New York, NY (Top40 Charts) The indomitable
Joe Bonamassa continues his impressive reign over the blues genre with the news that his latest album Blues
Deluxe Vol. 2 debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues Chart. Bonamassa's 27th #1 debut, this record-setting accomplishment unmatched by any other artist in the genre's history is a testament to Bonamassa's unwavering commitment to his craft and his deep connection with fans and blues enthusiasts across the globe. With each release, he further cements his legacy, continually pushing boundaries while paying homage to the timeless essence of blues music. Listen to the new album HERE. Blues
Deluxe Vol. 2 Collector's Edition Blue Vinyl and Blues
Deluxe Remastered vinyl are available NOW.
Notably, Bonamassa's previous release, Tales Of Time, which also clinched #1 upon its debut, sits at #10 this week and has parked on the chart for 26 weeks. This unique positioning, with both his albums marking the start and end of this week's Top 10 Billboard Blues releases, showcases Bonamassa's consistent presence and the enduring appeal of his music within the blues community.
In addition to his 27th #1 debut on the Billboard Blues Chart, Blues
Deluxe Vol. 2 debuted on the following Billboard charts: Current Rock Albums at #6, Independent Albums at #10,
Internet Albums at #12,
Digital Albums at #13, Current
Digital Albums also at #13, Top Album Sales at #27, Top Albums w/ TEA at #28, and #55 on the Billboard Artist 100.
Blues
Deluxe Vol. 2 revisits and pays homage to Bonamassa's musical roots, offering listeners fresh takes on classic blues tracks that have shaped his journey. The album boasts two new originals and eight covers, honoring legendary names in blues, from
Bobby "Blue" Bland to Albert King. Both Vol. 2 and Blues
Deluxe Remastered are available on 180 Gram vinyl, with the former as a gorgeous translucent blue color for collectors.
The album's latest single "Is It Safe To Go Home" has been receiving critical acclaim. Crafted with the expertise of producer Josh Smith, it's a song that holds a special place in both their hearts. "I wrote 'Is It Safe To Go Home' specifically for this project and for Joe," Smith recalls. "I can't believe what he did with it. The vocal and solo are some of his best work (in fact, he hits the highest vocal note he ever has on record), and it's just an absolutely epic performance and arrangement."
Reflecting on his growth as a musician, Bonamassa says, "Part of my approach to these new recordings was that I wanted to see if I had matured musically over the years, and if I had gotten better as a player. I'm happy to say that I am a much better singer than I was 20 years ago - though I still don't really consider myself to be a legit 'singer,' I can now carry a tune a little better than I could back then."
Also, among the album's treasures is "Hope You Realize It (Goodbye Again)," another original collaboration between Bonamassa and Tom Hambridge. "This is a song that I wrote with Tom Hambridge, and we did a real Tower Of Power treatment on it," Bonamassa recalls. "Twenty-Four Hour Blues," a fiery reinterpretation of
Bobby "Blue" Bland's iconic track from the Dreamer album, boasts one of Bonamassa's most potent vocal and guitar performances to date, while "Well, I Done Got Over It" pays tribute to Guitar Slim's 1953 release, and "Lazy Poker Blues" rejuvenates the classic song originally performed by
Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac.
Featuring Reese Wynans (keys), Calvin Turner (bass), Lamar Carter (drums), Kirk
Fletcher (guitar), and Josh Smith (guitar), additional highlights from Blues
Deluxe Vol. 2 include "I Want To Shout About It," originally performed by
Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters and "It's Hard But It's Fair" by
Bobby Parker. "I knew I wanted to push him really hard vocally," Smith adds. "I'd heard him sing things just messing around or when we'd be producing for other artists that I'd never heard him do on record. So the songs were both chosen and written with that in mind. If you listen to the vocals on "Twenty-Four Hour Blues" and "Is It Safe To Go Home," you'll hear Joe really going for it."
Following an extensive summer run that included his debut appearance at the Hollywood Bowl, which was recorded for his next live concert film, the hardest working bluesman in show business will begin his U.S. Fall Tour next Monday, October 23rd at The Cannon Center in Memphis, TN, before crisscrossing the country and capping the year at the guitar-shaped Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, FL on December 2nd.
Bonamassa's spring 2024 tour will include performances in historic venues like the Count Basie Center For The Arts in Red Bank, NJ on February 23rd and the Saenger Theatre in Pensacola, FL on March 7th, before culminating with the sold out Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea IX, set for March 18-24, departing from Miami, Florida to Cozumel, Mexico. The festival line-up includes
Grace Potter, The Marshall Tucker Band, John Oates, Jimmy Vivino, King King, and a special performance by
Black Country Communion, Bonamassa's supergroup with
Glenn Hughes (DEEP PURPLE, BLACK SABBATH), Jason Bonham (LED ZEPPELIN) and Derek Sherinian (DREAM THEATER, ALICE COOPER, BILLY IDOL). KTBA at Sea is one of the largest fundraisers for Bonamassa's Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation, aiding in its mission to promote music education by providing grants and resources to schools and musicians in need.
Cited by Guitar World as "arguably the world's biggest blues guitarist," Bonamassa is known for taking risks and venturing into uncharted territory throughout his wide-ranging career. His last recent full-length Time Clocks marked his most raw, rocking studio album yet, with American Songwriter sharing, "Bonamassa pushes into fresh territory while staying within a blues-based framework," and "there is more than enough proof in this sprawling set that Bonamassa doesn't intend to rest on his laurels or take his star status in the blues-rock genre for granted."
