The Genius of Geno

There is no doubt - Geno is the man. He came, they saw, he conquered. When Geno Washington and The Ram jam Band took to the stage in the sixties, he brought the house down with some of the grooviest vibes ever to grace the hip and happening joints where the cool people hung out.

The man with two of the biggest selling UK albums of the sixties- Hand Clappin, Foot Stompin, Funky Butt Live and Hipsters, Flipsters, Finger Popping Daddies! – is as strong as ever.

Geno first came to Britain in the sixties as part of the US Air Force and made his name as the definitive king of soul. His high energy gigs left you breathless and demanding more while his ‘Go,Go’ style of performance drove audiences wild.

Back in those days, Cream, Jimi Hendrix and Pink Floyd were a long way down his play list, while The Small Faces were booed off stage by a crowd impatient for Geno Washington and his Ram Jam Band. He always took celebrities in his stride – he jammed with most of them. During the Lord Taverners charity Rock and Blues evening at the Royal Albert Hall in March 2004, he met up again with old friends Eric Clapton, Bill Wyman and Sir Bob Geldof and the magic returned as he played the blues with Mark Samms, guitarist with the Alabama Three.

After working on some never released stuff with the Beach Boys in the eighties, a different generation learned Geno’s name when he was immortalized by Kevin Rowland of Dexy’s Midnight Runners who had a number one hit with ‘Geno’ Twenty six years later Geno and Kevin finally met.

In the nineties, the Blues singer from Evansville, Indiana USA returned to his roots with a show, Cut Loose and Singing the Blues. This spawned the band The Purple Aces, which played Edinburgh’s Fringe Festival during a three- week sell-out run and resulted in a collaboration with Ray Fenwick of the Spencer Davis Group, and the album, Change Your Thoughts You Change Your Life.

Along with a succession of collaborations with Adamski, Gabrielle and a duet with Kermit (Black Grape), Geno’s live gigs have continued to draw crowds around the world – his schedule has included sell-out blues and soul concerts in Italy and Switzerland.

2006 is going to be a busy year for Geno, with his UK Tour underway to promote his new album ‘Kiss My Rhythm’, which is due for release in May: Filming has already started on the long awaited documentary about his life. Geno has also been offered a part in a movie. With his ever-growing following, they prove the main man, who once played three gigs a night, is still able to captivate and deliver music straight to the heart.

Geno is not just a singer/song writer- performer-- he is multi-talented. To his credit he has written a novel entitled ‘The Blood Brothers’ which has been published, including children’s stories. Made a cameo appearance in Nick Berry’s thriller ‘Paparazzo’, and has studied various forms of meditation. Not many people know that Geno is an excellent speaker.

Geno was the first real Soul Artist to hit this country, and is well respected throughout the music industry. He has been voted top entertainer in his field.
--- So please, lets give this man or I should say ‘Legend’ the recognition he so richly deserves.


For further information contact rpippet@btopenworld.com or visit www.genowashington.com

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