Alvin Youngblood Hart was born in Oakland, California on the 2nd March, 1963.  Hart plays acoustic and electric guitar as well as banjo and sometimes the mandolin.  Hart began playing the guitar in his early teens and studied recordings by Jimmy Reed, B.B.King and Jimmy Witherspoon.  It was his uncle that original sparked his interest and his grandmother, who played blues piano, further his desire for music.  His has been compared to a list of diverse artists ranging from Leadbelly, Spade Cooley to Led Zeppelin and Thin Lizzy. 

Hart cites recordings by the likes of  Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones as helping with his blues guitar studies.  His first big break came in February 1995 while opening for Taj Mahal at a jazz club in Oakland.  Mahals manager invited Hart to a Jam session at Bob Weir's studio.

His debut album, Big Mama's Door, has received widespread critical acclaim and got his career well and truely off the ground.