Ronnie Earl - Healing Time (2000)

After an eight-year tenure beginning in 1979 with Roomful of Blues, Ronnie Earl formed his own band, The Broadcasters, which included three of the hottest bluesmen on the scene: "Little" Anthony Geraci (piano and keyboard), Mark Greenberg (drums), and Michael "Mudcat" Ward (bass), and began touring, all the while recording on small labels and developing a strong and faithful following in Europe and throughout the U.S. His unique sound has been a hit with audiences and critics. To quote the Boston Phoenix: "There hasn't been a blues artist able to make the worlds of jazz and blues meet as gracefully as Earl since swing king T-Bone Walker."
In 1994, Earl began recording for the Bullseye Blues label. His first recording was a collaboration with blues master Jimmy Rogers, followed by the highly acclaimed all-instrumental, Language of the Soul and, in 1995, Blues Guitar Virtuoso Live in Europe. In 1996, Grateful Heart: Blues & Ballads, an album featuring tenor sax great David "Fathead" Newman, was voted in Downbeat's Critics Poll "Best Blues Album of the Year" as well as the band earning "Talent Deserving Wider Recognition" in the Best Blues Group category. In 1997, Earl signed with Verve Records and debuted with a stellar release The Colour of Love, an amalgam of blues, rock, R&B, soul, and jazz. The album was produced by studio legend Tom Dowd and featured guest artists Gregg Allman on Hammond B-3 and vocals, Hank Crawford on alto sax, and Allman Brothers members Jaimoe and Marc Quinones on drums and percussion. Ronnie Earl went on to win the 1997 and 1999 W. С Handy Award for Best Blues Guitarist, which put him in the company of previous winners В. В. King, Buddy Guy, and John Lee Hooker. The year continued with worldwide touring as opening act for the Allman Brothers Band U. S. Tour and performing at all the major European festivals in the company of Ray Charles, B.B. King, and Steve Winwood among others.