Powerhouse vocalist and songwriter Lou Gramm can be heard each and every day, all over the world, on Radio, iPods, CD players, television commercials, music videos, and of course… jukeboxes. He has become the voice of a generation.

Among the most distinctive and powerful voices to emerge from Rock and Top 40 radio, Gramm – the lead vocalist and co-writer of the multi-platinum band Foreigner – as well as a successful solo artist in his own right – remains one of the most recognizable performers in music today.

Lou Gramm, the vocalist on 20 Top 40 singles, which continue to drive sales of nearly 80 million albums worldwide, exploded onto the international music scene with Foreigner on the chart topper, "Feels Like The First Time," in 1977. The stats are impressive – Eight Top 5 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and Five Top 5 Albums on the Billboard Top Album chart in the U.S alone! Lou Gramm is in a class by himself.

Now, nearly three decades after the debut of Foreigner and chart-topping success as a solo artist, Lou Gramm returns with a hot new band and a dynamic live show featuring 90 minutes of his own unique brand of Rock’n’Roll.

"I was the lead vocalist for Foreigner for 26 years," says Gramm. "I am enormously proud of this, and the music I have made with Foreigner is still a big part of my solo shows. However, with this line up, I can also perform my own music and the hit records I have had as a solo artist. I even throw a few curve balls, such as my take on a Beatles classic like ‘You Can’t Do That.’ In the end, I believe the fans are getting a better show."

Whether they are rocking out on classics like "Hot Blooded" or "Juke Box Hero," or rolling out a new extended groove on Gramm’s massive solo hit, "Midnight Blue," Lou and his band have been pleasing enthusiastic audiences since January of 2004 with a show that captures the essence of Gramm’s talent.

"It is enormously gratifying when I speak with fans before and after these shows," says Gramm. "So many of them tell me how the music I have made since the mid-1970s has been so important in their lives. For some, it was a rebellious youth that identified with Foreigner rockers like ‘Dirty White Boy’; for others it was that flashback to their first true love that they envision when they hear a song like ‘Waiting For A Girl Like You.’ I am just grateful that something I helped create could touch people so deeply."

Born in Rochester, NY, as Lou Grammatico, he spent most of the late sixties and early seventies drumming with a few regional rock bands. In 1970, he made the transition from drummer to lead vocalist with his blues-rock band, Black Sheep. In 1972, Black Sheep was signed first to Chrysalis Records and then, Capitol Records (where they recorded two albums).

"We were pretty successful in the Northeast US, and we had a very loyal cult following," says Gramm, speaking of Black Sheep. "We were extremely influenced by Paul Rodgers’ first band, Free. In those days he and Steve Marriott from Humble Pie were the best vocalists in rock and roll, as far as I was concerned."

Black Sheep was among the first bands out of Rochester, NY to get a recording deal with a major label, and played throughout the U.S. with acts such as Kiss, Argent, Ten Years After and Ted Nugent. In 1974, the group was on the verge of a national breakthrough opening for Kiss, when a truck accident destroyed their equipment and abruptly ended the tour for Black Sheep. While the group pondered its next move, fate intervened.

"Out of the blue, I got a call from Mick Jones, a British guitarist whom I had met when his former group, Spooky Tooth, played a show in Rochester the previous year," recalls Gramm. "He told me he was forming a new group and wanted me to come to New York to audition." At the urging of the other Sheep members, Gramm decided to go to New York and check it out.

One year later, Lou Grammatico has become Lou Gramm, and Foreigner’s debut album on Atlantic Records is near the top of the US charts. The band has dominated radio with three hit singles that included "Feels Like The First Time," "Cold As Ice," and "Long Way From Home." By the time the band was about to release its second album, Double Vision, in 1978, the debut album was more than quadruple platinum, and the band had won several major music industry awards.

From 1977 through 1980, the six members of Foreigner would rule the pop and rock charts with what seemed to be an endless string of Top 10 hits that included "Hot Blooded," "Double Vision," "Head Games," "Dirty White Boy," "Blue Morning Blue Day," "Rev on The Red Line" and several others.

In 1981, they re-grouped as a quartet with Gramm and Jones at the forefront of the creative core as well as its public persona. That same year, they released Foreigner 4, which many still regard among the greatest rock albums of all time. Among the hits that emerged were "Juke Box Hero," "Urgent" and the aforementioned "Waiting For A Girl Like You."

"It was a stressful time because everyone was expecting a lot from us," says Gramm. "The result was a very, very strong album. It showed what could be accomplished when Mick and I collaborated with a great producer like Robert ‘Mutt’ Lange." Gramm would eventually stay another seven years with Foreigner, through two more albums and one of the biggest hits of all time (the classic rock ballad, "I Want To Know What Love Is").

