Artist description Blues Rock power trio with strong Southern Rock, Texas and British Blues influences.

Music Style Blues Rock

Musical Influences Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Johnny Winter, Freddie King, Buddy Guy, Hubert Sumlin, Robin Trower, Albert Collins, Albert King

Similar Artists Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Johnny Winter, Freddie King, Buddy Guy, Hubert Sumlin, Robin Trower, Albert Collins, Albert King

Artist History Strong Temptation is arguably the most impressive, sure footed dynamic blues debut since SRV's Texas Flood. And we don't make such claims lightly. It has only nine tracks, but they all ooze driving grooves and barn-burnin' soloing that smoke in the very finest traditions of post-Winter, SRV and Hendrix power Blues-Rock."Five Stars - Total Guitar MagazineJoining the ranks of Jonny Lang and Kenny Wayne Shepherd is an exciting hard-edged guitarist making big strides in the ever widening Blues-Rock field. With over a decade of stage experience behind him, Chambers' sound is raw, raucous and intense, just like its creator.His early musical tastes revolved around metal icons Kiss, Judas Priest, Ozzy Osbourne and Iron Maiden to name a few. Then in 1984, at the age of sixteen, Chambers discovered Jimi Hendrix's "Red House". "I couldn't believe my ears. I had never heard someone play guitar like that; with so much feeling and energy, plus he was singing too. It felt so right. I decided at that moment that this was exactly what I wanted to do." For the next four years, Chambers describes himself as a "Hendrix Freak".In 1987, Chambers formed a band called Code Blue. "I had listened to nothing but Hendrix for almost four years and after hearing all of his stuff thousands of times I was convinced there was nobody else that was going to give me the feeling Jimi did. That's when a good buddy of mine turned me on to Stevie Ray's Couldn't Stand The Weather album. I listened to "Scuttle Buttin'" for weeks before I ever listened to the rest of the album. Again, I couldn't believe my ears. I will never forget that." It was at this point that Sean dove deeper into Jimi and Stevie's influences -- Freddie and Albert King, Albert Collins, Johnny Winter and Buddy Guy to name a few. Says Chambers, "I was born again.""In '89 I had started to go to college but it was hard to mix playing as much as we were and the hours school demanded to do well. Needless to say, I would miss classes here and there trying to balance the two. It got to the point that one more absence meant I had to withdraw. About a week later, Stevie was playing in Tampa and I had a big decision to make. Go see Stevie and Jeff Beck at the Sun Dome and be expelled from school, or buckle down and go to class. That was definitely the best show I've ever seen.""In 1990, when I was really in to Stevie, he died. I was shocked and heartbroken. My band was asked to do a tribute in his honor on August 27, 1991 (exactly one year after his death) at the Rocket Club in Tampa. There was a tremendous turnout. People came from everywhere to see the performance and the newspapers gave us great reviews. The response was enough to land us an agent and we spent the next two years touring the country primarily playing Stevie's material while interspersing some of our own."I learned a lot from touring and it was an honor to have people accept us and appreciate our tribute to Stevie. We did it from the heart with him in mind every night. We had a lot of fun but after two years, I felt it was time to step out and develop my own sound. I went from touring the country, playing two hour sets and making decent money to doing three sets a night in small bars for a handful of people and very little money. I had to start over from scratch." From that point on Chambers worked to develop his live show and expand his fan base, using every bit of his energy to give the crowds the best show possible and establish Sean Chambers as a name.#Chambers debut album came about as a result of interest in his music from New York City. "By '97, I had a number of original songs and was performing over 150 dates a year around Florida. Steve Einzig (formerly James Brown's agent), called me up after hearing about us and came down to catch us in Port Charlotte. After the show, we sat for hours discussing what I would need to do to take the band to the next level. Six months later, Steve came down to help us in the studio. After the first day, we knew everything felt right and he officially became my manager a week later."With the world undergoing a Blues renaissance, legendary acts like B.B. King and Buddy Guy are now bigger than ever. Radio has become more friendly to the music and the Blues has even been given its first bona fide pin-up boys since the '70's (Lang and Shepherd). The world is now ready for Sean Chambers. The band members (including Scott Smalley on bass and Rich Russo on drums) have honed their skills to a razor sharp edge as they continue their relentlessly campaign in support of their critically acclaimed debut release Strong Temptation. We invite you to enjoy the fruits of their long yet heartfelt journey.Sean's critics say it best:"Chambers lists Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix as his biggest influences and on his first album,Strong Temptation, he does both guitar legends proud. Chambers delivers his hard-rocking Blues with the assurance of a 50 year old veteran, belying his mere 30 years."Guitar World February '99"A tasty bouillabaisse of blues that owes as much to Freddie King and Johnny Winter as it does to the mighty SRV."Musician April '99"If this isn't the best blues-rock guitar record you hear all year, I'll eat my Strat!"Five Stars - Total Guitar Magazine May '99"A hot new sound from a hot new artist! Listen to him eat up a guitar...you'll love it."Elwood Blues House Of Blues Radio Show"Chambers plays his guitar with dirty ferocity, evoking shades of Johnny Winter and Freddie King in the process. And his playing is augmented by a tough vocal delivery that belies his 29 years."Guitar Magazine December '98Guitar & Vocals: Sean ChambersBass: Scott SmalleyDrums: Rich Russo

