Billy Gibson - In a Memphis Tone

Billy Gibson is an amazing harmonica player. In a club setting, he ignites both the band and his audience with explosive solos and individual charisma. In a studio setting, he's the one who gets a call from producers when a track needs some magic. Simply put, Billy Gibson is an extraordinary musician. Born in Clinton, Mississippi, Billy first picked-up the harmonica at a very young age. After high school, he spent some time in Clarksdale, where he honed his musical skill and immersed himself in the blues culture. In his early 20s, he moved to Memphis and quickly became recognized as one of Beale Street's most dynamic new performers. During this period, he also became acquainted with some legendary Memphis jazz musicians and began studying jazz harmonica with renowned virtuoso Pete Pedersen. Now one of Memphis' most popular entertainers and twice the recipient of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences' Premier Player Award for outstanding harmonica, Billy Gibson is a mature musician who is getting more than just a little notice. His recent guest appearances on Michael Burks' I Smell Smoke along with various television appearances are adding up to nothing less than a serious buzz. His recording credits include two CDs with the popular Beale Street band junkyardmen (1998 and 1999), a self-titled solo release in 1996, and the 2001 jazz release The Nearness of You. He was also guest artist and co-producer on two other releases that year-Goin' Down South Blues Sampler and the McCarty-Hite Project's Weekend in Memphis. In a Memphis Tone was mostly recorded in 1997 and captures Billy Gibson as an artist with enormous talent and renewed inspiration. The sessions include his mentor Pete Pedersen on one track, and B-3 organ virtuoso Charlie Wood and bassist Kevin Sheahan on most others. An instrumental CD with elements of blues and jazz, In a Memphis Tone captures a moment in time where a heightened sense of artistry is achieved and pure pleasure awaits the listener.

1) Chicken Shack
2) Straight No Chaser
3) Body and Soul
4) In a Memphis Tone
5) Shortnin
6) Gimme Five
7) K's Waltz
8) Ballad for Bill