Problems began in 1986, when the tension between himself and Jones had grown to the point where Gramm needed to do his own thing.

He recorded and released his first solo album, Ready Or Not, which had immediate success with "Midnight Blue", another Top 5 hit for the vocalist. Also, in the year of its release, 1987, the song was Billboard’s #1 most played single at rock radio. The title track and several other songs from Ready Or Not stormed onto radio play lists across the country.

Gramm returned to make the Inside Information album with Foreigner, but the experience was creatively unfulfilling for him. By the end of 1988, he announced he was leaving Foreigner. "Mick and I were moving in radically different creative directions," says Gramm. " I knew then it was time for me to focus on my solo career."

In 1990, Gramm released a second solo album, Long Hard Look, which had another Top 5 hit with "Just Between You & Me." In 1991, Gramm formed a new rock band, Shadow King, with former Black Sheep bassist Bruce Turgon and future Def Leppard guitarist, Vivian Campbell. The band made one critically acclaimed album on Atlantic but, caught in a shifting radio landscape, it never became a major commercial success.

It appeared that Gramm and Jones eventually were able to resolve their personal and creative differences in 1992. The two got together in LA and ended up being sequestered for several days in a hotel during the Rodney King racial riots. The duo reformed Foreigner shortly thereafter and returned for nearly a ten-year run that included the Mr. Moonlight album (which saw great success around the world, but could not find a home at radio here in the U.S.). It was in 1996, that fate, once again, intervened. After complaining of headaches, short-term and long-term memory loss, and ironically, double vision, Gramm was diagnosed with a benign brain tumor.

"Even though it was a benign (non-cancerous) tumor," recalls Gramm, "it was large and its presence threatened my life. I was treated by Dr. Peter Black and the staff at Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston, who sent me into emergency surgery. The operation was 19 hours long but the tumor was successfully removed."

Though the threat to his life had been overcome, the condition had taken its toll on Gramm’s adrenal and his pituitary glands. "It has been a daily struggle getting back to normal, but my faith in Jesus Christ is strong, and in the end, it got me through those tough times and continues to do so."

After six months recuperating, Gramm resumed his work with Foreigner and continued doing tours through the end of 2002. "By then, I felt it was time for me to explore other outlets that could allow me to perform more than just the hits I made with Foreigner," says Gramm.

Gramm assembled a new band that features his two talented brothers, Richard Grammatico on bass and guitar (an original member of Black Sheep), and top session musician, Ben Grammatico on drums. Also on board is guitarist Don Mancuso, (another alumnus of Black Sheep) and keyboardist Andy Knoll.

"This line up is stripped down and very lean," laughs Gramm, "but I like it this way. It’s a classic rock and roll band without the excess instrumentation. This is a strong group and it is wonderful to finally be working with my brothers who have always been successful and acclaimed musicians in their own right."

"I am at the point in my life where I can really enjoy the result of my many years of hard work," says Gramm. "I am having fun now for the first time in a long time, and I am eager to return to the studio after the current tour to start recording some new music for a couple of different album projects I have planned for the future."

A musical institution, Blood Sweat & Tears has left an indelible mark on the American music scene since 1968. One of the greatest horn bands in the history of popular music, BS&T’s alumni roster reads like a Who’s Who of the world’s greatest jazz and rock musicians.

As BS&T has evolved through the years, it has maintained its commitment to high standards by including in its current roster the most talented musicians available.

Starting out in Greenwich Village in New York, the band won world-wide acclaim, becoming the first in many categories: first band to tour behind the Iron Curtain, first band to have 3 hit singles from the same record, first band to combine rock with jazz, etc.

Racking up sales in the millions, BS&T earned multiple gold albums—there were no platinum plaques at that time—and Grammy Awards, including the most prestigious of them all, Album of the Year.

A band with a social conscience, At selected concerts BS&T awards the Elsie Monica Colomby music scholarship award to deserving students to help pay for lessons or to the music departments of schools to help buy instruments, as they did after the devastation caused by hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005 when BS&T had the entire high school marching band join them on stage for a jam session—a night those kids and some very proud parents will never forget.

Through there’s been many changes in the bands line up over the years BS&T continues its tradition of finding and showcasing the brightest talent around the world. Whether playing their greatest hits, or new arrangements of classic songs, The band provides a night you will never forget.

At all the band’s performances, the musicians are available to answer any questions, to sign autographs, and to talk to young people about the joy and importance of having found music in their lives.

