the robert hill band

Artist Information

Biography

Robert Hill was born at a very early age, in North Little Rock, Arkansas. As the story goes, whenever someone from the city of Little Rock, (on the other side of the Arkansas River), had something they wanted to get rid of, say, a car, a dog , or maybe an ex-wife or husband, they would drive it over the bridge to the NLR side and dump it. As a result of people dumping, particularly dogs, the town gained the distinguished nickname of “Dogtown”. It made the people proud.

Hill moved to New York City, where he played with local NYC band, The Bluesicians, sharing the stage with numerous national acts,of all ages.
Here he formed the first incarnation of the Robert Hill Band, performing exclusively his own material, and released the cleverly-titled debut cd, "Robert Hill", to excellent reviews. He says many of the songs are autobiograghical, just not necessarily about him.

His latest release, “My Corner”, is a showcase not only for his exceptional writing, but also for his mastery of the acoustic guitar, and soulful vocals. The title song, “My Corner”, won first prize in the AAA / Americana category of the 10th Annual Unisong International Songwriting Competition. Two other songs on the cd, “Angelina”, and “Another Chapter” have also won acclaim in the ISC, and 11th Unisong competitions.

The section of the country Hill grew up in possesses a unique gumbo of musical styles: urban and deep Delta blues, bluegrass, oldtime country, zydeco, ragtime, cowpunk, gospel, even a polka or two in spots.
When you mix it all together, they just call it Rock and Roll. Johnny Cash was born there - what else needs to be said?

"Hill's aggressive slide playing over a rough-and-ready backing track makes us want to slam down some moonshine and start a ballroom blitz. It's intense and relentless, and Hill's slide tone is fat, edgy and fabulous."
Guitar Player magazine
June 2009

CREDITS INCLUDE:
Winner in 3 Categories of The 12th Annual Unisong International Songwriting Contest - May 28, 2009
I was a top 20 finalist in the following categories:

1. Social/Political for:
"First To Fight"

2. AAA/Americana for:
"Love Has No Boundaries"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBwxKSJggwY

3. Lyrics Only for:
"Love Has No Boundaries"

Hill’s song, “Long Rain”, was featured in the Smirnoff Ice commercial, “Rope”, which aired during the 2002 Super Bowl game, and continued to run internationally for several years.

His instrumental, “Slide On Rye”, also an award-winner, is currently being used in an episode of, “Queer Eye For The Straight Guy”, running internationally.

Second place winner in the First Annual Slide Guitar Festival, acoustic competition, held in Brevard, NC.
This was a national competition.

Numerous award-winning songs in several songwriting competitions including: Billboard, ISC, and Unisong.

Instrumentation

Robert Hill-vocals, guitar, harmonica, gravy
Mark Murphy- bass
Joanne Lediger- vocals
Frank Pagano- drums

Discography

VIEW LIVE PERORMANCE VIDEOS AT: http://www.youtube.com/user/radiotoneslide

4-14-08 My song, "My Corner", is placed in the top most requested section of XM Radio show, "The Loft".
4-7-08 Currently in rotation on XM Radio show, "The Loft", as well as WUMB Boston.
My Corner" debuts at #19 on the Roots Music Report! - January 11, 2008
2-22-08: Charting at #32 on the RMR Folk top 50.
http://www.rootsmusicreport.com/2.0/charts.php?name=folk
Being put into rotation in Americana/AAA/Folk stations across the country- 3-03-08: Currently been played on over 100 stations.
Radio play- Jan. 7, 2008- In the Top 5 most added as reported to the AMA. Go to: http://pdf.rronline.com/Americana/Americana-20080107-2522.pdf?userid={EmailAddress}

"My Corner", released November 2007, is composed of 10 original songs by Hill. In the Americana/SS vein, three of the songs are already award-winners. The cd has recently been put into rotation in Americana/Folk stations across the country.

Hill's debut cd, released in 2000, is the self-titled, "Robert Hill"- sound clips available at: www.roberthillband.com.

Hill's track, "Ozark Passage", is also included on the Tribes Hill Kindred Folk Vol. #1 compilation cd. Tribes Hill is a collection of lower Hudson Valley musicians- go to: http://www.tribeshill.com for more info.
I have had original tracks air on international TV commercials & shows for Smirnoff Ice, Queer Eye For The Straight Guy, the soundtrack for an award-winning PBS documentary, & PSA's.

Composed soundtrack for award winning PBS Film Documentary, "BURLEY"- the story of a North Carolina tobacco farmer.

Our track, "Slide On Rye" is the theme song for the
weekly Australian radio show, "Blue Country".

