Gary Smith Blues Band

about

"Over the past several decades, California has emerged as the harmonica blues capitol of the country. With the likes of Rod Piazza, Rick Estrin, Bill Clark, James Harmon, Mark Hummel, and Gary Smith, to name just a few, the West Coast has come to dominate the contemporary harmonica blues scene much like Chicago had in the early '50s and '60s. "Gary Smith started playing harmonica in his hometown of San Jose in the late 1960s. Charlie Musselwhite, who was by then living in the San Francisco Bay Area, was an early teacher and mentor. In 1969, Smith joined his first blues group. The early '70s marked the beginning years of the Gary Smith Blues Band. One of the best of those groups he put together included Alberto Gianquinto on piano, Mike Watson on guitar, and Steve Gomes on bass. This group headlined the San Francisco Blues Festival in 1973. They also toured Chicago and the mid-West that year, resulting in a three-month layover in Chicago, where Smith absorbed firsthand the flourishing Southside club scene. "In 1974, the Gary Smith Band recorded its first record, an EP on Messaround Records, which quickly became a classic and a collector's item. By then, Smith was devoted to the hard, amplified Little Walter style, but by his own admission, his development of a tone would not be fully realized until much later. 'Rick Estrin helped me a lot,' elaborates Smith. 'Cotton was such an influence on everyone, with that big brassy tone, Rick had long picked up on it and taught me that

top songs

albums

Up the Line

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Good Whyskey Blues vol.2

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Good Whiskey Blues Vol. 2

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Blue Bay: Anthology of San Francisco Bay Blues

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From The State Of Texas / The San Francisco (vol. 2)

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From The State Of Texas (vol. 2)

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Good Whiskey Blues

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Good Whiskey Blues vol.2

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Good Whiskey Blues Vol.2 - From The State Of Texas

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Be Careful What You Wish For

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Black & White (FisherAbel Blues Style)

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blues 2

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