JON CLEARY TOURS EUROPE JUNE 24 –JULY 29, 2008
NEW ORLEANS FUNK MASTER
RELEASES LONG-ANTICIPATED LIVE ALBUM

Jon Cleary and his band The Absolute Monster Gentlemen bring their unique style of New Orleans funk to the UK in this summer with live performances including June 25 Lamantin Jazz, June 27 Rapperswil Blues’n’Jazz Fest, July 2-4 Ascona-N.O. Jazz Fest, July 12 Weinheim Summertime, July 18 Ripley Town Hall, July 22 The Cellars , July 25 The Pigalle, July 26 Maryport Blues Festival, July 27 Gloucester Blues Festival, and more.  Full listing on second page.
In the hallowed ranks of New Orleans “piano professors,” Jon Cleary is on the tenure track. With his new release MO HIPPA (FHQ Records), Cleary finally puts the sizzling energy of his live shows on wax.

The Absolute Monster Gentlemen are Cleary on piano; New Orleans natives Derwin “Big D” Perkins on guitar and Cornell C. Williams on bass, both ten-year vets of the band; and new face Eddie Christmas on drums. While Cornell’s deep grooves and Eddie’s hard, funky beat anchor the grooves, Big D and Jon soar, with R&B licks that take the best from island rhythms, jazz, funk and traditional New Orleans soul.

Cleary, born in London, is an adopted son of the Crescent City, who’s made good his citizenship with five soul-soaked R&B funk albums with the Absolute Monster Gentlemen. As a session man, he’s played with Taj Mahal, B.B. King and Bonnie Raitt, to name a few, and is a longstanding member of Raitt’s touring band. Musically, though, his heart and soul reside on the banks of the Mississippi.

Recorded at the Vanguard club in Sydney, Australia, MO HIPPA shows Cleary and his ace band stamping their signature, groove-laden style on New Orleans classics like Professor Longhair’s iconic “Tipitina” and the Meters’ funk masterpiece “People Say.” Originals like “C’mon Second Line,” and “Port Street Blues” show the British-born Cleary’s fluency in his adopted hometown’s idiom – as he slides from street-parade swagger into soulful blues, he funks it up like a native. The smoking original track “When U Get Back” is a singular example of Cleary’s eclectic style: killer R&B infused with Caribbean funk, Cajun sizzle and a catchy pop sensibility that infects the dance floor.

The closing track, the shack-shaking funk blues original “Mo Hippa,” is a celebration of everything New Orleans, playfully challenging the rest of the world to step to the Crescent City’s legendary and effortless groove. The infectious energy in the Vanguard that night as the song took over the room is audibly apparent on the recording.
“The fact is that the magic that happens in a live performance is unique and will only happen once,” Cleary says.  On MO HIPPA, that magic is captured.