HOWDEN: Live @ The Shire Hall

Saturday 16th November, 2024

7:30pm

Event information

Born and raised in Galveston, Texas, Hamilton Loomis is the son of musician parents who listened to blues, rock and soul. Music ran in his veins and, with instruments readily available around the house, he picked up drums, piano, guitar and harmonica, honing his multi-instrumental talent in addition to performing regularly as part of his family’s doo-wop group.
“My parents had a fantastic record collection and, when I started writing, I gravitated towards what I’d been listening to all my life. I have a huge reverence for the blues and all it encompasses, but I’ve always been fond of R&B and funky music.”
A protégé of Bo Diddley, Loomis met the icon backstage at the age of 16 at Houston’s famed venue Rockefeller’s. Before the night was over, Loomis was onstage playing guitar with the legend. Diddley quickly became friend, mentor, collaborator and supporter, appearing on two of Loomis’ albums and presenting a cherished red guitar that he still plays.
“That one night began my education and I spent a lot of time with Bo over the years listening to him tell so many stories,” said Loomis. “He was so generous and most people don’t know that he was really philanthropic. He played free concerts around his hometown for homeless shelters, schools and anyone that just needed help. He was always giving! That’s another thing that planted the GIVE IT BACK seed in my mind. It’s all coming full circle. ”Loomis and crew shine on stage proving his music is best experienced in person, where one can see and hear its intended splendor. Described by Blues Blast Magazine as “a non-stop turbo of power”, Loomis’ energetic, get-in-with–the-crowd antics are infectious. The swaying and clapping are just as he envisioned.
“Being comfortable on stage is something that comes completely natural to me,” he says. “I feel joy when I play music and it literally moves me. It moves my body. I learned long ago that whenever music is coming from you, from deep inside your soul and from the right place, people will feel that on a deeper level and might not even know what’s going on inside of themselves. I enjoy engaging the crowd and feel a show should be an interactive experience.”

Hailing from East Yorkshire, the Juke Joint Kings are a five-piece blues band, inspired by the classic electric-blues kings from whom they derive their name (Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, BB King, Jimmy Reed and Otis Rush to name but a few).
The band met over a series of musical free-for-alls at the monthly Blues Sunday at the Sun Inn Beverley; an open mic for blues fans and musicians of all abilities, hosted by none other than IBBA favourite Half Deaf Clatch at the time.
Being a Sunday, electric blues with a full drum kit couldn’t be accommodated, so a small group of participants (Brian Williams and Graham Hyde – Chicago Bound/This Way Up and Chris and Sara Saunders – Bad Hat Harry) began to look for an opportunity to ‘cut loose with some Chicago Blues’; it arrived in the form of a Steve Lawley’s postcard in a local music shop (‘Grumpy Drummer seeks blues band’).
After several happy months playing together whenever they could, they sought a spot at the Beverley Blues Weekender and were so well received that they decided to quit their other bands to focus full time on the ‘Juke Joint Kings’.
Their debut ‘accidental’ album, Live at The Stonemasons (a live recording initially intended for personal use only), received a very positive review in Blues Matters (issue 95) described as ‘having quality in every department’ and was just the boost the band needed to know they were on the right track.
Since then they have supported Tom Attah and the Bad Man Clan, The Revolutionaries and The Della Grants to name a few, and are regulars on the blues scene in Hull and Yorkshire.
Their second album is due to be released later in 2018, and will feature some of the original material, as well as the classic blues standards, that have been stirring up audiences over the past year and drawn fans from across the UK and Europe.