TOM HAMBRIDGE

DOWN THE HATCH

Submitted in Field 5: Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year

Biography

When you have a musical career as a singer and drummer that includes writing 1000 songs, producing 100 albums, and working with everyone from Bo Diddley to Buddy Guy - two things come to mind. You must be exceptionally talented. You must be Tom Hambridge.

Hambridge is the four-time Grammy®-winning whirlwind talent behind – among many other projects – three of blues legend Buddy Guy’s most celebrated albums and all three Grammy®-winning albums: Living Proof (2011), Born To Play Guitar (2016), The Blues Is Alive And Well (2018), Keb Mo’s Good To Be (2022) and for his work producing, writing and playing drums on blues star Christone “Kingfish” Ingram’s albums 662 (2022) which also took the Grammy® for Blues Album of The Year and Kingfish (2020). Hambridge has been such a prodigious creator and producer of music that Buddy Guy says of him: “Someone like that comes along only once in a lifetime. I call him the white Willie Dixon.” But every once in a while, Hambridge takes time out to make an album just for himself. Down The Hatch is his newest album and follows the 2023 release Blu Ja Vu on Quarto Valley Records and the 2018 release The NOLA Sessions on Superstar Factory Productions.

Track Listing: | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald 02 EVERY TIME I SING THE BLUES Written By Tom Hambridge, Gary Nicholson | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Gary Nicholson Music Admin. by Sony/ATV Cross Keys Publishing) (ASCAP) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster 03 I WANT YOU BAD Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster 04 HOW BLUES IS THAT Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald 05 HARD TIMES Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster 06 WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob Britt | Bass Anton Nesbitt | Keys Mike Rojas 07 BELIEVE THESE BLUES Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys Jimmy Wallace 08 MAKING LEMONADE Written By Tom Hambridge | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Tom Bukovac | Accordion Tim Lauer | Bass Tommy MacDonald 09 WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals, Triangle, Tambourine Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob Britt | Keys Noah Forbes | Bass Tommy MacDonald 10 YOU GOTTA GO THROUGH ST. LOUIS Written By Tom Hambridge | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP) Drums Tom Hambridge | Guitar Buddy Guy | Guitar Rob McNelley | Piano Kevin McKendree | Upright Bass Glenn Worf 11 START DRINKING EARLY DAY Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald 12 I WANNA KNOW ABOUT YOU Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob Britt | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys Noah Forbes

Track Listing: | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald 02 EVERY TIME I SING THE BLUES Written By Tom Hambridge, Gary Nicholson | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Gary Nicholson Music Admin. by Sony/ATV Cross Keys Publishing) (ASCAP) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster 03 I WANT YOU BAD Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster 04 HOW BLUES IS THAT Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald 05 HARD TIMES Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster 06 WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob Britt | Bass Anton Nesbitt | Keys Mike Rojas 07 BELIEVE THESE BLUES Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys Jimmy Wallace 08 MAKING LEMONADE Written By Tom Hambridge | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Tom Bukovac | Accordion Tim Lauer | Bass Tommy MacDonald 09 WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals, Triangle, Tambourine Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob Britt | Keys Noah Forbes | Bass Tommy MacDonald 10 YOU GOTTA GO THROUGH ST. LOUIS Written By Tom Hambridge | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP) Drums Tom Hambridge | Guitar Buddy Guy | Guitar Rob McNelley | Piano Kevin McKendree | Upright Bass Glenn Worf 11 START DRINKING EARLY DAY Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald 12 I WANNA KNOW ABOUT YOU Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI) Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob Britt | Bass Tommy MacDonald | Keys Noah Forbes

Project Credits
& Team Links

  • Download the project’s credits notes here.

    Tom Hambridge is a 4-time Grammy® winning producer, Songwriter & Drummer. Tom has worked with Mick Jagger, Gregg Allman, B.B. King, Keith Richards, Carlos Santana, Keb’ Mo’, Jeff Beck, Van Morrison, Susan Tedeschi, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Warren Haynes, Gary Clark Jr., James Bay, Keith Urban, Johnny Winter, Boston & many others.

  • Produced By Tom Hambridge

    Executive Producer Bruce S. Quarto

    Supervising Producer For Quarto Valley Records Bruce S. Quarto

    Recorded By John McBride at Blackbird Studio A, Nashville, TN

    Recorded By Zach Allen at Ronnie’s Place

    Recorded By Michael Saint-Leon at The Switchyard Studio

    Mixed & Mastered by Michael Saint-Leon and Tom Hambridge at The Switchyard Studio, Nashville, TN.

  • Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Dell Sound Publishing

    (BMI), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy

    MacDonald

    01 WILLIE DIXON’S GONE
    Written By Tom Hambridge, George Thorogood, Richard Fleming
    Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Dell Sound Publishing

    (BMI), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass Tommy MacDonald

    02 EVERY TIME I SING THE BLUES

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Gary Nicholson | Published By Tom

    Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Gary Nicholson Music Admin. by Sony/ATV

    Cross Keys Publishing) (ASCAP)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass

    Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster

    03 I WANT YOU BAD

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom

    Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass

    Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster

    04 HOW BLUES IS THAT

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Tom Hambridge Tunes

    (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass

    Tommy MacDonald

    05 HARD TIMES

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom

    Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass

    Tommy MacDonald | Keys John Lancaster

    06 WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom

    Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob Britt | Bass Anton

    Nesbitt | Keys Mike Rojas

    07 BELIEVE THESE BLUES

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom

    Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass

    Tommy MacDonald | Keys Jimmy Wallace

    08 MAKING LEMONADE

    Written By Tom Hambridge | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes

    (ASCAP)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Tom Bukovac | Accordion

    Tim Lauer | Bass Tommy MacDonald

    09 WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom

    Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals, Triangle, Tambourine Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob

    Britt | Keys Noah Forbes | Bass Tommy MacDonald

    10 YOU GOTTA GO THROUGH ST. LOUIS

    Written By Tom Hambridge | Published By Tom Hambridge Tunes

    (ASCAP)

    Drums Tom Hambridge | Guitar Buddy Guy | Guitar Rob McNelley

    | Piano Kevin McKendree | Upright Bass Glenn Worf

    11 START DRINKING EARLY DAY

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom

    Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Rob McNelley | Bass

    Tommy MacDonald

    12 I WANNA KNOW ABOUT YOU

    Written By Tom Hambridge, Richard Fleming | Published By Tom

    Hambridge Tunes (ASCAP), Richard Fleming Music (BMI)

    Drums, Vocals Tom Hambridge | Guitars Bob Britt | Bass Tommy

    MacDonald | Keys Noah Forbes

  • Art Direction & Design By Brian Porizek

    Cover Image By Chi Huynh

    Photos by Chuck Lanza, Rachel Hambridge & Rob Seidenberg

  • Quarto Valley Records

  • Special Thanks To:

    Chris, Rachel, Sarah, Bruce, Nina, Chi, Mike and everyone at QVR, The Rattlesnakes, Tommy Mac, Michael “The Saint” Leon, Raymond Boy and all the amazing musicians and technicians that added their magic to the music.

    Tom plays DW Drums & Zildjian Cymbals

PHOTO GALLERY

What People Are Saying

Songwriting Great Creates Phenomenal Blues For Himself -
“Coming on the heels of Hambridge's 2023 "Blu Ja Vu" release, the astounding cuts found here lace together across the entirety of the blues' history. In Hambridge's hands, the blues lineage is indeed in great shape. This is blues musicmaking at its finest! Terrific release!" - CurtsBluesBlog.com

Yet again, Hambridge has created an album that is highly-listenable from beginning to end. With something for everyone, there will be a variety of "favorites" from the 12 tracks that include thoughtful lyrics, fine musicianship and memorable tunes." - Blues Rock Reich