Natural
Bob & Micky Holdsworth
Home Performance Calendar Listen/buy "Just Be You" "If it was easy we would have done it a long time ago " Micky Holdsworth
What about Natural Bob?
Natural
Bob Holdsworth has been a regular performer, songwriter and studio musician in
the Chicago area for over 25 years. An
accomplished guitarist and bassist he plays styles as diverse as jazz,
bluegrass, new wave, country-rock
and even traditional fiddle tunes. He
has performed solo and with several bands over the years playing bars, clubs and
coffee houses as well as neighborhood street fairs, benefits, church services, scout
ceremonies, folk festivals and park district concerts.
He recorded a single in 1983 with the Toxix and was featured in a music video
of "Don't make me mad" on WTTW's Image Union. His guitar and bass work can be heard on recordings by local artists
Susan Urban and Cooper, Nelson &
Early.
Bob’s
musical coming of age brought the influences of the Beatles, the Byrds and the
San Francisco bands of the late sixties to his guitar playing and songwriting.
He later studied jazz guitar at the Jack Cecchini Chicago Studio and
picked up old-time and bluegrass guitar idioms from the recordings of Doc Watson
and Jerry Garcia / David Grisman.
He
has been writing songs since high school, constantly refining his craft over the
years. He draws his material from the everyday experiences of
ordinary people. His songs
range from downright silly to deadly serious and occasionally truly inspiring.
For
over 15 years Bob has been a regular performer at one of Chicago’s longest
running folk stages, None of the Above Coffee House at the Second Unitarian
Church. He was dubbed “Natural
Bob” by one of the performers on that stage; the name stuck – can’t shake
it, don’t want to.
These days Bob performs with his wife, Micky on bass and guitar; they are occasionally joined by their daughter Lila whose strong, earthy voice adds a rich texture to Bob’s spirited guitar playing. A rare treat is when son Jeff adds his stellar drum skills to the mix for performances by the family band “Natural Causes.” He occasionally performs on bass with the rogue-trad group "Border Scum."
After getting very well acquainted with the Roland 1880 during the recording of "Just Be You" Bob is lending his skills to recording other local performers and songwriters, Vicki Biddle, Strong Voices and Cooper, Nelson & Early.