As BS&T’s longstanding audiences bring their children to the band’s performances, a new generation joins an existing wide demographic of loyal fans. 2006 has brought record attendance and sold out shows. Blood Sweat & Tears has once again proven that great musicians produce great music, The main reason the band is in such high demand. The horn section has recorded with Jazz great Jeff Lorber for his 2007 album. 2007 also Brings the bands first World Tour in many years.

Nazareth practically invented the hard-rock “power ballad” concept with their recording of a Felice and Boudleaux Bryant song originally popularized by both the Everly Brothers and Roy Orbison: “Love Hurts”. Nazareth’s recording of “Love Hurts” reached number 8 on the U.S. charts and the “Hair of the Dog” album it appeared on was certified platinum worldwide. Like Aerosmith and Guns N’ Roses and other groups since, the power ballad provided a way to expand a band’s audience beyond their primary base of hard-rock aficionados. Nazareth’s live reputation and hard-rock credentials were firmly established by the time of the 1973 release of their “Razamanaz” album, produced by heavy- rock icon Roger Glover of Deep Purple. Nazareth had honed their potent live act as openers for Deep Purple, but soon found themselves with their own rabid fan-base, and quickly attained headliner status on the rock-tour circuit. Their Manny Charlton penned signature tune “Hair of the Dog”, from the album of the same name is perhaps most characteristic of Nazareth’s sound. It is often incorrectly called “Son of a Bitch” because of the memorable repeated refrain of its chorus: “You’re Messin’ with a son-ofa- bitch”. Besides these recognized rock classics, Nazareth’s other chart hits included “Broken Down Angel”, “Bad Bad Boy”, “This Flight Tonight”, and “My White Bicycle”. After playing on 25 Nazareth albums, and producing 7 of them, founding guitarist Manny Charlton abruptly left the group in 1990. The 15 million-plus in record sales Nazareth achieved have shown their continued importance to today’s rock fans. Members of Guns N’ Roses hold Nazareth in such regard that Manny Charlton was brought in to produce the early sessions that resulted in G N’ R’s landmark hit album “Appetite for Destruction”. Axl Rose even requested “Love Hurts” to be played at his wedding! In addition, Nazareth songs have appeared in such notable films as “Lords of Dogtown” and “Dazed and Confused”.

Nazareth was first formed in 1968 from the membership of a Scottish covers band called The Shadettes. Spanish-born guitarist Manny Charlton’s family had emigrated to Dunfermline, Scotland, and Manny found a musical home there with The Shadettes, whose membership included vocalist Dan McCafferty, bassist Pete Agnew, and drummer Darryl Sweet. Manny prodded his bandmates to expand their talents and develop some original material, and by 1970 the group had enough confidence in their originals to make a go at the big-time, calling themselves “Nazareth”, and moving to London. While the biblical geographic reference in their name is obvious, the name was actually inspired by the line in The Band’s song “The Weight”: (“Pulled in to Nazareth – was feelin’ about half-past dead”).

Manny Charlton’s fluid, blues-based guitar stylings first came to the attention of a wide rock audience with the release of Nazareth’s self-titled debut album in 1971. Tours opening for Deep Purple, and their own headlining gigs soon secured their growing reputation for delivering bone-crunching rock with surprising melodic flourishes. Their 1973 album “Razmanaz”, featuring production by Deep Purple’s Roger Glover, established Nazareth as rock heavyweights with such tunes as the hit singles “Broken Down Angel”, “Bad Bad Boy” and the album’s title track. They followed up this success with “Loud N’ Proud” in 1973, and had another hit with a hard-rock version of a Joni Mitchell song “This Flight Tonight”. 1974’s “Rampant” was their next, well-received album. Their breakthrough album, “Hair of the Dog” followed in 1975, and brought the band their first worldwide radio mega-hits. Nazareth was now in the same league with their mentors Deep Purple, and the result was non-stop touring to sell-out audiences practically everywhere. Nazareth was to continue releasing albums and touring throughout the 1980’s with the addition of 2nd guitarist Zal Cleminson and Billy Rankin, as well as noted keyboardist John Locke. But, by 1990, after a tour of Russia, Manny Charlton had had enough, and quit Nazareth to pursue a career as a producer and solo artist. In 1999, original drummer Darryl Sweet died from a heart attack at the age of 51. The forthcoming Nazareth tour will be the first to feature founding guitarist Manny Charlton in 18 years. Nazareth’s faithful fans as well as younger fans everywhere will be eager to experience once again to taste the “hair of the dog” in all its live glory.

