Noel Catura

Four phenomenal Bay Area blues acts are coming together at Tabard for this special one-night-only event to benefit Doctors Without Borders efforts in Ukraine. Headlining the night will be The J.C. Smith Band, featuring J.C. Smith on guitar and vocals, Noel Catura on sax, Scott Porter on keys, Ray Figeroa on bass, and Tim Richard on Drums. Also taking the stage will be Legally Blue, Robert Berry (Hush, Ambrosia, Greg Kihn Band) and Rome Yamilov. 100% of ticket proceeds will go to Doctors Without Borders efforts in Ukraine.

J.C. Smith, winner of the 2017 Male Blues Artist Of The Year , 2012 Metro Newspapers Best Of Silicon Valley “Best Original/local Band”, and 2006 Bay Area Blues Society West Coast Blues Band of the Year award winner is originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. He is an outstanding performer noted for his energy and charisma. Prior to playing guitar, he was the drummer for the Back to Back Blues Band. In 2000, he emerged from behind his drums, armed with a Gibson 335. J. C. attacks the Blues as if he is being guided by the masters like T-Bone Walker, Albert King, and Johnnie Guitar Watson. Smith has toured throughout the United States, Eastern Europe, Mexico, South America,and Russia,to sell out crowds. Smith has worked with and shared the stage with notable artists such as Hubert Sumlin, B,B, King, Buddy Guy, Buddy Miles, Son Seals Willie Bigeyes Smith, Pinetop Perkins and many more. He is also known as radio personality Johnnie Cozmik on KKUP F.M. J.C. feels that his goal in life is “To keep the Blues alive and take the message to the people.”

Rome Yamilov was born in Russia and moved to the Bay Area when he was just a child. Growing up on the likes of the Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Santana, he picked up the guitar at ten after discovering AC/DC. Rome continued through various rock & metal styles until he discovered King Crimson in high school and shifted into progressive & psychedelic rock, which led him to blues, jazz, John Fahey, Chet Atkins, and beyond. Once out of school, his brother fell in with Kid Andersen of Greaseland Studios and Rome discovered the Bay Area’s local blues scene, frequenting the jams hosted by Aki Kumar. The various house bands Aki assembled gave Rome his blues education, along with the special guests who dropped by, some of them major names from Chicago. He soon was hired by Aki Kumar & has been performing with him for the past five years, traveling all over the West Coast and even as far as India. All the while he has continued to develop his own brand of psychedelic, blues-influenced rock’n’roll, with inspiration that ranges from Jimi Hendrix & Frank Zappa to Funkadelic & Hawkwind, Jimmy Reed, Albert King, Sun Ra, and many others.

Robert Berry is an American guitarist, bassist, vocalist and record producer, best known for his work with Hush, 3 with Keith Emerson and Carl Palmer, Ambrosia, Alliance, and Los Tres Gusanos. He is currently with The Greg Kihn Band.

Legally Blue is a five-piece band with Jeff Moles on bass, Pamela C. Arthur on keys, Cheryl Scales on vocals, Aart De Geus on guitar, and Mike West on drums. They lay down their blues straight-ahead, with a little dash of jazz, and classic Hammond B3 and vintage guitar tones.