Group Members Sean Chambers, Tim Blair, Dennis McCarthy

Instruments Guitar (Sean Chambers), Drums (Dennis McCarthy), Bass (Tim Blair)

Albums Strong Temptation (1998)

Press Reviews Total Guitar Magazine June '99 The future of hard blues? You've heard that before. But this time we mean it. Dominic Pedler talks to the latest (and greatest) U.S. guitar sensation.What's your idea of the ultimate nerve-wracking gig? How about fronting a Stevie Ray Vaughan tribute band for a night in Austin, Texas, in front of the late legend's fanatical hometown fans, and where one bum note equals an instant lynching?But for Sean Chambers is was all in a day's work. Well almost. "I admit I was a bit nervous that night - especially when the soundman said: 'either they're gonna love you or they're gonna hang you from a tree!" he remembers. "I thought 'what the hell am I doing?' But I'm still alive today!"To put it mildly. Chambers had the musical capital of the world eating out of his hand with exact renditions of SRV's supercharged standards. But that was in 1992. And having served the ultimate apprenticeship, Chambers, now 30, was soon ready to unshackle himself from the role of SRV clone and strike out as his own man.It didn't take long to find his feet. His independent release, Strong Temptation, is arguably the most impressive, sure-footed dynamic blues debut since SRV's Texas Flood. And we don't make such claims lightly. It has only nine tracks, but they all ooze driving grooves and barn-burning soloing that smoke in the very finest traditions of post-Winter, SRV and Hendrix power blues-rock.Sean had noodled on the guitar until one memorable day. "I heard Hendrix's Red House and I knew - right then - that I had to get serious on guitar. The energy of Hendrix playing and singing. I'd never heard that before."For five years the smitten Chambers locked himself away with the Hendrix catalogue ("there was nothing else to listen to.") But his development took another quantum leap when he heard SRV. "I realized that I had to learn about all the early blues guys: Freddie, BB and Albert King - and also the British guys: Clapton, Page, Jeff Beck and Gary Moore. I bought all the records and sucked it up."And British blues-rock fans will be knocked-out by Chambers' trailblazing show that should hit Europe before he settles down to some (even) more serious songwriting. "I'm hoping to develop with the next record. I want to move away from straight 12-bar structures and write songs with cool bridges. The second album will be better than the first," he says ambitiously. And we'll hold him to that.INFLUENCES:Sean's a big fan of blues legend Hubert Sumlin. "We opened for Hubert and he got me to join him for Little Red Rooster and some other Howlin' Wolf classics." explains Chambers in awe. "It was incredible for me to play with him."Sean played a Stevie Ray Vaughan tribute gig on August 27th, 1991, no less than the first anniversary of the late Texan's death. "It was to be strictly a one-off," he explains. "But it was such fun, people loved it and there was good money in it. I could have done it for ever but, artistically, you gotta move on."###Total GuitarMay '99Five Stars (Out of Five)He hails from laid back Florida but 29-year-old Chambers rocks, smoulders and grooves in the best traditions of hard-edged Texas blues. With cocksure soloing that extends to gut-wrenching wah, the comparisons with SRV and Johnny Winter are both inevitable and justified. While Chambers gets serious mileage from his heroes, originals like "You Was Wrong", a kind of "Stormy Monday 2000" prove that, harmonically, he can take the blues top places it's never been. Only 9 tracks, but if this isn't the best 37 minutes of blues-rock you hear all year, I'll eat my Strat."###Guitar WorldFebruary '99Sean Chambers musical career began with an important decision: miss a Stevie Ray Vaughan concert in 1989 or skip class, see the show and get kicked out of college. "It was the best concert I ever saw." says Chambers.Chambers lists Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix as his biggest influences, and on his first album, Strong Temptation, he does both guitar legends proud. Chambers delivers his hard-rocking blues with the assurance of a 50-year-old veteran, belying his mere 30 years. He had ample time to hone his blues prowess while touring in SRV tribute shows for two years. Eventually, though, he says, "I decided it was time to be myself and move on."So Chambers went back to square one, putting together a three-piece band that includes Rich Russo on drums and Scott Smalley on bass. He also started playing small clubs again, working his way back up. "We went from packed festival crowds to bars with 50 people." he says with a chuckle. "It was great."Most of Strong Temptation's nine tracks - which include covers of songs written by Johnny Winter, Freddie King and Buddy Guy - were recorded without overdubs or punch-ins. In fact, a good portion of the album was taken from tracks recorded during practice sessions, giving the album an energetic and spontaneous feel. "When we first went to record, all of the tracks done in the studio sounded over-produced. So we tried using some of the initial practice tracks, which worked out real nice."