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Albuquerque’s Rudy Boy Jaramillo has played live as much as just about anyone in the music business today. You probably won’t have a hard time finding him at a local venue giving audiences an earful of his refined, signature guitar sound and lyrics that reflect memories of literally thousands of performances – and all the life lessons that come with the territory. With that much experience on his resume, it’s not surprising that he has mastered his technique and polished his songwriting skills to shine as bright as his guitar. But Rudy Boy is more than your average “swinging dirty blues” performer. Yes, Jaramillo’s band, The Rudy Boy Experiment, is awesome, and yes, bandmates Mike Epply (keys/bass/vocals), Carlos Cordova (bass), Donny Tesso (bass), Jon Edwards (drums), Able Robledo (drums), Mikey Jaramillo (drums) and Jason Varley (guitar, harmonica) are all awesome musicians in their own right, but the “experiment” is about more than just these wicked Burque bluesmen. Jaramillo has been hosting open jam sessions around the Duke City for decades, giving both seasoned veterans and amateurs a chance to perform live in front of an already pumped-up crowd. And if you’ve attended one of the rowdier sets – blurry memories of jam sessions at Sonny’s on Central sort of come to mind – you know he can get a crowd out of their seats and onto the dance floor. But perhaps more importantly, he’s created a real sense of community and friendship – a network of talented mentors who welcome newcomers with open arms, cold beer and an insatiable appetite for music.
Will you describe your sound for us?
Swinging dirty blues with that true rock ’n’ roll feel. I love all music, but I do gravitate to the blues: B.B. King, Muddy Waters, Howling Wolf, Jimi Hendrix. I also love rock ’n’ roll bands [such as] AC/DC and classic country music. I started in 1998 when I got out of the army and decided to become a blues man. I hosted a jam at Sonny’s Bar, Blue Jeans, Malarkey’s, the Kilt Check Brewery and now at the Tatted Bee. Blue Jeans was my favorite.
What are your favorite venues to play and why?
Right now, it’s the Tatted Bee ABQ. I do a house gig every Thursday night. It is a jam night. At my jam night, my band plays the first hour, then we open it up to jammers. If a band wants to play, I ask them to all show up together so I can get them up as a band. Otherwise, I put together a lineup of musicians that are in the house and get ’em three songs. It goes from 7 to 10.
What are your lyrics about?
The lyrics in my songs are about my life. I also like to make people laugh. “Sing my Song” is one I wrote years ago, and it is about how I have dedicated my life to this pursuit and how music has healed and helped my growth in this life.
Here is an excerpt from “Sing My Song.”
Where are you going where you coming from?
I’m going this way how about you?
If you need a lift I will give you one
I’ll tell you about me if you tell me about you.
Just gonna sing my song, and I don’t care if it’s right or wrong
I made my way to Albuquerque I am from Los Lunas NM
Came on down (name of the venue) decided to play a show so we can
You know the things that she told me made Rudy Boy turn red, but I still love that woman, no matter all the stupid things I did.
What bands or genres inspire your music?
I have played and shared the stage with Pete Anderson, Flacco Jimenez, Wolfmother, The Gin Blossoms, Buddy Guy, Blue Oyster Cult, Canned Heat, Tesla, JD Simo and many more.
Locally, I have shared the stage with Los ABC, Alex and The Rockets, Ryan McGarvey, Memphis P-tails, Chris Dracup, Felix y Los Gatos, CW Ayon, Levi Platero, Hillary Smith, The Sultans and many more.
What is the best show you have ever played and why?
The best show, wow, that’s a hard one, I have done over 5,000 shows. I think that there is a moment (sometimes the feeling lasts) in every show where I get to become one with everyone and everything. That is the best.
Listen Up
Check out the music video for “How Much I Love You” from 2019’s Shade Tree Mechanic here.
He isn’t always so sentimental, and if you want to see some of those rock ’n’ roll chops, check out the video for “Rough Around the Edges” from the album Rock Star here.
Rudy Boy’s Spotify profile is packed with grooves to soothe a major case of the blues, and you can hook up with him on Instagram as well. If you want to see some of his skills, The Rudy Boy Experiment on Facebook has tons of footage and upcoming events and shows. Peep some links of Rudy Boy live at Casa Vieja or an old Facebook Reel teaser for Rudy Boy’s open jam nights and you’ll get a taste of what he’s like in action.