The Rhythm Addicts are a six piece "Jump Blues" band from Dallas, Texas. With instrumentation consisting of harmonica, up-right bass, piano, guitar, drums and vocals The Rhythm Addicts bring a full and dynamic sound to the blues. Adding it all up these guys have over 300 years of professional experience and even though, to some, they may seem a little long in the tooth they still bring an infectious enthusiasm to everything they play.
As one fan said after seeing the show at the Greenville Ave Seafood & Jazz Club,
"Damn, ya'll kick it like a bunch of 18 year olds".
Rhythm Addict Members:
Michael “Caz” Cazabon (a.k.a. Dr. Atomix)
Bass: Up-right and electric Fibson
Born and raised on the east side of Detroit over half a century ago, he has been playing upright and electric bass for over 35 years. Mostly self taught, he finds all the dots on sheet music quite confusing. Shortly after getting his driver’s license, he would take the family car into the ghettos of the lower east side to learn blues from an old drunk pianist named Gordon. This could have been his name, or he could have assumed it was, ‘cause the bottle always said “Gordon’s Gin”. Since the gin was his, he must be Gordon (I drink, therefore I am). Gordon claimed to have been John Lee Hooker’s pianist back in the 40’s when John was working on the line at Chrysler’s Jefferson Assembly plant. Caz played with several groups of musicians through high school and college – Caz and the Caztones, The Brew Brothers, Kuumba and others of which you’ve never heard. Fortunately for Caz, all these cats were a WHOLE lot better than him, so he could learn stuff. One of them, RJ Spangler, is a multiple Handy Award nominee and one of the best blues and jazz drummers on planet Earth.
Billy Hendrix
Vocals
No, he is not related to Jimi, though some still insist he is the white sheep of the family. Billy sang with rock n' roll and pop bands around Dallas for nearly 30 years before finding his blues voice. He once had waist length, long luxurious hair. See what singing Top 40 gets you? Longing for hair again, he joined The Rhythm Addicts and has taken well to the "shout" style made famous by Wynonie Harris. Billy keeps the rest of us straight with sometimes not-so-subtle cues (the frantic arm waving does not mean he is having a heart attack). He also helps the rest of us arrange songs, transcribes vocals on cover tunes and always sounds good.
John Homesley
Harmonica and Vocals
John used to sneak his daddy's harmonica out of sock drawer when he was 3 years old and actually put it in his mouth. Hope those socks were clean! He's been playing a long, long time and has become the 4th (and hopefully last) in a too-long line of harp players for The Rhythm Addicts. John's luck is about as manic as Texas weather. On the good side, he finds amazing deals on his equipment - like finding a mint condition 1959 Fender Bassman for a song. Or his pile of "green bullets". He gets his blues from the bad luck side though. His loving wife bought him one of those heated, vibrating foot massage/bath units. She just forgot to tell him about the short circuit.
Bill Hamilton
Guitar and Vocals
Bill met Caz at the Mighty Flyer concert and the talk lead to starting a jump blues band, now known as The Rhythm Addicts. Bill learned his chops from DFW's own Mike Morgan and honed them with the Brief Case Blues Band. Bill has devoted his full time to playing the blues and traveling the world with his lovely wife (sorry girls, Bill's taken, but the drummer/webmaster is single).
Bob "Shuffle King" Carlson
Drums
Bob played his first professional gig in 1963, at the tender age of 14, at a rhythm & blues club called the Red Jacket on Maple Ave in Dallas, Texas. Being self taught and not being able to count past four he concentrated on laying down a solid beat that the other members of the band could always come home to after getting a little to far-out on their solos. The dancer always liked that because they could slide into a groove on the dance floor that was always in the pocket. After 20 years of playing Bob hung up his sticks. In 2004 Caz approched Bob about starting a "Jump Blues" band and it was love a the first beat.
Rob Owen
Keyboards
Born just outside New Orleans, Rob studied composition at SMU and performed in the jazz band there under the direction of legendary drummer Paul Guerrero. As a classically trained composer Rob paid his musical dues in 23 states and 5 countries, touring with Mickey Gilley, opening for Little Feat, The Turtles and the Beach Boys, and jamming with Stevie Ray Vaughn. Rob also played keyboards for Dash Riprock and the Dragons and the Neon Globoys.
In June, 2005, Rob set up Green leaf Music and settled into the studio to compose, score, and arrange any project that needed the power of music to make itʼs point.
After 40 years as a professional musician, Rob brings his versatility, creativity to The Rhythm Addicts.
