was one of the best singers of the blues and a blues harp player par excellence"
Rolling Stone Keith Richards
Three of the finest harmonica players on the current blues scene gather to pay tribute to harp virtuoso and innovator Little Walter Jacobs. Billy Boy Arnold, Mark Hummel, Sugar Ray Norcia are featured on Blind Pig Record's tribute recording entitled "Remembering Little Walter". Tonight's show will also feature guitarists Little Charlie Baty & Anson Funderburgh, RW Grisby/bass and famed Texas drummer, Wes Starr.
BILLY BOY ARNOLD
www.allmusic.com/artist/billy-boy-arnold...
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"Little Walter Jacobs was one of the best singers of the blues and a blues harp player par excellence"
Rolling Stone Keith Richards
Three of the finest harmonica players on the current blues scene gather to pay tribute to harp virtuoso and innovator Little Walter Jacobs. Billy Boy Arnold, Mark Hummel, Sugar Ray Norcia are featured on Blind Pig Record's tribute recording entitled "Remembering Little Walter". Tonight's show will also feature guitarists Little Charlie Baty & Anson Funderburgh, RW Grisby/bass and famed Texas drummer, Wes Starr.
BILLY BOY ARNOLD
www.allmusic.com/artist/billy-boy-arnold
Billy Boy Arnold, a contemporary of James Cotton and Jr. Wells. learned harp at the feet of the legendary John Lee"Sonny Boy" Williamson at the age of 12. He went on to record singles for VeeJay - "Wish You Would", "Ain't Got You" and "You Got Me Wrong" with an all-star band including Jody Williams, Otis Spann and Syl Johnson.
Arnold released his debut CD on Electro Fi Records - CONSOLIDATED MOJO, produced by Hummel with backing by the Blues Survivors. Billy's most recent CD is a Tribute to Big Bill Bronzy, featuring guitarist,Billy Flynn.
MARK HUMMEL
www.markhummel.com
Hummel has been on the road since 1984 and released 17 albums and CDs. His latest, a Little Walter Tribute BLUE AND LONESOME. Hummel has recorded for Flying Fish,Tone Cool and ElectroFi Records, his labels since the early 90s. Mark has been nominated three years in a row for Best Harmonica by the BMA Awards. He has been performing and producing the BLUES HARMONICA BLOWOUTS in California since 1991.
"Mark Hummel came of age in the early 70s, at the height of rock and roll. Like many of his peers he went and bought a harmonica and hasn't stopped playing since. A specialist in West Coast Blues, he's a seasoned showman who knows more than a thing or two about how to please an audience." says THE NEW YORKER
SUGAR RAY NORCIA
www.sugarrayandthebluetones.com/
Sugar Ray Norcia started the popular East Coast blues band THE BLUETONES 30 years ago with guitarist Ronnie Earl. They backed Big
Walter Horton, Big Joe Turner, Jimmie Rogers, Otis Rush, JB Hutto & countless others in the early '80s all over the North East. They've
recorded two albums for Rounder Records.
In 1991 Norcia hooked up with Roomful of Blues and toured the world with the 11 piece band, appearing on their Grammy-nominated Rounder
release TURN IT ON,TURN IT UP. Norcia also recorded the Grammy nominated Telarc release SUPER HARPS during his Roomful tenure with
harmonica heavywieights Charlie Musselwhite, James Cotton and Billy Branch. In 2001, Norcia reunited the Bluetones with guitarist Kid
Bangham, and later Monster Mike Welsh. The Bluetones have recorded four CDs on Severn Records, their latest is titled SWINGING.
LITTLE CHARLIE BATY
Little Charlie Baty is the former leader and masterful guitarist from Alligator Records recording act "Little Charlie & The Nightcats". Charlie and the Nightcats have recorded 12 albums on Alligator and have been one of the West Coast's most successful blues acts, touring the globe for over 25 years. They've played major festivals you and every blues joint from Maine to Spain.
Guitar World declares, "Baty's straight blues playing is eye-popping...he stretches solos to the breaking point, skittering on the edge, where one wrong note will bring the whole thing crashing down." "Little Charlie Baty plays as much guitar as Eric Clapton and Buddy Guy put together," raves The Village Voice. "He is one of the swiftest, most fluent guitarists working in any genre".
ANSON FUNDERBURGH
Anson Funderburgh has earned the respect of artists Delbert McClinton, Boz Scaggs, Jimmie & Stevie Ray Vaughan and Ronnie Earl. Through the years, these musicians have called on Anson to lend his tremendous guitar talents to their projects.
Funderburgh recorded with the Fabulous Thunderbirds on their Butt Rockin' album, and went solo in 1981, when the New Orleans-based BlackTop label released Talk to You by Hand, the label's first release. He continued his association in the '90s with Black Top releasing Tell Me What I Want to Hear (1991), Live at Grand Emporium (1995), and That's What They Want (1997). After releasing nine albums on Black Top, Funderburgh released Change in my Pocket for Bullseye Blues, which won several W.C. Handy Awards.
“Funderburgh remains a musician’s musician. He’ll explode into a fiery and melodic solo, and then seamlessly recede into a song at just the right moment to propel the rhythm...he makes sure the songs both breathe and burn...a band that truly understands the essence of the genre.” - Blues Revue
"None of the younger crop of blues guitarist come close as Anson does to achieving the classic Stratocaster tone defined by Otis Rush in the '50's and Magic Sam in the '60's. The Rockets have landed and Anson is at the bridge." - Guitar Player Magazine
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