Jon Cleary

Born in England and now a fixture of New Orleans, Jon Cleary builds his music from the piano stool outward. The Cranbrook, Kent native credits an uncle who returned from American trips with recordings of Professor Longhair, and that early enthusiasm for R&B has never left his playing. Cleary works as a pianist, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and songwriter, and his records draw on funk and R&B, a sound shaped by the city where he has made his home.

Cleary has shared stages with Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal, B.B. King, Ryan Adams and Eric Burdon, and songs of his have been recorded by Taj Mahal, Raitt and John Scofield, the last on his 2009 album Piety Street. His band, Jon Cleary & The Absolute Monster Gentlemen, has released six albums, and Go Go Juice won the Grammy Award for Best Regional Roots Music Album at the 58th Annual Grammys. The group tours worldwide and regularly plays classic New Orleans rooms such as Tipitina's and the Maple Leaf Bar, is a mainstay at the Jazz and Heritage Festival, and has played Bonnaroo.