http://coconuttimes.com Coconut Times - Ocean City's Entertainment Web Magazine - Meet the Band en http://coconuttimes.com/ http://coconuttimes.com 17281568423402 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/SUMMER-SEASON-WRAP-UP With the passing of the Labor Day weekend, the 2019 Summer Season came to an end. There is still, however, a lot of good fun to be had in September. The weather is still warm and sunny, the ocean temperature is at its warmest, Sunfest awaits, and many outdoor bars and restaurants still cater to the alfresco lovers. The musicians can now find some time to take care of personal business and enjoy this beautiful resort town. They spend endless hours from January to April running from tiki bars to restaurants to hotels in order to book their gigs for June through September, knowing that they make most of their money in the summer. The musician’s goal is to stay as busy as possible during the summer, when bar managers want live music, and fun-loving tourists plow green notes into their tip jars. Equally important, summertime has the special ability to offer up fun-loving crowds that are totally engaged with the performer. This kind of crowd is nourishment for the performer, who needs and craves the attention, as it is a sign of solidarity with that person on stage, which can be a very lonely place without the audience feedback.

I have experienced that stage from both sides this summer. Mother Nature provided us with great weather, great crowds, and fine performances by a plethora of talented artists. I’d like to share with you my musical memories of the summer of 2019 as a listener. Let’s start with beachside venues. Bourbon Street on the Beach has become a small Mecca for music over the last few years. It is surprising, because one does not expect to find Cajun cooking of such high quality in a Mid-Atlantic resort town. One also does not expect to find the quality of music in such a small place from performers such as Rusty Foulke from Hybrid Ice. Wednesday open mic night became all the rage, when guest musicians, such as Paul Pesco, and others from a number of top national bands showed up to play with hosts Michael Smith & Jay Stinemire of Reform School. Other evenings, Bourbon Street is filled with fans of Jack Worthington, Lennon LaRicci & The Leftovers, Randy Lee Ashcraft & Jimmy Rowbottom, me, and so many other local bands. There were even sightings there of Rodney Kelly, blues and jazz performer from Baltimore.

Coconuts Beach Bar & Grill at the Castle in the Sand Hotel has been a top beach party bar for years. Once again, it hosted great local bands and new-comers to Ocean City, like Chris Diller, who hails from Baltimore and plays guitar, while simultaneously playing the drums with his feet! He has a fantastic country-style voice and catchy originals. Regular favorites such as Joe Smooth & Bob Wilkinson, Kevin Poole, Joe Mama, Chris Button, Monkee Paw, Darin Engh and many others were among the great lineup of two acts per day. The Lauren Glick Band and Old School led many of the Sunday parties, a few left into October, and I’ll be playing with Old School this Sunday.

Other beach-side locations offered gorgeous weather and wonderful music in locations such as The Caribbean Pool Bar with Dave Sherman and One Night Stand. The Jungle Bar at The Plaza solidified its place on the musical map this summer as it became one of the venues to see The Lauren Glick-Dave Tarlecki duo and 33 RPM, among others. The Carousel offered weekly music by Randy Jamz, Jack Worthington, Dave Sherman, and Pearl (Michael & Rita). Lenny’s Beach Bar and Grill (at The Clarion) had daily music on the beach and The Dunes Manor also offered great talent this year. Cowboy Coast gained in popularity this year as it hosted several popular country bands including the Marshall Tucker Band, a favorite for southern rock lovers from the ‘70s.

In June, Ocean City played host to the Jellyfish Festival on the Beach, where crowds enjoyed local bands such as The Lauren Glick Band, Monkee Paw, Phantom Limbs and Full Circle, and world-famous bands like Styx.

If you crossed the street to the bay side this summer, you could find endless talent at Seacrets with such groups as The Jim Long Band and Full Circle, and at Ropewalk with Monkee Paw and at The Skye Bar with Lennon and The Leftovers. M.R. Ducks was one of the best bayside joints to see Identity Crisis, Tranzfusion, Poole and the Gang and Johnny Bling. New venues, such as The Aloft Hotel and The Marriott Residence Inn, hired groups such as Pearl and Randy Jamz. Fager’s Island has proven once again to be a strong bay-side contributor to local standard bands such as Tranzfusion and Kevin Poole, as well as new blood, like Josh Christina, a reincarnation of Jerry Lee Lewis, who has successfully played and recorded in Nashville.
Open mic jams on the bay side demonstrated that there is talent coming out of the woodwork in OC. Randy Lee Ashcraft and Jimmy Rowbottom hosted their Open Jam on Wednesdays at Johnny’s Pizza (still going strong), and Chris Button hosted an open jam at the Crabcake Factory on Route 54. All were well attended. In fact, The Crabcake Factory locations were favorite weekend destinations for bloody mary’s and energizing music by folks like Chris Button, Otto Grundman, and the Lauren Glick-Melissa Alessi duo.