Links

• Facebook
• CD Baby- buy Robert's cds here
• MySpace
• YouTube live performance videos

Audio

• Slide On Rye
  Listen  
• Soul Of A Man
  Listen  
• Empire State Blues-LIVE w/Abbie Gardner, Mark Murphy
  Listen  
• Smokestack
  Listen  
• Mama- LIVE w/ Abbie Gardner, and Mark Murphy
  Listen  
• My Corner
  Listen  
• TV Mama
  Listen  
• Wants To Be Loved
  Listen  
• 504 Blues
  Listen  
• Blessed Dream
  Listen  
• Love Has No Boundaries
  Listen  

Lyrics

• "My Corner'
• Another Chapter
• Country Soul
• Blessed Dream
• Angelina
• First To Fight
• Different Faiths
• Washing Away
• Love Has No Boundaries
• Love Has No Boundaries

Video

Empire State Blues - BB Kings - 2011 (wmv).wmv

Photo Gallery

Press

• "Such A Night!" [+ Show ]
  

  ...As if folks hadn’t already gotten their money’s worth, our featured act of the night, Robert Hill......As if folks hadn’t already gotten their money’s worth, our featured act of the night, Robert Hill and his band mates just blew us away. Accompanied by the superb journeyman bassist Mark Murphy and the talented Joanne (what a set of pipes) Lediger lending supporting vocals, Bob mesmerized us with his unique slide guitar technique and baritone voice, slipping flawlessly from steamroller blues to acoustic ballad and back again. The author was particularly impressed by his intermingling of what were almost ethereal instrumentals (his stand up bassist employing a bow to enhance the effect).. In contrast were the barrelhouse blues numbers where Ms. Lediger’s vocals were a standout. It seemed that each number literally brought the house down.

• Guitar Player Magazine Review [+ Show ]
  

  "Hill's aggressive slide playing over a rough-and-ready backing track makes us want to slam down som..."Hill's aggressive slide playing over a rough-and-ready backing track makes us want to slam down some moonshine and start a ballroom blitz. It's intense and relentless, and Hill's slide tone is fat, edgy and fabulous."
  
  Guitar Player Magazine
  June 2009
  

• Blues Access Magazine Review [+ Show ]
  

  "Versatile guitarist who uses layering, tone, texture and good taste to keep the listener riveted. G..."Versatile guitarist who uses layering, tone, texture and good taste to keep the listener riveted. Good singer, mean slide player- here's to more efforts like this from Hill."

• Relix Magazine Review [+ Show ]
  

  "A sparkling effort that shows his immense talent as a slide guitarist. Hill's music draws from the ..."A sparkling effort that shows his immense talent as a slide guitarist. Hill's music draws from the Little Feat and Radiators mold, and it stands favorably with those great artists. There's a funky Feat feel to "Rose City" and the passionate "Sweet Salvation," while he rips up a slide storm in the rollicking instrumentals, "Slide On Rye" and "Crater Of Diamonds." The best cut, though, is the eight minute "Workingman's Curse," which has Hill stretching out with some dazzling playing."

• Guitar Nine's Undiscovered [+ Show ]
  

  Guitarist/singer/songwriter Robert Hill's self-titled CD is a dynamite listening experience that's a...Guitarist/singer/songwriter Robert Hill's self-titled CD is a dynamite listening experience that's an amalgam of rockin' blues, southern-fried slide work and roots rock. Featuring his subtly brilliant slide guitar work, the CD offers two excellent instrumentals, "Ozark Passage", with its live-in-the-room-sounding acoustic slide, bowed bass (courtesy of Matt Gruenberg and driving groove, and "Slide On Rye", a four minute plus, sinuous electric slide charged rave in which Hill gets to play over Keith Cotton's rousing piano accompaniment. A third instrumental, "Crater Of Diamonds", closes the CD, and is no less entertaining, with its moody, lyrical, and sometimes snaky, electric slide leads dominating the piece. Of course, Hill is also a strong and impassioned vocalist, delivering his lyrics with the conviction of someone who walks the walk. Among the standout vocal tracks is the almost eight minute "Workingman's Curse", with its funk-meets-blues solo passage and poignant message. If you've enjoyed music from bands such as Little Feat or artists such as John Hiatt, you'll delight in discovering Hill - who should not remain 'Undiscovered' for long.

• Ex-Arkansan Robert Hill to make rare stop [+ Show ]
  

  Excellent write-up by Jack Hill,(no relation). With a humorous recollection or two, this article tie...Excellent write-up by Jack Hill,(no relation). With a humorous recollection or two, this article ties some interesting background info with current musical endeavors and achievements by the guitarist/singer/songwriter. Well worth reading!
  
  Go to:
  http://www2.arkansasonline.com/news/2008/aug/01/music-ex-arkansan-robert-hill-make-rare-s-20080801/?entertainment/music
  
  
  

• My Corner- review (Nov. 15, 2007) [+ Show ]
  

  Hill's 1999 self-titled debut was an electric affair, a solid blues-rock effort with two or three so...Hill's 1999 self-titled debut was an electric affair, a solid blues-rock effort with two or three songs displaying a penchant for Middle Eastern-accented arrangements á la Led Zeppelin or Derek Trucks. For his sophomore outing, the award-winning Arkansas singer/songwriter/guitarist takes a folk-rock route, choosing largely acoustic arrangements.
  
