Lucky James

Bio

                                                      "Dawghouse" Dan Seward

Lucky James is privileged to welcome a longtime friend and colleague, Mr. Dan Seward, on the upright bass and vocals. He brings a wealth of experience, talent and versatility to the job, having had a long and active career from coast to coast and beyond. Originally from rural Nebraska, he joined the Navy as a young trumpet player, and while stationed on Lake Michigan, frequented the thriving Chicago blues scene, saw the likes of Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf, and picked up the bass. Since those days, Dan has toured Europe, Alaska, and North America, and recorded both here and abroad (including a #1 song in the early '70's in Sweden!). In post-beatnik, pre-hippie San Francisco, he was acquainted with many of the luminaries of the sixties, both literary (Kerouac, Ginsburg, Ferlinghetti) and musical (Janis Joplin, Country Joe McDonald, Dan Hicks, Chet Helms and many others). Dan played with folk legends Jim Kweskin (of Jug Band fame) and Kate Wolf. After many years as a musical vagabond, with stops in Missouri, Florida and elsewhere, he settled in Western North Carolina in 1995, where he has been involved with many projects and styles. Dan founded the jazz band Skylark, featuring vibraphonist Jim Bily from Chicago and pianist Mark Sharon, which played regularly from 2004 until 2017 at downtown Asheville's premier venues. He's been with Lucky James for the past two years and is a valuable contributor to their acoustic "roots" sound.

Below are four recordings featuring Dan on bass:

1) Higher Ground - Stevie Wonder

2) Honeysuckle Rose - Fats Waller

3) Straighten Up And Fly Right - Nat King Cole

4) If I Only Had A Brain - Harold Arlen/Yip Harburg

Please click through to reach the next songs. Thanks for listening!

 

                                                                 Mike Esposito

It's an honor for the High Rollers to welcome our newest member, a true artist and professional on slide guitar and vocals. Originally a New Jersey native, now residing in the mountains of western North Carolina, Mike Esposito incorporates a range of American roots music in his songs, from blues to Appalachian folk. His first album, 1999's Let It Slide, features Esposito on Dobro, National Steel guitar, bass, acoustic guitar and ukulele. His renditions and arrangements of traditionals including "St. James Infirmary", along with his own original songs, showcase his authentic, soulful style. Other albums include Mike Esposito Trio Live (2001), a more electrified approach to the blues. Mike’s third CD, Goin' Down The Delta, came out in 2005 and features ragtime, traditional blues and Delta blues styles. Out In The Resosphere  appeared in 2009.
    During the '60s, Esposito discovered blues legend Robert Johnson and delved into the acoustic Delta and Piedmont styles of blues, along with bluegrass and old-time country music. He founded the Lost World String Band in the 70s, and they toured both nationally and internationally. Along with appearing at the Lincoln Center in New York City and on television, the band shared stages with artists such as Doc Watson and Bill Monroe.
    Now a husband and a father, Esposito worked regional gigs and festivals in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania for many years, as well as appearing as a sideman on over 25 albums, and on NPR, before moving with his family to Black Mountain, N.C. in 2020.