Blues Bands - Meet the Musicians
Carlos Johnson - Guitar/Vocals
Carlos Johnson is a star on the Chicago blues Scene. He is left-handed, but plays a right-handed instrument upside-down like players such as Otis Rush, Albert King, and Jimi Hendrix. Johnson is known for his aggressive playing which has attracted audiences in Chicago blue scene since the 1970s. He has played on recordings of notable musicians including Billy Branch & The Sons of Blues and Son Seals.
In 1989, he made his first tour to Japan with Valerie Wellington, and caught attention of the Japanese blues fans. He revisited the country in 2004 as a supporting guitarist for Otis Rush. These concerts helped him build a fan base in Japan and returned to tour Japan 4 more times.
Though he has been active since the 1970s, he had to wait until 2000 to release an album under his own name. That year saw the release of his debut CD My Name Is Carlos Johnson recorded in Buenos Aires, Argentina from local Blues Special label. He was featured on Billy Branch 's CD Billy Branch & The Sons of Blues featuring Carlos Johnson released in 2002. Johnson also made an album as a duo with Branch titled Don't Mess with the Bluesmen in 2004. Another CD In and Out from Mr. Kelly's Records followed the same year. In 2007, he released a live album Live at B.L.U.E.S. on Halsted recorded in Chicago.
Curtis “The Doctor” Robinson - Guitr/vocals
Curtis began playing guitar at a very young age and by the time he was 11 was playing professionally in the Chicago area. Curtis has performed with many great blues musicians including: Artie Blues Boy White, Tre, Nellie Tiger Travis, Carlos Johnson and Wayne Bennett. Curtis has also performed with many notable Jazz and popular musicians across many genres including: Ramsey Lewis, Kenny Burrell, The Emotions, Irene Reid, Von Freeman, Bobby Lewis. Curtis performed at the Ocho Rios Jazz Festival and has performed in Asia for 1-3 months multiple years.
Roger Harris - Keyboard/Piano
Pianist, arranger, and composer Roger L. Harris is a native of Chicago. Roger began playing throughout Chicago professionally at the early age of 13. His father, Leo Harris, is a cellist and founder of the Southside Family Chamber Orchestra, of which Roger is currently the conductor emeritus. Roger received his bachelor of music education from Roosevelt University, where he currently teaches the Bebop Jazz Ensemble and private lessons in jazz piano. He is a jazz mentor and instructor for the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, Jazz Institute of Chicago, After School Matters, and The American Conservatory of Music. Roger has played with jazz greats Stanley Turrentine, Freddie Hubbard, Sarah Vaughn, and Nancy Wilson as well as R&B sensations Aretha Franklin and Patti LaBelle. Roger is well known in the Chicago music scene as a versatile player who adapts well to any musical situation.
Chuck Webb - Bass
Chuck Webb is a first call electric & acoustic bassist who has toured the world many times performing with such notable artists as Aretha Franklin, Ramsey Lewis, David Sanborn, Al DiMeola, Grover Washington Jr., Freddie Hubbard and many others. As one of Chicago's top studio bassists Chuck has performed on hundreds of records, commercial jingles and sound tracks. Chuck graduated from the University of Miami's Frost School of Music
A versatile writer & producer, in addition to his newly released solo CD, film scores, sample CD, jazz and contemporary projects, Chuck is also the creator of the critically acclaimed educational music programs "Mind Games," and “Multiply This.” These CDs are being successfully utilized by school systems and individuals throughout the country and as far abroad as Canada, Germany and Australia. Diverse groups such as the NEA and the Congressional Black Caucus have featured Chuck lecturing on the role of music in education.
Chuck is also on the faculty of Columbia College Chicago's music department, serving as coordinator of bass studies, bass instructor, ensemble director and coordinator of the Contemporary, Urban and Popular Music ensemble program.
Chris Greene - Saxophone
Saxophonist and composer Chris Greene was born in Evanston, IL. He spent his formative years in the award-winning Evanston High School Wind and Jazz Ensembles. As a teenager he began to play professionally with many local pop/rock, blues and jazz bands. Greene eventually went to Bloomington, IN to attend the prestigious Indiana University Jazz Studies program and studied with renowned professor and cellist David Baker. Greene returned to Chicago in 1994 and has since collaborated with some of the nation’s most creative and versatile musicians. As a performer, Greene can be seen with many different groups - in many different genres. He also leads his own critically-acclaimed group, the Chris Greene Quartet.
He has also performed or recorded with the following artists: Common, The Temptations, Eric Roberson, Ed Motta, Steve Coleman & Five Elements, Maysa Leak, Ten City, Sheena Easton, Steve Cole, Michael Manson, Andrew Bird, The J. Davis Trio, Chris Rob, Vic Lavender, Jesse De La Pena, Liquid Soul and The Mighty Blue Kings. Chris was also featured in the"Play On" episode of the FOX-TV show, "Empire" and he also composed the score for the Chicago Childrens’ Theatre’s recent production of “Bud, Not Buddy."