John Stedman, who was in the record business since 1978, would normally record acts which went touring abroad under his auspices, such as Zydeco ace, Fernest Arceneaux, and the Thunders, and then release the material on his own JSP label. He had missed that opportunity in 1983 when he, through the well connected Ralph Rinzler (the de facto manager of Charlie, who worked at the Smithsonian and arranged the annual American Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C.), arranged Sayles’ triumphant tour through England in company with another harmonica prodigy, Doctor Harp (Michael Licht). For those with short memories, Licht, who received a Ph.D. in harmonica theory (hence the name “Doctor”), tackled the rare, two-foot monster of the harp family, a 48-chord, 12 key mouthful of an instrument. Stedman was impressed by Licht but positively wowed by Sayles’ characteristic style of wild and reckless abandon - almost free association - and was also surprised to discover that Sayles had only one other album under his belt at that time - a 1976 LP, The Raw Harmonica Blues of Charlie Sayles on the Dusty Road label, recorded by fellow, but transplanted, Englishman, Dave Sax in Rockaway (Brooklyn), NY.  The record savvy Stedman was not about to let such a talented free agent slip through his fingers again. So, Stedman, setting up an unusual stateside session, this time at Arlington’s Inner Ear facility, finally got his man, so to speak. With Kerry, Chip, and Robert in supporting roles, the result was the magnificent LP, Night Ain’t Right, on Stedman’s JSP label.

To promote the album, which was distributed by Rounder, a twelve-day tour was scheduled through Holland and Belgium using the same band mates with the inclusion of another veteran Washington harmonica player - Larry Wise. According to Robert, this quintet was quite the toast of the Low Countries, especially when it stole the thunder at the prestigious Handzame Festival in Belgium.

Upon his return, Robert wanted to continue in this new electric format, but got increasingly frustrated when he couldn’t secure enough gigs. Consequently, he parted ways with the Sayles. Chip and Robert, adding bassist Dave Fimbres, then formed the trio, Crawling Kingsnakes, a short lived ensemble which only existed from the fall of 1990 until May of 1991. 

Robert confessed that he wasn’t “getting much respect” in his electrified phase and seemingly not earning nearly the same admiration as in his acoustic engagements. After the Crawling Kingsnakes disbanded, he set about to find the components of a new band in order to achieve the desired chemistry. In 1992, he felt that he discovered a key ingredient in drummer Clark Mathews. Mathews, the seasoned pro, seems to have been toiling in the area for eons and is always at the top of the list in anyone’s little black book under percussionist extraordinaire. Clark has played and recorded with Bob Margolin and Tom Principato and backed such blues giants as Carey Bell, Pinetop Perkins, Sunnyland Slim, and horn man, Grady Gaines. This well-versed blues drummer over the years has teamed up with local harp luminary, Doug Jay, and most recently can be heard on weekends at Bertha’s in Fell’s Point, Baltimore, supplying his fat back beats to Glenn Moomau’s Blues Flames. Next, Robert selected bassist John Perry, who hailed from New Jersey, and was also an old hand in his trade, having been a part of the rhythm section of an equal number of notable groups. Now finally acquiring first-class personnel for his pet project, Trouble No More (named after a 1955 Muddy Waters single), he still had the same old problem of establishing credibility. But to the rescue came proprietor Jimmy Brown of the City Blues Cafe in Woodley Park on Connecticut Ave. in Washington, D.C., a discriminating blues aficionado who first auditioned the band. It is he whom Robert credits with “truly opening the door.” This venue in turn led to other D.C. blues hotspots of that period including the Oxford Tavern and the Zoo Bar (which still bravely marches onward). And through the early 90s Trouble No More was expanding its sphere of influence to encompass neighboring cities like Baltimore (the Full Moon Saloon) and Annapolis (Armadillo’s). This group also turned in a scintillating, crowd pleasing performance at Baltimore’s SOWEBO Festival on Memorial Day 1993.