Imagine stepping back in time to the late 1920's when early jazz, blues and rags were the thing, fresh and unpredictable, and you got Hobo Paradise, a band that covers a nice chunk of the classic American Songbook as well as straying into its own unqiue territory. Hobo Paradise was born in part from the seminal figure in Scott Joplin with a dose of ragtime's greatest finger style guitar player and singer, Blind Blake. With a need to give this music the full effect, guitarist, singer and songwriter, JL Stiles, made a call to Mike Rinta, a fellow ragtime fanatic and closet ragtime pianist and a world class and world renown trombonist and arranger, whose resume includes touring with Jimmy Vaughan, Sly & The Family Stone and Carlos Santana among too many other luminaries to name. The two spent some time together arranging JL's music for the classic three piece horn section and bass and it was a done deal, the party was on. Stiles' guitar would assume the role of piano in the band for its wild syncopated thunkery of chords, bass and melody and he croons and coaxes the songs as an ideal ringleader for this party-waiting-to-happen. Ben Bernstein (formerly of New Monsoon) had already agreed to be a part of the outfit and it's a good thing, too, because Ben is a great bandleader in his own right and has fluidity, tone and thump on the stand up bass. Stiles knew who to ask to hold down the fort and speaking of such, Jeremy Hoenig drives the train on drums and percussion with fire in his eyes and versatility and deftness few can equal. Jeremy's a sweet fellow, nominated for a grammy in children's music but he's a very bad man as a member of the celebrated touring band, Tracorum, and as a heavy hitter in the blues and funk scene all over the world. Stiles and Jeremy go way back over two decades and it comes out at the show with fun and ease. Just how international touring jazz and pop luminary, trumpeter Doug Ellington, does what he does is a mystery to everyone who hears him. He has the lineage, not only as a player but as a composer, for his great uncle is indeed Duke Ellington, afterall. Doug never fails to tear the roof off the joint when he needs to and it is fair to say, just having him in a band demands bad-assedness from everyone else. In steps Tom Griesser who really cannot be outdone. Considered a master teacher and performer in the Bay Area on saxophone and clarinet, Tom leads his own projects, The Tom Griesser 3 and the much celebrated, B3B4. Also jumping in on saxophone/clarinet is the gutsy, gritty Snakebite, a fairly recent transplant from New Orleans. Snakebite has recorded with the Neville Bros, Jr. Brown, Marva Wright, Kinky Friedman and performed live with The Band, The Temptations, the Dells, Martha Reeves and Gatemouth Brown in addition to leading his own project, The Ninth Ward Millionaires. Don't be fooled by the grit; this man is laser on his axe.
