TBS Presents Sugar Ray and Bluetones on Saturday, March 7 at George's Roadhouse
TBS Presents
Sugar Ray and the Bluetones (Boston)
9 PM, Saturday, March 7 @ George’s Roadhouse
Tickets: $15 in advance $20 at the door
The Special Student Price (the door only, ID required): $10
Singer and harp man Sugar Ray Norcia’s career kicked into high gear in 1979 when he formed the original Sugar Ray and the Bluetones with guitar giant Ronnie Earl, and it has stayed there ever since.
Norcia has appeared on over 50 albums including discs with The Bluetones, Ronnie Earl, Roomful of Blues, Big Walter Horton, Otis Grand, Ann Peebles, Michelle Willson, Jimmy Rogers, Pinetop Perkins, J. Geils, Maurizio Pugno, Sax Gordon, Duke Robillard, and his 1999 “Best Traditional Blues” Grammy nominated collaboration with fellow harmonica virtuosos James Cotton, Charlie Musselwhite and Billy Branch called Superharps-that also includes fellow Bluetones Mudcat Ward and Anthony Geraci.
In the ‘90s Norcia spent seven high-profile years with the legendary Roomful of Blues. He cut five albums with the group including 1996’s Turn It On,Turn IT Up, which also received a “Best Traditional Blues” Grammy nod.
Today Norcia’s elan and robust tone makes his voice one of the most distinctive, well-defined and recognizable instruments in modern blues.
He continues to tour the world with his durable Bluetones and make acclaimed albums like his forth Severn release 2007’s My Life, My Friends, My Music – which drew Blues Music Award nominations for “Album of the Year,” Instrumentalist – Harmonica,” Instrumentalist – Bass” and “Song of the Year” (for “Last Words of a Fool”.)
The band consists of musicians’ musicians like Monster Mike Welch, one of Boston’s finest guitarists (who has 6 albums of his own), and Anthony Geraci who has backed them up-B.B. King, Otis Rush, Big Mama Thorton, Chuck Berry, Big Walter Horton and countless others.
Sugar Ray’s recording titled Evening was nominated for Five 2012 Blues Music Awards including “Album of the Year”, “Band of the Year”, “Traditional Blues Album”, “Instrumentalist – Harmonica” and “Instrumentalist – Bass”. In 2012 Ray was also inducted into Rhode Island’s Music Hall of Fame, as well as the Canadian South Hall of Fame.
Sugar Ray Norcia was nominated for a 2014 Grammy Award for his contribution on an album entitled remembering Little Walter on Blind Pig Records.This was his third Grammy nomination. It featured Sugar Ray Norcia, Mark Hummel, Charlie Musselwhite, Billy Boy Arnold and James Harman. This same recording won two 2014 Blues Music Awards for “Album of the Year” and “Traditional Blues Album”.
Sugar Ray and the Bluetones have a new Record entitled Living Tear To Tear on Severn Records that was released on August 19, 2014. It has debuted #1 on The Living Blues Radio Charts and has been nominated for 7 Blues Awards including album of the year, and song of the year (the complete version of which is available here).
Web Links
The band’s wesbite: http://www.sugarrayandthebluetones.com
Audio and video on the band can be found at our website: http://www.tbsblues.com/schedule/