#48 Steve Strongman

Beyond The Melody Podcast with Brian Melo

JUNO Award-winning Canadian bluesman Steve Strongman is a versatile talent, and a restless one. By constantly pushing himself in new directions, he has kept himself vital. His talent is huge and impossible to miss, and it’s matched by his staggering musical ambition — as guitar-slinger, songwriter or vocalist. The same structures and progressions that animate blues and roots music can also choke the air out of it, smothering it in caricature and cliché. But Strongman is a subtle shape-shifter who manages to slip that trap without betraying the music he loves. Throughout, he never sounds an inauthentic note or loses touch with the essence of the blues.
The 2019 release of Strongman's 7th studio recording "Tired of Talkin'" is destined to further establish the guitar slinger's reputation as one of the most exciting artists on the International Blues scene. Strongman’s impressive resume includes stints opening for guitar legends such as B.B. King, Buddy Guy, and Johnny Winter. The performer’s breakthrough 2012 release A Natural Fact was hailed as a standout, earning Maple Blues Awards for Recording, Songwriter, and Guitarist Of The Year as well as a 2013 Juno Award for Blues Recording Of The Year. In 2014 he was thrice-nominated at the Maple Blues Awards (Guitar Player, Electric Act, and Entertainer of the Year) and in 2015 received a second Juno nod for Blues Album of the Year (for Let Me Prove It To You). In 2018, No Time Like Now, was a Juno award nominee for Blues Album of the Year and in 2019, Strongman won Best Guitarist for the Solo Duo Category at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, TN. His 2019 release “Tired of Talkin” is earning rave reviews and showcases why Strongman is one of the most exciting performers on the scene today.
Beyond Strongman’s talent as a songwriter, guitarist and front man is his ability to engage his audience and deliver an outstanding performance at every live show. With his inimitable guitar playing and soulful vocals, Strongman delivers incredible performances with power and passion. Steve Strongman has a way of stirring a crowd that evokes the emotion, maturity and authenticity of classic blues themes. His music speaks for truth and passion, and offers hope for the soul in the face of hard times in a way that leaves audiences craving more. In a musical world of many pretenders, Steve Strongman is as real and authentic as it gets.