Tommy Castro has been rumbling around Northern California and northern Nevada for almost two decades. He opened for B.B. King, his group became the house band for three seasons of the little-remembered "Comedy Showcase" on NBC, and he found his music backing action on shows as diverse as "Nash Bridges" and "The Young and the Restless."
It's taken a long time, but it looks like Castro doesn't have to rumble around anymore, grabbing any gig that comes along. He won the Blues Music Award as Entertainer of the Year in 2008 and can now headline shows with titles like this Saturday's Legendary Rhythm & Blues Revue at Harrah's Tahoe.
Castro is also celebrating the release of his newest album, "Hard Believer," on Alligator Records, a new label for him. Joining him on the album are Janiva Magness, John Nemeth and Kenny Neal, who not coincidentally will also share the stage Saturday.
Magness, like Castro, has been out paying her dues for two decades. Better known in Europe than in the United States, she has played practically every kind of venue on the continent, including the Lucerne International Blues Festival in Switzerland.
She appeared in the West Coast production of "It Ain't Nothin' but the Blues" in Los Angeles and won a B.B. King Award for musical excellence.
Nemeth came out of one of the most unlikely sources in the country – Boise, Idaho – but even as he sang in church, he started playing harmonica in local clubs as a teenager.
The influences of King, Ray Charles and Junior Parker reached Nemeth, who became a featured artist with Anson Funderburgh and the Rockets in 2005 after recording "Come and Get It" with the Junior Watson Band in 2004.
Still paying his dues, Nemeth's harmonica brilliance caused many in the industry to predict a stellar future. He become an artist on Blind Pig, where his debut "Magic Touch" proved he appreciates the rich history of his genre. The Junior Wells standard "Blues Hit Big Town" particularly stands out.
Kenny Neal comes from Baton Rouge, so there's no wonder that Louisiana swamp blues is such an ingredient in his mix. He learned to play guitar and harmonica through his father, harpist Raful Neal, and a few family friends like Buddy Guy and Lazy Lester.
Neal hardly limits himself. He starred on Broadway in a show "Mule Bone" with music by Taj Mahal. He toured Africa for the United States government, performing in seven countries. His recent "Double Take" is a long-awaited U.S. release of a 1998 European successful album with Billy Branch.
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