Christine Ohlman & Rebel Montez
Christine Ohlman — vocals, acoustic & electric guitar
Rebel Montez is:
- Chris Bickley — lead guitar
- Michael Colbath — bass
- Lorne Entress — drums
Christine Ohlman
This queen of blue-eyed rock’n soul grew up loving equally the sweetness of a Memphis horn line and the raunch of an electric guitar riff. She’s the current, long-time vocalist with NBC’s Saturday Night Live Band, and her latest CD, The Deep End, was honored on five national Top Ten lists and features special guests/duet partners Ian Hunter, Dion DiMucci, and Marshall Crenshaw. Ohlman topped the Alternate Root’s Readers’ Poll as top Americana vocalist, joining other winners Paul Thorn, The Mavericks and Rodney Crowell. Ohlman’s legendary voice and stage presence have most recently been featured at the 2019 AMA Conference in Nashville; The PBS series “Music City Roots” with Bonnie Bramlett, Sarah Potenza and the McCrary Sisters; 2016 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival’s Tribute To David Bowie; on numerous guest vocal slots on the HBO series “Vinyl” that feature a duet with Elvis Costello; on SNL’s 40th and 45th Anniversary telecasts (where she shared the stage with the B-52s); “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” (guest slot with Black 47); the 2012 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Concert in Cleveland (filmed by HBO); and the Carnegie Hall tribute to the Rolling Stones; and as a headliner for the WC Handy Festival in Muscle Shoals, AL. Her voice graces Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon A Time in Hollywood” (in a guest-vocal turn on the Rolling Stones’ classic cut “Out of Time”).
In 2017, she was inducted into the National Blues Hall of Fame of American Heritage International, and she recently took part in two days of filming in the Boston area with blues greats from around America for “Bonnie Blue” a filmed documentary on the late, great bluesman James Cotton. She appears on Grammy nominee’s A Tribute To Howlin’ Wolf (with Taj Mahal and Lucinda Williams) and Charlie Musselwhite’s One Night In America (with Marty Stuart); sings the theme song for NBC’s 30 Rock; worked on a musical with the late Cy Coleman (who compared her sense of timing to Peggy Lee’s). A musicologist of note, Ohlman is a cover-story-writing contributor to Elmore Magazine, and worked with Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder & others on the Rhythm & Blues Foundation Awards. Ohlman tours relentlessly with her band Rebel Montez, torching clubs up and down the Eastern Seaboard in support of her recordings: Strip, The Hard Way, Radio Queen, Wicked Time, 2008 career retrospective Re-Hive, the aforementioned The Deep End, 2011 concert DVD Live Hive, and 2021’s The Grown-Up Thing.
Christine Ohlman doesn’t just perform. When she’s on a stage, she OWNS it, taking command of it with her soulful singing and stage presence. She’s an electrifying talent, a born entertainer. Watching Ohlman blaze away is a visceral musical thrill. Fans of vibrant rock and soul owe it to themselves to catch Ohlman and her band, Rebel Montez, when they appear at the Plantation Club. Mark J. Cadigan, Worcester Magazine
Chris Bickley, a native son of Chapin, South Carolina, comes out of the family of musicians who supported the late Johnny Winter throughout his iconic career. Bickley worked with Thunderhead and other top-tier Southern rock groups before settling in Connecticut.
Michael Colbath started out a jazz freak, and in many ways it’s still his first love. But from the time he picked up his first bass to the present, his interest in music has been truly global. Mike got his start working out with R’n’B soul groups in Hartford’s North End and continued to cut his teeth on the Hartford scene with the Hibachi Brothers, a World Beat band, while at the same time playing with a succession of jazz combos. Known as “The Buddah of the Bass” for his unflappable Zen-trance stage presence, Colbath goes to the well of Duck Dunn, James Jamierson, and John Paul Jones for inspiration. He says, “Playing with Christine allows me to work on music in an original context, which is very gratifying to me as a musician.” Michael brings many influences to his playing style and bass lines and a spark that few can match when he straps on his axe.
Lorne Entress is a New England-based drummer/producer/engineer who joined the Rebel Montez family in 2019, and we welcome him. On drums, Lorne has toured or recorded with Mary Chapin Carpenter, Big Al Anderson, Susan Tedeschi, Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer, Junior Wells, Freedy Johnston, Chris Collingwood (from Fountains of Wayne) and many others. In the studio, he’s mixed records that include performances by Stephen Stills, Sheryl Crow, Tom Jones, Rosanne Cash, Ellis Paul and Betty Lavette, and produced albums for such diverse artists as Lori McKenna, Ronnie Earl, Mark Erelli, Diane Blue, and Catie Curtis. Lorne also sings and plays guitar, hosting a monthly residency called The Sideman Series featuring renowned instrumentalists such as Duke Levine, Kevin Barry, and Marco Giovino. Lorne will release his first solo CD in 2021…watch for more details!!!