###Guitar PlayerMarch '99Sean Chambers makes no bones about the fact that his blues are cut from the same cloth as Stevie Ray Vaughan's. Echoes of the late Texas bluesman can easily be heard in Chambers rugged vocals, cranked Strat tones, and song arrangements - some of which feature punchy stop-time breaks a' la Vaughan's "Couldn't Stand The Weather."That being said, the similarities don't distract from Chambers' obvious prowess and passionate delivery - and, to be clear, Chambers is no one-trick pony. Among the impressive non-Vaughan cards he plays on Strong Temptation are a blazing cover of Johnny Winter's "Mean Town Blues" (complete with down-and-dirty Winter inspired slide), and his own "Dixie 45" (essentially, a three minute showcase for his dramatic wah-wah chops).The album's closer, "You Was Wrong" - an original reminiscent of the blues standard "Stormy Monday" - proves to be the best setting for Chambers. Though his energized playing on Strong Temptation's uptempo numbers is compelling, the slow grind of "You Was Wrong" gives him time to express himself in greater detail. The results are blues poetry.Being neither a fresh-faced wunderkind not a blues elder (Chambers is in his early thirties), Chambers may have a hard time positioning himself in the competitive blues market. His only "hook" is his tremendous talent. Ain't that enough?###Guitar MagazineDecember '98This much we can say for certain about Sean Chambers: He knows every single lick in the Stevie Ray Vaughan catalog. Of course, you'd expect as much from a guy who spent several years fronting an SRV tribute band. But a listen to the Floridian's hard-rockin' new release reveals him to be more than just a clone of the late Austin guitarslinger. Chambers plays his Strat with a dirty ferocity, evoking shades of Johnny Winter and Freddie King in the process. And his playing is augmented by a tough vocal delivery that belies his 29 years.###Musician MagazineApril '99The Value Of DistributionPlaying the blues for a living can be tough, especially if you're trying to do it via the indie route, so it pays to be resourceful. Just ask thirty-year-old Sean Chambers. After building a local fan base in Tampa, Florida, Chambers decided to test the national waters with Strong Temptation (Vestige), a tasty bouillabaisse of blues, with five originals and four covers that owe as much to Johnny Winter and Freddie King as they do to the mighty SRV.Chambers and his manager, Steve Einzig, shopped the record to a number of blues-oriented independent imprints last summer, with middling results: While label execs liked what they heard, nobody wanted to press the record. So Chambers and Einzig formed Vestige in order to release the album by their targeted date in mid-October. "We wanted to beat the rush of year-end holiday releases, explains Einzig, "as well as build a buzz early enough so that Sean wouldn't miss the chance to get booked for the upcoming festival season."One problem though: "Most distributors don't want to sign an unknown label with just one act," admits Einzig. Vestige was toying with the idea of a sub-distribution deal when they caught a lucky break. A vice-president at MS Distribution, which handles heavy-hitting blues labels like Alligator, Blind Pig, Black Top and Delmark, listened to the unsolicited record package and absolutely love it. "He recognized the passion in Sean's music and wanted to put the record out right away," marvels Einzig. "To see that kind of reaction coming from a suit at a distribution company was just phenomenal."With MS on board, Vestige shipped more than two thousand CD's to about 450 shops and one-stops, and Chambers hit the road in force to take the message to the people. "Now I need to build a good foundation and educate people about who we are and what we're about," Chambers says. "My goal for this time next year is to hook up with a major label."The hard road to the big leagues has been recently repaved, says Einzig. "A lot of money has already been spent to establish Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Jonny Lang, so there'll be less risk involved for a major label to pick up Sean's second record," he points out. "The door is wide open for somebody to follow in their footsteps, but nobody's walked through it just yet."Memo to Chambers: Better master them walkin' blues.