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As an artist, instinctively releasing old material generates the thought “but that was then, I play, sing, or write songs much better now” A good 10 plus years has passed since this session! If I was to separate myself from it personally, I believe I can hear a fantastic energy, high-quality musicians playing together ‘live in the studio’ with a definite collective idea! Something that has all the ingredients to grow and evolve over time, it’s up to the listener to decide if we’ve proven that point. I was never satisfied with the initial mix, and this anniversary landmark presented the opportunity to re present our first album with a straightforward, honest and simple reworking As a counterbalance I’ve added three much more recent bonus tracks, a sort of then and now reference. I hope you enjoy the music. Rob

Chuffed to be played on this show a wee while back.. listen here, we're the first track. From our new album CHAMELEON https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000jgkc

I think it was our 9th play on the Radio 2 blues show, thank you also to Paul Jones who played us the previous 8 time. :-) 

Please allow for varying degrees of Wifi quality!  :-| 

https://www.facebook.com/zoe.schwarz/videos/10158502387798833/  ... better quality, and getting a tad more pro!

https://www.facebook.com/zoeschwarzbluecommotion/videos/630512067505494/   ... a bit iffy! 

https://www.facebook.com/zoeschwarzbluecommotion/videos/3054800221250595/  ... our first attempt! spot the amateurs!  lol

  A massive thanks to all you amazing folk who have supported or promoted live music throughout 2019.  And a big thank you to everyone who has come out and supported Zoe, myself, and the band.

   So many highlights from this year, too many to mention for fear of leaving someone out.  One significant event was a super productive and fun recording session at the very fine Superfly studios, where we recorded the material for what will be the band’s 6^th studio album.  We’re calling the album CHAMELEON because of the wide musical ground we cover during the course of twelve brand new original songs… can’t wait for you all to hear it.

   I would like to give a shout out to the new trend of presenting music ‘LIVE in the lounge’.  Music will always find a way to flourish and reach people!  My particular experience in 2019 was via the amazing Alan Bates and the underground music club team… I love to play in that ‘hear a pin drop’ setting.   

   As for next year, we’ll be touring hard as always, reaching all corners of the land in support of the new album.  Here are a few highlights for the first half of 2020: 

Great British rock & Blues festival, Skegness 19^th Jan afternoon

Manchester 19^th Jan evening

Bullfrog Blues Club 6^th Feb

Broadstairs Blues Bash 21^st & 22^nd Feb

Swanage Blues festival 26^th March

Looe Blues festival 22^nd March

Coolham Music Club, Horsham 18^th April 

Chapel Arts Bath 25^th April

Eastbourne Jazz club 29^th April

Lincoln Blues fest 9^th May

Leeds Blues fest 10^th May

Arlington Arts 15^th May

Maltings Farnham 21^st May

Lichfield Jazz & Blues festival 30^th May

Marine Theatre Lyme-Regis 5^th June

Lighthouse Poole 6^th June

Goto the GIGs page on zoesschwarzmusic dot com for the full list so far:

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everyone.   Rob x 

We had a hugely successful and enjoyable week's recording session at Superfly studios in September 2019 with the master Andy Bandfield at the engineering helm; eleven brand new original songs written by Rob and myself.  It's now in the hands of Wayne proctor to mix and Margarita Vazquez to design.  Due date, January time, for official release in the Spring. zoe x

Happy New Year Everyone!  I'd like to start with sharing some recent live videos.

We don't play too many standards live, but here's a version of the classic slow blues: I Can't Quit You Babe (Saltburn Blues club).   Likewise, here's a live take on this well-known tune: Feeling Good (Barleylands, Essex)  And finally, a couple of our own tunes: People (Rotterdam), and I'll Do Anything (Forest Arts, Hants).

It occurs me while typing, that 2018 was the first year that we have not recorded a new studio album... it just felt right to pause temporarily and give the albums we've already made time to breathe, after all, there are over 50 originals out there o those albums.  Having said that, I'd like to report that we have a whole bunch of new tunes ready to go, so watch this space!  bye, for now, Rob x

As we write, we are looking forward to a Double Headline show at the Half Moon Putney, Sunday 25th March with Catfish 7:30 kick-off ... doors 7pm.    April dates for the band include the wonderful Huntingdon Hall Worcester on 7th, Roots Around The World at the Chichester Inn on 21st, and then the Palladium in Bideford on 28th.    Glad to report that the response to the new album has been 100% positive.  We have produced Youtube videos for three of the tracks.... and a promo for the album... head over HERE!

Voting for the UK Blues Awards runs from toe 1st to 28th February 2018.
We have been nominated in 2 categories: Female Vocals & Album of the year. We'd love your vote of course :-) and there are other very fine musicians as finalists in all categories. It's quick and easy to vote and open to the public ... you need to go 
HERE FIRST TO REGISTER... once registered you'll be taken straight to the polling station.

