Ronnie Earl (born Ronald Horvath, March 10, 1953, Queens, New York, United States) is an American blues guitarist and music instructor.
Later he traveled to New Orleans and Austin, Texas, where he spent time with Kim Wilson, Jimmie Vaughan and The Fabulous Thunderbirds. In 1979 he joined Roomful of Blues as lead guitarist for the band.
He began performing solo in 1986, in addition to playing with Roomful of Blues, and he released his first solo album on the Black Top Records label with a quartet that focused on blues instrumentals. After leaving Roomful of Blues, he began collaborations with contemporaries Ron Levy and Jerry Portnoy, Earl King, Jimmy Rogers, and Jimmy Witherspoon.
In 1988 Earl formed his own band that he called The Broadcasters, named after the first Fender guitar which originally had been labeled The Broadcaster and was distributed in 1950. The first group of Broadcasters included Darrell Nulisch (vocalist), Jerry Portnoy (harmonica), Steve Gomes (bass), and Per Hanson (drums). In 1988 they released their first album, Soul Searchin, followed by Peace of Mind in 1990. Their album Language of the Soul was released in 1994. The lineup for The Broadcasters for that album was Bruce Katz (keyboards), Per Hanson (drums) and "Rocket" Rod Carey (bass). The next album The Colour of Love, featured Marc Quinones (percussion) and Gregg Allman (keyboards). The association lead to Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters opening for the Allman Brothers Band at Great Woods, and Warren Haynes (guitar for the Allman Brothers Band) sitting in with Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters at Johnnie D's in Somerville. Later Katz joining the Gregg Allman Band.
In 2000, Earl was diagnosed with several medical ailments, and scaled back his touring, as well as re-evaluating his career plans. The current group of Broadcasters, Jimmy Mouradian (bass), Dave Limina (organ), and Lorne Entress (drums), began playing together prior to the 2003 release of I Feel Like Going On and, in 2009, released Living in the Light, their fifth release from Stony Plain Records. In 2008, Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters celebrated twenty years as a band, and by August, 2010, Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters released Spread the Love.
Earl is a two-time Blues Music Award winner as Guitar Player of the Year. For five years he was an Associate Professor of Guitar at Berklee College of Music and, in 1995, he released Ronnie Earl: Blues Guitar with Soul, an instructional VHS tape that was then re-released in DVD format in 2005. Earl was also the blues instructor at the 'National Guitar Summer Workshop'.
In early 2004, Earl's "Hey Jose" won in the third Independent Music Awards for Best Blues/R&B Song.
Discography
Roomful of Blues
1979-1988
Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters
Studio albums:
- 1983 Smoking . . . (Kim Wilson, voc.)
- 1984 They Call Me Mr. Earl . . . (Kim Wilson, voc.)
- 1988 Soul Searching
- 1990 Peace of Mind
- 1990 I Like It When It Rains
- 1991 Surrounded by Love
- 1992 Test of Time
- 1993 Still River
- 1994 Language of the Soul
- 1996 Eye to Eye
- 1996 Grateful Heart: Blues and Ballads
- 1997 The Colour of Love
- 2000 Healing Time
- 2001 & Friends
- 2003 I Feel Like Goin’ On
- 2004 Now My Soul
- 2005 The Duke Meets the Earl
- 2009 Living in the Light
- 2010 Spread the Love
- 2013 Just for Today
Live albums:
- 1993 Blues and Forgiveness – Live in Europe (also Blues Guitar Virtuoso – Live in Europe)
- 1994 Jimmy Rogers with Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters
- 2007 Hope Radio
Compilations:
- 1985 Deep Blues (Kim Wilson, voc.)
- 1992 Test of Time: A Retrospective
- 1997 Plays Big Blues
- 2006 Heart and Soul: The Best of Ronnie Earl
Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters
Next on my “Hot List” is Kelly Joe Phelps (born October 5, 1959 in Sumner, Washington, United States) is an American musician and songwriter. His music has been characterized as a mixture of delta blues and jazz.
Until next time, remember to help “SUPPORT LIVE MUSIC” . . .
MUSICIAN by Night
GOD Save “The Blues”
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