Over the past ten years, Seth Walker has become recognized as one of the most revered modern roots artists in the United States; a three-dimensional talent who combines a gift for melody and lyric alongside a rich, Gospel-drenched, Southern-inflected voice with a true-blue knack for getting around on the guitar. He has released seven albums breaking into the Top 20 of the Americana charts and receiving praise from NPR, American Songwriter, No Depression and Blues Revue. With a bluesman’s respect for roots and tradition coupled with an appreciation for contemporary songwriting, Seth sublimely incorporates a range of styles with warmth and grace. Perhaps Country Standard Time puts it best: “If you subscribe to the Big Tent theory of Americana, then Seth Walker—with his blend of blues, gospel, pop, R&B, rock, and a dash of country—just might be your poster boy.”

Walker has booked three Oregon shows for March:

Jack London Revue, 529 SW 4^th Ave., Portland. Friday, March 8. 9:00 pm. $10.00 Ticketweb.com. 21 & over.

KALA Hipfish Gallery, 1017 Marine Drive, Astoria, Saturday, March 9. 8:00 pm. $15.00 Libertyastoria.showare.com. 16 & over.

Canyon Rim House, 3500 SW Cline Falls Rd, Redmond. Sunday, March 10. 7:00 pm, potluck/social 5:45. $20.00 – $25.00 donation at the door. RSVP at Canyonrimhouse.com.

Two-time International Blues Challenge semi-finalists and Muddy Award nominees Sister Mercy possess a high-energy, blues-driven sound. Lead singer April Brown is mesmerizing with her powerful stage presence and joyful, full-range vocals. Scott Garcia creates memorable licks on guitar and Roger Espinor (drums) John Webb(bass) and Debby Espinor (keyboards) hold down their tight rhythms. The band  presents original music that is a pleasure for the ears and a show that is a feast for the eyes.

For the past several years, Gino Matteo served as the lead guitarist in the Sugaray Rayford Band before beginning his solo career. Gino lives his motto: “Work hard at what you love, treat everyone you meet like family, and try to smile here and there.” Being a rarity in today’s Roots-Music world, Gino Matteo is a young man with an incredible knowledge and respect for the past. A true student of the life. Gino’s performances are spontaneous, explosive, and original- a triple threat to the music world. He is the definition of an “old soul” with a voice as smooth as velvet but tough as nails.

Joining Gino will be his wife Rip Cat Records artist Jade Bennett, whose vocal delivery will absolutely give you the best chills you’ve ever felt. Drawing from personal demons and life changing trials, her songs breathe new life into the music world in a dark, sultry, smoky soul infused kaleidoscope of aural genius.

Catfish Lou’s, 2460 NE 24^th Ave. Friday, March 8 at 7:00 pm. $10.00 available in advance at Tickettomato.com and at the venue.

NiaSounds and Cascade Blues Association are pleased to present a record release concert by Terry Robb, Portland’s own finger-style blues guitar virtuoso. In his latest release, Confessin’ My Dues, Robb displays his mastery of acoustic and bottleneck guitar, drawing on his deep knowledge of Delta blues, ragtime, and swing in thirteen original compositions ranging from blistering instrumental blues and melodic ragtime fingerpicking to soulful singing backed by a powerhouse rhythm section. Robb will be joined on stage by renowned jazz musicians Gary Hobbs and Dave Captein, who are featured throughout the album, and blues guitarist Adam Scramstad.

Terry Robb is one of the top acoustic blues guitarists of our time. His signature fingerpicking style has earned him international acclaim from worldwide audiences, music critics, and his distinguished peers. Incorporating elements of the Mississippi Delta music tradition, ragtime, country, swing, and free jazz, Robb has built a unique blues sound that has made him a legend during a prolific music career spanning more than four decades. The multitude of awards Robb has received speak to his seminal talent as a blues guitarist. He has been inducted into the Oregon Music Hall of Fame and the Cascade Blues Association Muddy Awards Lifetime Achievement and Hall of Fame.

The Secret Society, 116 NE Russell St. Friday, March 8, 9:00 pm.  $22.00 advance Ticketfly.com, $25.00 at the door. CBA members $20.00 advance online only with the code “CBA19”

Terry Robb will also be doing an in-store performance at Music Millennium on Friday, March 1 at 6:00 pm.

Photo by Peter Sloan

Raucous, rowdy, gentle, sweet, eccentric, quirky, and outright irreverent are all words that fittingly describe Tas Cru’s songs and testify to his reputation as a one of the most unique of bluesmen plying his trade today. It’s not for nothing that Cru has received wide praise for his songwriting.  As Downbeat magazine noted, “His songs are blues poetry – crafted with rare verbal flair and his ability to cast a memorable hook is magical!” Live, these songs are performed with power and passion as observed by Living Blues magazine, “The vivacity and sheer joy with which Cru plays is intoxicating!”

Tas Cru is based out of upstate New York , many people who have traveled to the International Blues Challenge and the Blues Music Awards will recognize him by his long-running jams at the Rum Boogie Café during that events. But Tas has released several highly-acclaimed albums, including his latest Memphis Song and has been honored with multiple awards and nominations, including a Keeping the Blues Alive Award from The Blues Foundation for his blues education programs and workshops at festivals, schools and hospitals.

This is Tas Cru’s first time performing in the Pacific Northwest and he’ll be joined by his powerful band The Tortured Souls.

Also performing on this double-bill will be Kathryn Grimm & The Blues Tools. Kathryn is a well-established singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who worked with people like Jeff Buckley and Michael Bolton while living in Los Angeles. Since moving to Portland several years ago she has made her mark in acts such as the Northwest Women in Rhythm & Blues and her other band Hippie Love Slave

Catfish Lou’s, 2460 NW 24^th. Friday, February 22. 7:00 pm. $10.00 advance at Tickettomato.com or at the venue, $13.00 day of show at door.

Robert Cray has been bridging the lines between blues, soul, and R&B for four decades, and over that time has accumulated five Grammy wins, a Blues Hall of Fame induction, an Americana Lifetime achievement award, while embarking on countless tours and producing over twenty highly-acclaimed albums.

Growing up in the Northwest, Robert Cray absorbed The Five Blind Boys of Mississippi’s gospel, Bobby Bland’s soul, Jimi Hendrix’s rock guitar, and the Beatles pop sounds. He then brought all of these influences into play throughout his career, but his teenage band was captivated by Southern Soul and the blues.

The glow of a career in music began when Cray was a teen, and in 1974 it burst into flames as the Robert Cray Band came together in Eugene, Oregon. How strong was the fire? “Richard (Cousins) and I didn’t own a vehicle, and we were staying with his girlfriend in Eugene. We hitched a ride to Salem, where our drummer Tom Murphy was going to school, to rehearse,” Cray recalls. With the group’s 1980 debut release “Who’s Been Talkin’” word about the Cray Band began to spread across the Northwest and down in to California. And the band continues to pack the house.

On Friday, February 8, The Robert Cray Band will play the Elsinore Theater, 170 High Street SE, Salem. 8:00 pm. $38.00 – $58.00 Cascadetickets.com. All ages welome.