The UK Blues Federation recommend you READ THE RULES HERE....
 E.G... you must vote in 6 of the 9 categories for your votes to count.

N.B... If you are unsure who to vote for, HERE'S A LINK TO THE LIST OF FINALISTS ... it gives you their websites and an example video for each artist.

See HERE for full details including the awards ceremony.

Most of you may not know that Rob has a fun and interesting video guitar blog on Youtube 'Rob Koral "How I Feel Today" guitar video blog'.  Nearly all of which are 60 seconds or so... of improvised guitar etudes reflecting the mood/practice of the day.  HERE's an example...

If you like it, please check them out and "subscribe" if you wish.

For this blog, we've decided to break etiquette and share a track from our next studio album (pre final mastered version) which we now have titled 'The Blues And I Should Have A Party' release date 2nd March 2018 (pre orders will be available before that date, will let you know when.   We are in a position to let you know that there will be 13 tracks with a running time of 63 minutes... all of the songs are brand new originals by Zoë and Rob, with two lyric contributions from our friend and renowned promoter Pete Feenstra.  This song features Pete's lyrics and is called 'Way Down In The Caves'....  We would be very interested to hear from any of you that may remember this venue.

Rob here... a few people have asked me about our recording method with the question of how do we get so much done so quickly.  Well, the answer is easy to show you, and for those of you with some patience, THIS VIDEO which is 12 minutes long shows us recording the song 'People' for our 4th studio album 'This Is The Life I Choose' at Platform studios near Reading.   The answer is, we play live... on this video, we have 3 "takes"... the first one which was going like a house on fire, was only stopped by, I think it was a Hi-Hat moving.  Then there was take 2 (on this take the camera lost the feed from the desk for the guitar and vocal). Then 3rd take is the one we used... and on the video we've used the audio from the mixed track.  So, THREE stages, in this case with the sound much more like the finished product on the final take.   Yes, there is some percussion added afterwards, and also a re-sing in place of the guide vocal.    This blog is for the purist :-)   'The recording process for our song 'People' captured on film. (including some banter between the band members discussing the merits of a take)... that's Stuart Dixon engineering the session.

That was a great week at Superfly Studios recording our 5th studio album.... HERE are a selection of photos showing the aftermath of one of the days recording.  Really pleased with how the music has come out, it feels like yet another development and extension of the sound that we have become known for. As usual, there’s a wide variety of songs, plenty of flowing instrumental creativity and general telepathy and interplay from the trio of Pete Paul and Rob. In a nutshell we played the songs live in the studio, and then, on some of the numbers, added extra guitar parts and sounds.... in other words it is a completely organic album, I can’t wait for you all to hear it. I must give a huge thanks to the amazing Andy Banfield who engineered the session whose studio it is. Zoe x

Tickets are now on sale for the 4th UK Blues challenge, it's going to be one fun musical night at the iconic Cavern Club Liverpool with 4 great bands. On behalf of myself and the boys I'd like to say that it's a great honour to be nominated. Although only one band can go to Memphis then Europe as "the winner" I just know there will be great camaraderie between the musicians.... can't wait to meet the guys n gals in Elles Bailey bad, LaVendore Rogue and the Rainbreakers.  Zoe x   Read all about it here.

Rob here.... I'm proud to say I've played guitar full time since 10th Feb 1984, I'm especially proud of the fact that I've only played music that interests and inspires me personally.  More and more I've found myself being quizzed, even by people who have known me for a long time... "How do you keep all that energy and optimism so intact?" ..... thinks for a second... it's being in a band that stands for something, it's being in a band with great musicians, a band that doesn't write songs to formula, never has arrangements or parts so "locked down" that we can't surprise ourselves, or stop the music evolving, going into the studio having never even let the guys hear the new songs, but knowing that they're going to add to the music... and finally realising that more and more people are "getting it" and acknowledging what we stand for.
More than 30 reviews in for 'This Is The Life I Choose' so far with quotes like, "artistic finesse", "a surprise every song", "irresistible musicianship". I'M NOT BRAGGING, JUST BUZZING..... I'm like a body builder on steroids. :-)
BTW I know we're not the only band doing this... I mean, standing for something and being true.
Thanks Pete Whittaker, Paul Robinson and Zoe Schwarz, you are AWESOME. Here is an example review: Bluebird Reviews, International Blues Music Blog

Very pleased to let you all know that we have been selected by a large, varied and very knowledgeable group of our peers to take part in the UK Blues Challenge, to be held at the iconic Cavern in Liverpool on 10th September. We'll be one of 5 bands competing to represent the UK in Memphis in December, and Europe early next year. It's going to be a fun night with great music from all the bands ...  X

A few things to share with you today: First up, a thought, one of the reasons for getting an album out there is for it to be heard... and I'm happy to say that that part of the mission has been very successful, we are getting multiple plays on a daily basis, here in the UK, mainland Europe and in the USA.  As a result, here in the UK this month we are one of the 4 "picks of the month" for the IBBA DJs. 

