Frank Raven is a veteran of legendary Chicago bands bohemia, Slammin'Watusis, The Blue Watusis, Iggy Yokam and His Famous Pogo Ponies, and The Frank Raven Band. Some of his earliest playing experiences on the Chicago scene include Blue Monday Jam Sessions with Lefty Dizz and Buddy Guy at the original Checkerboard Lounge on 43rd Street and a 4-year stint leading the Fast Frank Band of which John Milward, critic for the Chicago Reader and later Rolling Stone Magazine, wrote "This band makes the Ramones look like the Stones". Frank has studied music with Edward Wilkerson Jr. at the AACM School of Music and with Delmark recording artist Rich Corpolongo. Frank's recording credits include 6 records with bohemia including a Billboard "Hot Pick" and 2 albums with Sony Epic recording artists The Slammin' Watusis. His contributions on blues harp, saxophone, and songwriting helped set these groups apart from the pack and transcend their rock roots to become true examples of Chicago style music. The Blue Watusis "Welcome to the House of the Blues", Frank Raven and the Blue Watusis "Blues on a Stick", The Frank Raven Band's "Sunday Driver" and Chicago Breakdown", Frank Raven and Dave Menet's "Cadillac Baby...Live & Raw" and the just released compilation cd Frank Raven "Blues x 2" all feature songs written by Frank Raven and Jim Desmond. Frank's harp playing is showcased on the as yet unreleased Iggy Yoakam album produced by John Langford and Dave Trumfio. His solo recordings include the highly acclaimed "The Sadness of Winter" and "This Dream's on Me". As a guest soloist he has played on countless recordings for groups such as The Insiders, The Juleps, Texas Rubies, Pat Hall & The Fat Guys, and Prong.
illinois entertainer march 2003 kevin toelle says "The Frank Raven Band had a previous incarnation as the Blue Watusis, and vocalist/harmonicist Raven himself was a member of '80s Chicago favorites bohemia and Slammin' Watusis. On Chicago Breakdown, the group's new all-original seven track disc. Raven and his mates take on several varieties of Windy City blues on cuts like "Sunday Driver," "Chicago The Blues Today," Blues Attack," and the driving title track. The years march on but Raven can still play the raw urban blues with the best of them. (Contact: frankraven1@yahoo.com.)- - K.T. The Frank Raven Band THE FRANK RAVEN BAND have been blues rockin the Midwest music scene for the past 14 years. Originally known as the BLUE WATUSIS and later as FRANK RAVEN AND THE BLUE WATUSIS, they have appeared everywhere from funky blues nightclubs to restaurants, cafes, concerts and festivals performing their killer original songs and classic blues favorites. Frank Raven, a veteran of legendary Chicago bands bohemia and Slammin' Watusis, is the founder and driving force behind this quartet of first-class musicians. Some of his earliest playing experiences on the Chicago blues scene include Blue Monday jam sessions with Lefty Dizz and Buddy Guy at the original Checkerboard Lounge on 43rd Street . Frank has played such venues as Buddy Guy's Legends where the Blue Watusis did a 2 year stint as the house band hosting the Blue Monday jam, Boulevard Cafe, Redfish, Harlem Avenue Lounge, The Slippery Noodle and many more. They were finalists in the Benson Hedges "Best Blues Band" contest and winners of the Sandstone Recording Studio "Best Unsigned Blues Band" contest. Their first album "Welcome to the House of the Blues" received rave reviews and nationwide radio airplay. Raven/Desmond Songs represents the coming together of two reknowned Chicago music talents. Originally teaming up to write songs for the Blue Watusis, a progressive blues group they co-led in the early 1990's, they have since expanded their songwriting repertoire to include country, rock, soul, and gospel. Their post-Watusis cds "New Country and Blues", "More New Country" and the brand new "Shake It Down" are available at www.ravendesmondsongs.4t.com