Gary Bernath

Harmonica, Vocals & Saxophone

Gary first started playing blues harmonica in the late 1960's while attending the University of Massachusetts. Inspired by harmonica giants such as Paul Butterfield, Little Walter, Charles Musselwhite, and Junior Wells, Bernath formed his first band in 1971, playing harmonica and doing much of the writing and arranging for the group, which was later known as the “Bill (Big Screamin') McGrew Band.” The group continued to be a powerful musical force in New England and New York until 1979 with its own mix of blues, jazz and funk. Bernath expanded to saxophone and vocals, as well as harmonica, and continued to stay musically involved with part time bands, and as one of the original members of the Cambridge Harmonica Orchestra through the 1980s, before founding “The Gary Bernath Blues Band”. He is recognized as one of the Boston area’s finest harmonica players as well as a solid vocalist and saxophone player.