Movinmusic is currently arranging dates for June 2012 for Earl Thomas with Paddy Milner and the Big Sounds and all interested venues can contact us for more information on 01209 860067 or by e-mail here.

Singer and songwriter Earl Thomas was born in rural Tennessee traveled the world with his U. S. military family and was a British rock & roll fan. Pianist and composer Paddy Milner was born in Scotland grew up in England and loved American blues. Years later they would meet, realizing their soulful bond had transcended space and time. They, who seemed so different on the outside, harbored a kindred musical spirit on the inside. And it is reflected on their new recording “Earl Thomas With Paddy Milner & The Big Sounds,” a stunning collection of contemporary blues/rock.

“I've always thought of the blues as a collaborative art form,” said Thomas, whose lineage is rooted in the blues and gospel traditions of the Blue Ridge Mountains. “But when we got together as a band, I realized that the blues was also truly international art form. After all, it did come from African, European, American, and Asian cultures culminating on American soil.”

Thomas and Milner met, for the first time, in January 2007 on the Caribbean leg of the prestigious Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise. At the late-night jam sessions they found a quick rapport. Says Thomas of the keyboard player, “His music is so intelligent, and honest, and daring, and soulful and it really speaks to me.”

Milner, too, was struck by the similarities. “Earl's voice and way of singing is immediately passionate, soulful, powerful and very importantly, original,” said Milner. “I think the fact we both look for a unique sound with our music, based in tradition but with a whole lot of international and cross-cultural flavors thrown in, is one of the keys to our collaboration.” A year later, Thomas needed a band to back him on a European tour and found Milner ready and willing. The Big Sounds was a perfect complement to the Thomas soulful and incendiary vocals. Natural and complementary, the music flowed in rehearsals and at the performances, but it was at a live recording session for the BBC that convinced them, an album was inevitable. The Big Sounds features:

• Earl Thomas - Vocals
• Paddy Milner - Keyboards
• Scott Wiber - Bass
• Alex Reeves - Drums
• Marcus Bonfanti - Guitar
• Randall Breneman - Guitar
• Bob Dowell - Trombone
• Ben Somers - Saxophone
• Jon Radford - Trumpet

To capture the collaboration's live energy, the CD was recorded live in two sessions at London's Fish Factory Studios. Milner brought some of his songs (“Right To Your Soul” and “You've Got Me”) to the session; Breneman brought three songs (“See It My Way,” “Daylight” and ”Deconstruct The Devil.”) Thomas, at the insistence of the band, brought three previously recorded songs (“Same Old Blues,” “Better To Have Loved & Lost,” and “Lead A Horse To Water”) and a new song “All You Need,” co-written with former Extra Fancy frontman Brian Grillo, plus a brilliant reading of the Steve Cropper-Rod Stewart classic “Stone Cold Sober.”

“We, as a band, agree that the blues wants to evolve, and we want to be leaders in that artistic evolution,” Thomas said. “Instead of going back over old ground, we want to break new ground by creating blues that is contemporary and representative of, not only of the cultural exchange that created the art form, but of the cultural exchange creating the art form today.”

While there is an evident respect for tradition, Earl Thomas with Paddy Milner & The Big Sounds is a story about creating the blues for the new millennium and a new sophisticated and global audience.

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