The Mojo Gurus

T-Bone Burnett once observed, "We have all got a past," a remark that fits the trajectory of Florida rockers the Mojo Gurus even though he never mentioned them. Although their first album appeared in 1999, the group's central members had already collaborated for more than a decade, maintaining a split musical existence until the two projects finally diverged.

The roots trace to 1987, when Tampa vocalist Kevin Steele assembled the glam-metal outfit Roxx Gang. The band built a regional following across the South and secured a Virgin Records contract in 1988, which yielded the debut Things You've Never Done Before. That association proved brief; by 1996 Roxx Gang had moved to the independent Perris label and issued three albums in quick succession—Voodoo You Love in 1996, Love 'Em and Leave 'Em in 1997, and Old, New, Borrowed & Blue in 1999.

Late in the decade the musicians began exploring another sound. After playing a friend's birthday party at a small club under the name the Mojo Gurus and delivering a set steeped in blues and rockabilly, they found the experience so rewarding that the new moniker evolved into a distinct side project. Steele handled lead vocals and harmonica, Doc Lovett played guitar and sang, Vinnie Granese covered bass and vocals, and Mark Busto sat behind the drums. The Mojo Gurus quickly cultivated their own audience and issued a self-titled debut the same year Old, New, Borrowed & Blue arrived. Certain pressings credited Roxx Gang as the artist, and the subsequent Roxx Gang albums Drinkin' T.N.T. and Smokin' Dynamite (2000) and Bodacious Ta Tas (2001) circulated under the Mojo Gurus name in selected territories; the latter also introduced drummer Tommy Weder.

With the arrival of Hot Damn in 2003 the Mojo Gurus stood fully apart, possessing an independent identity and a rigorous touring calendar that placed them alongside Joe Perry, Johnny Winter, Southern Culture on the Skids, and Blackberry Smoke. After producer Jack Douglas, whose résumé includes work with John Lennon, Aerosmith, Cheap Trick, and the New York Dolls, caught a New York showcase, he agreed to helm Shakin' in the Barn, issued in 2005 on the Universal-distributed Empire Music Works imprint. Four years later Linus Entertainment released the fourth studio album, Let's Get Lit with...the Mojo Gurus; by the next recording cycle Sean Doyle had taken over the drum chair. Red River Entertainment brought out Who Asked Ya? in fall 2014. The band returned in 2017 with Gone, an album on which frontman Kevin Steele also served as producer and arranger.