Saturday 6:30pm

Ronnie was born in Richmond, VA in 1950. Inspired and encouraged by his jazz drumming uncle, Ronnie was beatin’ the skins by the time he was 8, and gigging in local bands by the young age of 13. Ronnie was weaned on the sounds of swing jazz, rhythm & blues and early rock & roll, but it was the post-war urban blues that really spoke to Ronnie, especially the deep blues of Muddy Waters, the wicked harp of Little Walter and all the great Chess artists. It wasn’t long before he was soaking up the different styles the genre had to offer.

Ronnie and his band �The Grand Dukes� are a critically acclaimed touring band and play anywhere from funky little blues bars, where the music was invented, to major blues festivals, including a headlining & swinging night at New York�s prestigious Lincoln Center. They have earned the reputation as an exciting must see band! Ronnie and the band have recorded 4 critically acclaimed CD�s.

Ronnie is a member of that first generation of young white bluesmen who embraced the genre during the folk/blues revival of the 60�s. Ronnie finally, at the age of 30, put down his sticks and picked up the harp and within a couple of years he was fronting his own bands as both singer and harp player. Ronnie has now been leading his own bands for over 25 years. He has played with or opened shows with some of the biggest names in the blues, John Lee Hooker, James Cotton, Taj Mahal, Carey Bell, Pinetop Perkins, Anson Funderburg, Sam Meyers, Johnny Winter and many many others. Ronnie has worked hard and paid his dues to earn the respect of his peers.

The recently released CD �Gotta Strange Feeling� on Ellersoul Records debuted at #8 on the �Roots Music Radio Charts and #15 on the Living Blues Radio charts top 25. It is now receiving worldwide air play and is on rotation at Sirus/XM radio.