THE HIGHTONES CELEBRATE 20TH ANNIVERSARY WITH NEW CD ON WHOLLY ROMAN EMPIRE RECORDS

CROSSIN’ THE BLUE LINE SHOWCASES THE VETERAN CHICAGO BAND’S UNIQUE AND EXCITING BLUES/ROCK SYNTHESIS

            Most bands can only dream of surviving and thriving for two full decades. For Chicago’s own Hightones, that enviable goal has been met. They’re celebrating their 20th anniversary with the release of a new album, Crossin’ the Blue Line, that spotlights every facet of the group’s musical arsenal, from tough, no-nonsense Windy City blues to joyously engaging rock and even a touch of Americana. Blessed with no less than four powerful lead singers, the Hightones are particularly strong when it comes to original material.

            “We don’t fall into any specific genre. You can’t say we’re this, because we’re also that,” says Barbara Gillies, whose baritone sax solo on “Strange Things Creep in The Night” opens Crossin’ the Blue Line. “So it’s kind of hard to pigeonhole us.” That standout number is sung by its composer, guitarist Bill Pekoc, who wrote three songs for the set. Drummer Roman Zabicki, one of the band’s founders, penned and fronts two tunes, as does lead guitarist Lee d’buddah, who came in shortly after the Hightones’ launch. Bassist Evelyn Bremner, who joined in 2015, brought “Lonesome Sad & Blue” to the party and splendidly vocalizes the set’s only two covers, Big Maybelle’s “Ocean of Tears” and Little Johnny Taylor’s “If You Love Me Like You Say.”

            “If you look at everybody in the band, we all have pretty extensive histories going way back,” says Lee. “It’s just like a collective of people who have a pretty colorful past playing in the Chicago scene.” d’buddah’s decades on the Chicago circuit include stints playing lead guitar with hard-rocking Bohemia as well as the Blue Watusis. Zabicki was a member of Phil ‘n’ the Blanks, like Bohemia a staple of the ‘80s Chicago new wave scene, and backed bluesman Linsey Alexander.  Pekoc has also been with Southpaw and the Rawl Hardman Group, while Gillies previously played with Smokin’ Section, Hidden Colors and American Taboo and Bremner with Southern Comfort, Logarhythms, and Mental Insect (she played drums in the latter).

           The Hightones proudly avoid limiting themselves to just one musical genre. “We’re not a straight blues band,” says Lee. “We’re willing to go beyond just being a blues band and take it a little step on the outside.” That explains the title of the new CD. “We’re like on the other side of that blue line,” says Barbara. “It’s like Crossin’ the Blue Line!’”

            When the Hightones first started gigging, they were fronted by the formidable Jim Desmond and also included saxman Rawl Hardman, another founding member who returns to play tenor on two tracks on Crossin’ the Blue Line, Lee’s “Blues Hwy” and Bill’s “Boulevard” (another longtime musical ally, harpist Frank Raven, also guests on the set). Desmond’s vocals and harp were featured on the Hightones’ 2000 album 7x7, but on this CD, done at BobDog Studios in Oak Park, Ill., the vocals are spread around, giving the band four distinctive voices. “Pretty much whoever writes the song sings the song,” says Lee. 

            Holding down their longtime monthly residency at Moe’s Tavern on Chicago’s Northwest Side, the Hightones represent the very best in Chicago roots music. Crossin’ the Blue Line, on producer Zabicki’s Wholly Roman Empire label, showcases the best of the Hightones.

            For more information, please visit www.chicagohightones.net or contact Bill Dahl at 773-975-8540/dahlbill@aol.com; Roman Zabicki at 773-504-9328/romanzabickijr@gmail.com.