Robert Finley (musician)

Robert Finley is an American blues and soul singer-songwriter and guitarist. After decades of performing semi-professionally followed by time away from music, Finley made a comeback in 2016. He released his debut studio album, Age Don't Mean a Thing, later in the year which was met positively by critics.

Finley was born and raised in Bernice, Louisiana. At 11 years-old, he began practicing the guitar he had purchased from a thrift store.[1] Gospel music played a crucial role in his early development: "I always went to gospel quartet groups and I always took the front row seat, and I just watched their fingers", recollected Finley in an interview.[2] In 1970, he joined the army, originally to serve as a helicopter technician in Germany. Upon his arrival, however, Finley accommodated the army band's need for a guitarist and bandleader by traveling with the group throughout Europe until he was discharged.[1]

After returning to Louisiana, Finley worked as a part-time street performer, leader of the gospel group Brother Finley and the Gospel Sisters, and as a carpenter. In 2015, Music Maker, a non-profit organization that supports aging blues musicians, discovered Finley busking before a gig in Arkansas, who was deemed legally blind and forced to retire from carpentry. With their help, Finely made a musical comeback, featuring him in packaged tours with acts like Robert Lee Coleman and Alabama Slim.[3][4]

Finely released his debut studio album, Age Don't Mean a Thing, on September 30, 2016 on Big Legal Mess Records. Although for the most part Finley was a bluesman, his record producer Bruce Watson keyed on more of his soulful compositions.[5] With production credits from Watson and Jimbo Mathus, Finley traveled to Memphis to record the album with members of the Bo-Keys. He penned all but two of tracks, highlighted by an autobiographical title song, on Age Don't Mean a Thing, evoking influences from Booker T and the MGs, James Brown, and B. B. King.[6][7] Music journalists were highly receptive to Finley's comeback and album, particularly his revitalizing take on Southern soul.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 "Robert Finley - Biography". Music Maker. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  2. ↑ "Making His Debut At 63, Bluesman Says 'Age Don't Mean A Thing'". Here and Now. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  3. ↑ D' Arcangelo, Sam. "Album Premiere: 63-Year-Old Bluesman Robert Finley Unveils Debut Album, "Age Don’t Mean A Thing"". Offbeat. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  4. ↑ Pareles, Jon. "Globalfest Showcases the Sounds and Traditions of World Music". New York Times. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  5. 1 2 Mehr, Bob. "At 63, Louisiana bluesman Robert Finley living musical dream". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  6. ↑ Borquist, Nils. "The Soul Man". BayouLife. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  7. ↑ Nadal, James. "Blues Spotlight: Robert Finley / Donald Jay Johnson And Gas Blues Band / The King Brothers". All About Jazz. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
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