Juke Joints

After 26 years, 11 albums and an unimaginable number of blistering shows, the Juke Joints, masters of rock rollin' blues, have succeeded in stretching their limits with undoubtedly their best and most diverse album so far. A highly diverse album it has become indeed, which is to be released worldwide and which should win The Juke Joints global recognition as one of the most energetic rock rollin' blues bands around. Special Guests: Eddy 'The Chief' Clearwater, Ronnie Baker Brooks & Ana Popovic.

Juke Joint At The Edge Of The World is a record that reflects the freedom my
bandmates and I have found playing together in the last few years. Some of the places we play are like the old juke joints where people dance and shout - from these people and places we’ve found the energy we need to be free to shake the music up. Now, when we improvise we know it’s going to take us to a new and better musical place. Time listening and working together has given us that. The result is that this record has more of a “live in the studio” feel to it. It’s also rooted more in the soul and R&B dance music I grew up listening to and playing. Less thinking and more playing. Less analyzing and more fun.

Austin, Texas-based guitarist and singer/songwriter Omar Kent Dykes fits the stereotypical image some have of an American blues musician: he's tall, wears cowboy boots, and has a deep voice with a Southern accent. But although Dykes looks rough and tough, he's actually an incredibly peaceful and intelligent musician, and a veteran at working a crowd in a blues club or a festival. While Dykes has a sizable American audience owing to his albums for Columbia Records, he has spent a good portion of his touring years at festivals and clubs around Europe.

Named after the rough and ready bars where labourers gathered to drink and dance, barrelhouse was a raucous form of piano blues that got the juke joints swinging. From early pioneers such as Cow Cow Davenport and Speckled Red to the boogie-woogie legends Pete Johnson and Albert Ammons, this collection charts the rise and incredible influence of this good-time blues.