George Bisharat/Big Harp George is a San Francisco Bay Area blues singer, songwriter, and chromatic harmonica player. The chromatic, compared to the 10-hole diatonic more common to blues, has a distinctive voice, giving Big Harp George a jazzy and sophisticated sound.
To date, George has released seven critically-acclaimed blues albums. His big 2023 release, Cut My Spirit Loose, earned him a prestigious Blues Blast Magazine nomination for Harmonica Player of the Year, a highly-sought after Living Blues Magazine nomination for Most Outstanding Musician (Harmonica), and three Independent Blues Music Award nominations. George’s first album, Chromaticism (2014), was nominated for Best New Artist awards from the Blues Foundation and Blues Blast Magazine.
George’s albums have received stellar reviews from top blues publications, including Living Blues, Blues Blast Magazine, and Blues Matters, and his music has been played extensively across the globe. His seventh and most recent album, Cooking with Gas (2024), has repeatedly ranked no. 1 on the Roots Music Report Top 50 Classic Blues Album Chart, and Big Harp George Does Christmas (2023), George’s sixth release and first ever Xmas album, also landed him top spots on the Roots Music Report Top 50 Holiday Album Chart.
Before prioritizing music, George was a criminal defense attorney, award-winning professor of law at UC College of the Law, and expert commentator on law and politics in the Middle East.
Image credits: Emilia Rosales