Rob wrote a very interesting article, 'Czech It Out', with observations and thoughts about our recent 13 date tour of the Czech Republic which is published in the April edition of Blues In Britain. 

Finally, CLICK HERE to hear our interview with Pete Feenstra for 'Get Ready To Rock Radio' where we talk about influences and the putting together of our new album 'This Is The Life I Choose', plus several tracks from the album, and tracks by other bands/artists selected by me and Rob that have been big influences throughout our lives. 

Zoe x

It's nice for us to sit back and relax just for a tiny moment knowing that 'This Is The Life I Choose' is out there now. The reviews have started to come in which have all been very positive, and I'm pleased to say we've been getting airtime not only here in the UK but in America and the rest of Europe. The general consensus is that this is our best album to date, and I don't think either Rob or myself quite know which song we would choose as our favourite. Here's a brand-new video which is for track 3 on the album 'People'. Rob and I have just recently had the great pleasure of playing 13 dates in the Czech Republic (with an excellent Czech rhythm section), and our next aim is to fix up more European tours, but this time with the whole band. Zoe x

Very happy to report that our 4th studio album 'This Is The Life I Choose' has gone off for manufacture.   We have eleven brand new original songs for you, plus two bonus tracks, both covers: 'Feeling Good', which has often been a tour-de-force for us on gigs, plus the more unusual choice of 'We're Going Wrong', a famous Jack Bruce song from the 60's.   In the next few days we'll announce a pre-order package; the official release date is set for 3rd March, but we anticipate being able to get pre-order copies out by the end of January.... keep an eye on our Facebook posts. 

In the meantime, to further wet your appetite .... here are a couple of quotes from respected industry people:

“I am listening to the new album now, and I'm floored, completely floored!“ - Peter Holmstedt PR Sweden

“Blue Commotion is a breath of fresh air on a contemporary music scene too often dominated by image, the bottom line and the need for an instant hook.

They refresh the blues genre with mostly self penned material, hugely original arrangements, virtuosic playing and of course Zoe Schwarz’s majestic vocal sweep and interpretive ability.

‘This Is the Life I Choose’ proudly confirms them as an independent band who stand proudly above the cut and thrust of the ‘music biz’ and pursue their muse with real vitality and passion.

They rock, they groove, they swing, they jam, and always make an essential meaningful connection with their free spirited approach.

Some people call it blues, the band would probably settle for just damn fine music!” - Pete Feenstra/ Features Editor Get Ready To Rock.com

That was a great fun two days recording at Platform Studio Official.... superb sound with Stuart Dixon at the helm! All 13 tracks down including 11 brand new originals. I couldn't wait to put these tunes in front of the guys (for the first time) and as always they didn't let me down, their playing and interpretation was amazing....We've always worked this way, fast and "in the moment" with Paul Robinson-drums, Pete Whittaker-Hammond organ, and of course Rob Koral-guitar ..... haven't got much to show you at this moment, but here's a few pics.... will have quality video footage and stuff to share with you later on courtesy of Rodney and Norma Hearth. This will be the 4th Zoe Schwarz Blue Commotion studio album, which we have tentatively titled 'This Is The Life I Choose' ... do you like that title? bye for now from a very excited me. x

Very pleased to let you all know that we have confirmed studio time for the end of October to record our 4th studio album.  As always in this business there's no time to stand still, so we have been building up a collection of new songs which we are very excited about!  Typically, Rob has never stopped coming up with new ideas and great musical motifs.  The way it works with us is that we then sit down together to collaborate and piece together the ideas into a finished article..... which we then bring to the band in the studio (or sound check). 

A few things to let you all know about: Firstly as I write we have a few festivals coming up, hopefully one of them is in striking range for you :-)  FRI 15th July-Marlborough Jazz & Blues festival-our set is 9:30-11:30pm @Caslte & Ball stage.  Then SAT 16th July-Ealing Blues Festival 3:45-5pm.  For those of you in the North East, we are at Saltburn Blues Club on SAT 30th July.... and then we are on festival mode again SAT afternoon 6th Aug-Stompin' on The Quomps, Christchurch Dorset 2-3:30pm

In the meantime, we have started writing new material for our next studio album which we plan to start work on in Sept.... as usual for us, our method is to have 2 days recording the tracks 'live' in the studio, and then a little post production work which may involve adding horns and one or two other minimal parts.