Drydock 28 was officially one of the cool places to go for live music, as proven by Otto Grundman and Muskrat Lightning, who filled the dancefloor with dead heads and lovers of band jams. And great bands like 33 RPM rocked the house at Beach Barrels, Bourbon Street and High Stakes.

BJ’s on the Water on Wednesdays and weekends provided a fist-pumping party atmosphere accompanied by great food (I loved the stuffed flounder!). Solid traditional bands such as Old School, Thin Ice, Chest Pains, Full Circle, Lennon La Ricci and the Leftovers, Tranzfusion, Identity Crisis, and many others played there. There seemed to be no end to the evening fun at BJ’s; and it continues through the winter!

In West OC, The Harborside was easy to count on for original orange crushes and great weekend music by Chris Button, Side Project, and Opposite Directions. Close by, The Sunset Grille hosted tribute bands on Tuesdays and Jim Long on Sundays, and places like Micky Fins and Trader Lee’s hosted beloved local bands. Unfortunately, Mad Fish with its small deck stage surprisingly went up in flames. The Southgate Grill presented The Billy Carlins Band (there this Saturday) with sounds of blues, jazz and beyond.

In Selbyville, The Freeman Stage once again amazed crowds with well-known talent such as Diana Ross, The Beach Boys, Lyle Lovett, and Brian Setzer of the Stray Cats, as well as lesser-known talent like The Mavericks, who tore the house down with their latino flavor of music.

It seems that there was no shortage of live music on any given day this summer. This was just a small taste of the cornucopia of music that is Ocean City. We are all grateful for the memories, the fun, and the revenue that visitors bring to our town, and we do look forward to the summer of 2020. And now, we can all let out a sigh of “Whew…” and look back at an energetic, fun-filled summertime for the memories. The locals can now have their town back, and we musicians can relax a little and get to see each other again. Thank you for supporting local musicians and for reading Meet the Band. I hope I have entertained you with my interviews. God Bless. Vincent

]]> Fri, 13 Sep 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17271567811188 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/JOHN-HEINZ John Heinz, fiddler, is a busy man. This week, he will leave his home in the morning for his job as Senior Telemetry Technician at NASA on Wallops Island, and, on the weekend, he will go to Chincoteague to work on a music project with Chris Daughtry, country singer and former contestant on American Idol. Last weekend, he played with Pearl (Michael Smith, Rita Conestabile, and Jay Stinemire) at the Carousel. His plate is full, but he still makes time for the love of his life and wife, Madelyn. His love for music and playing the fiddle drive him to burn the candle at both ends. Actually, this drive is genetic. He gets it from his father Jerome Hines, who relentlessly kept busy.
When Jerome Heinz was sixteen years old, he joined a glee club in Los Angeles and was dismissed for lack of talent. He then studied chemistry and mathematics at UCLA and wrote many publications on the subjects. Jerome also took vocal lessons. Due to the Second World War image of Germans, he changed the spelling of his name to Hines and became a famous American opera singer. For most of his adult life, Jerome Hines lived in South Orange, New Jersey, and commuted every day to the Metropolitan Opera House (The Met), when he wasn’t performing for world leaders. He married a soprano opera singer, Lucia Evangelista, and raised four children, one who was named John.

John Heinz, who retained the original family name spelling, grew up in South Orange and received a violin at an early age to play in the 4th-grade orchestra. Being the son of a celebrity, everyone assumed that he would be first chair. In a few weeks, he was dismissed from the orchestra for lack of talent. It seems that history was repeating itself. John subsequently stopped playing the violin until he was 17 years old, when he picked it up again. I caught up with John to find out more about his fascinating life.

Vincent: “What made you pick up the violin again after so many years?”
John: “Well, it was the age of the country music craze. The movie, Urban Cowboy, came out, and country music was on the rise. I stared at my old fiddle and thought to myself, ‘This is a cool instrument after all, and I’m gonna turn it into something really fun!’ My father was very technical, and my brother is a professional bass player, but I threw all of that theoretical stuff out the window. I’m self-taught, and I don’t read music, but I can play any genre that I encounter with a lot of feeling.”

