Jon Shain

Jon Shain is a veteran singer-songwriter who's been turning heads for years with his words, his fiery acoustic guitar work, and his evolved musical style - combining improvised piedmont blues with bluegrass, swing, and ragtime.

Shain's musical partners include FJ Ventre on upright bass and vocals, and John Currie on dobro and guitar, and Bill Newton on harmonica.

Attending Duke University in the late 80s, Shain was a student of American history with a dedicated interested in southern musical traditions. This led him to a gig with piedmont blues legend Richard Big Boy Henry. After a short apprenticeship in the blues world, Shain cut his touring teeth from 1989-1998 founding the Chapel Hill, NC folk-rock group, Flyin' Mice and their spin-off group, WAKE.

After his band's breakup, Shain went solo, returning to his roots in the folk and blues circuit.

In addition to festival slots and headlining club dates, Shain has performed shows with Little Feat, John Hammond, Keb' Mo', NRBQ, Ian Anderson, and many other greats.

When Shain is not recording or performing, he stays busy giving private instruction in Piedmont blues fingerstyle guitar, and teaching group workshops in songwriting, blues guitar, and "jamming". Whether in the one-on-one atmosphere of the teaching studio or onstage sharing a song with a roomful of strangers, Jon Shain is a natural communicator, keeping students and fans coming back for more.

excerpted from Jon Shain's Web site