Finally, on a musical note... here's a short video from Rob from his Guitar Video Blog "How I Feel Today". Zoe x

Hi everyone,  we will be in a position to post out copies of our new album LIVEWIRE on Tuesday 29th March, so please let us know if you'd like to order a copy directly from us here.  They will be available through the normal distribution channels on Monday 4th April.   Just to tempt you - here's a teaser track I Put A Spell On You. zoe and rob x

Hi everyone, I'm excited to announce that there will be a brand new Zoe Schwarz Blue Commotion album 'LIVEWIRE'. The official release date is 4th April... we've kept that a bit quiet haven't we? :-) Once again it's on 33 RECORDS and will be available through all the normal channels.... and will be updated on the Music page here soon. zoe x

“Zoë and the band are proud to start 2016 with the release of Angel Of Mercy as a single. During the past three years, the band has released four albums creating a sound and place in the British Blues Scene uniquely their own. The band prides itself with filling their albums and live sets almost entirely with original songs penned by guitarist Rob Koral and singer Zoë Schwarz.   The broad musical influences of Zoë and Rob, Hammond virtuoso Pete Whittaker and master drummer Paul Robinson, insure the music is never cliché and that there are always musical fireworks on their shows.   'Angel Of Mercy' is typical of the distinctive and original sound that is the Blue Commotion. This song, along with several others in the band’s catalogue, has attracted a lot of attention and will surely stand the test of time.” Paul Jolly, 33 Records      We hope you enjoy the video:- https://youtu.be/I0JYNwhdm2E    To buy the single please go to:- https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/angel-of-mercy-single/id1069372261      

Nearly at the end of a very exciting, productive and intensely busy year. The plans for early 2016 are: First up, a 'download single' release in January... this will be a remix of 'Angel Of Mercy'. We're going to follow that with another 'live' album release called 'Livewire' - this will be in March. Tour dates in January and early February include; Kardomah94 club-Hull 22nd Jan
23rd The Stables-Wavendon
6th Feb Borough Blues Club-Pontypool
12th Feb New Crawdaddy club-Billericay

There are many more on the gigs page

Have a great Christmas. Rob and Zoe xx

We have some very exciting things up our sleeve for next year.... but in the meantime please check out Rob's "How I Feel Today" series .... they are 1 minute practice sessions.... short snap-shot videos of Rob's mood, style and ideas... Here's the latest one..... fast but still stylish and tasteful.... love it! https://youtu.be/1fnvEpCD8I4 zoe xx

Zoe says: I am thrilled to be part of such a vibrant UK blues scene at the moment, with so many talented performers... Last night we received 2 'medals' for the British Blues Awards... I can't deny that it's exciting to be placed in the Female Vocal category for the 2nd year running! ... and I'm especially pleased for Rob Koral, Paul Robinson and Pete Whittaker, with Blue Commotion receiving bronze in the blues band category... they're uniquely awesome!  Thank you to all of you who voted for us. x  It's been an exciting journey so far! ... we've got a lot more music to make yet... :-)  

Rob says:  It's been such an exciting journey, and we've come so far in such a short space of time, that I personally, rightly or wrongly, felt quite intense about the 2015 British Blues Awards... perhaps it's just human nature due to the hard work that's required to run a band... writing, recording, performing and travelling!  So, I am very happy about this :-)  Well done to everyone who's out there doing it, award winners or not!

Throughout THIS MONTH, August, is the time for the general public to vote on the 2015 British Blues Awards.  Of course we are thrilled to be included in 2 categories: Female Vocals, and Blues Band.    Very much hoping you will give us your vote! VOTE HERE  I was very honoured to be Runner Up in the Female Vocal category last year, but this year, the quality of the band has been recognised as well, it is a good feeling after so much hard work!  Awards are always contentious, but from our point of view, the knock on effect is very beneficial :-)   Thank you for visiting our site again.... please come and say hi at a gig sometime. Zoe x

Hi all, It's been a very good couple of weeks for us, firstly with Paul Jones playing another track of ours from the Live album - he's been a big supporter and that's the 5th time he's played a track of ours.  The live album reached number 1 in the IBBA charts in June, and number 4 in July.    Also, in the July Issue of Classic Rock's The Blues Magazine, we have a track on the cover-mount CD and a full size A4 photo with some very nice words from the Editor.    To cap this lot off, this week we have learned of 2 nominations in the 2015 British Blues Awards, best female vocals, and best band.   If we're playing a gig nearby, please do come and say hi!  :-)  zoe x

Pleased to report that the new album has been getting lots of 'air play' in many different countries.  The reviews so far have all been very good; and very happy to be included on a compilation album yet again (for the 5th time).   Time for us to have a little break from recording, and to just enjoy live performance.  However, there is a little germ of an idea brewing away, so will keep you informed. We've kept the website up to date, so you can find new reviews and gigs etc here.  Bye for now, Zoe x

Hi all, It's been a little bit too long since we last wrote here... but don't worry, it's for good reasons, we've been busy completing post-production and mastering of the new 'live' album.  If you'd like to pre-order a copy, then go to the home-page and you'll find the 'pre-order now' button.  We'll be sending out physical copies on 11th May.   To whet your appetite here are two, quite different, taster tracks: We'll Find A Way and Your Sun Shines Rain   There are twelve tracks on the album, and, in the same way as the studio albums, we have horns on four tracks.  The material is a selection of songs from each of the three studio albums... and it is interesting to hear the quite dramatically different interpretations and nuances of the live performance!   That's it for now folks. Enjoy the tracks, and don't forget to come and say hi on a gig.  Rob and Zoe xx       P.S. Album launch is on 5th June at the Regent Centre Theaatre in Christchurch, Dorset, it's a beautiful 400 seater theatre and an wary 'get to' from most places around the south, and the plan is to include the brilliant horn section of Ian Ellis and Andy Urquhart.

