Blues & Bourbon: Chris James & Patrick Rynn Band

Chris James on Guitar / Vocals and Patrick Rynn on Bass have played together for thirty-two years and they have paid their dues. Trouble Don’t Last, their most recent VizzTone album from 2015, showcased the remarkable intensity and subtlety that the San Diego-based pair inevitably brings to their approach. Chris and Patrick are the real deal, whether delving bone-deep into slashing electric Chicago blues classics, cooking up their own meaty originals, or making the occasional foray into acoustic material. James’ vocals ring with ferocity, his fretwork never less than immaculate. Nominated for no less than 11 BMAs as bassist of the year, Rynn lays down grooves as deep as they are subtle; he’s the definition of rock-solid. Growing up on the West Coast, James was playing blues piano at 11 and joining guitarist Tomcat Courtney’s band on harp by 13. Rynn of Toledo Ohio was classically trained on Bass and played with The Griswolds. In 1990 they both moved to Chicago in search of the blues and within six months were working as members of Sam Lay’s band. They’ve been playing together ever since and have backed up such legends as Robert Lockwood Jr., Honeyboy Edwards, Billy Boy Arnold and Junior Wells. These San Diego-based, sartorially splendiferous duo has been inseparable, their telepathic onstage interplay always in evidence whether they’re digging deep into classic postwar blues or dishing up the meaty, satisfying originals prominently featured on their new CD.