EPK - Brad Absher

Brad Absher sounds like the places he’s been. On his eighth album Tulsa Tea, his warm Southern soul music spans Tulsa’s earthy dignity and the swampy carpe diem of Lake Charles. Thundering sax with plenty of swing calls up New Orleans, while gritty grooves nod to Houston, and more subdued moments of empathy hint at time spent much farther away. Like two old friends telling us a story, Absher and his electric guitar trade lines with lived-in familiarity that invites the rest of us to listen––and dance. Produced by Chris Combs at legendary Paradise Studio, Tulsa Tea is a triumphant collection that knows when to roar, when to roll––and when to breathe. Absher penned all of the songs for the new record, save one. “My heart’s on my sleeve––there aren’t a bunch of hidden meanings or anything,” Absher says. “I always somehow felt that’s what I wanted to do like the blues guys: If I could just play what comes out––yeah. I thought I’d be better off doing that.”

Genre: Blues

Influences: Lowell George, Taj Mahal, Albert King, Freddie King

Sounds Like: Marcus King, Warren Haynes, Little Feat, Delbert McClinton

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About Tulsa Tea

Tulsa Tea was produced by Chris Combs and recorded at Paradise Studio at Grand Lake in nearby Tijuana, OK, the studio founded and made famous by the legendary Leon Russell. The band includes Brad Absher – guitar / vocals; Matt Martin – drums / percussion; Dylan Layton – bass; Jake Hemphill – guitar; EZ Mireles – keys; Danny Timms – Wurlitzer/Hammond organ; Charlie Redd & Briana Wright – backing vocals; and Abbie Rose – hand claps.

While Tulsa Tea is Absher’s eighth album, it’s his first with producer Chris Combs, a virtuosic jazz musician with a knack for pulling the best out of Tulsa’s well-documented embarrassment of artistic riches. The pair decided to record live at Paradise Studio, which Leon Russell built at Grand Lake in the ‘70s. JJ Cale, Bob Dylan, Bob Seger, Freddie King, Phoebe Snow, and of course, Russell himself—plus so many more—recorded there.

“It just looks like a big metal building you’d find on a farm, but then, you walk inside, and it’s like, ‘Bam!’” Absher exclaims. “It’s a huge room, which I wanted. The way I like to make records—it’s hard to find studios where you can do it anymore. I’m old school. Everybody’s got to be playing at once.”

The result is a triumphant eight-song collection that knows when to roar, when to roll—and when to breathe. He wrote all but one of the tracks (the lone cover by New Orleans hometown heroes, The Iguanas), taking his time, penning songs the only way he can: piece by piece. “I get little bits all the time—a line here, a line there,” Absher admits. “It’s like I’m at the store, gathering ingredients. You have to live a certain amount of life to have enough to put out there.”

Listen to Tulsa Tea

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