Jim Mesi
Friday, 26 June 2009 18:33
Bookmark with:
Photo by Reed Anderson
Jim Mesi's Web Site
Muddy Awards:
-
1991 Best Electric Guitar
-
1992 The Jim Mesi Band won Best Roots Rock Act
-
1993 Best Electric Guitar
-
1994 Best Electric Guitar
-
1995 Best Electric Guitar
-
1995 Inducted into the CBA Hall of Fame for Best Electric Guitar
-
2000 CBA Muddy Award for Lifetime Achievement
-
2001 Jim Mesi Band at the Waterfront Blues Festival won Performance of the Year
-
2001 "Blues, Cars, & Electric Guitars" won Best Northwest Recording
Related Links:
-
CBA Music Review: Blues, Cars & Electric Guitars
Jim Mesi's Bio
Jim Mesi has been a cornerstone of the Pacific Northwest music scene for some years. Originally from Portland, Mesi was one of the founding members of Brown Sugar, the original rhythm and blues band in the Pacific Northwest, and a seminal influence on the Northwest blues scene: Brown Sugar spawned the Paul de Lay Band--for which Jim was the lead guitarist and featured soloist for several years--and the Lloyd Jones Struggle. But Mesi hasn't confined his talents to just the local scene. He has toured and played with many nationally renowned acts, including B.B. King, Chuck Berry, Roy Orbison, Albert Collins, Big Walter Horton, Johnny Otis, John Hammond, Mary Wells, and a host of other top entertainers.
Jim's guitar style is unique, masterful, and evocative. He has the rare ability to engage audiences of all kinds and tastes with his powerful, melodic, and emotional artistry. He has won numerous awards, including best band, best guitarist nine times, and five awards from Fresh Weekly Music Magazine. He was inducted into the Cascade Blues Association's Blues Hall of Fame in November, 1995. He has received consistently enthusuastic reviews from many major newspapers, is ranked as one of Portland's top 1995 guitarists by The Oregonian, and has been featured in Rolling Stone and Sunset magazines. Jim has current endorsement deals with both Chandler guitars and Rivera amps. He is in constant demand as a session player for other artists' recordings, on both standard and pedal-steel guitar. Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top remarked in Guitar Player magazine that Jim Mesi is one of his top three favorite guitar players in the world. One recent review summed it up well: "Guitar monster Mesi is one of the few players who gives the impression that every possible sound and solo is at his fingertips...you will not only dance the night away but also witness a graduate-level seminar in riffology."
After his lengthy stint on the national scene, Mesi returned to his home town and formed the Jim Mesi Band in 1989. His top-notch experience, uncanny musicianship, and solid professionalism have resulted in one of the most sought after, frequently booked, and highly regarded bands around. Playing an ever-changing, eclectic, and crowd-pleasing blend of musical styles, the Jim Mesi Band works over three hundred dates a year, playing clubs, concerts and festivals all over the West Coast and beyond. The band's summer 1995 European tour included award-winning dates in Iceland, England, Scotland, Holland, Germany, and Macedonia. The Mesi Band has been a featured regular act at the Candlelight Room, Portland's most popular blues club_for over three years. Their latest CD has sold out three production runs. When you hear the Jim Mesi Band, you'll know why.