paul.gray | All About Blues Music

Danny Bryant

Heavily featured in such trade publications as Guitarist Magazine, Guitar Techniques and Guitar And Bass, Danny Bryant is the kind of fleet-fingered guitar master whose appeal would seem limited only to fourteen-year-old aspiring guitar heroes. But there is actually much more to Bryant than his ability to perform amazing feats on a set of steel…

Benny Turner

Having blues legend Freddie King as an older brother was a great way into a successful life as a blues musician. But for Benny Turner, the path to the top has contained numerous twists and turns before satisfaction was attainable. In other words, his life has been a lot like a blues song. Coming from…

Bad Influence

Don’t let the dangerous name fool you. Bad Influence isn’t a blues combo your parents would be worried about you seeing – unless your folks have a problem with you having a good time. Bad Influence is a party band, the kind you might find playing a frat party or down the street at a…

Larry Griffith

Bluesman Larry Griffith grew up with a wide range of musical styles calling out for his attention. He lists rocker Jimi Hendrix, jazz legends John Coltrane and Billy Strayhorn as inspirations, and cut his teeth musically around the likes of James Brown and Hank Ballard, while acknowledging the role of country music as also playing…

Ruzz Guitar

For anyone seeking a young, vibrant face on the blues scene who represents the dramatic changes taking place in a genre seeped in tradition need look no further than Ruzz Guitar. His deft embrace of social media and recent cultural trends can be a lesson to any blues artist struggling to stay relevant in a…

James Armstrong

You may not be a believer in fate, the idea that our destinies are linked to the whim of the universe. But James Armstrong’s journey in the world of the blues may well make a believe out of you. And if not, it will at least convince you that the man is gifted with amazing…

Mike Zito

Mike Zito’s emergence as a force in the blues world is confirmation of how hard work, talent and drive can compensate for a rough beginning in life. The phrase ‘singing the blues’ is often used as a metaphor for crying and complaining about troubles in one’s life. But Mike Zito has made a life for…

Eugene ‘Hideaway’ Bridges

Any blues fan familiar with the tradition of the traveling guitar man, whose home is wherever he’s found a gig that week, should find much to admire and revere in Eugene ‘Hideaway’ Bridges. Eugene is the 21st century version of the itinerant blues man. He’s a nomadic musician who, at any given point in time…

Stevie Nimmo

Born and bred in Glasgow, Scotland, Stevie Nimmo’s guitar sounds as raw and emotive as any guitar player’s you’ll ever encounter. And there is sweetness and warmth in his tone as well as anger and regret. In other words, Stevie Nimmo plays the blues. And thanks to a near tragic twist of fate, his playing…

Kaz Hawkins

The soulful blues-shouting mama is a time-honored tradition in the genre. And Kaz Hawkins seems on a mission to keep the tradition alive. Although the woman herself hails from Northern Ireland, she boasts a strong and resilient voice that comes straight from the Mississippi delta. And if the combination of an Irish background and a…