Little Victor

Bio:

**This favored son of the blues began his career in 1981 -at the age of 14- singin' with the Sunbeams. The band mostly featured songs from the Sun records vaults. Hence the name "Little" Victor. At 16 he picked up the blues harmonica and started to wail in the style of Jimmy Reed and Junior Parker. He learned what the real blues was playin' with real bluesmen in Memphis, Tennessee when he was a young man. He was on Beale Street six days a week with High Water recording artist Uncle Ben Perry, the "King of Handy Park." **************************************************************** Uncle Ben showed him the ropes of downhome blues guitar. Victor also hung out and played with with other Beale Street legends: Herman"Alabama"Alexander and Jessie Mae Hemphill, the "She-Wolf." He often sat down with local celebrities as the Holliwood All Stars and The Memphis Fieldstones. He was not the first italian holdin' firth on the main thoroughare of black music and culture in Memphis. **************************************************************** Then Driftin' down rivers to North Mississippi, Li'l Victor jammed in a variety of deep blues guitar tunings in juke joints of RL Burnside and Junior Kimbrough and a host of other backwater bluesmen. Encouraged not only by blues artists, but blues schoolars like Robert Palmer and David Evans, this golden bluesboy also made experimental blues demo tapes recorded in Memphis by Alex Chilton. **************************************************************** Later legendary guitarist Hubert Sumlin -of the Howlin' Wolf fame- played and recorded with Victor. In the 1990's he lived for some time in Austin, Texas. **************************************************************** In 1994 Victor recorded "Cuttin' Out" a collection of original songs for Blue-Jay Records, followed in 1996 by "Space Shuffle," featuring drummer Uncle John Turner and Hector Watt on guitar.*** **************************************************************** By 1998 Little Victor joined forces with Sophie Kay, a blues chanteuse and guitar player of rapturous consequences, who was filming her acclaimed documentary "A Day With RL Burnside." It was Burnside himself that gave them the idea to title thir first record effort "Cookin' With Gas." **************************************************************** In 2000 drummer Eric'Lulu'Lelet joined this eccentric blues combo. In late 2001, the album "Just Rockin' The Blues" was released thanks to blues guru David Evans, who also wrote the liner notes. This album of vintage juke joint blues sounds, recorded one-take -in superb LO-FI mono- received great response from the press and music fans and promoters, providing Little Victor with steady live work. **************************************************************** He played hunderds of club dates, international tours and festivals as Notodden (Norway), Cognac (France) Boogie Town (Belgium) Big Rivers (Holland), BluesLive (Finland), Pellican Blues (Latvia) and many more ********************.******************************************* Little Victor played shows with The Jelly Roll Kings, Big Jack Johnson, Sam Carr, Super Chickan, Snooky Pryor, Little Milton, Pinetop Perkins, The Black Keys, Mel Brown, James Harman, the Fat Possum Blues Caravan, T-Model Ford, Paul "Wine" Jones and backed up RL Burnside, Robert "Wolfman Belfour & many more. **************************************************************** He also played guitar with The Hound Dog Taylor Tribute Band, Tav Falco's Panther Burns, David Evans and The Sophie Kay Band. Since 2005, Victor plays with the legendary Louisiana Red (his childhood idol) on regular bases... **************************************************************** In late 2006 Victor recorded a new killer album in Phoenix, Arizona with help from Bob Corritore, Johnny Rapp, Mario Moreno, Bill Tarsha, Brian Fahey and Dave Forster. *************************************************************** 2007 was a busy busy year. He performed at festivals as Let's Get Wild(Germany), the Rhythm Riot (UK), Dark Season Blues (Norway), Mississippi Blues Nights (Germany) and performed over 140 club dates in England, Belgium, Holland, Greece, Italy, France, Spain, Norway etcetera... ************************************************************** In december 2007 the EP "Blues Shakedown" (featuring four tracks from his Phoenix sessions) was officially released on the German Label Withchcraft Records. *************************************************************** In january 2008 he signed with Wild Records of Hollywood. In late march 2008 he recorded a new album in California for the company. "Let's Get High" that was released in the States in august 2009. He performed around the Los Angeles area and played at the "Ice House" and at the" Viva Las Vegas" festiva in Las Vegas, Nervada. **************************************************************** He recorded a new CD with his mentor Louisiana Red for Bluestown Records, with Kim Wilson, Bob Corritore, Dave Maxwell and other special guests called "Back To The Black Bayou"... Victor also produced the album... Ruf Records bought the masters and released the album in march 2009.... The resy is history... The record got outstanding reviews and pretty good sales in US, Europe & Asia... ************************************************************** The Swamp-Tonk sounds of Little Victor are known from the Rio Grand to Paris and back again. Watch out for your happy home, friends... Little Victor is comin' to your town ! **** TAV FALCO > LITTLE VICTOR - WILD RECORDS TV SPECIAL- Part 1 From a VIMBY TV Special on Wild Records starring Little Victor, Luis & The Wildfires, Omar Romero, The Vargas Brothers, Santos, tthe Hi-Strung Rumbles, Dusty Chance, Li'l Gizzelle and other Wild artists. It was shot at the Swing House Studios in Hollywood before a very hip audience: music fans, pachucos, pin ups, weirdos, hep cats and kittens. If you pay attention you can see celebrities in the audience as Big Sandy and Nick Curran (the blond dude with a red leather jacket) diggin' the show; Louis Arriaga, Ricky McCann and Alex Vargas are backing up Little Victor here just like they did on his album for the label "Let's Get High" that was recorded about the same time. Look out for part two ! LITTLE VICTOR - WILD RECORDS TV SPECIAL - PART 2 LITTLE VICTOR - UBANGI STOMP 2009 This was shot at a cool festival in Benidorn, Spain. The crowd was really hot... We sho ' had a helluva time that night !! I had a broken toe and the first finger on my right hand was injured but as soon as I started to play I forgot all about it... Ha Ha ! " LITTLE VICTOR "RHYTHM RIOT "2008" (The Story Inside) I was asked fill up for somebody... My guitar was set just like a lap steel 'cuz I had a gig with the Tiki Marauders... I just put it in standard tuning before gettin' on stage again. I was probably lookin' like somebody that just fell from a cabbage truck from Mars... I reckon I plugged in and said to myself "Okay, what the hell I'm Gonna do now?" It didn't took too long to figure out something... ...... LITTLE VICTOR & RAY COLLINS' HOT CLUB-LET'S GET HIGH- This was filmed on january 20th 2008 at the unforgettable Hula Boogie 5th anniversary and Miss Aloha's -20th ?- birthday party at Hula Boogie in South London. I joined the band on stage and we sounded like we played together since day one... More to come... HULA BOOGIE 5th ANNIVERSARY -FEAT. RAY COLLINS' HOT CLUB, MISS SOPHIE GARDNER & LITTLE VICTOR- Hey hey hey we got COLOR on this one...Wow ! Seems like everybody who had a camera in the house only filmed my first song... Ha Ha ! WARMIN' UP AT THE BBC- I was invited by Mark Lamarr to do a recording session at the BBC studios in London with my band. I asked my friends Big Joe Louis and Jim Carlisle to join forces with me and I reckon we sounded pretty good together. My half-sister Miss Aloha took this video and also played tambourine on one number. It's short but sweet...