Though I'd share this interview from the 'Blues & Soul show' (goto17:36), not really because it's a big ego trip, but because it's half way through a gig, and, as you night expect, you can hear my adrenaline and excitement as I continually fail to let Jason Elliott get a work in! :-)  We were playing at Keighly Blues Club, great venue, great crowd :-)   Zoe xx

Hi everyone, we're very excited to report that there will be a 'live' album available this spring.  It wasn't initially planned, but we were offered the opportunity of recording our gig at The Tuesday Music Club in Surrey, literally as we walked through the door, this was November 2014.  It features tracks from all three of our albums.  As well as our regular band members, Paul Robinson, Pete Whittaker and Si Genaro, it also features the amazing horn section of Ian Ellis and Andy Urquhart on several numbers.   Ian and Andy have appeared on all three of our albums.  The track list contains some of our most popular numbers like 'Beatitudes', 'Take Me Back' and 'Fine and Mellow'.

 We'll also be updating our photo gallery with some more great 'live' photos. 

Also, we were very pleased to be awarded Best Band for 2014 and 2nd Best Album (EXPOSED) by  Blues In The South.  Similarly, Zoe was Runner-up for best Vocalist and the band was 3rd in the Blues Matters 2014 writers poll.  See you soon, bye for now Rob and Zoe xx 

In 2012 Rob and I produced an album featuring quite a few 'blues standards', but using piano, double bass, and drums.  Here's the opening track:- Blues Before Sunrise  The point of the story is that the album title is 'Blue Commotion' ... and this was how we came to sue the band title 'Zoe Schwarz Blue Commotion' a few months later.   Hope you like it.   If you weren't aware of this album and you'd like a copy, the cheapest way is to get directly in touch with us. :-) z x

Hi everyone, First up, a bit of fun, Jason Elliott, the renowned blues promoter and radio presenter, put together a James Bond 'Mash-up' video to our song 'Angel Of Mercy'.    On at least 4 separate occasions, and in different towns, people have said this song should be a 'Bond theme', wouldn't that be nice :-)  Have a look, and you can see how cleverly Jason put the video together.... and how well the music suits: - http://youtu.be/MnG2lv79icM

So far, the response to EXPOSED has been 100% positive.   As we write, the album is number 2 in the IBBA charts.    We've had about 8 or 9 published reviews so far, not only here but across the channel as well.    We have an interview in the next issue of the R2 magazine, as well as the October issue of Classic Rock's The Blues Magazine (Issue 16).   The next Blue Commotion gig will be tuesday 9th December at the Talking Heads in Southampton.   Last night we had a lovely 'live' chat with Richard Dunning for Radio Croydon prior to our gig at The Tuesday Music Club in Hooley,... here's the link: http://croydonradio.com/upload/podcast/2014-11-18-17-00-05.mp3   Our chat starts at 30:30 minutes.    Will be back soon, thanks for supporting us.   Rob and Zoe xx

The album's out there now, and so far the response has been very good.  Don't forget you can send us your feed back and reaction to the album if you feel so inclined, it's always interesting for us to hear your thoughts.  You can, of course, write into various radio shows to request a track of ours, it all helps a great deal! :-)  Personally, we thought we'd be in recovery mode now - but we're finding the complete opposite and are almost planning the next recording.... we thought about a live album, a good idea?   What we have done this last week is record and film a few duo performances, so provided they come out well we may post them on Youtube.  Talking about Youtube, we have put three of the tracks up there with some brilliant montages put together by our good friend Carl Chamberlain.  Please go and have a look and click 'like' if you enjoy them.  Will be back soon ,cheers Rob and Zoe xx

Here is Official promo trailer for the album Exposed, brilliantly put together by Margarita Vazquez.

Rob says: "Had a lot of fun producing and mixing the new album.... to help do justice to her and the rest of the band I enlisted the help and experience of my good friend Carl Chamberlain.  We took a bit of a liberty with this one and opened the doors to the public. Hope you like it!" Broken Heart Blues  

Zoe says: "Also, a bit of a fun, uptempo, rave up which features all three soloists in the band on top form iwht a great pulse and groove from Paul.  Hope you enjoy it. The images have been brilliantly put together by co-prducer Carl Chamberlain, and I hope they help you enjoy the journey. Let Me Sing The Blues  

P.S. Oh, and we received this out of the blues from our friend, promoter and radio DJ .... it's a 'Mash-up'  .... a real coincidence since there have been several occasions recently where various people have said to us that this song should be a 'Bond Theme'....  that would be something wouldn't it! Angel Of Mercy (Bond Theme Mash-Up)

Exciting news! Vote for us now  here - Vote for UK representative in the European Blues Challenge ! (voting ends 12th Oct). We are one of ten bands selected by the great and the good in the British blues world.  We need your vote!  The the top three bands will compete in a 'play-off' in December.  The winner will go to Brussels in March 2015.  Organised by by the Eropean Blues Union, an organisation that does so much great work to promote the blues and its artists, labels and festivals, the Challenge is like the Eurovision song contest...  but with infinitely better music.  Zoe xx P.S. For more info on the challenge see what Classic Rock The Blues Magazine have to say ... Classic Rock The Blues - Euro Blues 2015

Firstly, we hope all of you who have pre-ordered the download have enjoyed the album.  We've enjoyed your feed back, please keep it coming.   The official release date for the physical album, EXPOSED, is 29th September.... not long to go now.   On a personal note, I'm very thrilled to have been placed as a runner-up in the British Blues Awards for the female vocalist category.... I must admit it is a very nice feeling and a great lift... thank you very much everyone who voted for me. Zoe x

We're just honing in on the final mixes for our 3rd album 'Exposed'.  The post production stage has involved adding some percussion and a few guitar overdubs, as we'll as some backing vocals, and horns on 3 tracks.  The reason for the guitar overdubs is to bring other colours to the overall finished sound-scape of the 12 or 13 songs we eventually put on the album.   If you can imagine recording 'live' in the studio, which we do, and is the only way to record this music if you want to capture genuine inter reaction between the musicians, then changing guitars or guitar sounds mid-song, for say the bridge of a song, is not possible.  

Gig wise, we have just had a great weekend at Marlborough Jazz festival and Upton Upon Severn Blues Festival, and are looking forward to several more festivals and club dates throughout the summer: Zoe Schwarz Blue Commotion Gig Dates

Thanks for logging in and keep watching this space. Rob and Zoe x

Live at Hebden by Rob Stanley

We've just finished our planned two days of recording, glad to say it was great fun and very successful.  We completed fifteen songs, all originals except for one.   Not surprisingly, because of the type of music, and with the emphasis on 'feel' and 'interaction', we performed the tracks live, sometimes just one take, and sometimes two or three, but always trying not to over-think or over-analyse.    The next stage is to go into mixing mode and see if there are any overdubs we might like to add, such as backing vocals, horns, acoustic guitar etc..   Thanks for checking in, we hope to see you on a gig somewhere soon....   and please come and say hi.   Rob and Zoe xx

We're very pleased to announce that we've reached our initial Pledge goal.  this will take care of our first couple of days in the studio and associated costs.  Just out of interest, we have christened a few of our new songs in the last week or so and it was great to hear the positive audience response.    We have 95 days until the release of the album, and people can still pledge right up to the last day. This will help most importantly with our record 'plugger', this is something we're doing for the first time. It will also help with manufacturing costs.       As well as pre-orders and merchandise, there are still some very interesting 'artistic exclusives' available.     Thanks all, Zoe and Rob xx

Thank you :-)  p.s.  don't forget to submit and then hit the link in the confirmation email you'll be sent

The voting for the British Blues Awards kicks off today, and for those of you who feel so inclined to cast your vote in my favour please do so, I'd really appreciate it. It's very quick and straight forward. British Blues Awards Voting Form (make sure you hit submit and then click on the link in the confirmation email you'll be sent).  Thanks Zoe x

It's been 26 months now since our first gig with this band, for the record, it was in Oxford on Feb 24th 2012, as it happens, Rob's birthday.  It's been a great time and in just a few weeks we are going to start recording our third album.  I feel that we've got the chemistry and the ingredients just right, and this has been born out by the fact that we have covered so much ground in such a short space of time.

As always, thank you for your support, will keep you posted with the latest news here.

Thank you to Sebastian Scotney for including a piece about our British Blues Awards Nomination and about our Pledge Music Campaign in his award winning Jazz Blog. London Jazz News Blog 

I'm really chuffed to be nominated in the 2014 British Blues Awards for the first time... It's a strange business though and the guys in the band, whose pedigree and class are so outstanding, didn't get a mention.... I am really honoured, and I'm proud of the music we've created, but know that for every person nominated there is somebody else who is equally deserving.  Zoe x www.britishbluesawards.com

We had a great fun gig last Friday, despite the long wet drive, at Ipswich Jazz club for their annual blues gig hosted by Stephen Foster of BBC radio Suffolk Drive time.  Pete, Paul, Rob and Bas played amazingly.  We aired several new songs which went down well ... (am getting very excited about the recording the new album at the end of May).  Stephen aired a song this evening, and will play another song tomorrow (Wed) and another on Thursday, and he will broadcast an hour of the gig on his show on May 26th.  Zoe x

We're launching a 'Pledge Music' scheme. Please check out the video and our story. We'd like to connect directly & involve you in the making of our 3rd album by offering a variety of great value rewards.

