THE SHOWROOM SESSIONS: Streaming LIVE from Piedmont Piano Company
Steve Freund & Jan Fanucchi
“The blues is the canvas that I paint my feelings on. It changes my emotions. It is a language that I speak,” says master blues guitarist Steve Freund who has backed Chicago blues legends such as Hubert Sumlin, Otis Rush & Koko Taylor. Steve is joined by a Bay Area Music Award (BAMMY) winner, Jan Fanucci whose vocal style has been compared to Etta James & Janis Joplin. Together they bring to classic blues a hypnotizing music of truth.
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"Steve Freund is one of the most consistently creative guitarists playing blues today... a commanding, quite soulful vocalist." -Lee Hildebrandt, Living Blues Magazine
“He is a great guitarist!” -Vintage Guitar Magazine
“Steve Freund plays with real taste, drive, and creativity.” -Pete Welding, Downbeat
Guitarist, producer and bandleader Steve Freund, praised by Rolling Stone for his "masterful, no-nonsense guitar work,” continues to share his feeling for the blues wherever he can. Developing his love for American roots music, including blues and jazz, in Brooklyn during the 1960’s, Steve moved to Chicago after meeting the legendary pianist and singer Sunnyland Slim, in 1969 at a show in Greenwich Village. Slim told Steve to “look me up when you come to Chicago.” That is exactly what the young guitarist did, arriving in 1976 and staying until 1994.
During that period Freund played an average of 200 shows per year, with many being two or even three gigs a day. The list of blues masters he has worked with includes Sunnyland Slim, James Cotton, Big Walter Horton, Koko Taylor, Floyd Jones, Luther Allison, and many, many more. He also has appeared on well over fifty recordings, and is an established Delmark recording artist. His latest release is a collaboration with long time colleagues under the name of Rockwell Avenue Blues Band.
In 1994, seeking a change, he moved to the San Francisco Bay Area where he continues to work regularly, with occasional road tours and European shows. His work in the Bay Area includes live shows and recordings with Boz Scaggs and Maria Muldaur.
Jan Fanucchi burst onto the San Francisco music scene in the early 1980’s and created a hurricane of amazed fans and great reviews. Her powerful voice, combined with impeccable phrasing, many original tunes, and great taste in covers, kept her touring and working locally with her then musical partner, Doug Hamblin. After several years of non-stop work, she took time off to slow down and enjoy her life in California, but continued to play local Bay Area gigs with her own band. For the last 14 years she has been working with husband Steve Freund, a noted blues guitarist. Jan has been compared to Etta James for her powerful voice and delivery. She certainly does deliver the goods!!!
She has played some highly prestigious venues and festivals, including Fillmore West, Slim’s, Monterey Blues Festival, Redwood City Blues Festival, Great American Music Hall, and many others.