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Hungry John (Bergen Blues Band)

Also known as: John Magnar Bernes

Born: May 10, 1951, Bergen, Norway• Norway• Active: 1975–present
Nordic BluesElectric Blues

The Bergen street musician who earned his nickname going hungry in London, then founded the Bergen Blues Band in 1975 — three albums selling over 60,000 copies and an Irish No. 1 single made them western Norway's defining blues act of the era. Still active today — playing Bjørgvin Bluesklubb in May 2026 and closing out Bluesweekend Rett West in September.

Before there was a Norwegian blues scene worth naming, there was a street musician in London going hungry, and the nickname that came out of that struggle followed him home to Bergen and into the band that would define western Norway's blues sound for a decade (Kilde: Wikipedia). John Magnar Bernes was born on 10 May 1951 in Bergen and discovered blues in the 1960s through records by Muddy Waters and other American pioneers. He earned the nickname "Hungry John" while living as a street musician in London during the 1970s. Back in Bergen, he founded the Bergen Blues Band in 1975 with guitarist Per Jørgensen, bassist Edvard Askeland, pianist Kåre Sandvik and drummer Willy Korneliussen. Bernes wrote virtually all of the band's material himself — roughly a hundred songs across his career — and their three studio albums, "Bergen Blues Band" (1980), "Another Blues" (1981) and "Blues Hit Me" (1983), together sold more than 60,000 copies, an exceptional figure for a Norwegian blues band of the era. Their track "Jump 'n Shout 'n Dance" reached No. 1 in Ireland, and the band toured throughout Scandinavia and received radio airplay as far afield as the US and Australia before dissolving in 1985 (Kilde: Wikipedia). Bernes kept working under the "Hungry John" name afterward, forming Hungry John and The Blue Shadows and releasing a live album (1989) and a self-titled studio album (1991), alongside a solo career dating from 1986 and the project Mad & Hungry, launched in 2007. In 2010 he reunited the original Bergen Blues Band to record "The Best of Bergen Blues Band." He won the Notodden Blues Festival Prize in 2003 (Kilde: Wikipedia).

Musical Influence

Bergen Blues Band's commercial success — more than 60,000 albums sold and an international hit single — proved a Norwegian blues band could reach genuinely mainstream audiences at home and abroad, setting a benchmark western Norway's later blues acts measured themselves against (Kilde: Wikipedia).

Influences

Muddy Waters

Formative experiences

  • •1951: John Magnar Bernes born in Bergen, Norway. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •1970s: Earns the nickname "Hungry John" as a street musician in London. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •1975: Founds the Bergen Blues Band. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •1980–83: Releases three studio albums, selling over 60,000 copies combined. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •1985: Bergen Blues Band dissolves. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •2003: Wins the Notodden Blues Festival Prize. (Kilde: Wikipedia)
  • •2010: Reunites the original band to record "The Best of Bergen Blues Band." (Kilde: Wikipedia)

Stories & Anecdotes

"Bernes earned his lifelong nickname "Hungry John" the hard way — living as a struggling street musician in London during the 1970s before returning to Norway. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"He wrote roughly a hundred original songs across his career, an unusually prolific output for a Norwegian blues bandleader of his generation. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"
"The Bergen Blues Band's "Jump 'n Shout 'n Dance" reached No. 1 in Ireland — a rare chart-topping result abroad for a Norwegian blues act of the early 1980s. (Kilde: Wikipedia)"

Collaborators

Per Jørgensen

Guitarist, founding member of the Bergen Blues Band.

Edvard Askeland

Bassist, founding member of the Bergen Blues Band.

Kåre Sandvik

Pianist, founding member of the Bergen Blues Band.

Willy Korneliussen

Drummer, founding member of the Bergen Blues Band.

Watch & Listen

Henter videoer fra YouTube…

Discography

YearTitleProducerStudioLabelChartSalesMusiciansYouTubeNotes
1980Bergen Blues Band—————Per Jørgensen (Guitar), Edvard Askeland (Bass), Kåre Sandvik (Piano), Willy Korneliussen (Drums)Debut studio album.
1981Another Blues——————Second studio album.
1983Blues Hit Me——————Third studio album; includes "Jump 'n Shout 'n Dance," which reached No. 1 in Ireland. Three albums together sold over 60,000 copies.
1989Hungry John and The Blue Shadows Live——————Live album under his post-Bergen Blues Band project.
1991Hungry John and The Blue Shadows——————Self-titled studio album.
2010The Best of Bergen Blues Band—————Per Jørgensen (Guitar), Edvard Askeland (Bass), Kåre Sandvik (Piano), Willy Korneliussen (Drums)Reunion recording with the original band lineup.

Famous songs

01Jump 'n Shout 'n Dance

External links

YouTube Music Wikipedia

Booking / Contact

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Sources

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