Bluesman and Composer and today also Ideator & Art Director of Blues & Wine Soul Festival, Joe Castellano born in Sicily in 1966. After many artistic experiences, always voted to the Black Music by the time when he was 14een years old, he has created the JOE CASTELLANO BLUES BAND in 1994 and in the same year, the Band to make one’s debut with Arthur Miles like guest vocal, and also in the Solomon Burke’s performances in Sicily, like Open-Band. By ’95 year, after a considerable success in Italy and abroad, the Dr,Joe’s project, to mix really Blues, Soul, Funk and Gospel, and it evolve thanks also to the collaboration with artists such as Michael Allen, Reverend Lee Brown, and the legend of Jazz drums Bobby Durham, the last 2 artists guested on the first Joe’s CD - “My Blues can’t be still” (original compositions only) - with Joy Garrison too. That CD it’s reviewed in many magazines today during and Joe has received the prestigious congratulations by musical-myths as such: Rufus Thomas, Eddie Floyd, Matt “Guitar” Murphy, Eric Clapton and Paolo Conte. The years by 1998 to the 2001 they has so hard in the Joe Castellano’s life and he was so far by his Blues in that time. But in the 2002 - like the Blues Brothers movie and style – he see “the light” again… Dr.Joe claim all his lost musicians and he refund the Band with special guest vocal, the powerful Philadelphia’s singer, Mr. Gordon Metz. By that day it’s started the Big Band’s growth, with many successes in all the Festival and concerts where the Band has performed. The Joe Castellano’s original compositions they’re heard and appreciated like the famous Blues & Soul classics. A lot of National and local Radios in all the world, they have sent the Joe Castellano’s music in his programs and in this year, (like in the 2004) also the National Italian Radio - RADIO 1 RAI – DEMO program – have sent a “special” dedicated to the Joe Castellano Blues Band, like Best and Original Big Blues Band in Italy! In his Blues & Soul experience, during 16 years, Joe has play with real legends of this music, such as: The BLUES BROTHERS ,The HOLMES BROTHERS, JOHNNY ADAMS, SHERMAN ROBERTSON, EDDIE FLOYD, SUGAR BLUE, MATT ‘Guitar’ MURPHY, ROY ROBERTS, TONY COLEMAN, BOBBY DURHAM, VERNON GARRETT, THORNETTA DAVIS, HARRIET LEWIS, Rev. LEE BROWN, GORDON METZ, ANDY J.FOREST, BOBBY JOHNSON, ROBERTO CIOTTI, JAMES SENESE, ARTHUR MILES, STEVE LOGAN, DEREK MARTIN, and others too… He participated in a lot of Blues and Jazz Festivals sharing the playbill with the great names of these musical genres. Starting from 1990 we can remember among his many other concerts, those with the mentioned Bluesmen in great events such as : Nancy Blues Fest (France), Munich Blues Piano Players (Germany), AGRIGENTO BLUES & WINE FESTIVAL (where he was also the creator and the artistic director), Poggio Murella Blues Festival (Grosseto), Poggio Picense Blues Festival (L’Aquila) , Alburni Jazz - Serre (Salerno), Viareggio ‘Bussola Domani’, Palermo ‘’Sud’aut’’ Agricantus, Agrigento Blues Festival 1994 (as artistic director, too), Alcamo Summertime Blues Festival - three times: in 1994 and 2002 with Holmes Brothers, in 2003 with Charlie Musselwhite, Siracusa (Floridia) Incontri Blues con Blues Brothers Band , Castelbuono Jazz Festival , Torino (Piossasco) Amarcord Blues Fest, Ruffano Blue & Trend Festival (Lecce), Palermo Blues Festival 05 - and others…. (On the photo: Dr. Joe and Tony Coleman) In the last three years, reviews and congratulations they’re formulated by many important Italian and stranger magazines, such as : SOUL BAG, JUKE BLUES, IN THE BASEMENT, SOUL CORNER, JAM, BLUES&BLUES, IL BLUES, BLUES FESTIVALS GUIDE, The BLUE HIGHWAY etc.etc. The new live record “Blues & Soul feeling !” it’s work in progress...