Blue Rose (band)

Blue Rose (band)

Blue Rose was a Rockin' Blues band founded in Detroit in 1992 by bassist Jon Martin and guitar player Corey Storm. The band played continuously through 2000 touring the Midwest with several vocalists, drummers and sax/keyboard players. The band recorded several demos and released their first CD titled Rock Me Low with vocalist Kim Lange in 1997. In 2010, Jon began remixing several previously unreleased recordings from 1994 with Ahada, Beverly Ratliff and Kim on vocals. This new CD titled Detroit Boogie was released in January 2011.

Blue Rose originally formed when Jon Martin and Corey Storm decided to put a band together for live performances. Many auditions later, Blue Rose came together with three beautiful women out front, Ahada, Diana Balsama and Kathy Horton. Dave Favro on sax and keys, and Barry Kovach on drums rounded out the line-up. The band focused on writing original material while selecting B side covers and several crowd pleasers for live performances. With three dynamo female singers, the band was well received and became an instant success.

Corey handled most of the booking and management of the band. Rehearsals were held in Detroit at Jon’s recording studio Wave Records. Rehearsals were regularly held two to three nights a week, and were focused on creating a professional and polished performance. With the diverse musical backgrounds of the members, Blue Rose defined their own brand of Detroit sound.

Harry Sisko took the band under his wing and put them on regular rotation at his club Sisko’s on the Boulevard in Taylor, Michigan. Other popular night-spots took notice and Blue Rose was booked to perform at such well-known clubs as The Soup Kitchen in downtown Detroit, Moby Dicks in Dearborn, The Cavern in Ann Arbor and eventually played at clubs across Michigan and other locations around the Midwest.

Blue Rose had several personnel changes over the years. The vocal line-up included Chenethia Artis, Sandy Paulki, Beverly Ratliff, and Kim Lange, eventually leaving Kim as the solo vocalist. Dave Daniele replaced Favro on sax and keys, and Vince Panzo replaced Kovach on drums. Rock Me Low was recorded and released in 1997 with Kim, Dave D and Vince. Subsequent changes included Brian Gaza and Jay Crosby on drums, and Kim Lange was replaced by Ellen Giacobbi. In 2000, Jay and Corey decided to pursue other projects full-time, and Blue Rose finally disbanded.