Award-winning, world-beloved Chicago bluesman Toronzo Cannon has announced the first set of dates of his Shut Up & Play! concert tour. The 28-city tour will take Cannon from the Midwest to the East Coast and back, including dates in Chicago, New York City, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Boston. Shut Up & Play! will be released on Friday, June 7, and is the third Alligator album from Cannon. It will be available on CD, yellow vinyl LP, and at all digital services.
With his richly detailed, truth-telling original songs, blistering, inventive guitar work and impassioned vocals, Cannon is on the cutting edge of today’s contemporary blues scene. He is considered one of the genre’s most creative artists. His sound is inspired by his heroes, including Hound Dog Taylor, Muddy Waters, Elmore James, Albert King, Son Seals and Jimi Hendrix. On Shut Up & Play!, Cannon blazes his own path with 11 originals.
Shut Up & Play! was co-produced by Cannon and Alligator president Bruce Iglauer. The album finds Cannon, a former Chicago Transit Authority bus driver, delivering timeless stories of common experiences, often unfolding in uncommon ways. His passionate and focused guitar playing sets his lyrics ablaze. From the first radio single, the attention-grabbing “I Hate Love,” to the gospel-inspired, autobiographical “Had To Go Through It To Get To It,” to the slow-burning, reflective “Guilty,” to the deeply personal “Message To My Daughter,” Shut Up & Play! tackles the gamut of human emotions. Song subjects range from the heartbreak of lost love, to the humor of daily life, to the pain of feeling invisible in today’s society, all as seen through Cannon’s wide-open eyes.
Cannon has been nominated for ten Blues Music Awards, and, as his fan base expands, so do his friendships with famous musicians. Gary Clark, Jr. declared, “Toronzo is a beast. He lights the room up,” and Joe Bonamassa rightly pronounced, “Toronzo’s a great guitar player, excellent vocalist and an amazing personality.”
Cannon has performed at clubs and festivals at major cities all over the U.S. and continues to bring his music directly to his fans. He’s toured Canada, the UK, made his way across Europe and even to Japan. He has played the Chicago Blues Festival on ten separate occasions, bringing tens of thousands of his fellow Chicagoans to their feet. His live performances unfailingly earn him heaps of critical praise and hordes of wildly enthusiastic new supporters.
