Second-generation bluesman Chris Beard bridges the generations with his approach to the blues. Pass It on Down, Beard’s sixth career album and Blue Heart Records debut, features his father, Rochester Music Hall of Famer, Joe Beard. Five tracks from Chris Beard’s 2015 self-released album, Eye of the Witch, are included in remastered form, three of which are remixed.
Born in Rochester, New York in 1957, he is the son of Ashland, MS native Joe Beard, who grew up with the Murphy Brothers before ultimately settling in Rochester in the mid-1950s, Chris’s personal connections to the blues were forged from his early childhood. Beard literally grew up in the “house of blues” and was influenced by Matt “Guitar” Murphy, Buddy Guy and other veterans of the genre including his father’s friend Son House, who had relocated to Rochester in the 1960s. By age 6, Chris could pick “Green Onions” on the guitar. By age 15, he was playing regularly with his father’s band and other local R&B groups.
Joe Beard shared many lessons with his son, the first being “If you can do it with your mouth, you can do it with your guitar.” Matt Guitar Murphy’s advice to the young bluesman that the guitar has to become an extension of himself has always stuck with him, too. Thus, connecting feelings to his music was ingrained in Chris at a young age and has yielded the intense emotional expression he shares in both recorded and live performances.
His debut album, Barwalkin (JSP Records, 1998), earned him a W.C. Handy nomination as Best New Blues Artist. His sophomore release, Born to Play the Blues (JSP Records, 2001), received critical acclaim, bestowing Beard with the title, “Prince of the Blues.” Three more albums followed: Live Wire (Northern Blues Music, 2005); Who I Am & What I Do (Electro Glide Records, 2010) and Eye of The Witch (Destin Records, 2015).
Now, Beard emerges from the pandemic with renewed resolve to advance the family blues legacy with his sixth career album. Premiering exclusively today is the official video for the title track, a straight-from-the-heart tribute from son to father. “There’s one thing I want you to do for me, son…” The song finds him proud of carrying the torch that’s been passed on down to him.
