SHAWN PITTMAN

Shawn James Pittman (born October 13, 1974) is an American blues rock singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer. In his career, he has worked with musicians from Double Trouble, plus James Cotton, Matt "Guitar" Murphy, Hubert Sumlin, Kim Wilson, Lou Ann Barton, Gary Clark Jr., and Susan Tedeschi. Commencing recording in the late 1990s, Pittman has released 12 albums.

Shawn Pittamn was born in Talihina, Oklahoma, United States. He grew up in Noble, a small town in Cleveland County, Oklahoma. His earliest remembrances of music was a combination of hearing his grandmother playing boogie-woogie piano and his father's collection of Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry recordings.At eight years old his mother sent him for piano lessons, but he never liked learning to play. His elder brother's drum kit held more fascination for Pittman, before he progressed in his early teens to playing the guitar. A schoolfriend, Braken Hale, introduced Pittman to records made by Lightnin' Hopkins and Muddy Waters. In later life, Hale collaborated with Pittman on writing material.

Pittman's love of listening to the radio gave him access to work by Jimmy Reed, Elmore James, John Lee Hooker, Jimmie Vaughan, Johnny "Guitar" Watson, Buddy Guy, Albert King, and Hound Dog Taylor. Pittman decided his immediate future lay in Texas and, by the age of 17, had relocated to Dallas to live with his in-laws.  His final year of education took place at the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. 

Howeer, his schooling was not progressing satisfactorily and Pittman's uncle transported him to attend live blues performances. Schooners, a club in Dallas, became a favored venue and Pittman introduced himself to regular musicians including Sam Myers, Brian "Hash Brown" Calway, Pat Boyack, Anson Funderburgh, Mike Morgan, Tutu Jones, and Andrew "Jr. Boy" Jones. As Pittman grew more confident of his guitar playing, he initially worked alongside musicians such as Cricket Taylor, Cold Blue Steel, Lou Hampton, the Bramhall Brothers, and Mike Morgan. Another combination that Pittman worked within was eventually known as the Holy Moellers, and had Jay Moeller playing drums, prior to his decade-long tenure with the Fabulous Thunderbirds. Pittman commenced as a professional musician in January 1993.

In 1996, Pittman self recorded his debut album, which was originally called Blues From Dallas.[6] Recorded in that city and costing $3000; Ron Levy had just started up Cannonball Records, and bought the master for $5000. Pittman was able to repay his debts and Cannonball released the recording, now billed as Burnin' Up, in April 1998. The same year Pittman appeared at the Chicago Blues Festival. The Jim Gaines-produced, Something's Gotta Give, followed in 1999, also on Cannonball Records. The same year Pittman opened several concerts for Susan Tedeschi, before playing rhythm guitar in her backing band for a short spell. This time included a spot on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. In mid-1999, Pittman relocated to Austin, Texas. This coincided with a two year period where Pittman had personal and professional problems, exasperated with the closing of Cannonball Records. He put together another ensemble, which assisted in the recording of his next album. Two bass players, Tommy Shannon and Preston Hubbard, plus the Moeller brothers Jay and Johnny played on the self-released, Full Circle (2001), which was also produced by Jim Gaines. The album comprised mostly self-penned material by Pittman, plus several covers, such as a version of Bob Dylan's "It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry".

Another album Pittman released was Stay (2004), before he took a lengthy break from music.[3] Rejuvenated, he issued his fifth release, Meridian, in February 2009 and opened for B.B. King at the House of Blues in Houston for two nights. Pittman then stated, "One day I think I am done with music and the next thing I know I'm back and opening for B.B. King!" That year saw Pittman perform over 250 shows. This flurry of activity saw several albums released in quick succession, leading to a new recording contract with Delta Groove Productions. This resulted in a totally different approach being used in the recording of his next collection, Edge of the World.Aiming to recreate the vintage tones and style of blues recordings from the 1950s and 1960s, Pittman supplied virtually all of the voices and instrumentation on the recording. Apart from Jonathan Doyle playing the saxophone parts, Pittman recorded his own efforts on vocals, guitar, piano, bass and drums, and was the sound engineer and co-record producer. In addition, Pittman wrote most of the material although he had a co-writer in his friend, non-musician and former trial lawyer, Lewis Dickson. Edge of the World was recorded in Pittman's home studio in Kyle, Texas, and released in 2011.

