Curtis Salgado

About Curtis Salgado

Award-winning vocalist, instrumentalist and songwriter Curtis Salgado, the man NPR calls “an icon” with “a huge voice,” is revered worldwide for his ability to wring every ounce of soul out of every song he performs. Salgado is famed not only for his powerhouse live shows and eleven previous albums, but also for his passionate and insightful original songs. He has been nominated three times for the Blues Music Award for Song Of The Year, winning in 2018 for Walk A Mile In My Blues from The Beautiful Lowdown. In total, he has won eleven Blues Music Awards, including the B.B. King Entertainer Of The Year. DownBeat calls his songwriting skills “an impressive gift.” Billboard says Salgado’s music is “inspired and powerful.” Born in 1954, Salgado grew up in Eugene, Oregon with music all around him. By his early 20s he was already making a name for himself in Eugene’s bar scene, first as the vocalist/harmonica player of The Nighthawks, and later as co-leader of The Robert Cray Band. In 1977, when comedian/actor John Belushi was in Eugene filming Animal House, he caught a Salgado performance and introduced himself during a break. Once Salgado started sharing some of his blues knowledge, a fast friendship grew. Belushi soaked up the music like a sponge and used his new awareness to portray “Joliet” Jake Blues in The Blues Brothers, first as a skit on Saturday Night Live, then a best-selling record album (which was dedicated to Curtis) and finally as a major motion picture.