Lazer Lloyd :  Israel’s King Of The Blues 

Israel  is a land of many wonders, both old and new . It is as ancient as the Dead Sea scrolls and as modern as it’s ground breaking development of cell phone technology. Blues guitarist  Lazer Lloyd , although not born in the ” land of milk and honey”,   has made his home there for the past 20 years  and has become their ” Ambassador of the Blues .”  Albert King in his classic ” Blues Power ”  lets us know that ” everyone has the blues .” We devotees know that  Blues music comes from deep down in our guts, or soul.

Lazer Lloyd  has  brought many people of  different ages and backgrounds  to   Israel to hear  “his” kind of Blues.  In 2012 his recent , ” My Own Blues “ CD  was crowned Israel’s  “Blues Record of the Year ”  which was filled with deeply inspired high energy  electric blues . Lazer sent this CD to  Memphis Tennessee  for the annual  International Blues Challenge  , where  his music  caught the ears of many prominent blues musicians and producers from  around the world .  This interest  led to his  first U.S. release on the  Blues Leaf   label, a  superlative collection of original solo  acoustic Blues ironically  titled  “Lost on the Highway “.  Listening to the title track  ” Lost Highway “ he metaphorically searches for life’s meaning while traveling the path ” from the streets of Memphis to the streets of Tel Aviv. “

His journey on this “highway”  began in the 1950’s in  Madison, Connecticut .  At home Lazer was  surrounded by music as his father listened to the records of  B.B.King and jazz guitarist Kenny Burrell.   There was  always  a guitar around the house where  his dad  would  captivate Lazer with  traditional Folk music of the 60’s . Then, like many of those  growing up in the 60’s , he was “turned on” to the “ Woodstock groove “  as Lloyd puts it. He immersed himself in the  Rock and Roll / Blues Fusion of many bands such as The Jimi Hendrix Experience , Cream, Traffic, Santana  and The Paul Butterfield Blues Band , which were among  several of his  musical influences . Lazer began ” cutting his teeth ” by listening to  and playing guitar to music of  traditional Blues masters like Robert Johnson  and Blind Lemon Jefferson ..

During the seventies Lazer honed his guitar skills listening to “classic rock” while  he played in many local bands . Lynard Skynard  was a strong influence on his music as he attended Skidmore college .   In the late 80’s Lazer formed a band called ” The Last Mavericks,”   which played a  blend  of music inspired  heavily by  bands like Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and Nirvana .  Big things began to happen for his band as they played  a demo session for  Atlantic Records . Although they were interested in signing the band,  they were taking their time in doing so.  Ironically at this same time his guitar playing  was heard by the world renowned Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach,  also known  as “The Singing Rabbi”.  The Rabbi was famous for his inspirational story telling and his singing  of sweet melodies in song. Carlebach  was not a traditional  Rabbi. He had a profound influence upon Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger while playing in New York City’s Greenwich Village coffeehouses with them .  Carlebach’s  influence  has been said to inspire such modern artists  as Soulfarm and Matisyahu.  If Rap music has Matisyahu , then Lazer Lloyd is the “Matisyahu of the Blues “.    Lazer was at a crossroads in his life at this time.  He was deeply moved and spiritually inspired by Carlebach and  he decided to go on tour playing  with him in Europe.and Israel . Lazer was sure he had made the right decision and he decided  to make Israel his home. He felt it was the best place to  make music and to be at peace with himself .

 Lazer Lloyd  will be playing  in  Toronto on the evening of  Thursday June 19th at the  Cadillac Lounge and will be backed by the  rhythm section of the  Juno award winning band  DOWNCHILD ,  Gary Kendall on bass  and  Mike Fitzpatrick on drums . This will be a power trio that should not be missed . Lazer is looking forward to playing with these high caliber musicians, and as Lazer says ,  ” these guys know musically where I’m at .”

     Lazer Lioyd  will also be playing  in Chicago at the famous Rosa’s Lounge – with The 

Chicago Blues Kings on Tuesday June 24th . He is also planning tours in the US and Canada in August and November( with James Cotton) .

In the past Lazer Lloyd has opened for such artists  Johnny Winter and  Prince.    Lazer  is in the studio working on a new album of completely new electric blues material and re mixing and re releasing , ” My Own Blues ” .   Lazer ‘s real joy is in playing  live shows where he can ” experiment with my music and bond with my audience , that is what playing music is all about for me – the unity of the soul with music.”

 Ken Shankman – kishanken7@aol.com

 Elmore  Magazine / Ken-Do Promotions       

For more information about Lazer Lloyd live events visit : 

https:// lazerlloyd.com 

Booking/ Management  – Yocheved Seidman –   773-597-7690 

To Listen to and Purchase Lazer Lloyd’s CD Click Below!