Member Since:

March 06, 2006

Members:

**I perform with different musicians... I often play with just a drummer... Check out some stuff I recorded with JOHNNY RAPP (Henry Gray, Pinetop Perkins, James Cotton, Louisiana Red...) MARIO MORENO (Louisiana Red, Lazy Lester, Sonny Burgess...), BILL TARSHA (Big Walter Horton, Muddy Waters, Lightnin' Hopkins, Louisiana Red..), BRIAN FAHEY (William Clark, Louisiana Red, Big Pete Pearson, The Paladins...) and BOB CORRITORE (Robert Junior Lockwood, Jimmy Rogers, Louisiana Red, RL Burnside..) We did it at the Kyle Harris studio in Phoenix, Arizona. I posted four songs on this page. Witchcraft Records released the EP "Blues Shakedown" with four songs frome those sessions **I just posted a song from my new album "Let's Get High"recorded for Wild Records in Hollywood, California with Lil' Luis Arriaga, Angel Hernandez, Ricky McCann, Alex Vargas, Omar Romero and other talented musicians. **I produced and played on six songs for "Needy Time" the latest effort by Grammy-Award winner & blues guru David Evans for Inside Memphis Records. Check him out he's on my "Top" friends. He posted four songs we did together on his page. **I also produced and played on Louisiana Red's new album "Back To The Black Bayou" , featuring Kim Wilson, Dave Maxwell, Bob Corritore and other special guests. Ruf records release the CD in the Staes, Europe and even Japan... The album got rare reviews in 3 Continents !!!

Influences:

Joe Hill Louis, Doctor Ross, Robert Johnson, Papa Lightfoot, Louisiana Red, Tav Falco's Panther Burns, RL Burnside, Jessie Mae Hemphill, Son House, Junior Kimbrough, Robert Belfour, Uncle Ben Perry, Hasil Adkins, Memphis Minnie, Johnny Shines, Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup, Jerry McCain, T-Model Ford, Bo Diddley, JB Lenoir, Andre Williams, Charley Patton, Johnny Cash, Jimmy Reed, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Pops Staples, Elvis, Blind Boy Fuller, Charlie Feathers, James Brown, Kid Thomas, Hank Williams, Big John Wrencher, The Memphis Jug Band, The Blasters, Blind Willie Johnson, Hot Shot Love, Howlin' Wolf, Junior Wells, Little Walter, Juke Boy Bonner, Lazy Lester, Slim Harpo, Lightnin' Slim, Elmore James, Hound Dog Taylor & The Houserockers, John Lee Hooker, Lightnin' Hopkins, Frankie Lee Sims, Little Son Jackson, Furry Lewis, Snooky Pryor, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Cordell Jackson, Esquerita, Wee Willie Wayne, Piano Red, Professor Longhair, Champion Jack Dupree, Big Maceo, Otis Spann, Walter Horton, Willie Nix, The Cramps, JB Hutto, Link Wray, Jimmy Rodgers, Lee Dorsey, Tampa Red, Chuck Berry, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Ray Charles, Clifton Chenier, Ted Taylor, Johnny'Guitar'Watson, Eddie Taylor, Hop Wilson, Sonny Boy Williamson, Leadbelly, Guitar Slim, Junior Parker, Guitar Nubbit, Fred McDowell, Robert Nighthawk, Frank Frost, Baby Boy Warren, Homesick James, Blue Smitty, Asie Payton, Houston Stackhouse, Walter Davis, Driftin' Slim, Jimmy Rogers, Son Thomas, Smokey Smothers...

Sounds Like:

Record Label:

I got a few: Bluestown, Ruf, Wild Records