Music
Press
"...Sicily Moon is quite simply outstanding. With this release, Roy continues to solidify his standing in the Soul/R&B market and the Carolina beach music crowd as well....This release has turned out to be a slice of soul and beach music heaven...Is it too early to make the call for possible Album of the Year? Maybe, but this one has an excellent shot!" - Neal "Soul Dog" Furr
"...Horn-fueled, Hammond B-3, melodic Memphis soul heaven played by musicians not machines...They're all superb...If Roy Roberts continues putting out music this good, we're gonna have to crown him "King of Soul/Blues" - Dylann DeAnna
"...needless to say, the entire album is well-put together and performed. There are plenty of grand moments on the record, including tunes such as the tender "I'm Gonna Love You," perhaps the standout vocal performance on this record. Roberts' starts calmly and steadily builds to burning emotional peak. "You Better Pack Up" is a writing coup, incorporating one of those memorable hooks that could become a blues staple, "You Better Pack Up." ...If you want to hear some good blues, no, make that good music period, check out Roy Roberts' "Sicily Moon." If you've got any kind of ear, you won't be disappointed." - M. Francis Solomon
"Roy Roberts' Rock House Records was once named "2001 Blues Label Of The Year" by a Blues Publication. Unfortunately that seems to be the only time Soul/Blues master Roberts got his due. Some of the best Soul/Blues played by actual humans has been coming from Rock House Records for almost two decades now. The label has released acclaimed discs by Roberts, Chick Willis, Eddie Floyd, Floyd Miles, Tommy Thomas and more. This showcase, Blues & Soul Review Vol. 1, is a solid sampler of these works. Although I gotta warn you - check your check book balance - because after listening to this collection you'll be hunting down the original records." - Dylann DeAnna
"...Many of the songs open with Roberts' BB King-influenced guitar work, and his very mellow vocals add a velvety sheen to the proceedings. Coming off his Living Blues "Producer of the Year" award, as well as winning their "Artist Most Deserving of Wider Recognition," success was rapidly approaching. Daylight With A Flashlight contains memorable songs such as "I Want To Love You," and the Bobby Bland-sounding "Your Troubling Mind", a close cousin to "I'll Take Care Of You". Just listen to Roberts' soulful guitar opening this song, and the beautiful instrumental "Anniebell," dedicated to his late mother, allowing us to hear Roberts' prowess on the B-3 Hammond organ, and you'll know why he has received all these recent accolades. A fine release by a great bluesman and one worthy of your consideration. Oh by the way, there are real musicians and horns galore. What more could one ask for?"
- Alan Shutro
"Roy Roberts delivers soulful vocals, some enticing fretwork, and a dozen well-penned tunes on his latest release. In the tradition of BB King, Roy displays a melodic flair with a laid back delivery. This album contains a good mix of both contemporary and traditional stylings, with a jazz influence."
"There are very few bluesman on the scene today who can hold their own with the legends like Muddy Water, but Roy Roberts is one of 'em. An outstanding collection of soon-to-be classics!" - Shane Copher
Vintage Guitar Magazine Move Up Move Down Edit Delete
"Every year the blues industry likes to give an award to the blues artist most deserving of wider recognition. Here's a vote for calling that award, "The Roy Roberts Trophy." Its stunning how great this performer and how few people have ever heard of him. Roberts is the consummate blues pro. His CDs are a treat to listen to because the man can absolutely do it all. He writes, he sings, he plays the guitar-and all at a consistently high level...Deeper Shade of Blue is a takeoff from another Roberts CD, Every Shade of Blue. This is appropriate, because once again Roy Roberts has covered the blues from all angles-for sure." - Scott C. Davis
"...The critics are right-this is definitely music that satisfies the soul, and also stirs you into action: either toe/finger-tapping or all out dancing. A CAMMY-Award winning singer and guitarist, Roy Roberts is best known in the Southeastern states for his "shagging" soul hit, "I Slipped, Tripped and Fell In Love."
- Boz Martin
“Roy Roberts is a gentleman and musical giant. His vocal delivery distinguishes him as a singer comparable to Bobby Bland, Ray Charles, Tyrone Davis, Brook Benton ...and his guitar licks soar with the best of the riff masters!” - Stephen Cagle
“Bluesman Roy Roberts is an original and there’s no other blues singer or guitarist who can equal his blend of minor-key, soul laced shuffles.” - - Roberta Penn
Discography
It's Only You (New Release)
Man With A Message
Roy Roberts & Friends
Sicily Moon
The Best Of Roy Roberts
Partners & Friends (Roy Roberts & Johnny Rawls)
Daylight With A Flashlight
Burnin Love
Deeper Shade Of Blue
Every Shade Of Blue
Roy Roberts Live
A Woman Needs Love
Introducing Roy Roberts
Photos
Bio
Roy Roberts became hooked on music while growing up in a small town in Tennessee, listening to blues and R&B on radio stations WLAC out of Nashville. Jimmy Reed’s “Baby What You Want Me to Do” was the clincher, and at the age of 14, Roy worked on a nearby farm to earn the money for his first guitar, a mail order Sears Silvertone.