Vincent: “Who have you played with?”
John: “Well, being a fiddler, I play a lot of Bluegrass. I’ve played with Darin Engh of Opposite Directions, Lower Case Blues, and Bill Vollmer. I’ve played at opening parties for Little Big Town and Trace Adkins in Salisbury. I even went to Nashville to play and record with Tim Landers, a well-known guitarist and music teacher from Maryland, who passed away in 2016. Tim and I had a special bond, and every St. Patrick’s Day, I help organize an event in his honor at Whiskers Pub in Berlin.

Vincent: “So you were strictly country?”
John: “I’ve also played rock with John LaMere and Chris Button. I’ve played with Randy Lee Ashcraft and Billie Carlins. I would say that probably the most fun I had was playing with the Lauren Glick Band. Lauren heard me play once and immediately signed me up as a band member. I played with them for four years, and we’re still close friends.”

Vincent: “It seems that it is the fiddle that makes you so unique compared to other musicians.”
John: “Well, yeah. I mean, when I arrive at a gig and start to unpack my modern electric fiddle, which looks like a weird instrument, people give me a strange look, and I hear them say, ‘Oh Gosh, what kind of music are we in for here? And what kind of instrument is that?’ I respond by telling them that I left my guitar out in the rain, and it shrank. Then I start to play fusion or rock, and I blow their minds! I use my effects pedals to create all kinds of sounds. I even use my Wah Wah pedal to make my fiddle sound like a cello!”

Vincent: “Do you have a favorite fiddler?”
John: “I would say that my two favorites are Mark O’Conner and Vassar Clements. I play all those different genre’s at Vasser’s expense.” I do believe that John meant that Vassar was such a pure Bluegrass player, that it would hurt Vassar to hear John playing other genres.

Vincent: “And what about Roy Clark and Charlie Daniels?”
John: “Great entertainers, but not my favorite fiddlers.”

Vincent: “And what about other instruments? Do you play anything else besides the fiddle?”
John, “I play the dobro.” The dobro is a resonator guitar played flat or on one’s lap, like a steel guitar.

Vincent: “Interesting. And what would you say is the strangest thing that has ever happened to you in a gig or in a musical situation?”
John: “Well, nothing bad has ever happened. I would say the most interesting and fun thing was when I went on NASA business to Bermuda. I brought my fiddle and effects with me and found the coolest place for music, called the Swizzle Inn, which is the oldest pub in Bermuda. Some guy, named Bill Crouch, was playing there and let me sit in with him. Bill and the crowd were so impressed that he invited me to play with him every night for the three weeks I was down there!”

Vincent: “Sounds like fun. So, where can folks see you play in the near future?”
John: “Well, I’ll be on Delmarva Life on WBOC next Friday (September 13) for the kickoff of the Fiddler’s Convention on September 20th in Berlin, which coincides with Sunfest in Ocean City. I’ll be playing with Blue Crab Crossing Bluegrass Band. I have other projects going on, and, believe me, I am keeping busy!”

I originally met John two years ago at the Tim Landers Memorial on St. Patty’s Day. I was impressed with his tall stature and deep voice, very much like those of his father (just check it out on YouTube). He’s difficult to miss. He is always smiling, laughing, playing, and having a good time. And he seems to know everyone in the local music business. As I interviewed John, it was clear that he had one heck of a network. He is connected to so many musicians in so many ways. It’s no wonder that he is so busy!


]]> Fri, 06 Sep 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17251567169230 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/BILLIE-CARLINS In the early 1900’s, a Christian Romani Gypsy family immigrated to the USA from Romania. The father and mother had many children and were very poor. The family grew up in the USA with the love of music, as most Gypsy families did. One of the sons was so poor, even as he grew older, that he “saved some food after a meal in his moustache, so that he would have some for later.” This young man was quite smart and grew up to work hard and marry an American girl. He played music nightly, and they had a daughter, who they named Billie. Billie grew up around love for the Lord, passion, happiness and lots and lots of music. Music was played almost every day at home, so rhythm and musical structure is nothing new to Billie Carlins. I have known Billie for several years, as she is married to Leo Carlins, the bass player for Randy Lee Ashcraft and the Salt Water Cowboys. I caught up with her on the phone recently, so that I could get her back story.

Vincent: “Billie, if you could tell me several words that describe you, what would they be?”
Billie: “Well, Vince, I would say Blues, Jazz and Beyond. That’s the style I perform.”

