10-22-2026

’Just play what you feel, be real about it, and enjoy yourself.’ That’s what Albert Collins taught me,” says the award-winning guitar virtuoso and soul-deep singer Coco Montoya Coco Montoya. The self-taught, left-handed Montoya mastered his craft under Collins’ tutelage. Incorporating lessons learned from his mentors, the iconic Collins (for whom he originally drummed), and UK legend John Mayall, Montoya puts his own stamp onto every song he performs. Since his first solo album in 1995 (which won him the Blues Music Award for Best New Artist), Montoya’s endlessly inventive guitar work and passionate, hard-hitting vocals have kept him at the top of the blues world.

Coco's newest Aligator Records album "Writing on the Wall" is a career-defining album bursting with Montoya’s fierce guitar and passion-laden vocals, and the first to feature his long-time road band. Thirteen tracks of searing blues, soulful R&B and high-energy rock & roll include ten originals, five co-written by Coco, and include guest appearances by Ronnie Baker Brooks and Lee Roy Parnell. Co-produced by Grammy Award-winner Tony Braunagel (Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal) and Jeff Paris (Keb’ Mo’, Bill Withers). Writing On The Wall is a tour-de-force of memorable, hook-filled songs, sung with passion and fueled by equally memorable, top shelf musicianship. The 13 tracks include five written or co-written by Montoya. The set opens with a signature, career-defining performance of the soul-baring I Was Wrong, written for Coco by songwriter Dave Steen. From the blistering Save It For The Next Fool to the enjoy now/pay later philosophy of Jeff Paris’ (I’d Rather Feel) Bad About Doin’ It to the riveting reinvention of Lonnie Mack’s Stop, Montoya delivers each song with heart-pounding emotion. Special guest Lee Roy Parnell adds his well-seasoned slide guitar to the smoldering A Chip And A Chair. And Coco’s friend, guitarist Ronnie Baker Brooks (son of late Alligator star Lonnie Brooks), joins in for some good-natured fun on the droll Baby, You’re A Drag and adds his blistering playing to the searing cover of Bobby Bland’s You Got Me.

“I am so proud of this one,” Montoya says of Writing On The Wall. “We recorded in Jeff Paris’ studio and everything just gelled together. And the band inspired me; they all gave extra effort at every turn. Jeff, Nathan and Rena played so great, they ended up making me play even harder. They made me sound better than I am!”

“Coco keeps getting better and better. He plays with fire and passion rarely seen in this day and age.” - Vintage Guitar

“In a world of blues guitar pretenders, Coco Montoya is the real McCoy. He exudes power and authenticity. Be prepared to get scorched by the real thing.” - Billboard

"Montoya is a show-stopper...heartfelt singing and merciless guitar with a wicked icy burn. He is one of the truly gifted blues artists of his generation." – Living Blues

"One of the most prodigious and gifted electric bluesmen on the planet - a deeply soulful singer and incendiary guitarist [with] a seemingly endless penchant for invention." – AllMusic

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