Growing up in Mexico City, Tomas Esparza’s first taste of the blues came courtesy of a performance on Mexican television by legendary musicians B.B. King and John Mayall.

It made a lasting impression on the youngster because after he moved to Grand Rapids in the mid-1980s, he began soaking up the blues by listening to Duke
Tumatoe, Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson and Albert Collins.

But an Orbit Room concert by harmonica great William Clarke really sealed the deal, inspiring Esparza – who was 30 years old at the time – to go out and buy a harmonica.

“From that moment on, I never put it down,” he said.

Playing SpeakEZ Lounge on Wednesday: Tomas Esparza Blues Band. (Courtesy Photo)
Through membership in the Grand Rapids Harmonica Club, attending a harmonica festival and encouragement from other musicians such as Charlie Musselwhite (who turn him on to Little Walter) and the owner of Billy’s Lounge at the time, Esparza dove headlong into the music scene, playing his first show in Muskegon in 2006.