Mark May Band – DEEP DARK DEMON, 2020
Mark May’s new CD “Deep Dark Demon” (Gulf Coast Records) has reached #2 on billboard TOP US BLUES ALBUMS and #2 HOT NEW RELEASES IN CONTEMPORARY BLUES on Amazon.
Mark May
“Mark May is far and away one of the most talented and passionate bluesmen I’ve ever had the pleasure to listen to. His songs work their way into your very soul…in a way that makes you feel naughty for liking them so much. His licks are like narcotic…you simply can’t wait for that next hit.”
SUE LEIGHTON, PROGRAM DIRECTOR QFM96…HOST OF “BLUE MONDAY”
To describe some artist’s music with one word would be easy but to do that with Mark May’s music would be impossible. But there’s one thing for sure, it’s all dripping with his rich love for the blues. It all started with a musical family with his older brother Ken teaching him guitar and introducing Mark to such artist as the Beatles and Jimi Hendrix. Mark also has a lot of country music background with his mother and uncle being country/bluegrass singers and songwriters. The former Dickey Betts and Great Southern guitarist and vocalist found the blues when his aunt lent him a copy of B.B. King’s “Live in Cook County Jail” when he was just 11 years old. He took to it and ran.
Mark May’s astonishing live shows featuring dynamic twin leads and dual harmony guitar work are the perfect complement to Mark’s smooth vocals. Mark currently gets heavy rotation on Sirius/XM BB King’s “Bluesville”, Spotify, I Heart Radio, Sonic Tap radio, 90.1 KPFT and more. He has been featured in Blues Review, Guitar Player, Guitar World, Vintage Guitar, Tone Quest and other major publications.
Mark May has shared the stage with the Late Great Charlie Daniels and “Taz” to the Allman Brothers Band, Susan Tedeschi, Derek Trucks, Marshall Tucker Band. The Los Lonely Boys Band opened up for Mark May & the Agitators at the Spring Crawfish Festival.
MARK MAY DISCOGRAPHY
Mark May Band – BLUES HEAVEN, 2016
The TOP 10 BILLBOARD BLUES ARTIST’s highly acclaimed album Blues Heaven reached number 6 on the Billboard Blues chart, remained in the charts for 5 weeks.
“Mark May’s Blues Heaven swings hard through an array of styles. His playing is often redolent of the late, great Albert Collins and his tunes swing with joy and verve. The music is grounded in true blues roots but not stuck in a purist trap of stiffness”
ALAN PAUL, NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLING AUTHOR
ONE WAY OUT: THE INSIDE HISTORY OF THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND
SENIOR WRITER – GUITAR WORLD MAGAZINE
“You’ll find a jumping piece of Blues Nirvana from Blues Veteran Mark May’s latest release “Blues Heaven”. May’s skillful and clean guitar work lays a gratifying musical bed that perfectly augments his silky-smooth soulful vocal style. With a polished horn section smoldering in the background, “Blues Heaven” is extremely reminiscent of a true Memphis cool, Stax Records funky Sonic Pleasure.”
CLEVE BAKER / “CONFESSING THE BLUES” RADIO
“May plays like a stoked-up jazz master throughout it all, and he surely tips his hat to Mr. Betts’ melodicism in the sprawling, soulful “Blues Heaven.” Blues Heaven reintroduces a world-class artist. A very welcome back, Mark.”
TOM CLARKE, ELMORE MAGAZINE
“Former Houstonian Mark May is a shredder, a full-grown he-man ax-mangler. [Blues Heaven] will surely make a lot of year-end lists in the blues press.”
WILLIAM MICHAEL SMITH, TEXAS MONTHLY MAGAZINE
“For my money, Blues Heaven is one of the finest blues releases of 2016. Hear that Blues Foundation? Let’s get Mark on that stage with a trophy in his callused fingers in 2017. Nobody deserves it more.”
MICHAEL BUFFALO SMITH, KUDZOO MAGAZINE
Mark May Band – RELEASE MY SOUL, 2011
“Equal part blues man and southern rocker, Mark has just released his fifth disc entitled “Release My Soul”, his most ambitious and stylistically diverse project to date. Eleven original tracks that showcase his talent to pen strong melodic songs, featuring warm confident vocals and stinging guitar work and instrumentation. If you dig your blues with an attitude, you owe it to yourself to check this one out.”
THE BLUES HOUND, 90.1 FM KPFT HOUSTON
Mark May Band – IN TEXAS LIVE, Flyin’ Dog Records, 2009
“Mark plunges into an Albert Collins song called ‘Lights Are On But Nobody’s Home’. Just when you think this sweet and powerful rendition of the blues song has been interpreted as well as is possible, Mark slides in with a lead that not only blew me away, he brought the feel to a level that quite frankly probably transcends what anyone could do with it.”