Vincent: “Now, that’s something you really don’t hear a lot of in Ocean City. It’s usually rock & roll. So, you play a niche kind of music here.”
Billie: “Yes, and I do originals that have that same beat.”

Vincent: “So when did you start performing?”
Billie: “I’ve been performing at home since I was eleven. Later in life, I met my first husband, Wayne Stevens, who, despite having a day job at Westinghouse in Baltimore, still performed on the side in Baltimore. He trained me and pushed me to a different level. I had terrible stage fright for about ten years; then he would put me out in front more and more. I overcame my stage fright. Then, after eighteen years of marriage in 1997, he passed away of cancer.”

Vincent: “Oh, I’m so sorry, Billie.”
Billie: “Yep, I needed to pick myself up and find some work. I went to Ocean City to recharge myself.”

Vincent: “And that’s where you started performing here?”
Billie: “I went to a restaurant in Bethany Beach called Chit-Chats and met the owner, who wanted to start a band. He picked me to sing, and we became the house band there for five years. I was still kind of a side person in the band, and I needed to make some money to survive, so I started writing songs. Josh Clindaniel, an early DJ at Seacrets Radio, used to play my stuff.”

Vincent: “So, how did the Billie Carlins Band start?”
Billie: “Well, I have to say first that I always wanted to play with a person who could play a standup bass. It suits the style of music that I like to sing. About sixteen years ago, my friends dragged me out to a bar called Mellow Beach, because I never used to go out to bars. A friend was playing guitar there, and we were having a good time, when suddenly a guy walked into the bar with long hair, a leather jacket, and an unusual aura about him. He tried to talk to me, but my friends tried to protect me from him. He introduced himself to me and told me that he played standup bass, and I became interested, despite his aura. We exchanged telephone numbers, and it took me three months to finally call him. On our first date, he told me that I would be his wife. Three months later, we were married. That was Leo Carlins of the Salt Water Cowboys. We decided to form our own band, called the Billie Carlins Band, about six years ago. Our guitar player, Howard Wimbrow, has been a friend for about fifteen years. Michael McShane, our drummer, has been with us for several years, and Mickey Meiklejohn plays harmonica for us frequently.”

Vincent: “Billie, I always ask the following question: What is the craziest thing that has every happened to you in a gig?”
Billie: “I would have to say that it was way back when my husband died, then my mother died, and I needed a lot of support, especially when I needed a new heater installed in my home, and I could not afford it. The man who owned the restaurant where we played grabbed the mic and said, ‘Hey, everybody, Billie needs a new heat pump and all the duct work installed at no charge. Is there anyone out there willing to do this for her?’ And someone raised their hand. A man did a ten-thousand-dollar job for free for me. Amazing. And all I had to do was feed him meals.”

Vincent: “There are some good people out there, for sure. So, Billie, where can folks in OC hear you play?”
Billie: “The summer is winding down, so we are not as busy. We played for a long time at Adolfo’s, which is now Ocean 13. We have some gigs coming up at the Southgate Grill, so just check us out on the Coconut Times entertainment magazine, coconuttimes.com.”

If you have not yet heard Billie’s band perform, go out to the South Gate Grill and hear them. The musicians are first rate, Billie adds castanets to the act, and her voice is well-trained and pure. The band is tight, and you will hear a genre of music that is rarely played in Ocean City, as she calls it: Blues, Jazz and Beyond.

]]> Fri, 30 Aug 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17241566866369 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/LINDA-SEARS The reason that the word perseverance is so strong is because it truly describes the undying strength that one needs to keep on going and succeed. Perseverance describes Linda Sears, the leader of Old School. Born in West Virginia, she moved to Baltimore and began singing in bands there at the age of sixteen. Her father pressured her to sing country music, but she wanted to sing rock and roll. After years of overcoming stage fright in high school, she started playing in rock and roll bands throughout the Baltimore area. She fell in love with John Sears, who supported her desire to sing in bands, and after performing for years as a house band in the Essex area, Linda started doing gigs in Ocean City and became one of the most engaging singers in town. And then tragedy struck.
Linda and her husband lost their son in 1996. For ten years after the passing of Donovan, she could not sing, as it would bring her to tears. After such a long time, Linda thought that maybe it was time to get back to her love and natural talent of singing. To learn more about this, I interviewed Linda at her beautiful waterfront home in Bishopville, Md. It was a very warm and sunny summer day. As we chatted, I could see the skyline of Ocean City across the Assawoman Bay. Linda was taking a dip in her in-ground pool, while I asked her questions.