Zoe and Rob x

http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/zoeschwarzbluecommotion

Very pleased to have one of ours songs included on the cover-mount CD of the new issue of Classic Rock's 'The Blues Magazine'. There's a real vibrancy to the blues scene at the moment as demonstrated by the variety of great acts on the disc. It sure is a good time to be playing this music with all the energy, talent and interest that's out there at the moment. Big thanks to Ed Mitchell, the editor.

Oh and in the same magazine we have a nice mention in Pete Feenstra's review of the Skegness Rock and Blues Festival in January.

Thank you Peter.

We're going into the studio at the end of May to record our 3rd album which we are going to call 'Exposed'. We pride ourselves on our original songs and once again this new album will be full of our own material. The same as the first two album 'Good Times' and 'The Blues Don't Scare Me', the music will be drenched with blues feeling but will not fit any static, preconceived musical template. We think this is important, and helps keep the music fresh, up-to-date and relevant in 2014. This new collection of songs is very varied and some of the songs have gone in quite unexpected directions... can't wait for the guys to get their musical chops around them and for you to hear them. To help bring this to fruition we are going to initiate a 'Pledge' scheme.... will keep you posted.

"It's two years to the day that we played our first gig with our 'Zoe Schwarz Blue Commotion' band. It's been a very exciting and enjoyable ride... and if you're lucky enough to play with such creative people, in this case Pete Whittaker, Paul Robinson and Zoe, you stand a decent chance of producing interesting original music and keeping the whole thing moving forward so the walls don't close in."

Rob :-)

Just signed up to an organisation created by Clare Free which went live today… it stands for something very important and I urge every performing/recording Music Artist to sign up NOW! Go to http://www.uima.co.uk

Just had a fantastic weekend in Skegness playing at the Great British Rock and Blues Festival…. not only was it brilliant fun performing, but also having the chance to hear so many great acts.

Si Genaro, our very own harmonica player, Friday night playing with us at Skegness and then Saturday night he’s turned over-night super-star…. Not only has he been on The VOICE and RADIO 1! Si is the most talked about musician who has appeared on the Voice, and Radio 1 said its the best episode of the Voice ever! Si Genaro - what's next????

Just wanted to share the title track of our album with photos by Richie Brown put together by our album designer Margarita Vazquez will post a couple more tracks soon.? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERX0_cSZ25o

Some more very cool news folks! Hot off the press: 'Blues In The South' (monthly blues editorial since 1987) has just voted our album 'The Blues Don't Scare Me' as their Number 1 from their Top 100 albums for 2013, Thanks editor Ian Mc Kenzie. x (you can subscribe to BitS via www.bluesinthesouth.com )

Just found out last night that our song 'I'll Be Yours Tonight' was voted best song for 2013 by the prestigious, award winning, American organisation Mary4Music. http://www.mary4music.com/Intro.html

Despite this horrible recession, musically the band had a great year with the release of our second album 'The Blues Don't Scare Me'. We're proud of the fact that our live and studio sets feature 90% original music.

Since the release of the album in October 2013 we've consistently been one of the most featured bands on the air-waves in the blues genre not only in the UK but also notably in America. This has lead to us receiving a fair few nominations across the blues spectrum, including, Best electric blues album, best vocalist, best band, best Hammond-organist. 2013 also saw us have feature interviews in Blues In Britain, Blues Matters, Jazzwise, and Classic Rock's Blues Magazine and have our second airing on the Paul Jones show, this time featuring our song 'Liberated Woman'.

Naturally we're looking forward to building on this momentum we've generated. Last year we made our first appearances at Blues On The Farm, Tenby Blues Festival, Scarborough Blues Festival as well as several theatre and club dates. This year we're looking forward to making our first appearance at Skegness, Hebden Bridge and Upton blues festivals… they'll be a lot more to follow, we'll also have club dates around the UK… so we'll keep you posted.

Thanks so much to all of you who have played a part in all of this, whether it be through just listening to the music, coming to gigs, sending us messages of support and appreciation, writing reviews, booking us, or featuring us on your shows.

Here's to 2014, and good luck to all of you out there.

Rob and Zoe xx

Just heard that our CD 'The Blues Don't Scare Me', has been nominated for the best electric blues album in the readers poll "Best Blues 2013" of the German online-magazine Wasser-Prawda. The voting is open until January 1st.

Also today, received the Blues Matter's Compilation album where we have a track included. Looks great… have a look at http://www.bluesmatters.com

We had a fab time at the Concorde Club, Eastleigh, an amazing venue with a great acoustic.