  The emphasis this time is on storytelling. There's the autobiographical "Another Chapter," about love found, lost and regained; the tributary "Angelina"; the reflective "Different Faiths"; the biopic "Country Soul"; and the condemnatory "First to Fight."
  
  There are instrumentals ("Smokestack" and "Forbidden Fruit") and even one of those Zeppelinesque tunes ("Blessed Dream"). But what really hits home is the tear-jerker title track, told from the point of view of a man relating how he came to be homeless.
  
  Tying it all together is Hill's authoritative guitar work, including occasional Dobro and mandolin and plenty of slide. Support work by pedal steel guitarist Bob Hoffnar and background singer Joanne Lediger (Stir Fried, McMule) top it all off nicely.

• "My Corner"- CD Review [+ Show ]
  

  " While we’re talking about local musicians’ musicians, singersongwriter-guitarist Robert Hill has l..." While we’re talking about local musicians’ musicians, singersongwriter-guitarist Robert Hill has lived in New York for the past 20 years, but he grew up in North Little Rock and still draws on the state for inspiration. His excellent blues album My Corner (SOR, $12.97) — which features some fantastic acoustic guitar work as well as Hill’s crafty rootsy originals — has been in rotation in my car for a couple of months now.
  (The CD’s packaging deserves a mention: Hill says the sepiatone photograph that adorns the front cover is of his father as a boy, circa 1930, outside a Hot Springs barbecue stand. The back cover photograph dates from the early 1900s; it’s of Hill’s grandfather in the doorway of his Pine Bluff advertising company.)"
  
  
  

• "Rainbow Come Down On Me; Mix Myself a Perfect Dream." [+ Show ]
  

  "Rainbow Come Down On Me; Mix Myself a Perfect Dream." I'd heard the opening track "My Corner" b..."Rainbow Come Down On Me; Mix Myself a Perfect Dream."
  
  I'd heard the opening track "My Corner" before I received this beautiful CD to review. I was struck by how the harmonica solo at the end of the song really managed to paint a picture of the narrator. When I heard that solo in my imagination I could see this lost and tired man dancing on a dark street, a bottle in his hand and his eyes turned towards the heavens. Oftentimes when songwriters attempt to tackle the lost characters in society they either over- dramatize or only brush the surface. Robert Hill puts flesh on the bones of society's underdogs in his songs. Whether he's writing about a tragic homeless guy, a simple country woman, or the children of Liberia, Hill shines light on the humanity of the characters in his songs, reminding us that we are all related. Listening to the CD I see the world through the characters' eyes and feel it through their hearts. The music and production never get in the way of the story, and there's an interesting mix of modern and old-timey sounds. Musically the songs incorporate influences from the entire range of this wonderfully colorful music called Americana. Hill's guitar, resonator, and harmonica playing shine without getting in the way of the songs, and the CD even includes two instrumentals "Smokestack," and "Forbidden Fruit," which we'll probably be hearing during the closing credits of a movie by this time next year. All around "My Corner" is an honest, hopeful, reckless adventure in what it is to be human. Stand-out tracks for me are "Blessed Dream," one of my favorite new songs in several years, "Smokestack," and the closing song "Washing Away."
  Fred Gillen Jr. (Nov 27, 2007)
  

• My Corner, (Nov. 23, 2007) [+ Show ]
  

  His latest CD, My Corner, celebrates the appropriation of Roots/Rock in much the same way as an ag...His latest CD, My Corner, celebrates the appropriation of Roots/Rock
  in much the same way as an aged bourbon mellows in it's seasoned oak
  barrel... with character, earthy presence and persistence. This CD should be enjoyed by all who find pleasure in fine guitar picking, smooth vocals and
  gutsy ballads.
  
  
  

Setlist

The sets vary, depending on the venue, approx. 1 hr. sets- With over 50 original songs and an endless list of covers, we can go as long as you'd like. We prefer to play more, than less. Here's an abbreviated list:

1. Foolin' Around With You
2. Empire State Blues
3. Ozark Passage
4. Make Me Up A Pallet On your Floor
5. Smokestack
6. 13 Question Method
7. Country Soul
8. My Corner
9. Soul Of A Man
10. Moses McCord
11. Long Rain
12. Mystery Train

1. 12 Gates To The City
2. Rose City
3. Woke Up This Morning
4. Loola Loo
5. Wants To Be Loved
6. Maybe You Will Someday
7. 504 Blues
8. Evolution Blues
9. Skin Game
10. All Shook Up
11. Sister Lisa
12.TV Mama


Covers include: MysteryTrain
All Shook Up
Don't Do It
TV Mama
Willin'
Soul Of AMan
Empire St. Blues
Can't Find My Way Home
Ever Loved A Woman
Sailin' Shoes
Nobody's Fault But Mine
Mary Don't You Weep

Basic Requirements

Calendar