Louis "KING LOUIE" PAIN

Oregon Music Hall of Fame inductees organist Louis "King Louie" Pain and saxophonist Renato Caranto (Merle Haggard, Esperanza Spalding) have been musical partners for a quarter century now. Whether working in big venues or small, in large groups or as a duo, the chemistry between these two world-class musicians is remarkable. They simply love playing together, and audiences love watching and listening to them.  The spirit and spontaneity of King Louie & Renato Caranto is unmatched! 

ABOUT KING LOUIE & RENATO CARANTO: 

San Francisco transplant Louis Pain and Philippines-born Renato Caranto first teamed up as seminal members of the Mel Brown B-3 Organ Group when that band, dubbed “Jimmy Mak’s signature group” by The Oregonian, began its storied 20-year run on Thursday evenings at the legendary Portland venue in 1997.  Along the way, Louis and Renato have played countless other gigs together in a variety of line-ups: at the Waterfront Blues Festival, the Triple Door, the East Hawaii Jazz & Blues Festival, the Jack London Revue, The Britt Festival, Juneau Jazz & Classics, and other clubs & festivals throughout the Northwest and Hawaii. They've also performed on ten critically acclaimed CDs together, with the last three--released on Louis' own Shoug Records label--each being honored by Downbeat magazine as among the "Best Albums of the Year" (for 2016, 2018, and 2019). 

The most recent of those CDs, "It's About Time," featured Renato and Louis (as 2/3 of the King Louie Organ Trio) playing all-original instrumentals along with drummers Edwin Coleman III and Mel Brown (Diana Ross, the Temptations) and guitarists Bruce Conte (Tower of Power) and Dan Faehnle (Diana Krall, Pink Martini).  (To read rave reviews of that CD from top European and U.S. magazines, click here.)  A follow-up King Louie & Renato Caranto CD featuring more exciting originals will be released in late 2023.

Visit the "Gigs" tab on this website for details on upcoming King Louis & Renato Caranto engagements--including a UK tour being planned for October 2023!