Mayercraft Carrier Mondays – James Hunter and Ryan Shaw
March 2, 2009posted by Steve | View Comments
As part of the weekly series here on the Sixthman Blog, we’ll be highlighting a Mayercraft Carrier artist every Monday afternoon from now until we set sail on on this floating musical fiesta on March 27th, 2009! For those of you newbies, this will give you a chance to get to know some artists that you might not have heard. Without further ado, let’s shine that spotlight on two artists
James Hunter
A native of Colchester, England, James Hunter fell in love with Soul and R&B music early on. Later, he cut his chops playing clubs and the festival circuits in England. He’s also toured extensively with Van Morrison, singing alongside greats like John Lee Hooker, Junior Wells, Jimmy Witherspoon and Georgie Fame. Still, as oddly familiar as James Hunter may “sound” upon first listen, he actually pays loving homage to all the Soul greats … unlike any other.
If you get a chance, read the iTunes review of his latest album, “The Hard Way.” There is nothing but great praise for this ultra-talented musician. You owe it to yourself to check out James on the Mayercraft Carrier 2.
If you are a fan of Sam Cooke or Van Morrison, you’ll fight right at home:
James Hunter – People Gonna Talk
Ryan Shaw
This 26-year-old singer/songwriter from Decatur, Georgia is out to revive the passion and soul of the Golden Age of Rhythm & Blues for a new generation. His One Haven/Columbia debut album, This Is Ryan Shaw, combines a powerfully expressive voice with a clutch of great songs both classic and new—and a state-of-the-art, in-your-face sound that makes it impossible to sit still.
On stage, Ryan brings it all together with a combination of Southern warmth and New York vitality. Using just a small rhythm section and two male backing vocalists, he’s able to effectively reproduce the sound of his album while stretching some tunes into full-on vocal rave-ups. Ryan’s thrilling voice and charismatic presence are all that he needs to get over with an audience. There’s no posturing or mindless booty-shaking, no need for contrived antics: Ryan Shaw is the real deal.
Seriously, try NOT dancing to this one: