Cash Box Kings

press release: As part of our upcoming event series Summer In Your City, Madison Central BID is proud to present Live & Local, a FREE outdoor concert series that will highlight various local bands in the heart of Downtown.  Live & Local will be every Thursday from 5-7 pm through September in Lisa Link Peace Park  

Houserocking blues masters The Cash Box Kings have signed with Alligator Records and will release their label debut, ROYAL MINT, on Friday, June 30. With deep feeling and top-shelf talent, The Cash Box Kings play tough, real deal classic Chicago blues with boundless energy. They also deliver raw, passionate Delta blues, jumping proto-rock ‘n’ roll, and steamrolling “bluesabilly,” their original mix of Chicago blues and Memphis rockabilly.

The Cash Box Kings are fueled by the powerhouse harmonica work of Madison-based songwriter Joe Nosek and the huge, gritty vocals of Chicago bluesman Oscar Wilson. Nosek founded The Cash Box Kings in Madison, Wisconsin in 2001 and, since 2007, has co-led the band with the charismatic, larger-than-life vocalist Oscar Wilson. Over 20 years apart in age and coming from vastly different backgrounds, the two form an unlikely pair, combining Wilson’s indisputably authentic inner city Chicago blues vocals with Nosek’s harmonica, songwriting and singing talents.

Nosek refers to the group of top-notch traditional players who comprise The Cash Box Kings as “a blues collective.” Live and on record, members of the “collective” appear in different combinations for different performances, creating an anything-can-happen experience. In addition to co-leaders Nosek and Wilson, the full ensemble includes world-renowned guitarists Joel Paterson and Billy Flynn, drummers Kenny “Beedy Eyes” Smith and Mark Haines, bassist Brad Ber and newest member Lee Kanehira rounding out the band.

With eight previous releases to their credit and hundreds of live performances under their belts, The Cash Box Kings have won widespread acclaim throughout the blues world. Their 2013 CD Black Toppin’ won the 2013 Blues Blast Music Award for Traditional Blues Album of the Year. It was also nominated for a 2014 Blues Music Award in the same category. Their last album, Holding Court, was nominated for two 2016 Blues Music Awards and the band was also nominated for the Band of the Year Award.