However, in August 2011, via a post on Facebook, Pitman stated he intended to leave the music industry. In 2013, Pittman relocated to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and while taking time away from music completed a degree in information technology.

A low-key, download only release, saw his musical comeback with Backslidin' Again (2015). In early 2018, Pittman commenced recording what became his 12th album, Everybody Wants To Know. It was recorded in conjunction with his friend and drummer Jay Moeller, and issued by CrossCut Records late that year.Pittman performed at the Copenhagen Blues Festival in October 2019; the latest in a total of over 30 visits to Europe to play over the years.Pittman released his latest album, Make It Right!, in April 2020 on the Dutch label Continental Blue Heaven.

In artist web : 

Although he’s often closely associated with the Lone Star State since originally taking up residence in Dallas, Texas in the early ‘90s, vocalist/guitarist Shawn Pittman is actually an Oklahoma native. Pittman was born in the small town of Talihina at the Choctaw Nation Indian Hospital and raised in Cleveland County, Oklahoma. At eight years old he began taking piano lessons under the encouragement of his mother, but later began sneaking into his older brother’s room to play on his drum kit. By the age of fourteen he had switched to guitar and was soon introduced to the mysterious sounds of Lightnin’ Hopkins and Muddy Waters by Bracken Hale, a good friend and member of his middle school football team. Their friendship would prove significant as Hale would later collaborate with Pittman on writing material for several of his albums. A friend he met while playing basketball at the local ‘Y’; Ben Bigby, introduced teenage Pittman to his father Bernard in Little Axe, Oklahoma. Pittman recalls: “Bernard showed me Jimmy Reed, Elmore James, and Albert King. He also told me I need to learn to sing. I took his advice.”

Dallas

At Seventeen, he moved to Dallas, Texas where he attended the Booker T. Washington High School of the Performing Arts. He later dropped out, but picked up his music education courtesy of his uncle who would take him over to the Schooner’s jam in Dallas. As he became immersed in that scene, the aspiring guitarist crossed paths with a number of local luminaries whom became teachers and mentors. Amongst those characters were Brian ‘Hashbrown’ Calway, Sam Myers, Mike Morgan, Jim Suhler, and Tutu Jones, Paul Size (of the Red Devils), the Moeller Bros., the Bramhall Bros., Pat Boyak, and Holland K. Smith alongside many others. His first album, Blues From Dallas, was recorded in 1996, and later picked up and retooled for his national debut in ’97 as Burnin’ Up on the Cannonball Records label. His second album, Something’s Gotta Give, was produced by Jim Gaines and followed in ’98. Pittman toured with for Susan Tedeschi briefly in ’99, just long enough to make a television appearance with her on the Conan O’Brian Show.

Austin

The following year he relocated to Austin and recorded his third album Full Circle, backed by Stevie Ray Vaughan’s rhythm section Double Trouble. He had a band with former Fabulous Thunderbirds bassist Preston Hubbard called Killer Instinct. “Preston was like a brother to me, I learned a lot from him.” Pittman received tutelage from Clifford Antone as well. “ I was able to learn from even more guitarists in my Austin Days, players like Derek O’brien, Mike Keller, Dave Biller, and Red Volkart. Even a young Gary Clark Jr. would from time to time show up with his parents.” Pittman also got to play with musicians like Hubert Sumlin, James Cotton, and Pinetop Perkins. In 2004, a more experimental and adventurous album titled Stay was released. After a much-needed break from the music business, as well as some serious soul-searching from 2005-2008, Pittman returned to performing and made a plan to record one album per year. By mid-2010 he already had five independently released recordings under his belt.  This flurry of activity eventually led to a new record contract with Delta Groove, and plans were immediately set in motion to record another album.

