Delta Moon
Live
Original roots-flavored music and fresh takes on classic country blues songs.
Delta Moon -- the winner of the Blues Foundation's International Blues Challenge held in Memphis, February 1, 2003 -- formed in the late 1990s when Gina Leigh, Mark Johnson, and Tom Gray all lived within a few blocks of each other in Atlanta's Inman Park neighborhood. The three got together regularly in Mark's livingroom to work up arrangements of classic blues and original songs for two slide guitars and voices. Soon, joined by a rotating cast of percussionists, drummers, and bassists, the band was playing in rib joints, nightclubs, and festivals around Atlanta and neighboring cities. Following the March 2002 release of their debut CD, imaginatively entitled "Delta Moon," the band started ranging farther from home, taking their energetic stage show across the US, Canada and Europe. As one audience member said, "Thanks for inviting us to your party!"
"Live" was recorded February 21, 2003, before a live audience in The Cave, Tree Sound Studios, Duluth, Georgia.
Delta Moon's line-up at the time of this recording was Tom Gray on vocals, lap steel guitar, and keyboards, Mark Johnson on bottleneck guitar, Gina Leigh on vocals and hand percussion, Johnny McKnight on drums, and Jon Schwenke on bass.
"One of the best albums of the year."
- King Biscuit Time
"Their exposive mix of Delta blues, R&B, boogie-woogie, gospel, and blues-rock is innovative and daring. But most striking is the way their slide guitars interlock in each song, resulting in a swampy, loose-limbed sound that buzzes with passion."
- Blues Revue
"Listening to Delta Moon on CD is never going to come close to their wonderful live performances, but this CD comes pretty close. If you thought blues was about motionless musicians with anguished expressions belting out tired old 12 bars, shuffles, or play-by-numbers blues rock, then think again. This is a collection of well arranged rootsy songs played by a band whose clear enjoyment in playing is infectious."
- Blues Matters! (UK)
"The far-reaching influences, the personal experiences, and the unflinching willingness - not to mention uncanny ability - to completely stretch the blues, make Delta Moon's records at once exciting and sincere."
- Hittin' the Note
"A forehead-slappingly fantastic combo that wipes the floor with most of the competition."
- The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"The name says it all: gutbucket Delta-style blues featuring a classy female singer and a pair of funky, slunky slide guitarists who play as one voice."
- The Charlotte Observer
"Two slide guitars speak in tongues and a young woman dances a siren dance."
- Creative Loafing Atlanta
"Delta Moon has tapped into a vein of music that is as old as the hills and as vital as a river."
- Playgrounds Magazine, Columbus, GA
"Delta Moon strikes gold with raw intensity."
- Southeast Performer
"A perfect example of contemporary Southen roots music at its most affecting."
- All Music Guide
Blues: Slide Guitar Blues