The Soul of John Black is John “JB” Bigham, an
adventurous artist who isn’t afraid to take risks while pursuing his musical
vision. JB draws his influences from blues and soul pioneers such as
Leadbelly, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy, Lightnin’ Hopkins, Bo
Diddley, Blind Boy Fuller and Al Green.
In addition to rave reviews, JB boasts a mighty impressive
resume. He’s written songs for Miles Davis, played percussion with the
group, contributed the track “Jilli” to the trumpeter’s last studio album,
Amandla, and appeared with Davis on the recently released DVD, Live in Paris,
which was recorded at the 10th Annual Paris Jazz Festival. He played with
the pioneering rock-funk-ska band Fishbone for eight years and went on to tour
as a side man and session player with artists such as Eminem, Dr. Dre., Rosey,
Joi, Nikki Costa, Bruce Hornsby and Everlast..
JB’s music is a true testament of the dynamic beauty of
music, which he strips down to the core –guitar, voice and exposed human emotion
conveyed in sparse, attention grabbing performances wrought with raw and
spontaneous power. Bigham’s mastery of the genre and its stylistic range
is verified through his amalgamation of wailing, field hollars, Latin
rhythm suggestive of the Caribbean sugar plantations, sanctified harmonies,
uptown Memphis soul, playful, sexy style, hauntingly, swampy backbeat, and down
home grit all polished together with the stroke of studios today.