Joe Bonamassa Drops New Blues-Rock Ballad, Launches Charity Fund For Musicians

[Cover image photo credit to Robert Sutton]

You can, and probably should, go wade around in all of our Joe Bonamassa records in the shop, but before you do that, check out his latest release, since it's a big one.

On Friday, he revealed a ballad titled "When One Door Opens" on J&R Adventures. The track was co-written with long-time producer Kevin Shirley and songwriter Pete Brown, known for collaborations with Cream and Jack Bruce.

Bonamassa is a "blues-rock" composer and performer with strong ties to classic rock, and this new song is being hailed as a return to those soundscapes.

It was also recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studio in London, and he brings that heritage into the song.

Along with the release, a brand new music video gives audiences a special look inside Bonamassa's recording sessions.

The song is the first track off a new forthcoming album, Bonamassa says, but the actual release date and track listing have yet to be revealed.

If you want to keep up with Bonamassa in quarantine, he is still cranking out weekly programming for Sirius XM's Bluesville channel for his radio show "Different Shades Of Blue."

Also, while in quarantine Bonamassa has taken to social media to give a special behind-the-scenes look at his "Nerdville" home in California. This week, Bonamassa kicked off a new at-home series "Live From Nerdville" on his Facebook page, with the first episode featuring the great singer-songwriter Dion.

Bonamassa is releasing Dion's new album Blues With Friends on the new label Keeping The Blues Alive Records and Dion's first single "Blues Comin' On" features Bonamassa.

To battle the tough times brought on by COVID-19, Bonamassa's non-profit Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation (KTBA) is providing financial support to qualifying touring musicians who are suffering financial hardship and whose careers have been put on hold.

Here's some more information about the Foundation's activities and their fundraising "stream-a-thon" that will be happening online on Sunday, May 31st:

The program, called Fueling Musicians, is an emergency relief program designed to support musicians by providing immediate cash payments for essential living expenses of $1,000, as well as pre-paid gas cards of $500 to help them stay afloat and get back on the road again when it is safe. With $178,000 raised to date, Bonamassa quickly surpassed the original goal of $100,00 and has since increased his goal to $250,000. "The more money raised, the more musicians that will receive funding to help them get through these challenging times and ultimately back onto the road when the time is right," Bonamassa says.

On Sunday, May 31st at 3PM ET he will premiere an online stream-a-thon benefit for the program, featuring four hours of music performances from over 45 musicians including some legendary friends and talented rising stars.

Learn more at https://joeb.me/StreamAThon. Individuals or organizations interested in helping Joe support this program should go the Keeping the Blues Alive website, ktba.org or ktba.org/fueling-musicians.

For more information on "When One Door Opens," and other Bonamassa news, visit jbonamassa.com, and be sure to stay connected on social media.