Carl Sonny Leyland was born & raised on the South Coast of England, growing up close to the city of Southampton. As a child he was drawn to the American music which he heard on LP records his father would play. It was here that he developed an appreciation for Dixieland jazz, the rock & roll of the 1950s & the country music of Jimmie Rodgers & Hank Williams.
Initially influenced by boogie woogie greats Albert Ammons, Pete Johnson & Meade 'Lux' Lewis, Leyland went on to fully explore the piano blues genre, becoming an authority on early & obscure styles such as those played by Cow Cow Davenport, Little Brother Montgomery, Montana Taylor & Speckled Red to name a few.
Whether playing solo or with his trio, Leyland's playing displays an infectious spontaneity, providing plenty of surprises for the listener.
Marty Eggers (bass) composed his first rag, "Front St. Rag," in 1982. Influenced by New Orleans and San Francisco style bands that played around the Bay Area in the '70s and '80s. Organized the Front St. Wanderers in 1984 and was instrumental in formation of the Sacramento Ragtime Society. Currently he works with the Yerba Buena Stompers, Butch Thompson Trio, Royal Society Jazz Orchestra, Tichenor Family Trio, and as a soloist at Pier 23 in San Francisco.
Josh Collazo is a Los Angeles-based drummer, composer, and arranger with distinct expertise in playing jazz and swing music from the 1930s and 40s. Collazo is recognized for being at the forefront of pre-bop drummers worldwide. In addition to playing with Carl Sonny Leyland, he regularly performs with Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Jonathan Stout & his Campus Five, Dave Stuckey & the Hot House Gang, The Phi-Psonics, and his own group, Candy Jacket Jazz Band. Over the past 20+ years, Josh has toured the globe extensively, had his music featured in film and television, and has performed live on several high-profile shows, including the Late Show with David Letterman, Conan, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Yo Gabba Gabba, and Austin City Limits.