Chris O'Leary's Alligator Records debut, The Hard Line, is available at all digital services, on CD and on translucent red vinyl LP. O'Leary is among blues and roots music’s most talented unsung heroes. The Marine veteran, ex-Federal police officer and former lead singer of the Barn Burners (featuring Levon Helm on drums) has walked a hard line from his upstate New York home to stages all over the world. No Depression says, “O’Leary’s voice contains startling emotion…reaching an intensity and emotional rawness [that’s] primal. The performances practically vibrate with an authenticity that stays with you.”

Between his large, athletic frame and his military-style “high and tight” haircut, O’Leary commands attention, singing his indelible original songs with pure, unadulterated soul and playing harmonica with urgent locomotive power. His keenly written songs come directly from his colorful and sometimes harrowing life experiences. A disciple and friend of both the Band’s legendary drummer/vocalist/songwriter Levon Helm and iconic blues harmonica giant James Cotton, O'Leary has been playing professionally since the 1990s, with five previous solo albums to his credit. On The Hard Line, he set his sights high and created what he says is “the best work I’ve ever done. It’s the most focused, most to-the-point album I’ve ever made.”

“What first struck me about Chris" said Alligator founder and president, Bruce Iglauer, "was his terrific songwriting, which ranged from hilarious tales to soul-deep personal stories. I love the passion he puts into every song. As a musician, he’s a world-class harmonica player (and a fine guitar and bass player) but his goal is not to show off his chops. He plays emotional solos that tell the story of the lyrics and heighten the impact of the song.”

The Hard Line, produced by O’Leary and featuring 12 striking originals, has many stories to tell. With over 30 newly-written, never-recorded songs to choose from (mostly written during the downtime of the pandemic) O’Leary and Iglauer carefully picked what O'Leary calls “the best of them all.”

"Chris O’Leary generates authority...with a huge voice [and] a force-of-nature harmonica sound." - Greil Marcus, Real Live Rock

"Gritty blues and soulful ballads [performed with] absolute authority…Chris O’Leary rocks relentlessly with assurance and a clear sense of passion and purpose. He is a potent, raging tour-de-force." - Living Blues

"The Chris O’Leary Band offer a virtual encyclopedia of entertaining roadhouse blues styles, from boogie woogie to Southside Chicago to Louisiana stompers." - Philadelphia Daily News

"O’Leary is a forceful harp player, a powerful singer and a natural frontman." - Blues Music Magazine