Biography

b. 1950, Portland, Oregon, USA. Raised in a musical atmosphere by his trumpet playing father, as a small child Jones was taught by his older brother, Paul, to play drums. Before he entered his teens, he sometimes played professionally with Paul and another brother, Bob. To this experience was allied the impression made upon him by visiting blues, R&B, soul and funk masters, who included Muddy Waters and James Brown. During his late teenage years he took up the guitar and simultaneously drew from the music of Jimmy Reed and Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee; he was also encouraged by Walter Horton and S.P. Leary. Around this time he replaced brother Paul in a local band, Moxy, soon renamed Brown Sugar of which Jones eventually became leader. The band became locally popular through a large part of the 70s. After folding Brown Sugar, Jones played drums with Slice Of Life and other pop bands. He also played guitar in a trio at a local club where he and blues harpist Curtis Salgado teamed up as a duo. This expanded into a larger group, In Yo’ Face, which worked locally for some years until Salgado quit to join Roomful Of Blues. This prompted Jones to form a new band in 1985, the Lloyd Jones Struggle, shifting the repertoire slightly to accommodate traditional blues and contemporary New Orleans funk. With Struggle, Jones attained a good following and also attracted critical approval, winning more than 20 Muddy Awards from the Cascades Blues Association. Although Jones remains based in the Pacific Northwest, he has also played at prestigious events such as the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and the Western Maryland Blues Festival and has toured Australia. Included in his repertoire are several of his own compositions, including ‘Can’t Get You Off My Mind’, ‘I Broke My Baby’s Heart’, ‘Trouble Monkey’, ‘I’ll Be Laughing (When He Makes You Cry)’, ‘Don’t Call Me Today’, ‘Long, Long Way To Go’ and ‘When I Get Back Home’. Musicians in Jones’ band have included saxophonists Warren Rand, Bob ‘Housewine’ Roden and Rudy Draco, trumpeter Steve Cannon, keyboard player Glenn Holstrom, bass player Victor Little and drummer Reinhardt Melz.