Bill Toms and Hard Rain

Bill Toms is a Pittsburgher singer-songwriter and guitarist. Along with his band Hard Rain, they played primarily rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and blues. Hard Rain was founded in 1996 as a side project to Toms’s regular job as guitarist with Joe Grushecky and The Houserockers.  In 2006 Toms ventured out on his own, quitting the job as guitarist for The Houserockers to concentrate on a solo career. A series of albums followed. Bill Toms and Hard Rain continue to tour the United States, Canada, and Europe.  His ninth full-length studio release, Good For My Soul, is a blend of soul, blues, gospel, and rock and roll, brought together by stories of everyday men and women.  Rick Witkowski of Crack The Sky and B.E. Taylor have engineered, produced, and co-produced Bill Toms and Hard Rain with the help of Will Kimbrough since their first album Paradise Avenue in 1997. As a solo artist, Toms has opened for Buddy Guy, Levon Helm, Marshall Crenshaw, Steve Forbert.