Grayson Hugh

"BACK TO THE SOUL" WORLD-WIDE RELEASE AUGUST 12, 2015 - AVAILABLE ON CDBABY, iTUNES, AMAZON & GRAYSONHUGH.NET "AN AMERICAN RECORD" WORLD-WIDE RELEASE MAY 1, 2010 - AVAILABLE ON CDBABY, iTUNES, AMAZON & GRAYSONHUGH.NET OFFICIAL FACEBOOK MUSICIAN PAGE: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Grayson-Hugh/44770447898?ref=ts For U.S. booking inquiries contact: Peter Lawrence Peter Lawrence Agency (860) 543-5778 contactwithpla@gmail.com For bookings in Europe, Asia and anywhere else outside the U.S. contact Jaroslaw Porzadny at jerryporzadny@icloud.com * * * * This Connecticut-born artist released his 1988 RCA Debut “Blind To Reason”, that achieved widespread airplay throughout the States and in Europe. The record went gold in the United States and Australia, and his music videos were in heavy rotation on VH1. Riding the success of this album, Hugh proceeded to wow audiences around the world with his passionate, high energy live performances. Hugh's follow-up record “Road To Freedom” (MCA 1992) was produced by the late Bernard Edwards of Chic. This album, arranged by Hugh and featuring a more rootsy rock/country/soul band, garnered much critical success. Billboard Magazine called it one of 1992’s top-ten albums. Upon hearing an advance pressing of "Road To Freedom", director Ridley Scott personally requested two of Hugh's songs from the record to be featured in his film "Thelma and Louise". Yet another song ("I'll Remember You") from the record became the end-title song for hit 1991 film "Fried Green Tomatoes". The music industry was impressed and his legion of fans was devoted but, in a classic tale of record company mismanagement, by 1994 Hugh, through no fault of his own, found himself without a label and on his own. Discouraged with the mercenary music business, Hugh moved to rural North Carolina for a few years, eventually winding his way back to the Northeast and landing a job teaching songwriting at Berklee College of Music in Boston. He continued to write prolifically and perform, amassing a library of over two hundred new songs. Sadly, in 2000, the old demon of alcohol reared its head and Hugh began a rapid descent that led him, after a near fatal seizure, to a hospital and then a sober house on Cape Cod. After several years rebuilding his life, assistance came in the form of a counselor at a rehabilitation agency, who knew his work and offered to find some seed money for Hugh to begin work on a new record. Dipping into his huge library of never-released songs, and writing some new ones, Hugh began work on a deeply personal record, unencumbered by major record label restraints. The release featured the diverse musical styles he had always loved: soul, country, rock, gospel, jazz and bluegrass. The result was "An American Record". In the process of making the record, Hugh reconnected with his former backup singer and friend Polly Messer. One harmony led to another and they ended up producing the new record together and getting married in August of 2008. Leonard Pitts, Jr. (2004 Pulitzer Prize winner for Commentary) wrote in his glowing review of the release: "In a world where music is often a brittle artificiality, the music he makes is hard and strong, convicted and convincing. And true. Most of all, true... Because his music is soul in the sense that it looks you in the eye and speaks to you from the gut, that it is real, honest and - we keep coming back to that word - true... This is 'An American Record' Some of us are glad the wait is over at last." - Leonard Pitts Jr., Miami Herald 5/1/10 Hugh released his album "Back To The Soul" in August of 2015. It is a return to his roots in southern soul music and features a tight, hard-grooving five piece band as well as his trademark soulful singing and masterful piano and Hammond organ playing. In his review in SoulTracks.com, writer Howard Dukes wrote: "Hugh’s life has all of the elements of a music biopic, from his slow and steady climb to fame, through the label politics that derailed his career, veering into self-destructive behavior and finally redemption with the help of good friends and the love of a good woman, and with Back to the Soul, Hugh already has the soundtrack. Hugh, like soul music idols Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye, is at his absolute best when wearing his heart on his sleeve and being totally transparent. In fact, Hugh goes way beyond keeping it real – he keeps it honest. With his feet firmly rooted in the soul and blues of Memphis and New Orleans, Hugh has crafted a record that is about as eloquently biographical as a music project can be. The one quality of Hugh’s career that stands out to me, besides his talent, is patience, and Back to the Soul is a patient record. Hugh is an expert storyteller who doesn’t rush his delivery. He allows the stories contained in his songs to unwind and that will bring a sense of satisfaction and a deeper appreciation of his struggles and gifts with each listen. This album beautifully completes a more than three decade story of a talented artist who, after too many years away, found his way back to his musical home. Strongly Recommended." - Howard Dukes, SoulTracks 8/14/15 Grayson Hugh is an internationally acclaimed singer/songwriter, pianist & Hammond B3 organ player & blue-eyed soul legend!