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Episode 4 - Guitar Slingers
Host Joe Louis Walker welcomes guitarists Smokin' Joe Kubek (with B'Nois King) and Sonny Rhodes. The life of Blind Lemon Jefferson is also examined.
Joe Louis Walker represents the next generation of bluesmen. Eschewing traditional paths to blues superstardom, Walker began playing guitar in his hometown of San Francisco during the tumultuous 60's. With his roommate Mike Bloomfield, Walker jammed with the Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix and other stalwarts of the San Francisco scene. Walker made brief forays to Chicago and the Pacific Northwest to absorb the music scenes there before returning to California in 1975. Burned out on blues, Walker adopted spiritual music, singing with the gospel group New Corinthians for the next decade. Twenty years after his start, Walker went back to his blues roots and released his first album Cold is the Night, a stunning example of Walker's talent as both guitarist and singer. Walker stands today as one of the best all around blues artists performing.
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Smokin' Joe Kubek is an astounding guitarist from Texas, a place that's home to more guitarists per square inch than anywhere else on the planet. Kubek began playing his unique blend of sizzling, blues-rock guitar at the tender age of 14, backing up such legendary musicians as Freddie King. When Kubek met vocalist B'nois King in the late 80's, they formed the first edition of the Smokin' Joe Kubek Band and released their debut disc in 1991. A steady release of raucous, roadhouse rocking blues since then and a tireless performing schedule to support their records has proven to be a winning strategy. Smokin' Joe Kubek Band is a hugely successful road band that's winning more and more converts every year.
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As a "disciple of the blues," Sonny Rhodes is one of the most charming bluesmen one could ever meet. With an infectious smile, an optimistic spirit, and a sense of style all his own, Sonny Rhodes provides an eloquent approach to blues music that makes his shows so darned infectious. Growing up as the youngest child of Texan sharecroppers, Sonny Rhodes was exposed to a wide variety of country, gospel, and blues music. Inspired by the sounds of lap steel guitar in country music, Sonny Rhodes took an interest in this instrument, and incorporated it into his own brand of blues music. With a colorful career that's included work as a radio disc jockey, an advertising salesman for a metropolitan newspaper, a mailman for the U.S. Navy, a laborer for General Motors, and a bass player for both Freddie King and Albert Collins, Sonny Rhodes eventually found his niche as a solo artist. He's had enormous success in Europe, where he's released many different albums not available in America. He's a versatile singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist with plenty of great stories to share, and we're honored to bring him aboard Blues Express®.
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