Smokin' Joe Kubek (November 30, 1956 – October 11, 2015) was an American

Texas blues Texas blues is blues music from Texas. As a regional style, its original form was characterized by jazz and swing influences. Later examples are often closer to blues rock and Southern rock. History Texas blues began to appear in the early 1900 ...

electric guitarist, songwriter and performer.

Biography

Born in

Grove City, Pennsylvania Grove City is a borough in southeastern Mercer County, Pennsylvania, United States, located approximately north of Pittsburgh and south of Erie. At the 2020 census, the population was 7,894. It is part of the Hermitage micropolitan area. It ...

, Kubek grew up in the

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

area. In the 1970s during his teen years, he played with the likes of

Freddie King Freddie King (born Fred Christian; September 3, 1934December 28, 1976), also billed as Freddy King, was an American blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the "Three Kings of the Blues Guitar" (along with Albert King a ...

and in the 1980s began performing with Louisiana-born musician and vocalist, Bnois King. In 1985, Kubek released his first record on Bird Records, a

45 RPM single In music, a single is a type of release of a song recording of fewer tracks than an album ( LP), typically one or two tracks. A single can be released for sale to the public in a variety of physical or digital formats. Singles may be standal ...

with the tracks "Driving Sideways" (written by Freddie King and

Sonny Thompson Sonny Thompson (probably August 23, 1916 – August 11, 1989), born Alfonso Thompson or Hezzie Tompson, was an American R&B bandleader and pianist, popular in the 1940s and 1950s. Biography There is some uncertainty over Thompson's origins, as ...

) and "Other Side of Love" (written by Doyle Bramhall Sr.). The single's executive producers were Clint Birdwell and Charley Wirz. The two tracks reappeared on Kubek's 2012 album, ''Let That Right Hand Go'', produced by Birdwell and issued on Birdwell's label, Bird Records Texas. The album is a collection of mostly unreleased material recorded since the 1980s (with the 1985 single's track, "Other Side of Love", entitled "The Other Side of Love"). In 1991, Kubek released his first full-length album, entitled ''Steppin' Out Texas Style'' (Bullseye Blues Records), and later released over a dozen albums on various labels. Kubek died on October 11, 2015, from a heart attack at the age of 58.

Discography

Singles

* 1985: "Driving Sideways" (2:44) / "Other Side of Love" (4:22) (Bird Records)

Albums

* 1991: ''The Axe Man'' (Double Trouble Records) * 1991: ''Steppin' Out Texas Style'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 1992: ''Chain Smokin' Texas Style'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 1993: ''Texas Cadillac'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 1995: ''Cryin' For The Moon'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 1996: ''Keep Comin' Back'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 1996: ''Got My Mind Back'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 1998: ''Take Your Best Shot'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 2000: ''Bite Me!'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 2003: ''Roadhouse Research'' (

Blind Pig Records Blind Pig Records is an American blues independent record label. Blind Pig was formed in 1977 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, by Jerry Del Giudice, owner of the Blind Pig Cafe, and his friend Edward Chmelewski. The label is now based in San Francisco. I ...

) * 2004: ''Show Me The Money'' (Blind Pig Records) * 2005: ''Served Up Texas Style'' (Bullseye Blues Records) * 2006: ''My Heart's In Texas'' (Blind Pig Records) * 2008: ''Blood Brothers'' (

Alligator Records Alligator Records is an American, Chicago-based independent blues record label founded by Bruce Iglauer in 1971. Iglauer was also one of the founders of the '' Living Blues'' magazine in Chicago in 1970. History Iglauer started the label using ...

) * 2010: ''Have Blues Will Travel'' (Alligator Records) * 2012: ''Let That Right Hand Go...'' (Bird Records Texas) * 2012: ''Close To The Bone'' (

Delta Groove Productions Delta Groove Productions is an American blues record label in Van Nuys, California, United States. The label was founded by Randy Chortkoff ( Rand Jay Chortkoff; 1949–2015), a producer, concert promoter, and harmonica player. Chortkoff's biog ...

) * 2013: ''Road Dog's Life'' (Delta Groove) * 2015: ''Fat Man's Shine Parlor'' (Blind Pig Records)

References

External links

Smokin' Joe Kubek Official websiteSmokin' Joe Kubek at Alligator Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kubek, Smokinjoe 1956 births 2015 deaths American blues guitarists American male guitarists People from Grove City, Pennsylvania Guitarists from Texas Texas blues musicians Guitarists from Pennsylvania 20th-century American guitarists 21st-century American guitarists Musicians from Dallas 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians Alligator Records artists Blind Pig Records artists