Bios

The Racky Thomas Band hails from Boston, Massachusetts but plays the blues as though they came right out of post-war Chicago or the Mississippi delta. The band has received widespread critical praise in local, national, and international blues publications, as well as worldwide radio airplay of their two most recent self-produced cd’s; Last Of The Big Spenders, and Troubled All the time.

The band formed in 1995 and has been performing throughout the northeast to enthusiastic audiences, steadily gaining a devoted following ever since. The band got a great boost in 1997 by winning Boston’s prestigious Battle of the Blues Bands. That earned them a trip to Memphis, TN. To compete in the International Blues Competition where they made a strong showing and gained broader exposure.

The band maintains a steady performance schedule of over 150 dates a year and continues to earn rave reviews from critics and music enthusiasts alike. The band also has a number of festival performances to their credit, and has opened for Luther ‘Guitar’ Jr. Johnson, Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland, Paul Rishell & Annie Raines, and Susan Tedeschi.

Racky Thomas picked up the guitar in high-school and fell in love with the blues while studying at Berklee College of Music. He picked up the harmonica soon after and has been pickin’ his guitar and blowin’ his horn ever since. Thomas has performed in Japan, Denmark, and the U.K. singing and playing the delta-blues on his steel guitar. Thomas sings and writes the majority of the band’s material.

Nick Adams has been a driving force in the Racky Thomas Band since the very beginning and has matured into one of the finest blues gutarists out there today. His authenticity never overshadows his signature style. Nick has performed with such blues luminaries as Darrell Nulisch, James Harman, & Sugar Ray & the Bluetones, just to name a few. Nick is a 3-time winner of Blues Audience's ‘Favorite Lead Guitarist’ in their popular Readers Poll; once with Guitar Junior Johnson in 2000 and in his own right in 2001 and 2005.

Todd Carson holds down the low end on upright bass. His ‘Dixonesque’ style is perfectly suited to the style of the band. Carson also shares much of the writing credits with Thomas for the bands original material, which is featured on the band’s discs.

Michael Avery is a 20 year veteran of the New England Blues scene and plays the drums with authority and conviction. He began simply enough in the mid-sixties with a drum set and a dream of a profess쮮 playing Blues and Jazz. Among his many performance credits are such legends as Chuck Berry, Big Mama Thornton, Big Walter Horton, and The Fabulous Thunderbirds. His experience and sensitivity have led him to apply his abilities in a myriad of musical situations that include motion picture soundtracks and symphony orchestras as well as small groups and solo dance accompaniment. Mike’s career is a testament to his love of the blues.

Often times Jeremy Berlin will join the band on piano. He is a full time member of Johnny Hoy & The Bluefish, a well respected band based out of Martha’s Vineyard but appears on the band’s ‘Troubled All The Time’ cd, and appears with the band whenever his schedule will allow. Jeremy’s years of experience and musical professionalism shine through in his performances