When music is in your blood, you'll find a way to play it. When passionate musicians taste that jubilant, invincible feeling that comes with jamming, they'll find a place to do it. This is certainly true of JOE TURLEY, a singer, sax, harp and piano man who has been fortunate enough to fashion a career out of playing music since he was 18. After performing everything from rock to Delta blues to big band to country, Turley has realized a dream with the release of his CD, "When The Jitterbug Bites".

Peppered with elements of big band, Delta blues, rock and jazz, "When The Jitterbug Bites" sets all those styles squarely on top of a swing groove that puts a tap in your toe and a smile on your face. Turley explores straight-ahead swing, boogie-woogie ,Dixieland, and even rockin' blues on this collection. As project producer/writer and primary arranger, Joe cooks a gumbo of wailin’ sax, blues harp, trombone, twin electric guitars and occasional scat vocals to accent the many moods of "When The Jitterbug Bites".

"I've wanted to do a project that brings jumpswing down south...blues harp and southern rock guitars offer a unique sound when you hear “Em talk to the horns" says Turley. "I love this style so much. This music is joyful and exuberant. It's kind of a challenge, too because the music is more harmonically sophisticated than straight rock or blues, but must remain raw and gutsy. The guys who play with me are some of the finest musicians."

"When The Jitterbug Bites" may be hard on the musicians, but itıs easy on the listener. It's full of the let-loose attitude that Turley's grandfather, "Daddy Red," brought to his own swing band. Daddy Red gave Joe his first harmonica when he was a mere 8 years old and then, after a few years of musical maturity, gave the teen his own "ax" the road-worn Gold alto sax that kept Daddy Red swingin' for years. Joe's heart was captured early on by the sounds of early black boogie-woogie piano masters and he spent hours on the ivories emulating their style. Sounds around the house also included mom's own "stride" style of jazz piano playing, dad's country collection and Daddy Redıs daily dose of jumpin' jive piano.

Turley played harp and sang in several rock and blues bands in the early 70s, frequently with now-famous songwriter and "When The Jitterbug Bites" collaborator Jeff Silbar ("Wind Beneath My Wings"). The style-conscious entertainer would comb the pawnshops and thrift stores to find instruments, outlandish hats and zoot suits. Many musical miles later, Turley found himself in Nashville, equipped with some jazz performing and schooling (from the Boston area), and even a couple years of country gigging.

At a point when he was, as he describes, "below peanut butter," Joe Turley got his first big break when he landed a rare side gig as a saxophone and harmonica player for superstar Dolly Parton.Turley also re-focused on his piano skills and eventually got called to tour with Leon Russell and Edgar Winter He later gained a spot with Waylon Jennings' band on a tour that also featured Willie Nelson and got to play with both legends. With a more than solid footing in the Nashville musician community, Turley has assembled a number of friends who share his passion for horn-heavy, soulful, swingin' music. Through many incarnations, whether performing covers or originals, Joe Turley has always followed the beat in his blood.

"I love what I do!" says Turley, whose wife of 16 years, Marie, is often a part of the stage show. "Nothing short of a directive from God can keep me from playing. I've been blessed with some great times, but there have also been times in bars where I spent most of the night crouched behind a wrought iron fence with the audience drunk, rude and freaked out...you know, making $30 a night and it smells of thick smoke, urine and B.O. and your foot sticks to the floor. Iıve been there a lot of my life, too."

These days, though, are filled with boogie-woogie piano and horn arrangements as Joe Turley continues songwriting and playing sessions, corporate band gigs, clubs and concerts in the mid-south area.

"When The Jitterbug Bites" is a labor of love that offers up an energetic, good-feeling batch of original tunes for the casual listener, along with a virtual smorgasbord of stylistic and instrumental colors for the more demanding. Turleyıs smokey vocal presence and the obvious influence of black blues and jazz in his music gives irony to the name "Ivory" Joe. Turley is a spiritual man who is thankful for his winding musical journey. And the journeyıs culmination so far, When The Jitterbug Bites, clearly shows a versatile entertainer in full swing.

Joe's cds can be purchased on his website www.joeturley.com