One more gig with the full six piece Blue Commotion band for this year, the Carswell Golf and Country club for the Oxfordshire jazz club's Christmas special…. for other gigs see the gigs page here and for the duo gigs and jazz gigs see www.zoeschwarz.info

Zoe x

Exciting times, the legendary 100 club was great, the band were superb; thanks to everyone who came, friends, family, & blues fans. Met several important people from the industry. The equally legendary Concorde club coming up! Also fresh in, a great new album review from Peter Quinn in the new Dec/Jan Jazzwise, and from Pete Feenstra on the Get Ready To Rock site yesterday.

Zoe x

It's very interesting and fascinating that the trend of getting 75% plus website hits from America has continued since the launch of this site! Coincidentally we are very pleased to receive another great reviews from the 'Blewsman' from www.Mary4Music.com who resides in Florida….. This time the review is for our The Blues Don't Scare Me album. Rob

We are shortly due to be on two compilation albums, one in America and one in the UK… will post details soon.

Last Saturday we had a fantastic night in Chichester at Root Around The World, Hampshire, thanks to those who came to the gig and created such a great atmosphere, and to Sue Martin the promoter.

Next up we're at the 100 club Tuesday blues club on 26th November, also on the bill are Billie Walton band from USA - brilliant! And Mark Pontin from Wales - excellent!

We had great fun at Tenby Blues Festival on Saturday, an excellent venue, stage and audience, and the guys played brilliantly …. then huge fun at the hotel party/jam afterwards … what great company Bernard Allison is!

Last day of Liberated Woman being on BBC Radio 2's 'Paul Jones' i.player...

z x

Tenby, Roots Around The World, 100 Club, Concorde Club.... going through the set lists now.

And big thanks to Paul Jones and team on BBC Radio 2 Rhythm & Blues show for playing a track on Monday 4th Nov, and for the nice plaudits about the guys solos, ... and thanks to everybody for their kind comments. :-)

New album out there now.... and can you believe, Rob and I already have something exciting brewing album wise for next year.... chuckle. :-))

See you on a gig soon, and please spread the word. x

 Hi again, it is 5 days till 'The Blues Don't Scare Me' is officially released.

Just wanted to share these one-liners from the last few weeks from the djs and journalists.

Zoë  x

"Awesome gig seeing Zoe & her band yesterday. I can really hear this lot do a late night blinder at Glastonbury Festival  Total quality."Dom Chambers, Tunnels Gig, 17^th Oct 2013 Somer Velley FM, Bath

Zoe’s vocals are something special – paul b blues The Blues Connection, Always Internet Radio.

‘The new disc is excellent, you kill it vocally on all tracks and that organ player is a monster’ – Pete Lauro, Mary4music.com USA

'We know Zoe is great on CD, but live I have to say no one can match her,,, her voice is actually in the legendary zone"-Steve Pierce (writes for The Classic Blues Rock Magazine)

‘For my money, one of the best bands around at the moment’ - Jason Elliott, Pheonix FM -  Sat 28^th Sept 2013’

 ‘Zoe Schwarz with something frankly epic from her new album with Blue Commotion’.- Independent  British Blues Broadcast. Ian McHugh, Blues Is Truth.  Ukjazzradio.com

‘The best in the country Its your best yet it is a winner will be a winner!’ - Phil Penny, Radio Trent

 “Absolutely brilliant” - Paul Stewart ‘Pablo and the Blues’

“New CD from Zoe Schwarz Blue Commotion is now on general release, this is a CD that has to be in all Blues Collections . Amazing Music From Start to Finish ( this CD has my Full Backing ) this is how to enjoy amazing Blues !!!!!!” - Hosted by Tony Fitton - Phoenix fm radio – ‘blues in the nite’

“Just played the CD all through  It is F' fabulous!”  Ian McKenzie, Blues in the South

“ the album is just fantastic, powerful songs with a hint of vulnerability about them. Just blew me away. The whole package is just so Kick Ass!!  Paul B Blues, The Blues Connection, Always Internet Radio.

“I am really enjoying the CD very much. An excellent body of work with great singing, some great musicianship and lovely, thoughtful and interesting lyrics. Congratulations. It will be receiving more plays from me for sure!!”Ashwyn Smyth, digital blues music

“Zoe I played it last night and just love the original compositions. Festivals are coming your way and you are moving up to the next level. You and Rob are so talented you will get there.” - Dave Scott Blues Matters, 

Jason Elliott (Hebden festival and Phoenix fm)  "One of things I like about both Katie Bradley and Zoe Schwarz and their bands is that sometimes, when it all kicks off musically, it sounds like they are only barely in control of some manic multi-legged and headed beast, howling, spitting fire and galloping into battle, as they are perched on the top, standing up in the saddle, carrying a big sword and shouting "Yeehaaaaa!!!"     That, Ladies and Gentlemen, is how you front a band."