James Charles Howard Jr. (born in Oakland, CA. June 13, 1963) is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter, known for his Blues-Rock live bands and five CD’s of eclectic originals and instrumental music.
In 2012, Howard won “Best Blues Guitarist” in Lee Ritenour’s Global Guitar Contest, with applicants submitting from 49 countries.
The James Howard Band is a two-time winner of the Washington Blues Society’s blues band contest. In 2016 and 2024, the band traveled to Memphis Tennessee to compete in the International Blues Challenge with bands from all over the world, advancing to the semi-finals in 2024.
In 1996 Howard made it to the finals of The Jimi Hendrix Electric Guitar Contest, sponsored by Guitar Player Magazine and Fender Guitars. At the finals in San Francisco, Howard met and shook the hand of Al Hendrix, Jimi’s father.
Howard has played venues from BB King’s Blues Club in LA to the Triple Door Theater in Seattle. Based in the Bay Area in the 80’s and 90’s, Howard relocated to Seattle in 2001. Known as a music town, Howard found fertile ground in Seattle, where he has flourished as band leader, sideman, and studio guitarist.
In 1998, Howard released his first studio CD, Electric Rain, in 1998.
In a review of Electric Rain, in “Rock and Blues News” magazine Howard was described as:
“… a Jimi Hendrix on guitar with John Lennon’s voice and vision … a songwriter with great depth.”
In a live review by Music Connection Magazine of a performance at the BB King’s Blues club in Los Angeles, in 1999, it was written of Howard:
“…he mixes the intensity of Stevie Ray with the passion of Hendrix and plays some of the meanest blues this side of the Mississippi.”
Howard has released five CD’s
Electric Rain- 1998
Celebrate Life- 2008
Live in Seattle- 2010
Devachan- 2015
For The Love Of Song-2016
The 2025 James Howard Band includes Kevin Cook on drums, Jack Dolan on bass and Jim Barnes on keys. James Howard’s music is available on all the major streaming platforms.
Booking Contact [email protected]
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