By CASSIE MOORE / Guest Columnist

 With beginnings as a saxophone player in high school, Brad Guin started his original band, Bad Brad and the Sipsey Slims, after 20 years of fine-tuning his musical talent.

He played in hundreds of acts over the years, working as sideman and studio musician for artists such as Eddie Floyd, Bobby Blue Bland, B.B. King and The Temptations.

Brad uncovered his love of singing after spending time with Bobby Whitlock.

“He would sing, and it would come from his toenails,” Brad described.

Inspired, Brad started writing songs, eventually tried his hand at producing, and shocked all who knew him with his vocals.

His vocal talent was unexpected, but welcomed. He called it the “Jim Nabors syndrome,” and further explained, “because I am country as a turnip green, and I sing like an old black man.”
Brad’s love of music and the saxophone came from his roots in the South.

“I grew up so very country on the edge of the Sipsey Swamp,” he said. “Across the cotton field from my house, bluegrass raged every weekend at least one night if not two, and sometimes all daylong. So, my influences are a culmination of all things Southern.”

Brad continues to play the horn for Fame Studios, which remains to this day one of the most famous sound studios in the world.

Bad Brad and the Sipsey Slims, featuring the Alabama Blues Project, will be playing at the Shelby County Arts Council on Jan. 24 at 7:30 p.m.

Come hear some soul music and support our Alabama blues heritage.

For more information about tickets and events, visit Shelbycountyartscouncil.com or call (205) 669-0044.

Upcoming events at the Shelby County Arts Council:

• Feb. 7 – Mardi Gras Bash featuring 2Blu and the Lucky Stiffs
• Feb. 14 – Gabriel Tajeu with Chelsea Whild