GA-20

The trio GA-20 channels the raw energy and direct punch of classic Chicago blues through its stripped-down approach. Guitarist Matthew Stubbs assembled the group, whose live sets rely on the minimal setup of two guitars and drums to emphasize core structures, while their material reworks the spirited intensity associated with Chess Records' peak era. The band formed in 2017 and unveiled its forceful first effort with 2019's Lonely Soul, which preserved their intensity through unadorned lo-fi production. They followed in 2021 with Try It... You Might Like It! GA-20 Does Hound Dog Taylor and delivered Crackdown the next year, a collection centered on original material that had been developed prior to their second release.

Boston-born Matthew Stubbs had already built a profile as a skilled guitarist through his tenure alongside harmonica legend Charlie Musselwhite and with his own psych-tinged rock outfit Matthew Stubbs and the Antiguas. Seeking a blues-focused outlet, Stubbs partnered with Pat Faherty, whose playing drew from blues, vintage R&B, and roots rock traditions. The ensemble began performing in 2017 without a finalized name, pairing Stubbs and Faherty with harmonica player Matt Prozialeck, recognized for his contributions to Erin Harpe & the Delta Swingers, along with various drummers. Early in 2018 they locked in Chris Anzalone, longtime member of Roomful of Blues, on drums and chose the name GA-20 after the admired Gibson amplifier from the 1950s.

GA-20 issued their debut single in December 2018, coupling "Naggin on my Mind" with "Sit Down Baby." The sides featured appearances by Stubbs' former associate Charlie Musselwhite and North Mississippi Allstars guitarist Luther Dickinson, and appeared on the Ohio-based Karma Chief imprint. By late 2019 the band had issued their debut full-length Lonely Soul, again including Musselwhite, Dickinson, and Prozialeck alongside the core lineup of Stubbs, Faherty, and Anzalone. Blues listeners responded positively, sending the album to number two on the national blues charts. Around the time of its success, GA-20 welcomed Tim Carman as the new drummer in place of Anzalone.

In 2021 Alligator Records marked its 50th anniversary and the original release by its first act, Hound Dog Taylor & the Houserockers. Label head Bruce Iglauer collaborated with GA-20 and their Colemine Records to cut ten songs by the blues pioneer, sourced from his initial three albums. The joint release Try It... You Might Like It! GA-20 Does Hound Dog Taylor arrived that August, entering at Number One on the U.S. Blues Albums chart while also appearing on listings in Australia and the United Kingdom. During this period of acclaim the group concealed from listeners that they had already tracked most of a new set of original songs at Q Division Studios in Somerville, Massachusetts, before the Hound Dog Taylor project arose. In 2022 GA-20 revisited the shelved recordings, and Colemine Records put out Crackdown that September, which reached number 16 on Billboard's Heatseekers chart. The band next turned to country-leaning covers, issuing their rendition of Dolly Parton's "Jolene" and following it in 2023 with Sanford Clark's "Still as the Night."