19th Street Red

Whether leading his tight ensemble or layin’ it down with his one-man band, 19th Street Red has shown himself to be a vital link to the old school blues performers that put this style on the map. Possessed with a rare authority and gritty passion, his own version of delta blues has him playing cities all over the U.S.

With his newest release, “Street Dog,” Red proves himself a first class artist. He is an accomplished singer, guitarist, bandleader, songwriter and performer. This is a well-rounded, successful act ready to take it to the next level.

Growing up in Maryland, as a child Red was smitten by the music of Muddy Waters and T-Bone Walker. Collecting and absorbing blues records became his biggest pastime. By the time he was twenty-six Red was fronting an outfit in an “across the tracks” establishment called “Alva’s Lounge” in Northwest Washington D.C. Old time luminaries of blues and jazz including Nap Turner, Bobby “Cuba” Sanchez, Lawrence Wheatly, Bobby Parker, Warner Williams and John Cephas came out of the woodwork to participate in the weekly sessions.  Later in Oakland, California, Red continued to hone his craft with such West Coast greats as Johnny Tolbert, (Little) Frankie Lee, Sugar Pie DeSanto, Errol Slack, Louis Madison and many others.  Shows with Francis Clay, Snooky Pryor, Detroit Junior, Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, Freddie Hughes and many others furthered his confidence and abilities.

In the late nineties, Red joined forces with Bruce Brooks’ and Juliette Valentine’s “Chicago Brother and Sister Blues Band” for a four year stint.  He helped the group become living legends on the San Francisco music scene.  Here Red also learned the art of working the street.  Playing the “low down blues,” Chicago style, inspired him to focus on the Mississippi Delta Blues bug that had bit him as a young boy.

Making his home base New Orleans as of Mardi Gras 2002, Red’s long time interest in Gulf     Coast Blues and R&B manifests itself in his band performances and songwriting. His daytime and midnight one-man band performances along Canal and Bourbon Street have stirred up all kinds of interest.  With radio spots, nightclub gigs, and local media exposure 19th Street Red’s reputation as a New Orleans based bluesman has gained him a foothold in the Crescent City and the Deep South.

Since Hurricane Katrina, Austin, Memphis, and the state of Mississippi have become satellite homes for Red. Spots at the “Highway 61 blues Festival”, “Bentonia Blues Festival”, “Rosedale Blues Festival”, “Howlin’ Wolf Blues Festival”, “Wolf Weekend Festival” and street performances at the ”Sunflower River Blues Festival”, “Clarksdale Juke-Joint Festival” and the “Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival” have earned this bluesman a reputation in the Mississippi Delta. 

Traveling and singing the blues, Red has found an audience to embrace his renditions of Robert Johnson, Big Joe Williams, John Lee Hooker, Howlin’ Wolf and other “down-home”, “gutbucket blues” greats as well as his original compositions.  Both “on the streets” and in bars, clubs and festivals, 19th Red’s music and reputation continues to grow.  The future of the blues has found another champion. Street