When he turned 18, he moved to Greensboro, North Carolina to live with an uncle. There he had another inspiration to become a professional musician, when he and a carload of friends happened upon a nightclub where Jerry Butler was performing and making quite an impression on the ladies. Roy sharpened his skills while playing in makeshift bands until he landed a job with local hero Guitar Kimbers’ Untouchables. Before long, Roy was backing up major artists who came through town. One of those artists, Solomon Burke, took young Roy under his wing after letting him sit in as a bass player during a local gig. He was soon handling the guitar chores behind the future soul legend on tour. Roberts subsequently picked up touring gigs with such luminaries as Eddie Floyd, “Little” Stevie Wonder, Dee Clark, and Otis Redding, while fronting his own band, The Roy Roberts Experience, on the regional club scene and Southeastern beach town circuit.
Roy began to cut records in the mid-sixties, staying mostly behind the scenes as a session man. The tragic death of Otis Redding inspired him to step up to the microphone with a song dedicated to the late crooner. The record was released on Nina Simone’s NinaAndy label and backed by an ace studio band. Roy followed this successful effort with a string of 45’s that carried him well into the seventies. During the disco years, Roy turned his talents to country music, touring with the great O.B. McClinton and releasing a number of country records. After a brief hiatus from the music scene, Roy built a recording studio in Virginia in 1989, where he produced records by regional gospel artists and cut a gospel record of his own.
One day in the early nineties, he heard a young Robert Cray singing the blues on the radio. “That cat’s got my style,” he declared, and got the blues fever once again. Besides recording his own material on Rock House, Roberts has produced albums for the label by Priscilla Price, Lou Pride, Chick Willis, Skeeter Brandon, Floyd Miles, Eddie Floyd, and many more. Roy continues to record and produce records for his label, and tours the U.S. and Europe regularly. After receiving numerous awards, Roy has earned his place among the finest artists playing blues today.
“A Roy Roberts show is an irresistible musical odyssey, a sweat drenched pilgrimage through the back alleys of the blues and the glory years of soul music. There aren’t many performers on the scene today who know the importance of “entertainment” like Roy Roberts.”
- Gay Erwin, President of the Low-Country Blues Society
Awards
2001 - Keeping the Blues Alive -The Piedmont Blues Society
2002 - Cover of the Living Blues Magazine # 166 (Multiple awards)
2003 - Franco Rubegni Award (For the spreading of soul music)
2004 - CBMA Cammy Award (Blues song of the year-”I Slipped”)
2006 - CBMA Pioneer Award and induction into the Hall of Fame
2006 - Interstate highway sign dedicated to Roy by his hometown, Livingston, TN
Roy has performed at the Pocono Blues Festival, Blues & Wine Festival, Agrigento, Italy, Prestatyn (Northern Soul Week End), Wales, Soul Festival in Duisburg, Germany, Blues To Bop Festival, Lugano, Switzerland. Blues Festival of Ecaussines, Belgium. Roy has performed on 50 + festivals in both the US and Europe. His 30 day 2008 tour in Europe begins in June.
While on tour in Sicily, Roy was photographed on the out door stage with a full moon overhead. He was struck by the beauty of this moon over the water while traveling back to his hotel. That night he wrote the song "Sicily Moon" as the cover song for a new CD and used the actual photograph taken that night on stage for the CD cover.
"...If Roy Roberts continues putting out music this good, we're gonna have to crown him "King of Soul/Blues" Dylann DeAnna - Blues Critic Magazine
"North Carolina bluesman Roy Roberts is an original, and there's no other blues singer or guitarist who can equal his blend of minor-key, soul-laced shuffles... He sings in a style that owes a debt more to the Memphis soulmen than to BB King and his like. The result is a blues album unlike any other... truly a deeper shade of blue than most." Michael Dregni - Vintage Guitar Magazine
"There are very few bluesman on the scene today who can hold their own with the legends like Muddy Water, but Roy Roberts is one of 'em. An outstanding collection of soon-to-be classics!" Shane Copher - Leadhead's Lounge Reviews
More information: www.royrobertsblues.com
www.rockhouserecords.com
Links
