For decades, Rory Block has lived and breathed music. Very early on, she dug her heels deep into the blues tradition and has since been recognized as one of the finest acoustic blues guitarists of the modern era. With a style similar to that of Robert Johnson’s Delta blues, she has undoubtedly become a dominant figure in the world of slide guitar – playing the blues the way it was meant to be played. (Guitar Girl Magazine)
Seminal Blues guitarist Robert Johnson’s grandson Greg Johnson says, “When I hear Rory Block’s music, it’s as if my grandfather is here all over again.” Rolling Stone credited her with recording “some of the most singular and affecting Country Blues anyone, man or woman, black or white, old or young, has cut in recent years.” In a career that has thus far produced 36 albums, six Blues Music Awards, and numerous world tours, Block’s fabled odyssey finds her at the absolute height of her talents, and at the top of the touring world, while at the same time living life as a music producer, author and ordained minister “Preaching the Blues.” You might say Block is a darling of the press with testaments such as: “If you like music steeped in tradition and genuine feeling, this is your woman” (People Magazine), “Her playing is perfect, her singing otherworldly as she wrestles with ghosts, shadows and legends.” (The New York Times), and our own Capital District’s Times Union raves, “One of America’s foremost Country Blues torchbearers, she’s a breathtaking slash-’n’-burn guitarist and a supremely soulful vocalist.” Multi Grammy-winning artist and fan, Bonnie Raitt, adds, “Rory Block has been an inspiration to me since we started out years ago. Her guitar playing, singing and songwriting are some of the most soulful in traditional and modern blues.” Or take it from Cash Box magazine, who pegged Block as “Female sensitivity sheathed in steel.. pure thunder. She’s spellbinding!”
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