Kenny Wayne Shepherd and his group exploded on the scene in the mid-'90s and garnered huge amounts of radio airplay on commercial radio, which historically has not been a solid home for blues and blues-rock music, with the exception of Stevie Ray Vaughan in the mid-'80s. Shepherd was born June 12, 1977, in Shreveport, LA. The Shreveport native began playing at age seven, figuring out Muddy Waters licks from his father's record collection (he has never taken a formal lesson). At age 13, he was invited on-stage by New Orleans bluesman Brian Lee and held his own for several hours; thus proving himself, he decided on music as a career. He formed his own band, which featured lead vocalist Corey Sterling, gaining early exposure through club dates and, later, radio conventions. Shepherd's father/manager used his own contacts and pizzazz in the record business to help land his son a major-label record deal with Irving Azoff's Giant Records. Ledbetter Heights, his first album, was released two years later in 1995. Ledbetter Heights was an immediate hit, selling over 500,000 by early 1996. Most blues records never achieve that level of commercial success, much less ones released by artists who are still in their teens. Although Shepherd -- who has been influenced by (and has sometimes played with) guitarists Stevie Ray Vaughan, Albert King, Slash, Robert Cray, and Duane Allman -- is definitely a performer who thrives in front of an audience, Ledbetter Heights is impressive for its range of styles: acoustic blues, rockin' blues, Texas blues, Louisiana blues. The only style that he doesn't tackle is Chicago blues, owing to Shepherd's home base smack dab in the middle of the Texas triangle. 1998's Trouble Is... earned a Grammy nomination; Live On followed a year later. In 2004 The Place You're In was released on Reprise Records, the first album that featured Shepherd doing the majority of the lead vocals (singer Noah Hunt handled the lead vocals on the previous two albums). Shepherd's next project saw him traveling in the American South with a documentary film crew and a portable recording studio as he backed up several veteran blues players on their home turf. The resulting album and film, 10 Days Out (Blues from the Backroads), appeared in 2007.

“We wanted to take our time and find ourselves,” says Robert Randolph. “Find out what was really inside of me and the band and bring that out. Really try to come up with the best songs, dig deep within, and let all of the experiences that we have had in the last three years come out in the music.”

With Colorblind, Randolph and the Family Band have taken the difficult leap from being great performing artists to being great recording artists. Since emerging from a House of God church in Orange, New Jersey steeped in the “sacred steel” tradition, Randolph’s astonishing pedal steel playing has had a revolutionary impact. Like a mere handful of musicians – Louis Armstrong, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Wonder – he has actually been able to redefine the sonic possibilities of his instrument. Randolph’s string wizardry is the focal point of the Family Band’s legendary live appearances, and led to guest spots with artists ranging from the Blind Boys of Alabama to Ozzy Osbourne.

But even Randolph admits that the Family Band’s previous recordings have focused more on capturing their onstage magic than on making an album for the ages. “On the last record (2003’s Unclassified),” he says, “we had some ideas, wrote as we went along, and we were out of there in three weeks – and that’s cool. But in working with so many people and getting advice from Eric Clapton, Steven Tyler, and the guys from Dave Matthews Band – they all say, ‘We’d love to see your talent showcased within the context of a great song.’ I was always caught up in the show, because I’m comfortable as a performer,” he continues. “But Carlos Santana said to me, if you ask fifty people which they remember most, a show or a record, 48 of them will say a great record. Because you live with a record, you can pick it up fifty years later and still listen to those songs.”

So Randolph set some new goals for his second studio album – something he wanted to stand on its own, not just be a souvenir of a great concert. For inspiration, he went back to some classic sources. “I listened to Sly Stone, a lot of Hendrix, Zeppelin, Stevie Wonder,” he says. “Then I’d go back to a church service and I’d think, I want Colorblind to be a mixture of all of these things."

The big step this time around was the decision to collaborate with other songwriters. The talent assembled was immense, including Tommy Sims (who has written songs with Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt, and Garth Brooks), Jeff Trott (Sheryl Crow), Mark Batson (Dave Matthews Band, Gwen Stefani), and the team of Drew Ramsey and Shannon Sanders (India.Arie, Heather Hedley). “We're fortunate to be good musicians,” says Randolph, "and we were able to channel into that foundation during the collaboration process, and grow as songwriters."

Not that it was easy for such a pure player to make the emotional commitment required to craft and shape new material. “At first, it was kinda weird,” he admits. “You put up this wall, like, this guy is going to try to change me, make me write a song that I wouldn’t be comfortable performing – that’s automatically what you think. So at first I wasn’t being as open as I should have been.”

