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The son of a Bronx candy store owner, Ted Horowitz, better known to his growing legion of ardent fans as Popa Chubby, comes on like a steamroller in a blaze of fiery guitar pyrotechnics. Born in the Bronx, raised in Queens, Popa cut his eyeteeth playing hard core rock guitar before he settled into playing the blues full-time. "What really attracted me to the blues," said Popa, "was the honesty of it -- and the fact that you get to play a lot of guitar solos," he added with a laugh. Stating that his musical influences are pretty vast, Popa was raised on the rock guitar sounds of Mick Taylor, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix, which led him to the likes of Freddie, Albert and B.B. King as well as Carlos Santana, Wes Montgomery, Dick Dale, Link Ray and many others. "It’s all stayed with me," he muses, and the proof is in his playing - a fine blend of no-holds-barred rock riffs and smooth blues grooves. He says he is a disciple of the guitar, not just of blues, but of all types of music. In 1992 Popa won a nationwide talent contest garnering Best New Artist honors and a slot at the 1992 Long Beach Blues Festival, where he opened for the likes of James Brown and Chuck Berry. From there, he hit the road, averaging 300-plus dates a year, and released a series of albums culminating in his newest Lightyear release, "One Million Broken Guitars." Popa Chubby is an imposing presence on stage and when he launches into his shredding guitarwork and groove-driven blues rock you are in for one monster of a show.
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