Toronzo Cannon (born February 14, 1968, in Chicago, Illinois, United States) is an American electric

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. He grew up on the

South Side of Chicago The South Side is an area of Chicago, Illinois, U.S. It lies south of the city's Loop area in the downtown. Geographically, it is the largest of the three sides of the city that radiate from downtown, with the other two being the north and we ...

near the Robert Taylor Homes and Theresa's Lounge where he heard blues artists including Buddy Guy and Junior Wells.

Biography

Cannon first bought a guitar at age 22. He played reggae music before playing blues. Among the influences he has named are Albert Collins,

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shimm ...

, Freddie King, Buddy Guy and

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

. Cannon played guitar with Tommy McCracken,

Wayne Baker Brooks Wayne Baker Brooks (born April 30, 1970, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American blues and blues-rock guitarist and singer. Biography The son of the Chicago blues musician Lonnie Brooks, he joined his father's band playing guitar in the band i ...

L.V. Banks L.V. Banks (October 28, 1932 – May 2, 2011) was an American Chicago blues and soul blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was a respected club performer in Chicago for many years. He recorded two albums for Wolf Records. Life and career ...

and

Joanna Connor Joanna Connor (born August 31, 1962)] is an American Chicago-based blues singing, singer, songwriter and virtuosa guitarist.] Early life Connor was born in Brooklyn of New York City, and raised in Worcester, Massachusetts. After moving to Chic ...

beginning in 1996. He started his own band, The Cannonball Express in 2001. He recorded ''My Woman'' (self-released in 2007), ''Leaving Mood'' ( Delmark Records, Delmark, 2011) and ''John The Conquer Root'' (Delmark, 2013). The third album was nominated for a

Blues Music Award The Blues Music Awards, formerly known as the W. C. Handy Awards (or "The Handys"), are awards presented by the Blues Foundation, a non-profit organization set up to foster blues heritage. The awards were originally named in honor of W. C. Handy, " ...

as Rock Blues Album of the Year in 2013.Marshall, Matt
"35th Blues Music Award Nominees Announced"
''American Blues Scene''. December 10, 2013. Retrieved January 14, 2016 He signed with Alligator Records in 2015. His Alligator Records debut, ''The Chicago Way'', co-produced by Cannon and Alligator Records president Bruce Iglauer, was released on February 26, 2016. Cannon drives a Chicago Transit Authority bus during the day and performs at night, on weekends and during vacation breaks. Cannon has performed at the

Chicago Blues Festival The Chicago Blues Festival is an annual event held in June, that features three days of performances by top-tier blues musicians, both old favorites and the up-and-coming. It is hosted by the Chicago, Illinois, City of Chicago Department of Cu ...

nine times. He headlined in 2015. He has also performed in many United States and European cities. His overseas tours include Mexico (2010), South Africa (2011), Armenia (2013 and 2014), France and Netherlands (2013), France and Spain (2014) and Sweden, France, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg (2015). His UK debut came at the Edinburgh Blues Club Voodoo Rooms in 2017. ''Blues Matters'' (UK) said, "Toronzo is the real deal. Blistering guitar and inventive songs: jealousy, double-crossing, knives and hand grenades... Chicago style." ''

The Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' said, "Chicago-based Toronzo Cannon, who performed for the first time as a festival headliner, made the most of this opportunity to win over a new audience. His extroverted guitar style sounded especially compelling when he closely engaged with keyboardist Ronnie Hicks' sturdy chord changes. Cannon also has a forceful singing voice, whether narrating an original murder ballad or on his upbeat "Sweet Sweet Sweet." '' The Chicago Sun-Times'' said, "The Bridgeport resident (and CTA bus driver) was immersed in the world of blues by hanging around Theresa’s Lounge. Today he’s one of Chicago’s new greats." ''

The Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by ...

'' said, "Local singer and guitarist Toronzo Cannon shows off his impressive range on 2013's John the Conquer Root (Delmark), tackling full-band soul ("Cold World"), airy acoustic ballads ("Let It Shine Always"), and rough-and-tumble biker-bar rock 'n' roll ("Sweet, Sweet, Sweet"). Cannon excels when he lets his ax take the lead: on the title track, for instance, he doles out slow, shimmying riffs and smoldering licks. ''Blues & Rhythm'' (UK) said, "Without sounding like I'm going over the top with praise, this release is terrific and top heavy with superb musicianship and quality material and is worthy of any blues lover's attention. It also highlights the cream of the next generation of blues musicians starting to make their names on the Chicago blues scene." His 2016 album, ''The Chicago Way'' was nominated for a

in 2017 as Album of the Year.

Discography

* 2007: ''My Woman'' (Ta Music) * 2011: ''Leaving Mood'' ( Delmark Records, Delmark) * 2013: ''John The Conquer Root'' (Delmark) * 2016: ''The Chicago Way'' (

Alligator An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additiona ...

) * 2019: ''The Preacher, The Politician or the Pimp'' (Alligator)

Honors and awards

* 2013

nomination for Rock Blues Album of the Year

Current band members

* Toronzo Cannon – vocals, lead guitar, rhythm guitar * Brian Quinn – bass guitar * Phillip Burgess – drums * Adam Pryor - keyboards

References

External links

Toronzo Cannon Official websiteToronzo Cannon at Alligator RecordsToronzo Cannon at Intrepid Artists
* Toronzo Cannon at All Music Guide {{DEFAULTSORT:Cannon, Toronzo 1968 births Living people African-American guitarists American blues singers American blues guitarists American male guitarists Contemporary blues musicians American lead guitarists Guitarists from Chicago 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people