Edge Of The World marked Shawn Pittman’s tenth release, and contains an inspired program of original material by an accomplished singer, songwriter and guitarist, recalling all the vintage tones and ambiance of the great blues recordings of the 1950’s and ’60’s. Pittman plays virtually every instrument on the CD, handling vocals and guitar, to bass, drums and piano, on top of doubling as the album’s producer and engineer. Special guest Jonathan Doyle (Mighty Blue Kings, Jimmy Sutton’s Four Charms, White Ghost Shivers) represents the album’s only other personnel by contributing tenor & baritone saxophone on four songs. When asked to comment about the inspiration behind his latest and most ambitious project Pittman simply states “I’m just playing the music I want to hear.”

Tulsa

After seven years in Dallas (1993-1999) and fourteen years in Austin (2000-2013), Pittman moved to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma where he now resides closer to family and took time off to finish a degree in Information Technology. During which time he also released his 11th album Backslidin Again (2015). In January, 2018 Pittman recorded his 12th album Everybody Wants to Know with longtime friend and drummer Jay Moeller, which was released on the European label CrossCut Records in the fall of 2018. This Spring, Pittman returns with Make It Right, in partnership with Netherlands-based Continental Record Services (CRS). As he looks past and forward, the guitarist and vocalist shares, “I have had many obstacles on my road just like anybody that has embarked on this lifestyle, some self inflicted, but through my failures I have learned invaluable lessons about life and people, and my strengths as well as my weaknesses. As an artist I feel like I am just beginning. The one constant I have had is the desire to be great at what I do. The late Clifford Antone told me “It’s all about making friends.” I combine that piece of advice with something B.B. King told me when I asked him his secret for longevity: “Treat people how you want to be treated, and remember everybody has a boss.”

-Jeff Scott Fleener

-Shawn Pittman

NEW ALBUM 

SHAWN PITTMAN

Make it Right

Continental Blue Records/CrossCut Records

Old School? New School? Who Cares? This is Simply a Masterclass In The Blues.

No-one can be aware of every musician out there, or aware of every new release or, especially ….. be aware of everything that goes on in the music world.

Still, I don’t like it when I discover someone who’s new album is an absolute cracker, then research that musician and find out he’s been around for over 20 years and connected with some very big hitters. Well, that’s life and I take it on the chin and then thank goodness that I’ve eventually come to the party, even if it is at such a late stage.

Step forward Shawn Pittman, born in Oklahoma, educated in Dallas then remaining in Texas as a resident of Austin, where he seems to have fitted in to the hot-bed of music with no trouble at all. His new album is actually his 13th. release in 22 years and was recorded at the Heyman Studios of Erkan Ozdemir in Copenhagen during a European Tour, last summer. Producer Ozdemir also plays the Bass and his brother Levent completes the Rhythm Section on the drums with Pittman heading the trio on vocals and guitar.

The album opens with “Done Tole You So” and has a strong groove punctuated by Pittman’s stinging slide riffs.

“There Will Be a Day” highlights fast finger work on what is a typical old school blues number out of the Eddie Taylor catalogue, whilst the 6 minutes of “How Long” flashes by with two splendid guitar solos, a bluesy one following the initial jazzy one.

The vintage sounds of “Let it Go” and “Fair Weather Friend” both feature how fluent and dexterous a guitar player Shawn Pittman is. The instrumental cover of The Godfather of Soul’s “Cold Sweat” provides a strong platform for more confirmation that this boy can sure play his chosen instrument. Finally, the uptempo, bar-room boogie number “I’m Done” closes the album with some more super slide work and is for me, probably the best track on this superb album of solid blues music.

Seven of the songs were written by Pittman with the other 5 being covers from impressive and eclectic artists such as James Brown, Junior Kimbrough, Don Robey & Bobby Bland plus the previously mentioned Eddie Taylor.

The album is entitled “Make it Right” and Shawn Pittman has certainly done that and has at least added one new fan with myself. He goes onto the list of musicians for me to catch live, as soon as possible, it’s such a shame that the current world-wide Coronavirus lockdown meant his European Spring Tour has had to be cancelled.

Now, the search for his back catalogue begins.

Released April 2020

https://shawnpittman.com/

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