Ghost Town Blues Band

Matt Isbell, who became the Ghost Town Blues band's frontman, took piano lessons from the age of 10, but was drawn towards the guitar. He learned to play at home on a small guitar with only three viable strings, and played in an open chord style, a technique which he still uses today on his home-made cigar box guitars.[6] Having seen Todd Snider busking on Beale Street, and getting a six-string acoustic Goya dreadnaught for his 12th birthday, Isbell attempted to learn to play every track on Snider's 1994 album, Songs for the Daily Planet. In high school Isbell formed his first band, The Blind Venetians, along with current Ghost Town lead guitarist Taylor Orr. They recorded one record at the joint age of 15, but the band broke up when the members graduated. Isbell then spent the next seven years in a rock band playing cover versions, but when his mother died suddenly from a stroke, Isbell started to reassess his future. In 2007, he became a student in the University of Memphis music business program and released a solo album, Rock Lotto, later becoming a member of the Stax Music Academy SNAP! program.[6] With the intention of forming a new band, Isbell found another young musician in Suavo Jones, an ever-present in the line-up. They were initially joined by Jeremy Powell, a keyboardist who went on to work with Eddie Palmieri and Southern Avenue.[6] While in their formative state, the band's name and now trademark second-line entrance to the stage, arose from their inability to draw a crowd. "Nobody was in the club half the time when we'd play," Isbell remembered. "We'd say: 'It's a ghost town in here. We must be the Ghost Town Blues Band.'" In attempting to boost trade they decided to take their music out on to Beale Street, which led to the origination of their second-line.[6]

Their fusion approach to playing is rooted in Isbell's singer-songwriter background, whereas Suavo had a grounding in hip hop. More recent keyboardist recruit, Cedric Taylor, has Southern rock leanings and, after lengthy persuasion, Taylor Orr was employed. Bass player Matt Karner is a native of northern New Jersey, and has a jazz based upbringing. Andrew McNeill is the band's drummer.[6] Debuting in 2009, the outfit was originally a blues rock band, playing music such as the Creedence Clearwater Revival version of Screamin' Jay Hawkins's "I Put A Spell On You". Nevertheless, their debut album, Dust The Dust (2010), only contained five covers.[6] Released via Inside Sounds, Dust the Dust received radio airplay in both the US and Europe. The recording won the European Independent Music Label Award for 'Top Sound' in blues.[1] The album, Dark Horse, followed in 2012.[2]

In 2012, the Ghost Town Blues band played at the Crossroads Blues & Heritage Festival in Rosedale, Mississippi. In 2014 the band, having made the finals for the second year running, came runners up to Mr. Sipp in the International Blues Challenge. Hard Road To Hoe was released in 2015, and the album track's opened with an original composition by Taylor Orr, "Another Lover". Although it was self released, the album got the band a higher profile.[6] They were nominated for the Best Blues Band Award for the 2015 Blues Blast Music Awards, the first of multiple nominations.[5] They performed for a whole tour as the opening act for the Steve Miller Band, plus played at a number of festivals across the US, and were booked on 12 overseas tours in 2017 and 2018.[6]

On February 27, 2018, the Ghost Town Blues Band issued a live album, Backstage Pass, which captured a concert in Memphis on July 29, 2017.[7] It was the band's fourth album. The recording started with a cover of the Beatles' "Come Together", and provided a showcase for the twin guitars of Taylor Orr and Matt Isbell on their version of The Allman Brothers Band song, "Whipping Post".[4] Backstage Pass climbed to No. 4 on US Billboard Top Blues Albums Chart.[6]

Their latest album, Shine, debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Blues Album Chart in October 2019. They had previously headlined on the blues stage at the Montreal International Jazz Festival and performed more than a half-dozen international tours in Canada and Europe in 2019.[3]

Isbell is a prolific three string cigar box guitar maker, having manufactured over 450 instruments since 2010. His clientele has included Eric Schrenkman of the Spin Doctors, Cyndi Lauper, Michael Leonhart of Steely Dan and Joe Bonamassa. All guitars are fretless and are designed to play using a slide, of which Isbell makes about 200 a month, manufactured in his home garage.[6]

Ghost Town Blues Band was placed second in the International Blues Challenge in 2014.[3]

They were the winner of the International Songwriting Competition in 2015.[3]

[2]

• Official website
• Discogs entry