Black Joe Lewis

Based in Austin, Texas, Black Joe Lewis has been developing since the mid-2000s a project that blends electric blues, soul, funk and garage rock. Initially carried by the band Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears, it was later refocused under his own name. Emerging from Austin’s club scene, he builds his identity around a direct guitar, a prominent horn section and a rough vocal style rooted in 1960s rhythm and blues. His debut album, Tell ’Em What Your Name Is! (2009), produced by Jim Eno of Spoon, established him in energetic soul and funk, followed by Scandalous (2011) and Electric Slave (2013), where his sound moved closer to garage rock while retaining a blues foundation. From Backlash (2017) and The Difference Between Me & You (2018), released as Black Joe Lewis, the musician emphasized contrasts between abrasive riffs, soulful grooves and slower tempos, with lyrics often focused on relationships, work and social tensions. A mainstay on many rock, blues and soul stages in the United States and Europe, Black Joe Lewis remains associated with a straightforward live aesthetic inspired as much by Texas blues as by classic soul and funk.