Severn Records Artists Garner Multiple Nominations for the 2012 Blues Blast Music Awards

SEVERN RECORDS ARTISTS MUD MORGANFIELD AND SUGAR RAY & THE BLUETONES GARNER MULTIPLE NOMINATIONS FOR THE 2012 BLUES BLAST MUSIC AWARDS

ANNAPOLIS, MD – Severn Records artists Mud Morganfield and Sugar Ray & the Bluetones each received two nominations when the 2012 Blues Blast Magazine Music Awards were announced yesterday, June 28. Both artists were nominated in the Traditional Blues Album category: Mud Morganfield for his acclaimed Severn label debut, Son of the Seventh Son; and Sugar Ray & the Bluestones for their latest CD, Evening, which also led the way with five nominations at the recent Blues Music Awards in Memphis. Additional Blues Blast Award nominations include Sugar Ray & the Bluestones for Blues Band of the Year and Mud Morganfield for the prestigious Sean Costello Rising Star Award.

Currently featured on the cover of the latest issue of Living Blues magazine, Larry “Mud” Morganfield is the son of the legendary Muddy Waters. Recorded in Chicago and produced by Bob Corritore, Son of the Seventh Son features Mud Morganfield’s earthy, soulful vocals backed by a cadre of blues all-stars, including Kenny Smith on drums, Rick Kreher and Billy Flynn on guitar, Barrelhouse Chuck on keyboards, E.G. McDaniel on bass, and Harmonica Hines and Bob Corritore on harp.

Evening is the fifth Severn album for Sugar Ray and the Bluetones, which features Sugar Ray Norcia on vocals and harmonica, “Monster” Mike Welch on guitar, Anthony Geraci on keyboards, Michael “Mudcat” Ward on bass and Neil Gouvin on drums. The album

showcases a band keeping things direct and sizzling on the nine originals, plus covers of Johnny Young’s “I’m Having a Ball” (the blazing opener), Otis Rush’s “You Know My Love” and the title track, which has been recorded by T-Bone Walker and Jimmy Rushing, among others.

Voting to determine the Blues Blast Award winners begins July 1, 2012 and continues until August 31st, 2012 on the magazine’s website at http://www.TheBluesBlast.com. Voting is free and open to anyone who is a Blues Blast Magazine subscriber. Blues Blast Magazine subscriptions are FREE and subscribers are automatically signed up as part of the voting process on their website.

Blues Blast Magazine has partnered with public radio station WGLT FM in Normal, IL, which has set up a web page where you can play selected songs of the 2012 nominees. To hear samples of these great blues artists on WGLT’s 2012 Blues Blast Music Awards Artist Listening Site visit: http://wglt.org/music/blues/bluesblast.shtml.

The complete list of nominees is available at the magazine’s website complete with links to all the artist websites at: http://thebluesblast.com/2012bbmanominees.htm. When you get there, click on one of the nominees links to listen.

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Make Me a Pallet on Your Floor - Ursula George / Sugar Ray Norcia

Ursula is a blues singer from Providence, RI presenting very cool, sexy and contemporary interpretation of Vaudeville-era blues tunes, mostly penned by the female writers of the day.
Check out Marty Ballou's bass solo out of "Make Me a Pallet on Your Floor" (J.Hurt /J. Yancey arrg.) with Ursula George at Chan's, Woonsocket RI on November 12, 2011. Special guest Sugar Ray Norcia with Lori Urso, Marty Richards, Eric Barron, Anthony Geraci

People who remember Sugar Ray fronting Roomful of Blues can attest to the fact that he is as much at home with a swinging horn band as he is with his four piece Chicago style blues outfit. Besides his recordings with Roomful, some examples of Ray's big band music can be heard on Porky Cohen's CD RHYTHM & BONES "Sent For You Yesterday"
and a CD by Doug James entitled BLOW MR. LOW
"Dirty People" and "I Want A Little Girl."
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Review: Severn Records to release "Evening" by Sugar Ray & the Bluetones on 10/18/11!

I just received and have been listening to the new Sugar Ray release. It's really good. I really should say I got it last week and have been listening to it for a few days. Sugar Ray has a great command over the harp. This band is really tight and listening to it all day is a pleasure. Oh, and Monster Mike Welch covers the guitars like yu would expect from a seasoned pro!

Many have long celebrated the fact that this dyed-in-the-wool bluesman has never been one to give in to fads, excesses or over-the-top antics. Sugar Ray sings, plays and writes from his heart. This is apparent on Evening which also reunites Sugar Ray & the Bluetones with guitarist Monster Mike Welch for this set of Chicago Blues. Whether it's Johnny Young's "I'm Having A Ball," Otis Rush's "You Know My Love" or any number of the superbly crafted originals, Sugar Ray delivers - as do the Bluetones on this their 5th album for Severn Records! Track Listing: 1) I'm Having A Ball2) Hard To Get Along With3)You Know My Love 4) Dear John 5) I Like What You Got 6) Too Many Rules And Regulations 7) Dancing Bear 8) Evening 9) I Came Down With The Blues 10) (That's Not Yet) One Of My Blues 11)I'm Certain That I'm Hurting 12) XO US Street Date: 10/18/11

This is a cool recording.