Blues
Deluxe Vol. 2 by Joe Bonamassa
1. Twenty-Four Hour Blues (originally performed by
Bobby "Blue" Bland)
2. It's Hard But It's Fair (originally performed by
Bobby Parker)
3. Well, I Done Got Over It (originally performed by Guitar Slim)
4. I Want to Shout About It (originally performed by Ronnie Earle & The Broadcasters)
5. Win-O (originally performed by Pee Wee Crayton)
6. Hope You Realize It (Goodbye Again) *original song written by
Joe Bonamassa & Tom Hambridge
7. Lazy Poker Blues (originally performed by Fleetwood Mac)
8. You Sure Drive a Hard Bargain (originally performed by Albert King)
9. The Truth
Hurts Feat Kirk
Fletcher and Josh Smith (originally performed by Kenny Neal)
10. Is It Safe To Go Home *original song written by Josh Smith
Blues
Deluxe Remastered by Joe Bonamassa
1. You Upset Me Baby
2. Burning Hell
3. Blues Deluxe
4. Man Of Many Words
5. Woke Up Dreaming
6. I Don't Live Any Where
7. Wild About You Baby
8. Long Distance Blues
9. Pack It Up
10. Left Overs
11. Walking Blues
12. Mumbling Word
Fall 2023 U.S. Tour
October 23 - Memphis, TN - The Cannon Center
October 25 - Shreveport, LA - Shreveport Municipal Auditorium
October 27 - San Antonio, TX - Majestic Theatre
October 28 - Sugar Land, TX - Smart Financial Centre At Sugar Land
October 29 - Austin, TX - ACL Live
November 1 - Fayetteville, AR - Walton Arts Center
November 3 -
Little Rock, AR - Robinson Performance Hall
November 4 - Grand Prairie, TX -
Texas Trust CU Theatre
November 5 - Oklahoma City, OK - Civic Center
Music Hall
November 8 - Tulsa, OK - Tulsa Theater
November 10 - Kansas City, MO - The
Midland Theatre
November 11 - St. Louis, MO - The Fabulous Fox
November 12 - Cedar Rapids, IA - Paramount Theatre
November 14 - Rochester, MN - Mayo Civic Center
November 15 - Rockford, IL - Coronado Performing Arts Center
November 17 - Fort Wayne, IN -
Embassy Theatre
November 18 - Detroit, MI - Fox Theatre
November 19 - Columbus, OH - Palace Theatre
November 21 - Reading, PA - The Santander Performing Arts Center
November 22 - Providence, RI - Providence Performance Arts Center
November 24 - Springfield, MA - Symphony Hall
November 25 - Baltimore, MD - The Lyric
November 28 - Savannah, GA - Johnny Mercer Theatre
November 30 - Sarasota, FL - Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall
December 1 - Estero, FL - Hertz Arena
December 2 - Hollywood, FL - Hard Rock Live
Spring 2024 U.S. Tour
February 19 - Louisville, KY - The Louisville Palace
February 21 - Youngstown, OH - Covelli Centre
February 23 - Red Bank, NJ - Count Basie Center For The Arts
February 24 - Oxon Hill, MD - The Theater at MGM
National Harbor
February 25 - Durham, NC - DPAC
February 27 - Columbia, SC - Township Auditorium
February 29 - Virginia Beach, VA - The Sandler Center
March 1 - Roanoke, VA - Berglund Center
March 2 - Cincinnati, OH - Taft Theatre
March 4 - Richmond, VA - Altria Theater
March 5 - Knoxville, TN - Knoxville Civic Auditorium
March 7 - Pensacola, FL - Saenger Theatre
March 8 - Biloxi, MS - Beau Rivage
March 9 - Biloxi, MS - Beau Rivage
March 11 - Huntsville, AL - VBC Mark C. Smith Concert Hall
March 12 - Greenville, SC - Peace Center
March 14 - Macon, GA - Macon City Auditorium
March 15 - Orlando, FL - Dr. Phillips Center
March 16 - Clearwater, FL - The Sound
March 18-24 - Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea IX - Miami, FL to Cozumel, Mexico
APRIL 2024 UK Concerts
April 4 - London, The Royal Albert Hall
April 5 - London, The Royal Albert Hall
Blues-rock superstar
Joe Bonamassa is one of the most celebrated performing musicians of today. As a three-time GRAMMY-nominated artist and 13x Blues
Music Award Nominee (4 wins), he achieved his 27th No. 1 album on the Billboard Blues Chart with Tales Of Time, a sprawling and expansive live concert film and album, shot at the breathtaking Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado in August 2022. Only in his mid-40s, Bonamassa has become a living legend with an astounding multi-genre catalog. He has released more than 40 albums, including studio and live recordings, as well as collaborative albums with his adventurous side projects:
Black Country Communion and Rock Candy Funk Party.
A prolific writer who is always on the hunt to expand his eclectic musical horizons, Bonamassa has a limitless work ethic whether it's in a studio, on the road, or working with other artists to spur new music. In recent years, he has produced an immense number of albums including
Joanne Shaw Taylor, Marc Broussard, Larry McCray, Jimmy Hall and others for his independent label KTBA Records, and has also recently launched Journeyman LLC, a full-service artist management, record label, concert promotion, and marketing company that builds awareness for independent artists worldwide. Recent producing highlights include 'Crown' by the blues legend Eric Gales, which was nominated for "Best Contemporary Blues Album" at the 2023 GRAMMY Awards.
Bonamassa has been featured in several publications from Esquire, WSJ, and
Parade to Rolling Stone and American Songwriter, as well as on the covers of Guitar World, Guitar Player, Vintage Guitar, Guitarist, and Classic Rock Magazine. His non-profit Keeping The Blues Alive provides funds and resources to schools and artists in need and has positively impacted more than 91k students to date while raising over 2 million in donations.
