BLUESMAN JOE MOSS SET TO RELEASE NEW CD, MARICELA’S SMILE, MARCH 18 ON 212 RECORDS

CHICAGO, IL – 212 Records announces a March 18 date for Maricela’s Smile, the new CD from Chicago-based blues guitarist/singer Joe Moss and his stellar band, with national distribution through Burnside Distribution.

Maricela’s Smile features Joe Moss’ most-ambitious set of blues yet, with journeys into not only the west and south sides of Chicago blues, but also includes healthy doses of R&B, funk, soul and jazz to the mix, a testament to not only his musical influences growing up, but also the breadth of his experience as a veteran musician.

The CDs dozen tracks include 10 originals, plus Joe’s take on the blues/rock of Free’s “Fire and Water,” as well as a soulful version of “Big Leg Woman,” previously recorded by such legends as Freddie King. Maricela’s Smile closes with the live track, “Ain’t Got No Money,” which gives the band members ample room to stretch out into improvisation, touching on jazz and even the jam/roots/rock sound of The Allman Brothers Band.  

A guitarist since he was 15 years old, Joe Moss also turned his younger brother, Nick, on to the blues, who has gone on to develop a strong following in his own right. Joe’s entry into the world of blues came from noted guitarist Buddy Scott, who spotted Moss during a jam session at the celebrated Chicago west side club Rosa’s Blues Lounge and promptly put him to work as a member of his Rib Tip band. In 1992, Joe toured Spain with Buddy and also recorded with him on Scott’s Bad Ave. CD, as well. Moss very quickly became an in-demand sideman with many of Chicago’s hardest working bands, playing guitar on the bandstand for Zora Young, Li’l Smokey Smothers, Syl Johnson, Lefty Dizz, Magic Slim, A.C. Reed, Billy Branch and Little Mack Simmons, among many others. Tours with these artists brought Joe exposure outside of the U.S. in Canada, Turkey, Switzerland, Holland, Belgium, France and Germany. 

In 1997, he released The Joe Moss Band’s debut self-titled CD, following that with his second album, Monster Love, in 2003. “Monster Love is the work of a skilled craftsman,” said Jeff Johnson in his review for the Chicago Sun-Times. During the ensuing years, Joe Moss has also become a regular not only in Chicago clubs like Buddy Guy’s Legends and The House of Blues, but at venues and festivals around the country and in Europe as well. Buddy Guy, who knows a few things about playing guitar and entertaining, called Joe “energetic, a strong guitarist and always a crowd pleaser” after catching many of Moss’ frequent gigs at his club.

The Joe Moss Band will tour extensively in support of Maricela’s Smile release and the act is booked by The Jo-Ann Freda Agency (joannfreda@optonline.net).

For more information, visit www.joemossband.com or www.myspace.com/joemossband

CENTERSTAGE INTERVIEW WITH JOE MOSS:

CENTERSTAGE:	What excites you the most about music?
JOE MOSS:	The constant changing nature of it.
CENTERSTAGE:	What discourages you the most about music?
JOE MOSS:	The Business end of it
CENTERSTAGE:	What aspect of making music gets you the most discouraged?
JOE MOSS:	Not one Part – I love making music
CENTERSTAGE:	What do you think about downloading music online?
JOE MOSS:	It’s like anything, it has great potential for expanding talent that was not getting any play under the old system. If you pay for the download great! But people have to realize that stealing people’s intellectual property is not cool. It is kind of like “Hey I really like your car I am going to take the keys off your key chain when you ain’t lookin and take it for a ride FOREVER”. I mean a car is worth a lot more monetarily than a single download of a song but it is STILL STEALING!
CENTERSTAGE:	Tell us about the most exciting thing happening with your music right now or in the near future.
JOE MOSS:	I am releasing my new CD  Maricela’s Smile on March 18th
CENTERSTAGE:	Name the most unusual place you’ve ever played or made a recording.  What made this place unusual and how did it effect the music?
JOE MOSS:	A gig for very ill children.  At a hospital here in Chicago. Unusual and yet very satisfying. I always do my best when I play but I really wanted the kids that day to enjoy it. It made the music very focused to this end
CENTERSTAGE:	In what ways does the place where you live (or places where you have lived), affect the music you create, or your taste in music?
JOE MOSS:	I am from Chicago- The best musicians in world live here- the problem is you have to live here to hear them. Because the recording industry forgot Chicago exists. Especially for the younger guy’s. My whole career has been dependent on what I learned here in this city from people like Buddy, Walter and Hollywood Scott and all the Blues, Jazz, Soul, Funk, and Rock Greats that came from here. Where else can you see Buddy Guy, Billy Branch, and Lonny Brooks on the same stage or go down the street and see Otis Rush and Carl Weathersby? I did that when I was coming up as a young musician. I was Lucky!
CENTERSTAGE:	As you create more music, do you find yourself getting more or less interested in seeking out and listening to new music made by other people...and why do you think that is?
JOE MOSS:	I always listen to music new or old – I love to find new music or artists that I have not heard before. I also like to listen old music or artists that I have not heard before too! The reason is because I love it.
CENTERSTAGE:	Lately what musical periods or styles do you find yourself most drawn to as a listener? (Old or new music? Music like yours or different from yours?)
JOE MOSS:	I really like 70’s soul and funk that is what I am currently listening to – Guys like Sly, Donny Hathaway, Johnny Guitar Watson. The 70’s in many ways in my humble opinion is the zenith point in music from a sound standpoint and from a musicianship standpoint. The sound even with all the new Technology today has never got any better and the Musicianship as far as I am concerned actually fell off . What listeners get from a live band has gradually diminished since then. Not in all cases, but remember the silly pop songs on AM radio in the 70’s, even the bad bands could still play. I think computer and digital recording technology has contributed to this.
CENTERSTAGE:	Name a band or musician, past or present, who you flat-out LOVE and think more people should be listening to. What's one of your all-time favorite recordings by this band/musician?
JOE MOSS:	Donny Hathaway- Live at the Bitter End. Has Cornel DuPree on Guitar and Willie Weeks On Bass And Donny on Keyboards and Vocals what more could you ask for?
CENTERSTAGE:	Name the one thing you want people to know about you and your music.
JOE MOSS:	It’s not important what I want them to know . People who listen to music don’t get enough credit . I would prefer people who listen to my music to draw their own conclusions

 

TOUR SCHEDULE

From Joe Moss' MYSPACE & Website

http://www.myspace.com/joemossband

http://www.joemossband.com/

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