WARNING: Your face will be melted sonically and electronically.

http://theconsumersrock.com

In May of 2010, Vanderford was awarded the Jean Laney Harris Folk Heritage Award for maintaining and sharing the tradition of the Piedmont Blues harp. Performing Greasy Greens on the floor of the SC State House, Vanderford brought the Legislature to an immediate standing ovation.

Vanderford entertains audiences playing solo or with fellow musicians such as Brandon Turner, Steve McGaha, Matthew Knights Williams, Fayssoux McLean, David Ezell and many others. His discography includes Piedmont Blues, recorded with Brandon Turner and Vanderford and Turner are featured on Story, Song and Image:  Celebrating the   Roots and Ethnic Music of South Carolina. His music is also featured on Feel the Presence: Traditional African American Music in South Carolina and in Stan Woodward’s film BBQ and Homecooking, a documentary on foodways in the state.

Whether he’s playing harmonica on Pink Anderson’s Chicken or playing the washboard to Pink Floyd’s The Wall, Vanderford’s rhythmic, rootsy style enthralls listeners of all ages. Vanderford’s mastery of his craft enables him to coolly shift from melodic ballads such as Johnny Cash’s I Still Miss Someone to Jimi Hendrix’s heart-thumping Purple Haze.

Be sure to see this great blues man every chance you get! “He really is one of South Carolina’s true treasures,” – SC State Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter

Graham describes Pure Speculation’s music as inspirational rock, and said some of the other bands playing this weekend could be considered blues, funk, country and a cross between country and rock.

http://www.myspace.com/marchigginsband

Lead man Shane Pruitt hails from Spartanburg, SC, where the musical roots of the blues and southern rock have been living and breathing for years on end.  Birthing such musical talents and styles like those of Toy Caldwell and The Marshall Tucker Band, David Ball, Champ Hood, Walter Hyatt, and many others, Spartanburg has named Shane Pruitt its “Instrumentalist of the Year” for seven years and running.

Living and breathing the blues and gospel, The Shane Pruitt Band embodies a regional tradition while bringing its original tone and flare to every performance. Finding itself ever-searching in musical traditions between Delta Blues, Gospel, and Southern Rock, The Shane Pruitt Band embraces in the Jam Band traditions of improvisation and an ever-evolving musical experience.  Picking up momentum with every performance, Shane Pruitt and his trio are driving towards uncharted waters while wowing critics everywhere they play.

Coming off of the new, 2nd studio release, “State of Grace“, the band has made friends and colleagues across the board with their soulful sound.  Having shared the stage with such greats as Johnny Winter, Junior Brown, Chuck Raney, Victor Wooten,Galactic, Papa Mali, The Neville Brothers, The Lee Boys, Roosevelt Collier, Oteil Burbridge, Mose Allison, Michael Burks, The New Mastersounds and many, many more, Shane Pruitt is a name to be known amongst the insiders of the southern music scene.

The members share their own place in music history as well.  Hammond B3 player and vocalist Lil’ Jimmy Peterman is a founding member of the Steve Miller Band (1967-1969), having also been a founding member of the Steve Miller Blues Band (featuring Steve Miller and Bozz Scaggs’ original colaboration).  Shane’s prior colaboration, Flat Front Tire, was also a fixture in small club touring throughout the late 90′s and early milleneum. Drummer Bill Fletcher has seen many years at the backline, playing and touring with Robin Rogers before joining his first collaboration with Peterman and blues singerWanda Johnson, known as Cocktail Frank.

The band is proud to boast their place in the Top 10 Regional Albums of the Year for WNCW 88.7 FM in 2008 for their self-titled release “The Shane Pruitt Band”.  The album took the #7 spot on the list, beating out a phenomenal list of competitors from throughout the region.  The album has seen critical acclaim from a number of local newpapers and weekly publications, and the band is excited about its brand new album, “State of Grace”, and its sudden rise into the spotlight.

Management/Press Contact:

-Benton C. Wharton

DBD Music

Mountain Roots Management

benton@mtnroots.com

(843) 345 6365

But you don’t have to take our word for it…

- Junior Brown – Curb Records - “Whatever It is, you have It.  Man that was fabulous!”

- Gary Hoey – Surfdog Records “Every once in a while a new guitar player comes along that breathes new life into the blues, keeps the roots but adds new limbs.  Shane Pruitt is that new guy. He’s welcome on my stage anytime.”

- Tinsley Ellis – Alligator Records “Man, that was really inspirational. The way he moves around on stage and plays, that kid’s a young Buddy Guy.”

- The Tennessean Peter Cooper – Musician and Critic “Most exciting young bluesman working today!”

- Creative Loafing Baker Maultsby “At a young age, he has acquired much of what it takes to be an important player in the genre: advanced technique, natural feel, educated influences, and sincere emotion.”

- Spartanburg Herald Journal Tad Taylor “Perhaps the best guitar playing captured on record to come out of Spartanburg since Toy Caldwell plucked a Les Paul, Blues-Guitar extraordinary Shane Pruitt broke out on his own in 2005.”

-The Post and Courier Charleston, SC “Spartanburg native Shane Pruitt has already established himself as one of the most prodigious guitarists around. His eloquently natural style is smooth as Mike Bloomfield and as fierce as Stevie Ray Vaughan.  With sizzling finger work and searing vocals, Shane Pruitt is the new phenomenal talent on the local blues scene.”

- Hub-Bub.com “By his early twenties, Pruitt, 27, had developed a guitar prowess and maturity beyond what most achieve in a lifetime. He is not only technically proficient but also completely charismatic; when he plays he sounds raw, refined, explorative, and expressive. His performances dangle on the daring edges of improvisation and experimentation, with Pruitt often as surprised as audiences with each new musical twist and turn. “

-Peter “Blewzzman” Lauro – Blues Critic Mary4Music.Com “The kid had me shaking my head in amazement…blues guitar slingers should keep their eyes and ears open for SHANE PRUIT, he very well could be the next one out of the gate”