Headliner Lee Oskar is the owner of the eponymous harmonica company and the original harmonica player for the band War. War started in 1968 with singer Eric Burdon and scored huge top ten hits like “Why Can’t We Be Friends,” “The Cisco Kid,” “The World Is A Ghetto,” “Slippin’ Into Darkness” and “Low Rider” – and Lee’s harmonica was a trademark of their sound.
Guitar and harp player Kenny Neal is from Louisiana blues royalty, being the son of Swamp Blues harp blower Raful Neal, who taught every offspring to play blues instruments. Kenny first played bass with Buddy Guy & Junior Wells. Kenny was a member of Downchild while living in Canada. Neal also starred on Broadway in Mulebone. Neal has been nominated for Grammies five times and has won multiple Blues Music Awards.
Jason Ricci is the two-time winner of the Blues Music Awards for best harmonica and is a world wide influence to other harp blowers -- his virtuoso chops are mind-bending thanks to a technique called “over blowing.”
Chris Cain is an Alligator Recording artist and multi-instrumentalist on guitar, keys, sax and vocals. Cain is a seven-time BMA nominee. Chris’s guitar fans include Robben Ford, Joe Bonamassa, and the late B.B. King and Albert King.
Mark Hummel is a Grammy-nominated two-time BMA award winning Harmonica master, singer, and bandleader -- and the organizer of Harmonica Blowouts – who has been playing since 1970 and has been touring the world since 1985. Hummel started the Blowouts in 1990, which have featured Huey Lewis, Charlie Musselwhite, John Mayall, James Cotton, Magic Dick, Lazy Lester, Carey Bell, Kim Wilson, Snooky Pryor, Billy Boy Arnold, Jerry Portnoy, and everyone else!!
Opening the show is Andrew Alli, a fabulous Richmond, Virginia harp phenom. Bob Welsh (The Fabulous Thunderbirds), Randy Bermudes, and June Core (Charlie Musselwhite rhythm section) also are on the tour.
