James „Blood“ Ulmer has been a jazz icon for nearly 50 years. His highly
individualistic music is an amalgam of the diverse influences he has
encountered since, as a child in South Carolina, he taught himself guitar and
began singing in a gospel group. As the leader of various small groups over
the years, Ulmer has made a substantial international impact and has been
described by Down Beat writer Larry Birnbaum as a cross between Jimi
Hendrix, Bob Dylan and Mike Bloomfield. International Musician has hailed
Ulmer as probably the most innovative, creative guitarist/composer on the
scene today.
Previously described by Village Voice music critic Greg Tate as, the missing
link between Jimi Hendrix and Wes Montgomery on one hand, between P-
Funk and Mississippi Fred McDowell on the other, James Blood Ulmer has
made a career built on left turns and reinvention. Born and raised during
segregation in rural South Carolina, Ulmer`s earliest musical roots can be
traced back to the Baptist church and the gospel music of which he was
raised. In his early 20s, Ulmer went to Pittsburgh where he first began gigging
as a professional musician on the Midwest`s chitlin` circuit playing with R&B
and organ jazz bands. It was after meeting Ornette Coleman upon moving to
New York in the early 1970s that Ulmer truly found his voice. Working steadily
alongside his harmolodic mentor in the fabled New York City downtown loft
jazz scene, Ulmer`s guitar work blossomed into a one-of-a-kind idiosyncratic
style that transcended genre. He`d go onto release a string of acclaimed
albums that remain classics to this day, including Tales of Captain Black,
Freelancing, Black Rock and Odyssey. And now in the 21st century, Ulmer
continues to progress as his most recent history finds him being recognized
as an elder statesman of the blues. At the core, however, remains the one and
only James Blood Ulmer.