​Blues artist Max Hightower, is set to release his new album, Nothin’ But the TRUTH, on February 21

​Blues artist Max Hightower, a powerhouse singer, harmonica ace, and guitarist, is set to release his new album, Nothin’ But the TRUTH, on February 21 via MoMojo Records.
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​After years of tearing up the Blues Highway with Mac Arnold’s band, Max Hightower is stepping into the spotlight with a trunk full of original tunes. Seeking a raw, unfiltered sound, he settled into Big Jon Atkinson’s vintage-style BigTone Studio in New Orleans, where he captured a potent mix of New Orleans Funk and Greasy Southern Blues. The result? Nothin’ But the TRUTH —produced by Max and Big Jon— delivers the blues in its purest form.

“You might think you’ve got a song all figured out, but once you hit record with musicians in the heart of New Orleans, it’s like trying to steer a river… better let go and see where the current takes you,” Max says of the recording sessions.

For Max, it all started with a late-night revelation and a worn-out cassette of Muddy “Mississippi” Waters Live. At twelve years old in Upstate South Carolina, he discovered that old blues tape after watching Jimi Hendrix’s incendiary guitar work on live TV—and everything changed. With no money for a new guitar, his grandmother unearthed her 1950s Silvertone. When its rusted, finger-slicing strings left him frustrated, she surprised him with a harmonica instead. That little ten-hole harp became his passport to the blues—an instrument so close to his voice that every breath felt spiritual.

By his mid-teens, Max was jamming in smoky barrooms, learning firsthand what to do—and definitely what not to do—on rowdy stages. As he sharpened his skills on harmonica, piano, guitar, and vocals, he realized that harmonica players were often expendable unless they brought something extra to the band. So, he evolved into a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer, forging his own voice in the music that first captivated him. Over the years, he’s shared the stage with blues legends like Hubert Sumlin, Willie Smith, Bob Margolin, Bob Stroger, Eddie Shaw, Leon Everette, Steve Guyger, Kim Wilson, and Bobby Rush.

Though a founding member of Mac Arnold and Plate Full O’ Blues, Max’s journey has always been about chasing that raw, unfiltered groove—constantly writing, touring, and experimenting. Frustrated by studios insisting on click tracks and overdubs, he took matters into his own hands, heading to New Orleans to record at BigTone Records. Using reel-to-reel machines, vintage RCA ribbon mics, and classic tube amps, he and his band—bassist Steadman “Fleetwood” Williams Sr., drummer Brandon Phelps, and a rotating crew of New Orleans horn and piano wizard laid down tracks in real-time, “mistakes and all,” just like Muddy Waters and Johnny Winter did back in the day.

The result? Nothin’ But the TRUTH is a powerhouse collection of original tunes dripping with funky Southern grease—no sad, whiny breakup ballads allowed. Backed by MoMojo Records, Max is on a mission to keep the blues fresh, fearless, and fun. It all circles back to that spark he felt as a scrappy twelve-year-old, pressing his ear to a crackling cassette, letting the music shape his soul. Now, after years of bright stage lights, late-night jams, and endless miles on the road, he’s returned to the heart of it all an honest, fire-breathing, foot-stomping celebration of the blues he’s loved from the start.
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Tracks:
01. Double Bubble
02. It’s on Me
03. Here She Comes
04. Damned If I Do
05. Twitchy Witcha
06. My Baby and Me
07. Sweet Gum Tree
08. Too Much of Not Enough
09. Thick Jello
10. I Ain’t Lyin’
11. Snuggle Bug
12. Assmograph
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Website:
 maxhightower.com