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With all the makings of an American music
icon, Tab Benoit has become one of the premiere roots stylist of the
century. Tab has paid his dues as a road troubadour playing 250
nights a year performing at venues across North America, honing his guitar
chops and becoming part of Louisiana folklore and legend.
Way down in
the heart of steamy South Louisiana there's a run-down shotgun-style,
brick building where magic is known to happen on any given night. Many
of the town's people don't venture into the area, but those who do,
order from a hand written menu containing such misspelled delicacies
as "hot
sawsage poboys" and "fried swimps",. After a good, greasy
meal, they are treated to the most authentic blues around. It's here
at Tabby's Blues Box and Heritage Hall in Baton Rouge, Louisiana where
Tab Benoit played to gain acceptance among the true blues fans and
players of the down and dirty genre, while earning the customary thirteen
dollars
a night. "
We weren't allowed to bring in our own equipment", Tab recalls. "We
always just made do with what was there... that's the Blues Box way." Tab
Benoit has fond memories of the leaky roof, the outdated PA system
(a 1970's bass amplifier), and the appreciative crowd; a mixture of LSU
students and neighborhood regulars. But mostly, he remembers a piece
of advice from Tabby Thomas, the club's proprietor, who told him, "If
you play the blues, you'll always have a job."
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Tab Benoit has taken Tabby's advice to heart, maintaining his blues
roots while hitting the road--hard. For the past several years he's been
performing his own brand of cajun rock 'n blues, night after night, while
watching the size of his audience steadily increase. This grueling tour
schedule has paid off, as he now plays for standing room only crowds
across the country, from major music cities to small town blues bars.
Born in Baton Rouge in November 1967 and raised in the oil and fishing
town of Houma, Louisiana (where he lives to this day), Tab Benoit barely
remembers learning to play guitar. "I had a book that showed you
how to play chords", he said. "After I learned the first three,
I got rid of the book."
Since that time, the music has seemed to come naturally to him. He began
playing gigs around town -- weddings, local Cajun festivals, and rock
and roll shows – anything to make a living and get the chance to
play music. For Tab Benoit there was a natural progression from rock
'n roll to the 70's to the Cajun rock 'n blues he now plays since all
of these genres are firmly rooted in the blues.
Tab Benoit soon ventured off to New Orleans and met Barbara Becker,
commonly known as B.B., and then manager of the Legendary Dr. John. She
remembers the days when she would go see Tab Benoit and be the only person
in the audience. When Justice Records president called her for a recommendation
for an upcoming project, they set up a meeting at a local bowling alley
(the now-famous Mid City Lanes - Rock 'n Bowl). Tab Benoit was playing
there in a blues jam contest. Even though Benoit came in third, it was
his blues that got signed to participate on Justice's "Strike a
Deep Chord: Blues Guitars for the Homeless". Everyone was so impressed
with Benoit’s contribution, a heartfelt blues number called "Nice
and Warm", that they signed him to a multi album deal.
Tab Benoit also struck a deep chord in the television industry, getting
several songs placed in prime time shows including Northern Exposure,
Melrose Place, and Party of Five. Even the most watched show in the
world, Baywatch, chose Tab Benoit to perform (this time on camera)
on the premier episode of the spin-off series, Baywatch Nights. Other
artists featured on the show include Buddy Guy, B. B. King and Robert
Cray.
A long-time wetlands activist, in 2006, Tab Benoit was also honored
to appear as one of the stars of “Hurricane on the Bayou,” the
Audubon Nature Institute’s first-ever IMAX film, narrated by Academy
Award-winning actress Meryl Streep. The film also stars legendary New
Orleans music producer, songwriter, and Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame
inductee, Allen Toussaint and Marva Wright, the “Queen of Gospel.”
Even though Tab Benoit has been compared to some of the greatest blues
men and guitarists of all time, he doesn't aspire to be the "next" anybody.
But there's one thing he does know ...he'll always have a job. That's
the Blues Box way. |