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Lil' Ronnie and the Grand Dukes featuring Ivan Appelrouth

Appearing Saturday June 9th at 8:30 pm
An American master of the blues harmonica will team up with one of music’s favorite blues guitarists for an appearance at The Ellington Fellowship Playhouse in June.
Lil’ Ronnie and the Grand Dukes will be joined by guitarist Ivan Appelrouth for an evening of straight-up blues and rock and roll beginning at 8:30 PM on June 9.
Lil’ Ronnie (Richmond native Ronnie Keith Owens in “daytime life”) and his band are well-schooled in all styles of the blues while also blending elements of 1950s r&b, soul, vintage rock & roll, and jazz in their unique blend of American roots music. Guitarist Ivan Appelrouth (who also calls Richmond his hometown) has been recording and touring with his own bands and other groups since the 1980s.
Inspired and encouraged by his jazz-drumming uncle, Ronnie was playing drums by the time he was 8, and working in local bands in Richmond by the age of 13. He was weaned on the sounds of swing jazz, rhythm & blues and early rock & roll, but it was the post-war urban blues that really spoke to Ronnie, especially the deep blues of Muddy Waters, the harmonica work of Little Walter the great Chess Records artists. This led Ronnie to finally change instruments from drums to harmonica .
Ronnie has now been leading his own bands for over 25 years. He has played with or opened shows with some of the biggest names in the blues/rock world, including John Lee Hooker, James Cotton, Taj Mahal, and Johnny Winter.
The band has recorded three critically acclaimed and internationally distributed CDs.
Ivan Appelrouth has been playing and recording for about thirty years. In the early 80s, he was in New England, playing in some of the region’s finest blues band and learning from his mentor Duke Robillard. He later returned to his hometown of Richmond, and played with a number of groups, including touring and recording with Jumpin' Johnny Sansone & the Blues Party. The 90s found him recording and touring with Li'l Ronnie & the Grand Dukes and the DC-based Big Joe & the Dynaflows. While touring the US, Canada and Europe with Big Joe, Ivan had the pleasure of working with such luminaries as Earl King, James 'Thunderbird' Davis, Nappy Brown and many others.
Other musicians in the band are John Sheppard on bass, John Fralin on piano , and drummer Mark Young.

Lil’ Ronnie (Richmond native Ronnie Keith Owens in “daytime life”) and his band are well-schooled in all styles of the blues while also blending elements of 1950s R&B, soul, vintage rock & roll, and jazz in their unique blend of American roots music. Guitarist Ivan Appelrouth (who also calls Richmond his hometown) has been recording and touring with his own bands and other groups since the 1980s.

Inspired and encouraged by his jazz-drumming uncle, Ronnie was playing drums by the time he was 8, and working in local bands in Richmond by the age of 13. He was weaned on the sounds of swing jazz, R& B and early rock & roll, but it was the post-war urban blues that really spoke to Ronnie, especially the deep blues of Muddy Waters, the harmonica work of Little Walter the great Chess Records artists. This led Ronnie to finally change instruments from drums to harmonica .

Ronnie has now been leading his own bands for over 25 years. He has played with or opened shows with some of the biggest names in the blues/rock world, including John Lee Hooker, James Cotton, Taj Mahal, and Johnny Winter.

Ivan Appelrouth has been playing and recording for about thirty years. In the early 80s, he was in New England, playing in some of the region’s finest blues band and learning from his mentor Duke Robillard. He later returned to his hometown of Richmond, and played with a number of groups, including touring and recording with Jumpin' Johnny Sansone & the Blues Party. The 90s found him recording and touring with Li'l Ronnie & the Grand Dukes and the DC-based Big Joe & the Dynaflows. While touring the US, Canada and Europe with Big Joe, Ivan had the pleasure of working with such luminaries as Earl King, James 'Thunderbird' Davis, Nappy Brown and many others.

Other band members include John Sheppard on bass, John Fralin on piano , and drummer Mark Young.

Find out more at lilronnie.com

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Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Go to LynchburgTickets.com to buy tickets online. Ticket Outlets: High Peak Sportswear, Lynchburg Music, Angler’s Lane, Outdoor Trails and Blue Marlin Seafood.

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