REAL BLUES MAGAZINE
Mark May – DOLLMAKER, 2002
The Most Versatile Talent Working the Blues Today
“Texas may have produced more great unsung blues guitarists than any state in the nation. Mason Ruffner and Chris Duarte come immediately to mind as virtuosos who have labored in relative obscurity for years. Maybe it’s the stiff competition that makes it so hard to break out of the Lone Star State. Had David Bowie and Jackson Browne not championed Stevie Ray Vaughan, he might never have transcended the Austin blues scene. It appears that, in order to break out from the blues pack these days, an artist must either be a teenage wunderkind or have the help of an industry insider to grease the wheels.
If a guitarist was ever worthy of such greasing, it’s Houston’s Mark May, the best guitarist you’ve never heard of, and arguably the most versatile talent working the blues today. He lets fly on his third album, “Doll Maker,” the follow-up to 1997’s brilliant “Telephone Road.” Don’t think Mark’s been idle during the interval; he spent two productive years touring as Dickey Betts’s guitarist.“
BILL KOLTER – President, Chaindawg Records, Inc.
Dickey Betts Band – LET’S GET TOGETHER, 2001
“Let’s agree that if Dickey Betts calls you out to be his right hand man, you must be doing something right. We caught up with Mark fresh from the van after having played five gigs in three days, on his way to – where else? The next show.”
RIVERHORSE THE TONEQUEST REPORT
Mark May – TELEPHONE ROAD, 1997
“Mark May’s Telephone Road had me so captivated that it almost didn’t get reviewed in Blues Revue-I was holding it hostage in my car! May is a lead guitarist with a Southern-Fried sound and jazzy technique that expands beyond the workday blues, this 12-song disc bursts with tons of musical talent.”
BLUES REVUE MAGAZINE
“Mark May’s gutsy tone, feisty pull-off licks and ground-glass vocals invite comparison to any number of Texas bluesmen. But the twin guitar leads, wah rhythm spanks, and occasional burst of fusionesque melodic complexity that pepper his second release Telephone Road, Houston, TX, make May something much more than just another traditionalist.”
GUITAR PLAYER MAGAZINE
Mark May and the Agitators – CALL ON THE BLUES, 1995
“When I heard the first CD, Call on the Blues, I was blown away! Mark is one of the best blues-rock artists to come along in years. With great singing/song-writing and guitar playing, he reminds me of everyone from Albert Collins to Stevie Ray to Carlos Santana. Hell, I even heard a couple of my licks in there!”
DICKEY BETTS
Mark perfected his craft playing rough and tumble biker bars and blues clubs in both Houston, Texas and his hometown, Columbus, Ohio, where he was performing in nightclubs before his 15th birthday.
The Mark May Band was the opening act for the Allman Brothers 1997 Amphitheater Tour. He has also played the Telluride Blues and Brews Festival, King Biscuit Blues Festival, Mississippi Valley Blues Fest, Dallas International Guitar Show, Tremblant International Blues Festival, Anglesea Blues Festival, Durango Blues Train, Chenango Blues Festival, Dogs on Hawgs, Lone Star Bike Rally, Ohio State Fair, Houston International Festival, Buddy Guy’s Legends, Rhythm On The River, Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier, The Balinese Room, Kemah Boardwalk, House Of Blues, Prairie Dog Blues Festival, Riverfront Blues Festival, Tremblant International Blues Festival and many more.
Music was a part of Mark May’s life from an early age. A brother had worked with Pure Prairie League’s Craig Fuller, and his mom was drawn to the strains of country and bluegrass. A native of Ohio, the blues guitarist began learning to play the instrument when he was five years old, and during his teen years he became involved with several bands. By the time he’d turned 16, he had played the first of what would become many professional gigs. Upon relocating to Houston during the early ’80s, May continued to perform professionally with a variety of country outfits. He went on to work with rock groups, but his heart always was with the blues. Thanks to a friend, he discovered an affinity for Albert Collins’ brand of the blues. He soon pulled together his own blues-rock group. The band included saxophonist Eric Dimmer, drummer Danny Goza, and singer and bass player “Fretless” Dan Cooper. Dimmer left the group to work with Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, and singer and harpist Dave Nevling came aboard. May and the Agitators, his Houston-based band, headed into the studio and made their demo, You Can Call on the Blues.
Before a month had passed, Icehouse/Priority Records executive Johnny Philips was ready to sign May and the Agitators. After the record company issued a CD titled Call on the Blues, the band’s lineup shifted. Guitarist Billy Wells and drummer Greg Grubbs stepped in to take over for Goza and Nevling. Icehouse issued May’s sophomore effort, Telephone Road Houston, Texas, in 1997. The CD features contributions from the Agitators’ former saxophonist, Dimmer, as well as Alan Haynes, Larry McCray, and the Memphis Horns. Two years later, May was dubbed Houston Press Musician of the Year. Previously, he had been named a nominee in the city’s Best Guitar Contest. The band’s lineup evolved into May on vocals and guitar, drummer Clyde Dempsey, and Kirk McKim on guitar and vocals, while Cooper remained on bass. Both the Late Great “JZ” John Zuleger and Kenny Cordray, writer of “Francine” by ZZ Top, were also regular members of the Mark May Band.
