Alvin Youngblood Hart

Alvin Youngblood Hart is a throwback to the country blues of the '20s and '30s, but his nickname is very '70s-the guy has a sense of humor. Born Gregory E. Hart in Oakland, California in 1963, he took the "Alvin" from one of his favorite cartoon characters: Alvin, of The Chipmunks. (Remember Simon and Theodore?) His sense of humor aside, Hart is taken seriously on the blues scene, having headlined his own club and festival dates and opened for everybody from Neil Young to Buddy Guy and Bobby Bland. He interprets vintage material by Charlie Patton, Leadbelly and Blind Willie McTell. His biographical material claims he pre-dates other country blues revivalists such as Keb Mo', Eric Bibb and Corey Harris, and his most recent album, Big Mama's Door, has drawn rave reviews. In fact, one critic rates him as the best technical player of the bunch. Taj Mahal, who actually played with some of the bluesmen from that era, sat in for several tracks on the album.

  -- SA Alvin Youngblood Hart