Old School Party Music

OLD SCHOOL PARTY MUSIC!

ROB STONE

Deeply rooted in traditional blues, yet delivering high-energy performances with a thoroughly contemporary impact, harp-playing vocalist Rob Stone is one of the busiest bandleaders on the blues scene today. Stone’s wide-bodied harmonica attack and cool, streetwise vocals display an unshakable foundation in Chicago blues tradition, and his penchant for house-rocking tempos make his concerts an exhilarating experience.

Stone cut his musical teeth in the gritty clubs of Chicago’s north, south and west sides, learning from the masters. He has headlined international tours – playing clubs, concerts and festivals throughout Europe and Japan, landed an endorsement from Seydel harmonicas (he was previously endorsed by Hohner), and opened major shows for B.B. King, Etta James, Robert Cray, James Cotton, Los Lobos, Jose Feliciano, Sheryl Crow to name a handful.

Since relocating to Los Angeles a few years ago, West Coast blues fans have eagerly embraced his swinging and hard-driving, full-toned Chicago blues with the same fervor that he long inspired around the Windy City. Rob’s been a busy man in his new digs, recording and touring regularly with iconic saxophone blaster Big Jay McNeely, keyboard legend Barry Goldberg, and as vocalist/harmonica player in the Electric Flag Reunion Band with Barry, Harvey Mandel and Nick Gravenites, He has split bills with Charlie Musselwhite, Junior Watson, and James Harman, and tapped to perform alongside rock ‘n roll royalty including: Slash, Billy Gibbons, and Nancy Wilson (of Heart), and others.

Over the years, Stone has performed and recorded with a dazzling host of musical greats: Robert Jr. Lockwood, Hubert Sumlin, David “Honeyboy” Edwards, Pinetop Perkins, Jimmy Rogers, David Myers, Henry Gray, Jody Williams, Koko Taylor, Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, Eddie Shaw, John Primer, Willie Kent, Bonnie Lee, Big Time Sarah, Benny Turner, David Maxwell, Eddie Taylor Jr., Billy Branch, Ryan Bingham, Little Smokey Smothers, Johnny B. Moore, Katherine Davis, Johnny “Yard Dog” Jones, Taildragger, Dennis Binder, Eddie Kirkland, Mark Naftlin, Corky Siegel, Sugar Blue, Lil’ Ed, James Wheeler, Willie Buck, Billy Flynn, Joe Louis Walker, Lurrie Bell, Roosevelt Booba Barnes, Jim Belushi, Bruce Willis, Arthur Adams, Philip Walker, Denny Freeman, Detroit Junior, Lovie Lee, Gene Taylor, Jimmie Lee Robinson, Aaron Moore, Robert Randolph, and many more.

Gotta Keep Rollin’, Rob’s latest CD release for Vizztone Records featuring Eddie Shaw, Henry Gray, and John Primer, racked up sterling reviews as it sailed high on the International Blues Radio Charts and Roots Music Report Radio Charts (peaking at #2), and he has two other exciting albums in the pipeline—one recorded at Sun Studios in Memphis, and another recorded in Tokyo with a stripped-down acoustic combo of world-class Japanese musicians. Both albums are set for a worldwide spring release.

Stone got started on his harmonica-blowing odyssey at age 18. He slipped into a blues joint in his native Boston to check out harp legend Charlie Musselwhite and was instantly transfixed. Rob bought his first harp the next day and immediately began emulating classic recording –– later studying with ex-Muddy Waters harmonica man Jerry Portnoy and and playing regularly with rockabilly legend Sleepy LaBeef. Relocating to Colorado, Stone honed his technique on bandstands around the Denver and Colorado Springs area, learning to tame riotous crowds in the Southwest biker bar circuit.

Then in 1993, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame drummer Sam Lay––the mighty engine that powered over 40 Howlin’ Wolf Chess recordings and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band during their mid-‘60s heyday––rolled into town with his own band. After meeting at the KRCC radio station where Sam was being interviewed, the blues legend invited the young harpist to sit in and dug what he heard, hiring Rob on the spot.

Touring with Lay’s band introduced Stone to blues fans worldwide and allowed him to refine his approach to the harmonica and music in general. Lay’s experience with Little Walter, Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson and others instilled a strong emphasis on the tight Chicago ensemble sound –– stressing musical interplay, responsive improvisation, dynamics, intensity, and inventive arrangements. Lay has since said of Stone’s playing: “I have worked with many harmonica players, and he turned out to be the best. That cat is a monster harmonica player and musician!”

In addition to continuing work with Sam Lay, Stone became a “go to” player in the competitive Chicago blues scene –– performing and recording with many of the genre’s legendary acts. Learning to play Chicago blues directly from the masters who created it was a profound apprenticeship. “Every facet of my approach to music is to some extent influenced by playing alongside my heroes. These experiences were enormously important to my development,” says Stone.

Rob soon stepped up to form his own band, the C-Notes, with veteran players Chris James, Patrick Rynn and Willie “The Touch” Hayes. Their debut CD, No Worries (1998), earned considerable critical acclaim. In 2003, they signed with the Earwig Music Company label to release Just My Luck (Nominated for a Chicago Music Award in the Best Blues Album category). That same year, Rob appeared in the Martin Scorsese-produced “Godfathers and Sons” episode of The Blues series that aired nationwide on PBS Television.

In 2010, Stone returned to the CD racks with Back Around Here, again for Earwig. The album, featuring Sam Lay, Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, Aaron Moore, David Maxwell, and others, remained on the Roots Music Radio Charts for 54 weeks and was named in Living Blues’ Top 50 Albums of 2010. Soon after, he was featured in the documentary Sam Lay in Bluesland, as well as Six Generations of the Blues from Mississippi to Chicago (alongside Honeyboy Edwards, John Primer, and Big Jack Johnson).

Since relocating to L.A., Rob’s blues-blasting harmonica artistry has gained him some new fans of a high-profile nature. But there’s no need for longtime fans to worry about Rob Stone going Hollywood on them. He remains committed to keeping the traditional Chicago blues flame burning brightly while bringing his own inventive twists to his blistering sound.