Enjoy!

SUGAR RAY & THE BLUETONES PRESENT A BLUESY EVENING ON NEW CD COMING OCTOBER 18 FROM SEVERN RECORDS

ANNAPOLIS, MD – Severn Records announces an October 18 release date for Evening, the latest album from multiple Grammy and Blues Music Award nominee Sugar Ray & the Bluetones. Evening is the band’s fifth album for Severn and first release since My Life, My Friends, My Music in 2007, which was nominated for Blues Music Awards as “Album of the Year,” “Instrumentalist – Harmonica,” “Instrumentalist – Bass Player” and “Song of the Year” (for “Last Words of a Fool”). Joining Sugar Ray Norcia (vocals, harmonica) are guitarist “Monster” Mike Welch, drummer Neil Gouvin, bassist Michael “Mudcat” Ward and pianist Anthony Geraci.

“We approached this one like Hank Williams made records,” says Norcia about the sessions. “I went in with my lyrics, just rough sketches of the songs and the great musicians in the Bluetones, who always play something exciting. This album’s mostly original and in the Chicago blues vein. Last time, I used a full horn section, so My Life, My Friends, My Music was more jump blues-oriented. For this one, I wanted to keep things spare and gritty.”

True to his word, Sugar Ray and the band keep things direct and sizzling on the new CD’s dozen songs, including nine originals, plus covers of Johnny Young’s “I’m Having a Ball” (the blazing opener), Otis Rush’s “You Know My Love” and the title track, which has been recorded by T-Bone Walker and Jimmy Rushing, among others.

Evening also demonstrates Norcia’s penchant for writing songs that hit the gut on a visceral level, while at the same time keeping things loose and in a party atmosphere. “I aim to sing numbers that have good melodies and arrangements and entertain people,” he explains. “Part of that is writing lyrics that might make them smile. My dad, who was a great entertainer, would play unbelievable harmonica, sing and be the life of the party. I always aspire to that.”

A good illustration of that technique can be found in his “Too Many Rules and Regulations,” a song that would have been right at home being sung by Sonny Boy Williamson.

The Bluetones are seasoned veterans, one and all. “Monster” Mike Welch has been a perennial blues guitar hero since his early teens, and he acquits himself more than ably on the new album with some fantastic guitar work, all the while playing with expert feel and passion. Pianist Anthony Geraci handles the ivories in tones that recall such greats as Otis Spann and Pinetop Perkins. The rhythm section of Michael “Mudcat” Ward on bass and Neil Gouvin on drums form the perfect in-the-pocket tandem, creating solid rhythms on which to build the lead instruments.

As with any Sugar Ray CD, Evening showcases Norcia’s fluid, expressive harmonica work. “I’ve always considered my voice to be my main instrument,” Norcia states. But I truly love playing harmonica, and the fact that I could only play one or two harp tunes when I was with Roomful was one of the things that led me to move on.”

“Roomful” - of course – was the seminal blues and R&B band, Roomful of Blues, where Norcia spent seven years recording five albums, including 1996’s Turn It On, Turn It Up, which received a “Best Traditional Blues Album” Grammy Award nomination. He also received a Grammy nomination for his 1999 collaboration with fellow blues harmonica masters James Cotton, Charlie Musselwhite and Billy Branch, titled Superharps.

Originally from Connecticut, Sugar Ray Norcia has been based in Rhode Island for many years. Having formed his first group in high school, Norcia’s career really kicked into high gear in 1979 when he formed the original Sugar Ray & the Bluetones band, which included legendary guitarist Ronnie Earl. Since then, he’s appeared on over 50 albums, including his work with the Bluetones and Roomful, plus others with Duke Robillard, Ronnie Earl, Ann Peebles, Pinetop Perkins, Big Walter Horton and Otis Grand. During his turn with the first Bluetones lineup, the band also backed such great as Big Joe Turner, J.B. Hutto, and Roosevelt Sykes. “Hubert Sumlin and Ted Harvey were actually members of the Bluetones for a while,” he remembers.

Sugar Ray & the Bluetones will tour throughout North America in support of Evening. For more information, visit www.sugarrayandthebluestones.com as well as

www.severnrecords.com.

SUGAR RAY & THE BLUETONES ITINERARY

9/3 Chan’s Woonsocket, RI

9/15 Lozano’s Grill Stockton, CA

9/16 Biscuits & Blues San Francisco, CA

9/17 Delta Blues Festival Antioch, CA

9/18 Moe’s Alley Santa Cruz, CA

9/22 The Triad New York, NY

10/8 Knickerbocker Café Westerly, RI