The breakthrough, he says, came with a ballad called “Stronger,” written with Steve McEwan, who has scored country hits with the likes of Faith Hill and Kenny Chesney. “He was more of an aggressor, like, ‘Let’s go, we gotta write a song here!’ And that was really the first step, the song that got everything glued in. Then I knew I could hold my own as a songwriter."

Randolph says that he began to feel growth that was both musical and personal. “I learned a lot about myself,” he says. “You get into that mode and there’s so much uncharted territory, it’s like discovering a whole new country. That confidence helped feed myself and the band."

As the album’s title indicates, the results on Colorblind range from infectious R&B to timeless ballads. “Ain’t Nothin’ Wrong with That” is a sure-fire party-starter, while “Blessed” presents Randolph’s more spiritual, introspective side. And, there is a blistering version of the Byrds’ “Jesus is Just Alright With Me,” featuring Randolph and Clapton – who became a close friend and mentor to the younger artist when they toured together – in a blazing guitar battle recorded live in the studio.

Though Randolph has been defined by his jaw-dropping pyrotechnics on the pedal steel, he notes that the studio time devoted to this album led to an evolution in his playing as well. “Now instead of playing over the top of everything, I’m learning to play within the melodies and the concept of the song,” he says. “It doesn’t have to be the most fancy lick, but everything needs to work together – the melodies and the lyrics and the music.”

Having grown up in urban New Jersey and making the leap from playing in church to headlining rock festivals, Randolph’s aspirations go beyond expanding his own musical boundaries. “I’m trying to create a new field and a new style that’ll influence some kids to go, ‘wow, I can be Black and be from the inner city and I don’t have to be a rapper,’” he says. “I look at Sly Stone, how he came in and just ripped the music industry apart – I think music fans are ready for that again.”

Having broken through to a new level of creativity, Robert Randolph now finds that he can’t turn it off. “I’m still writing today,” he says. “It’s like being Willy Wonka – this is that first door that opens up and all this other stuff comes out. We’ve definitely stepped into some new dimension.”

Doors founding members Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger have chosen ex-Fuel lead singer Brett Scallions to front their project Riders On The Storm, filling the void created when The Cult's Ian Astbury departed the group last month. "Brett is on board and we are glad to have him, he has a great voice and a lot of charisma," states keyboardist Manzarek.

"Jim Morrison can never be replaced, but this project has never been about that," expressed guitarist Krieger; "It's about giving a voice to the body of work we created with Jim in a live setting."

Brett Scallions departed Fuel in early 2006 after fronting the multi-platinum act for over a decade. The rock band best known for the hit songs Hemmorage, Bittersweet and Shimmer, tried in vain to recruit American Idol's Chris Daugherty as a replacement. Scallions has moved on from the band, and looks forward to working with Manzarek and Krieger. "Having an opportunity to share the stage with these great musicians is more exciting than anything I've ever done. I'm so proud to be a part of this," declared the vocalist.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of The Doors. The Venice Beach, California, based band released their first record in 1967. In February of 2007 the band was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award and a star of The Hollywood Walk Of Fame.

REO Speedwagon - Kevin Cronin (lead vocals, guitar). Bruce Hall (bass), Neal Doughty (keyboards), Dave Amato (lead guitar) and Bryan Hitt (drums) - are ready to roll into 2007 full throttla with their brand new album FIND YOUR WAY HOME, their first studio collection of new material in more than a decade.

The roots of the new album go back to the spring of 2000, when the band joined forces with fellow Medwest rockers Styx for a national, sold-out, co-headlining tour. The tour proved to be such a commercial success that it was recorded live and released on both CD and DVD, jokingly entitled "Arch Allies". The bands appeared together on the Today show, VH1, and on numerous syndicated radio shows, including The Howard Stern Show.

Jeff Martin was raised in Windsor, Ontario and started playing the guitar at age 8. He formed his first band at age 11 and decided, then and there, that this is what he wanted to do with his life. In high school he was challenged by an older student to learn a blues-inspired Led Zeppelin song which inspired his father, a blues fan, who turned him on to the blues standards.

Jeff caught on quickly and could frequently be found jamming with professional bands from the Windsor Detroit area while still in his teens. During his teens he was also given a copy of The Beatles' Sergeant Pepper's album and his imagination was captured by the instrumentation of “Within You Without You.” Jeff developed a fascination with eastern tunings and instruments, a preoccupation he later indulged with great success as a member of the seminal Canadian band, The Tea Party. Jeff is also a producer. In addition to producing or co-producing all of The Tea Party's albums he has worked with artists such as Tenth Planet and Hundred Mile House and has recorded with David Usher, Conjure One and Todd Kerns.