JP Blues with Yonrico Scott and Todd Smallie

Enjoy an amazing group of Blues performers!  $5 cover.

About the members of the band

JP

JP started playing guitar at the age of 8 and by age 10, it was clear that something special was happening here. This “Something Special” was recognized by legendary bluesman Sam “Bluzman” Taylor. Sam took JP under his wing and began to school him on the blues, or what Sam use to call “SAMerizing” him. It was under Sam’s watchful eye that JP began to flourish as a musician and a bluesman!  JP has had the pleasure of either performing with or opening for such legendary artists as Michael Falzarano (Hot Tuna), Chris Beard, Debbie Davies, Pete Sears (Jefferson Starship), Buddy Cage (New Riders), Caroline Aiken, Donna Hopkins, Geoff Ackerson, Jon Paris, Kerry Kearney (Marty Balin), Phil Grande (Joe Cocker), Scott Holt (Buddy Guy), Vince Converse, Nathaniel Peterson and Dennis Innessibuw (Robert Plant), Sam Bluzman Taylor, , Derek Trucks, Johnny Winter, Frank Latorre, Robben Ford, Joe Bonamassa, Cactus, Ike Stubblefield, Pat Adkins (Gary US Bonds), Kofi Burbridge (Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi), Yonrico Scott (Derek Trucks), Todd Smallie (Derek Trucks).  JP was recently honored top 100 guitarists “That you must know” by Truefire.com. His latest CD, “I Will Not Go Quietly” topped the Roots Music charts for 28 weeks and hit #4 nationally. It is clear that JPBlues searing, soulful guitar gives hope to the rebirth of passion and soul in music!

Yonrico Scott
By age seven, Yonrico Scott was playing professionally with several gospel groups in Detroit, Michigan – primarily, as a direct result of the unwavering encouragement and support of his late mother, Ruth Scott, a talentedgospel vocalist and performer.

By age fourteen, Yonrico began private study with Motown drummer, George Hamilton. His musical accomplishments continued throughout college, and during his freshman year at Kentucky State University, he was voted, 'Drummer of the Year.' He later transferred to the University of Kentucky to study with Dave Davenport, Professor of Percussion and Principal Timpanist of the Lexington Philharmonic, where he received a B.A. in Performance Percussion in 1978.

In 1979, Yonrico accepted an Artist in Residency assignment in Atlanta, GA, with The Neighborhood Arts Center’s Department of Cultural Affairs. It wasn’t long afterwards that Yonrico became one of Atlanta's most sought-after studio drummers. Since 1995, Yonrico has been touring the world as a member of the Derek Trucks Band (dTb). (The dTb is a Sony Music Entertainment artist with recent television appearances on the CBS Early Show, the Conan O’Brien Show, & A&E’s Breakfast in the Arts, among others.) Their self-titled debut CD was released on Landslide Records in October 1997. Since then, the band has released six additional recordings: Out of the Madness, Joyful Noise, Soul Serenade, Live at the Georgia Theatre, Songlines, and most recently, Already Free (2009).

The dTb has headlined the popular ‘Blues Cruise’ and ‘Jam Cruise,’ and completed multiple tours of Japan & Europe. They’ve opened for and performed with artists such as: BB King, Eric Clapton, Santana, Buddy Guy, Joe Satriani, John Popper, Clarence Gatemouth Brown, Gregg Allman and Friends, Gov’t Mule, Leftover Salmon, Taj Mahal, Little Milton, Mavis Staples, and Otis Rush. Yonrico also collaborates & tours internationally with Grammy Award Winner, Earl Klugh, and his own band, the Yonrico Scott Band (YSB), which includes Kofi Burbridge, Keys/Flute, and Todd Smallie, Bass. YSB’s debut release, Turning the Corner, was released in January, 2004.

Throughout his musical career, Yonrico has recorded and/or performed with a Who’s Who list of well-known artists. Most recently, he has collaborated with The Ying Yang Twins and Outkast. Other notable artists include Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Peabo Bryson, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Sammy Davis Jr., Chuck Berry, George Howard, Freddie Hubbard, Sonny Stitt, Joshua Redman, George Benson, Anita Baker, Tinsley Ellis, The Allman Brothers Band, Susan Tedeschi, Kansas, John Scofield, Bruce Hampton, Cecil Bridgewater, Alvin Batiste, Gary Burton, Fiji Mariners, Andrew White, Gregg Allman, John Denver, Ben E. King, The 3 Degrees, The Supremes, Widespread Panic, Phil Lesh, The Lexington Philharmonic, and The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, among others. Yonrico's Broadway tour performances include The Wiz, 5 Guys Named Moe, and Dream Girls.

Yonrico’s endorsements include Pearl Drums, Ziljian Cymbals, Vic Firth Sticks, LP Percussion, and Everyone's Drumming.

Discography Note: Throughout the 1980's to the Present, Yonrico has enjoyed working with various composers and arrangers for a multitude of commercial recordings for advertising/ commercials, jingles, individual songs, etc. Probably one of the more important recordings of this nature, working with Producer, Tim McCabe, Yonrico collaborated with Ray Charles to re-record Georgia's State Song, Georgia On My Mind. Additional composers Yonrico has worked with include Bill Meyers, Jim Ellis, Jack Turner, and Steve Holts, among others.

Todd Smallie 
Todd Smallie was born August 16, 1970 in St. Louis, MO, and began studying bass guitar at 13. After relocating to Atlanta, GA, he attended the Atlanta Institute of Music under the instruction of Russ Rodgers, Jimmy Herring and Randy Hoexter. There, he  immersed himself in jazz, rock, latin and country music.

He went on to play with many jazz and blues musicians in the Atlanta area, when in 1994 under the recommendation of Col. Bruce Hampton & Jeff Sipe, he became a member of the Derek Trucks Band.   He has been a long-standing member, playing with them now for over 16 years.

He has recorded 8 albums with DTB since joining, and has traveled around the world performing at some of the most prestigious festivals and theatres in the world.  He has had the honor of sharing the stage with some of the most influential and prolific musicians from all genres.

He won a Grammy with the Derek Trucks Band in February 2010 for  Best Contemporary Blues Album of the year for their album “Already Free”. The Derek Trucks Band has recently released “Roadsongs”, a live concert album from their 2009 Already Free tour.