UM Professors Play The Blues

What happens when a harmonica-playing English professor teams up with a guitar-strumming psychology professor? Someone is sure to get the blues.

Adam Gussow, UM associate professor of English and southern studies, and Alan Gross, UM professor of psychology and director of clinical training, are ‘The Blues Doctors,’ a duo whose debut album has been garnering national acclaim. Regulars on the local music scene, this dynamic duo will be playing Saturday, July 19, at 4:30 p.m. as part of the Oxford Blues Festival, held on the lawn of the Walton-Young House.

Gussow has a long history as a solo artist, as well as a 25-year stint with Mississippi-born guitarist Sterling “Mr. Satan” Magee. For nearly a decade, Gross played guitar in Mississippi bluesman Terry “Harmonica” Bean’s band, among others. It took about a decade for Gussow and Gloss to meet and begin playing together. When they did, a powerful sound was born.

“Alan and I had bumped into each other every once in a while for about a decade, either at a gig in town or just walking across campus,” explains Gussow. “We knew that each other were faculty members and blues musicians, but somehow we’d never quite connected.  I didn’t even know his name!  I just knew that he was a professor who was also a blues guy.”

A chance encounter at a local gas station set everything in motion.

“I’d been thinking about adding a guitar player and trying to score some local gigs. We started talking, and decided to get together for a rehearsal in my garage. We clicked right away,” Gussow adds. “We started playing small gigs around town, first at farmer’s markets, then a happy hour at Rooster’s in the fall and spring of 2012-2013. Last summer we went into the studio to make a CD, which became ‘Roosters Happy Hour.’ We just keep growing, learning new songs, and getting comfortable in the two-man-band format.”

Among other accolades, ‘Roosters Happy Hour‘ rose to number 10 on the “Living Blues” Top 25 national blues radio chart in January 2014.

Gross, who has been playing guitar since his youth, says the warm reception from the Oxford community makes the sharing the music he loves all the more enjoyable.

“We are exceptionally lucky to live in a community that is so excited about music,” he said. “My rule is playing is better than not playing, and it is most fun playing for an enthusiastic audience.”

So, get your ticket, bring your blanket or lawn chair, pack a cooler (with no glass) and turn up your zeal for great tunes as you soak in the sounds of The Blues Doctors and others during the 2014 Oxford Blues Festival.