James Mackie - Hammond Organ, keys & Tenor Sax
James Mackie was a member of the Two-Tone band The Selecter in the 1980s playing Hammond Organ, Tenor Sax and recording the albums, Celebrate the Bullet and Dance Craze. He later played piano for Madness undertaking live work, festivals and TV across the UK, Europe and, notably, Saturday Night Live in New York. A career in music followed as a composer for radio, theatre, dance, TV and film. He taught himself to play boogie woogie piano at school by breaking into one of the classrooms that had an old upright every lunch time and often when he should’ve been in lessons. His obsession with Meade Lux Lewis, Pine Top Smith, Jimmy Yancey, Albert Ammons and Neville Dickie later widened into a life-long love of the Blues that is, at last, fully manifested in the Out & Outs.
Ben Ruth - Harmonica and Vocals
Ben Ruth lived in Chicago where he played in many bands and US festivals including Chicago Blues Festival, with performances on Jenny Jones Show, Chicago Bulls games with music released in two movies and radio play on US college radio stations. Back in the UK he performed in many blues festivals and venues throughout UK. He has been actively involved in bringing a wide range of international artists into UK and running UK tours. He was the original driving force behind the nationally-recognised Lancaster Music Festival.
Niels Rasmussen - Guitar
Niels Rasmussen is a devotee of the early ragtime/blues players such as Blind Blake, Big Bill Broonzy and Rev. Gary Davies. This shows in his percussive finger-style playing. Influences are many and varied, from the late great Rory Gallagher to the rapid-fire staccato of John Mclaughlin and pretty much everything in between. Watching Rory on stage when he was just 16 years old blew his mind and showed how playing the Blues could be cool. He’s played across the North West for many years in a variety of jazz, blues and funk outfits.
Rob Livesey- Bass and Vocals
Rob has decades of experience and has played some of the biggest UK Blues Festival Stages. Rob has fronted bands from nine piece soul bands to tight three piece blues outfits, and was a member of blues titans and festival headliners The Stumble, with whom he toured in Europe and the UK supporting Steve Cropper with The Animals and playing support for Booker T at The Great British Rhythm & Blues Festival. Taste and tone are the order of the day.
James Barrott - Drums
James Barrott has played extensively throughout the UK from the south- playing twice at the Royal Albert Hall, to the north- where a drunken fan accidentally toppled the p.a. onto the drum kit in the Shetland Islands! He toured a lot on the UK Tribute circuit and he’s played with Nigel Kennedy and members of The Real Thing. He has played in all genres- orchestral, theatre, rock, jazz, prog, funk, but was brought up playing blues rock and worked his way backwards from that into more traditional blues. Anything that has a bit of swing or a shuffle is home territory to him. He likes marmalade and stealing his band mates’ beer.