Roots Music for Kids: JAMBO to release "Hootenanny" in February 2013...

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I’m nine songs into the new album from Los Angeles-based indie musician Steve Pierson’s JAMBO as I type this, and my first impression is that a lot of folks will enjoy HOOTENANNY when it arrives next year. Slated for release on February 12, 2013 via Got the Blues Music, JAMBO’s HOOTENANNY is a 14-track collection of blues-infused “American roots music for kids.”

“One of my primary goals has been to give kids, at a very early age, a taste of the ‘good stuff’ — the kind of organic, rootsy music that I love. I wrote two kinds of songs for Hootenanny: full blown band tracks and what I call ‘back porch’ tracks. I really wanted to mix up styles and give listeners a sampling of different instruments and different kinds of songs.”Steve Pierson

About Jambo…

hootencover From the official press release: Guitar virtuoso and soulful blues singer Steve Pierson has spent most of his adult life in Los Angeles. His music career centered on the local blues band scene in and around LA before he made the move to join Grammy winner and former Wings guitar virtuoso Laurence Juber in forming their own blues-rock band, Blues Head. Steve put in ten years playing festivals and clubs around the country with Blues Head until the birth of his daughter, Lucy, in 2002. Upon Lucy’s arrival, Steve came off the road and began to focus on writing music for film and television. He has since become a successful and prolific composer/producer of music for television, commercials, and independent films.

Musical adventures with Lucy provided Steve Pierson with the inspiration to write rootsy, bluesy music for kids. What started as a fun family project quickly gained a momentum all its own, and Jambo was born. Steve’s wife, actress Melinda McGraw (Mad Men, Men of a Certain Age, The Dark Knight, and more), joined Jambo as a vocalist, and Steve linked up with Tor Hyams to produce the first Jambo CD, Lucy’s Parade, in 2008. Lucy’s Parade was a hit with families and critics alike, receiving both a Parents’ Choice Recommended Award and a Los Angeles Music Award.

Jambo strikes a high profile on the Los Angeles family music scene, performing regularly throughout the region at such venues as the Skirball Center for the Arts, The Grammy Museum, and The Geffen Playhouse. The band also tours nationally, with recent appearances at the Austin City Limits Festival and the Hangout Music Festival in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

For more from Jambo, throw ’em a like on Facebook (toss me one, too!) or follow their brand-new twitter account (launched yesterday)!