THE STEPPIN STONES

Official Website: www.thesteppinstones.com

The Steppin Stones started out as a classic rock cover band 8 years ago. Since then, they have recorded 2 albums- 'Handle Me' and 'The Steppin Stones' along with their EP 'Looking Glass'.
Sounds Like: Janis Joplin, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, *Susan Tedeschi*
BEN SPARACO

Official Website: bensparaco.com

Ben Sparaco is an 18 year old guitarist, singer, and songwriter living in Nashville, TN with a sound that combines energetic and soulful guitar playing with a unique blend of rock, soul, blues, jazz, and folk music.

Starting at the young age of 11, Ben began playing guitar with cover bands around his native Broward County, Florida. Not long after, he found the sound he had been hearing in his head in blues music from the likes of B.B. King, Elmore James, Freddie King, and Muddy Waters. Following this music forward in time, he discovered the Allman Brothers Band, which he still cites as one of his main influences.

By the time he was 15, Ben began playing his original music to audiences around south Florida with his first original band “The Mind Manifest.” Throughout his time in high school, he began to hone his skills on slide guitar while simultaneously delving into a study of various traditional music styles such as Gospel, R&B, Eastern Classical (Sarod), American and European Folk, Bluegrass, and Jazz.

In early 2015 Ben began a stint as a full-time lead guitarist with south Florida jam legends Crazy Fingers; a gig which immersed him in the music of the Grateful Dead until his full time departure in August of 2015. On August 18th, 2015- the night before moving to Nashville, TN- he assembled his own band and welcomed many guests to the stage of the Funky Biscuit in Boca Raton, FL for a show billed as “Ben Sparaco and Friends.” This band would undergo some personnel changes and quickly prove to be an in-demand musical force in the southeastern United States and beyond and is now called the Ben Sparaco Band. In May of 2016, the Ben Sparaco Band’s debut EP “Bring The Jubilee” was released.

Immersed in the national jam scene, Ben has had the opportunity to share the stage with members of The Allman Brothers Band, Warren Haynes Band, Susan Tedeschi Band, Jerry Garcia Band, Jimmy Hall (Wet Willie), Devon Allman, Matt Schofield, The Heavy Pets, Roosevelt Collier, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, and more at venues across the country.

NOCTURNAL RESONANCE BY: ABBY OWENS

Facebook: Abby Owens

Abby Owens will close the show tonight with her cool, classic acoustic repertoire as this Friday's Nocturnal Residence.