Blues/Traditional
Among the artists who rose to national prominence out of Nashville's fertile blues and R&B scene of the mid-1950s to late 1960s, few displayed the fiery intensity or matched the popularity of legendary vocalist/songwriter Earl Gaines. As a recording artist, session leader and arranger for the famed Excello Records, Gaines' booming, churchy tenor and swinging melodies clearly established him as a torchbearer of tough Southern soul and blues. Beginning as a vocalist with Louis Brooks & His Hi-Toppers, Gaines' smash 1955 Excello hit "It's Love Baby (24 Hours a Day)" sold over a million copies and became a standard covered by Bobby Bland, Ruth Brown and Delbert McClinton. Over the following two decades, Gaines' star continued to rise through releases for Champion, King/Deluxe, Hollywood, Ace and Sound Stage 7 before he retired from music in the late 1970s. With unwavering encouragement from Nashville-based producer/guitarist/songwriter Fred James, Gaines reemerged with new albums on Magnum and Appaloosa Records and undertook several successful tours with past Excello labelmates Roscoe Shelton and Clifford Curry. Now, with the release of Everything's Gonna Be Alright (Black Top Records), Earl Gaines is back and unstoppable, bringing his infectious rhythms and smoldering, soulful vocals to fans everywhere.
Mike Henderson was born in Independence, Mo., into a household humming with the music of everyone from John Lee Hooker to Tommy Dorsey. Beginning with the harmonica at the age of 5 and graduating to guitar at age 12, he dove head-first into music. He played rock 'n' roll in garage bands during his teenage years before falling in with the bluegrass and old-time country music crowd at the University of Missouri. He played fiddle and mandolin for seven years in a bluegrass band and then joined a blues band, the Bel Airs, touring the Midwest for five years. Henderson moved to Nashville in 1985. He joined a band called The Roosters, and it wasn't long before offers came pouring in for studio work. Randy Travis, Trisha Yearwood, The Dixie Chicks and Patty Loveless have recorded Henderson's songs. His song "Powerful Stuff" was covered by the Fabulous Thunderbirds for the Cocktail soundtrack in 1988. Henderson released Country Music Made Me Do It on RCA in 1994. His first effort for Dead Reckoning, Edge of the Night, went to No. 1 on the Americana chart. Subsequent blues releases First Blood and Thicker Than Water earned several Nashville Music Awards, a W.C. Handy nomination and Best Slide Guitarist of 1998 Award.
Born in 1936, Johnny Jones traveled to Memphis when he was only 13 to witness his first live performance by blues legend Joe Hill Louis. In the early 1950s, he moved with his mother to Chicago, where he was exposed to all the blues greats of the era. In his early adulthood, he shared an apartment with harmonica player Walter McCollum, and they formed a small group, working regularly with Junior Wells and Freddy King. Soon thereafter, Jones moved to Nashville and became a studio guitarist. He formed the Imperial Sevens in the early 1960s and was a regular at the New Era club. Jones became the bandleader for several different local television shows during the 1960s, including Night Train and The!!!Beat. In 1968, he formed the King Casuals, who recorded a number of singles for the Peachtree label. The year 2002 saw the release of Jones' second solo album, Blues Is in the House, on the Northern Blues Music label. A soulful singer and dynamic, multifaceted guitarist, Jones plays everything from bluesy solos to explosive rock licks. He recently enjoyed fresh recognition with the "Night Train to Nashville: Music City Rhythm and Blues 1945-1970" exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame.
James "Nick" Nixon is one of the foremost vocalists in the blues world, as well as being an outstanding guitarist and bandleader. As a velvet-voiced blues/R&B entertainer, Nixon has gone from being a Chess recording artist in the '70s to a Black Magic label artist with the acclaimed 2001 recording No End to the Blues. Nixon has been the recipient of the Keep the Blues Alive Award from The Blues Foundation, the highest award given in the field of blues education. As a longtime member of The New Imperials, an act with a 45-year history, he has worked with many of the top performers in the world, including Kimberley Locke, an American Idol contest winner. Nixon is still remembered by many as a friend and sometime stage-mate of the late, great Jimi Hendrix. Nixon befriended Hendrix and his pal (and later to be Band of Gypsies member) Billy Cox when they arrived in Nashville in the early '60s. To this day, Nixon often writes and performs with the still formidable Cox. He retired from Metro Parks, where he was a guitar instructor for 35 years, but he continues to share his gifts, performing with some of the finest musicians in Music City.
Jonell Mosser "stole" out of Bowling Green, Ky., heading to Nashville in 1985. She was in high demand as a backup singer, making records with Etta James, Rodney Crowell, Wynonna, Patti Smyth, B.B. King, Vince Gill, Waylon Jennings and Ringo Starr. In time she hit the road doing short tours, sometimes solo with one guitar or with her band, Enough Rope. In between she played gigs as diverse as Farm Aid and the Nashville Ballet. Mid-2002 witnessed the flowering of a focused Jonell in touch with her strengths, toughening up her soft spots, rocking through night after good night in strong-voiced, clear-eyed fashion. Soon after, RockUs Records came calling. By mid-2003, the team was in place and the songs were in hand. Beautiful music was made. Songs and vocals were contributed by the likes of Amy Rigby, Rodney Crowell and John Hiatt. Rich with magnetic melodies and compelling lyrics that live, breathe, laugh, cry, dance and think out loud, Time Will Do the Talkin' literally speaks for itself.
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