The Rowan Brothers with Ken Emerson

The Rowan Brothers are known for their acoustic roots and modern day Americana, influenced by the Everly Brothers, the Beatles, and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young – with a splash of Bluegrass-tight harmonies and haunting melodies. The brothers were raised near Boston, but in the beginning of 1970, they moved to the West Coast to pursue their music. In 1971, they opened for the Grateful Dead as their first gig in San Francisco. Signed by Clive Davis, their first album, The Rowan Brothers, was issued on Columbia Records and included such guests including Jerry Garcia and Bill Kreutzmann of the Grateful Dead.

Following problems after the first record, they were signed to Asylum Records as The Rowans and issued their next album in 1975, and joined by their more famous brother, Peter Rowan. After releasing three albums as a trio, Peter left the group to pursue bluegrass music.

Since that time, Chris and Lorin have continued playing as a duo, with Peter joining them from time to time, as well as Ken Emerson.

Ken Emerson is one of the world’s most highly regarded guitarists living today, famous for his one-of-a-kind slack/steel style playing of vintage acoustic steel bodied National Resonator guitars. His unique playing style reflects the Hawaiian guitar’s grassroots origins of over a century ago. He has developed his unique style through many musical genres. He has played his special blend of Blues/Jazz Hawaiian guitar for 40+ years. Born into a musical family, Emerson grew up with his fathers’ extensive record collection of jazz, swing, Hawaiian and world music styles.