ALBUM:
Vintage Café Society Blues
TAYLOR USED:
914ce
SONG CLIPS:
Uncharted Ground
28k | 56K
One Meat Ball
28k | 56K
CONTACT INFO:
Blue Side Up Productions, LLC
P.O. Box 270
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
Phone:
(336) 578-2099
Fax:
(336) 578-2285
E-mail:
big-john @mind spring .com
Web:
www. iuma .com/ IUMA/ Bands/Big _John _Shearer/
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Big John Shearer is a lively ambassador and interpreter of vintage acoustic blues. His performances range from the blues' earliest incarnation as
a cappella spirituals on the plantations of the Old South to the more sophisticated "Café Society Blues" that marked the music form's transformation
as it migrated to Northern cities from the 1930s to the '50s. Among Shearer's strongest influences was Josh White, a key exponent of Piedmont blues,
who later moved into the folk revival scene with fellow transplanted blues artists Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, joining the likes of Woody Guthrie
and Burl Ives. White, along with artists like Bessie Smith and Leadbelly, helped move the blues in a direction parallel to jazz - across racial lines
and to an audience of Northern, urban "sophisticates", accustomed to chamber music, opera, ballet, and theater.
Shearer learned many songs of the Café Society Blues era during college summers over 30 years ago, and says their power and popularity have withstood
the test of time to remain vital music today. His warm, bellowing bass (vocal) has an amazing presence - his large frame is like a natural acoustic
amphitheater for his voice - and he imbues each Café Society Blues standard with both a theatrical drama and a reverence for authentic form. Shearer
accompanies himself on a custom 914ce, and says that beyond the balanced tone and easy action, Taylors give him an "unparalleled ability to cry or
growl depending on the desired response."
Shearer credits the production values of Pat Ward for giving Vintage Café Society Blues its large sound, along with the evocative harmonica accents
of harp master Paul "Lebo" Nash - who's played with Willie Dixon, Matt "Guitar" Murphy, Greg Allman, and John Hammond - for helping to stay faithful
to the vintage acoustic blues sound. Shearer also recorded Vintage Café Society Blues in analog format and without overdubs to best capture the music's
warmth. Selections include such classics as "St. James Infirmary," "One Meat Ball," "Trouble in Mind," "Sixteen Tons," and "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime,"
along with a Shearer original, "Uncharted Ground."
Based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Shearer performs at various festivals and corporate special events throughout the region. He won the Triangle Blues
Society competition, headlined the First Night Raleigh '98 Blues Stage, and at the University of North Carolina, successfully launched the Carolina Club's
"Acoustic & Blues Night" series, which enjoyed sold-out performances and rave reviews. Shearer also acts and does voiceover work, and sings classically -
he has performed as a member of the Greater Miami Civic Chorale and the Miami Bach Society Chorale.
"I remember 'Big' John's lustrous bass vocals and facility with the upright bass from 30 years ago. Now he brings a solid moving guitar style to his performances which, when I recently heard him live, sounded like the work of a Nashville sideman. We hope to see him on the road playing the old favorites which complement our well-known repertoire."
— George Grove, The Kingston Trio
"Absolutely star-class…musical treat of the first degree…virtuoso musician…some of the very best blues to be had in the Triangle."
— Alan R. Hall, The Chapel Hill News
"Rich baritone with special feel for cabaret style of blues…quite atmospheric and mellow…very real and deep understanding of what he's doing."
— Philip Van Vleck, The Herald Sun
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