###Tampa TribuneApril '983 Stars Out Of 4Sean Chambers belted out his share of Stevie Ray Vaughan covers in Bay area band Double Threat.His sound is in the Vaughan tradition - amped-up, fluid guitar topped by gruff vocals. But Chambers has moved beyond imitation. He has gained his own voice and developed his own ferocious style.Check the version of Johnny Winter's "Mean Town Blues," hurtling along like a speeding train about to jump the tracks. "Danger Zone" is lowdown, Hendrixoid funk. And "You Was Wrong" is a slow blues, succinct even at seven minutes.Another slow blues, "Crazy For Loving You", offers the album's most searing soulful guitar. Buddy Guy's "Shame, Shame, Shame" jumps. And "Dixie 45" is a blistering instrumental with one foot in rock and the other rooted in the Delta mud.Drummer Rich Russo and bassist Scott Smalley keep things channeled straight and true throughout. But it's clearly Chambers' show. His biography quotes praise from Rick Derringer. Matt "Guitar" Murphy, even Howlin' Wolf sideman Hubert Sumlin. The list of fans is likely to grow with "Strong Temptation."###Blues RevueSeptember '98More hard-rock blues comes from Sean Chambers on Strong Temptation. This is a player who obviously has listened to a lot of Robin Trower and Johnny Winter - his aggressive take on Winter's classic "Mean Town Blues" works out great. Chambers is a driven player with a pocketful of tight licks and innovative arrangements.##Tampa Bay Blues Society / Twelve Bar RagMay '98Sean Chambers is all growed up! His new disc, Strong Temptation, features 5 original tunes plus four more by the likes of Freddie King, Buddy Guy and Johnny Winter. Can you say "smokin' guitar blues"? Sean's joined by bassist Scott Smalley, Rich Russo on drums and guest Ben Crider on keyboard. See why Matt "Guitar" Murphy says "He's a great player. I can't wait to hear more from him in the future." The future is now for Sean Chambers. Check it out!##Blues AccessSummer '98 Issue"Guitar wunderkind clearly under the sway of the SRV / Johnny Winter school of Bluzrock. Recorded in living lo-fi stereo."###Washington Blues Society BluesletterStrong Temptation is the name of this new 9 song CD release made available by Sean Chambers and his rock blues trio.It has been nearly a decade since the untimely death of Stevie Ray Vaughan. Since then many guitarists have been influenced by his infectious style that revealed a heavy reliance on blues masters such as Albert King, Buddy Guy, Hubert Sumlin, Albert Collins, Lonnie Mack, Magic Sam and Jimmy Reed. Oh yes, there was also a big influence that graced Vaughan's sound a la Jimi Hendrix. Because of these various grooves, tones and phrases, it was a rage for young energetic blues jammers to emerge on the scene with their Stevie Ray tributes. With this frame of reference, I will now take you to Florida, where Sean Chambers has spent most of his life duplicating the "King Tone", conjuring up the fire, the licks, the hammer-ons, pull-offs and the unique unorthodox tricks of the pedal to the metal Vaughan style. He was born in Melbourne, Florida and raised in South Tampa.Strong Temptation is an interesting release in that it departs from the cover sound as Sean Chambers develops his own original flavor. The seeds have been planted and in time, Mr. Chambers should continue to create new musical adventures that take the listener to the void where Chambers has just arrived.The title cut, "Strong Temptation", is a funky blues rocker with some tight breaks, tough enough vocals and fiery solos by Sean. "Danger Zone" is a more intense tune and Chambers' vocals take on a little Stevie delivery. As Chambers solos the tone is very warm and the guitar soars. "Dixie 45" is an original, which allows the group to venture in a jazz-rock fashion. Bassist Scott Smalley and drummer Rich Russo set up a creative undercurrent for Sean to glide on. "Mojo Down The Road" is a promising original with good hooks that features Sean on vocals and goes off on a bluesfull excursion. "You Was Wrong" is an original slow burner that gets hotter and hotter.This record also includes a few covers. "Me And My Guitar" is a Freddie King tune. "Mean Town Blues", penned by Johnny Winter (a wicked number indeed). "Shame, Shame, Shame" is credited to Buddy Guy but I believe it was written by Jimmy Reed. It sounds good all the same. "Crazy For Loving You", written by Bill McLees is a passionate ballad that has building dynamics which really allow Chambers to wail.Looking back, this was a very quick 38 minutes of hard blues that is hard to ignore. I enjoyed the heavy bass parts, ethereal keyboards and punchy crisp drum work. At 29, Sean Chambers has arrived. If you can remember his name you may catch the first wave of his rising tide to fame!

Location Tampa, Florida - USA

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