The original incarnation of The Providers formed in January 1994; by the time the most recent line-up disbanded in March 2002 they had played over 100 gigs at various clubs in CT, NY, MA, VT and OH. The Providers opened for, among others, NRBQ, The Radiators, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, Ronnie Earl & the Broadcasters, Roomful of Blues, De La Soul, They Might Be Giants, The Slip, The Gravel Pit, Hubinger Street, Eight To The Bar, Sans Cherubs, The EchoJanes and The Preachers. Their self-released CD debut 'Open For Business' came out in late 1999 and has been receiving sporadic triple-A, college and Internet airplay ever since; you can purchase the album via CDBaby.com. A second album was recorded before the band's break-up and may eventually see the light of day; several tracks from those sessions are available for download on their MP3.com site. The Providers had no frills or gimmicks - they simply purveyed old-fashioned blues-based rock with memorable melodies, evocative lyrics and searing guitar workouts.