Well known by fans as JB, bass player and singer James “JB” Barnes is more than just a genuine bluesman. Born in Cleveland. Ohio in the mid-fifties, its origins can be traced back to an old Mississippi plantation, where his ancestors were slaves. With slavery abolition in 1865, the Barnes plantation owners were forced to free their enslaved people and JB’s forefathers settled in Port Gibson, Mississippi, proudly carrying the name of that plantation they had belonged to.

In 1965 JB decided to move to New Jersey, where he began to delve into blues music and its roots, studying the great musicians who had preceded him, which led him to be inducted in 2016 to the New Jersey Blues Hall Of Fame as one of the great blues artists in the state.

In 2023 he released his first recording, which has been followed by this new one, that gathers six of his own compositions and seven careful versions of such different artists like the Rolling Stones, Jeff Beck or Carey Bell among others, that display real blues but other styles like rhythm & blues, ballads, melodic soul or rock. Also, the lyrics are extremely suggestive, because they tell us stories about his family, his childhood and his father’s struggle to support the family, but also about the loneliness of a homeless musician, love, hopelessness or the amazing power of music.

He is backed by his regular band, the BBD Rhythm & Blues, he has been working with for more than a decade. All the musicians do an excellent job, especially the vocalist Steven Braxton and Anthony Krizan’s (Spin Doctors) powerful guitar playing, who has also produced the album.

With this new recording JB wants to pay homage to the most traditional blues but, at the same time, to the new paths of this music, reminding listeners that blues is not only where we come from but also where we hope to go.