Vincent: “So, how did you get started in OC?” She was floating on a couple of noodles placed under her arms. She had a beach hat and sun glasses on in the water, looking like a movie star.
Linda: “About eleven years ago, I went to Smitty McGee’s and met Randy Lee Ashcraft, who was performing there. He allowed me to get up and sing a song, and afterwards, he said, ‘Girl, we gotta get you a band to sing in.’ I said, ‘Why don’t I sing with your band?’ And Randy said, ‘Cause there ain’t no girls in my band, The Salt Water COWBOYS.’ And so, I began to look for my own band. I went to a couple of open mics and eventually met Ray Perrone, a drummer, Paul, a guitarist, and Erve Cassell, a bass player.”

Vincent: “And Old School was formed and you started playing around town, right?” I started to get a little warm in the hot sun, so I sought some shade at the side of the pool, while Linda treaded water.
Linda: “Well, yeah, but I needed to persevere, because every time I got the band going, the guitarist, no matter which one of the many guitarists we had, would decide to go off and do duos, because they paid more money per person as a duo, and the gigs were therefore easier to get. Many bars would prefer to hire a duo and pay them less than a full band. And on top of that, I’ve had band members that would want to make band decisions, and I, as the band leader, wanted to make those decision, although I would take their input, but, at the end of the day, I needed to be the band leader. So, between the band members wanting to do their own thing and me wanting to make the decisions, I ended up going through a lot of band members.”

Vincent: “You’ve had to persevere through a lot of band members, especially guitarists.”
Linda: “I’m a woman in a man’s world. I’ve had to persevere through band members, attitudes, wives of band members, husbands, and much more. Once I had to explain to a jealous band member’s wife, ‘Look, we’re band members, and I’m very happily married, and I would never take your husband away from you, so now go away and let us play and have fun!’ And that’s what it’s about, having fun. I have a great band now with Erve Cassell on bass, Gerry Harvey on drums, Taylor Knox on guitar, and you on the weekends, Vincent, on guitar. And the love that we all have for each other is amazing - I mean, Taylor is half our age, but he is an old soul and loves to play with us. We have so much fun.”

Vincent: “That’s right, we do have a lot of fun as a band.” Then there was a silent pause. I could hear the motor boats on the bay passing by as Linda took a breath.
Linda: “…And I will continue to do this until the day I die. I will persevere and get through all the stuff, so that the band and I can have fun.”

Vincent: “Wow, until the day you die, that’s a big statement, Linda. What kind of stuff are you referring to?”
Linda: “People not calling me back. Bar owners who are difficult to deal with. So many of them are great, but a select few I feel ignore me, maybe because I’m a woman, I don’t know.”

Vincent: “Well, that’s definitely the bar scene. But once on stage, you’re the fun band.”
Linda: “We are the fun band. I bring tambourines for the children, which are also used by adults, and we play happy songs. Oftentimes, I see the faces in the bars of people who have had a long day, and all they want to do is have a drink and listen to good music. And they come up to me after our show and tell me how grateful they are for having made their evening so much fun.”

Vincent: “It’s wonderfully gratifying. I was once in a bar listening to a band in Hunt Valley, and someone recognized me as the Old School guitarist and said how great Old School is.”
Linda: “One time, someone recognized me in the BWI Airport and said that I just energize him when he sees me on stage in Ocean City! And I became known to him as the Energizer Bunny.”

Vincent: “Well you’re energizing not only for the audience, but also for your band. So, Miss Energizer Bunny, where can OC see Old School the rest of the summer?”
Linda: “BJ’s every first Wednesday of the month. Also, at Castle in the Sand – Coconuts. Just check the Coconut Times Who’s Where When. We’re also on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/OLDSCHOOLOC/”

Vincent: “Great. Now tell me about the craziest thing that has happened to you while performing?”
Linda: “Oh my gosh, I have had people propose to me, proposition me to go back to their hotel room…by men and women…, I’ve been almost coerced to go out to dinner with men, I’ve had young men offer to fix me up with their fathers, you name it. But I’m not interested in that. I always choose my family, which means so much to me. And I will always continue to choose my family.”

With that, it was clear that I was talking to a woman with morality who had entered a man’s world of musical performance and was determined to not be taken advantage of. As a man, I can only imagine the strength and patience that it takes to deal with male egos, especially when they are in positions of power. You go, Girl! And that goes for all the women performers in Ocean City. Y’all deserve RESPECT!!
I’d like to mention, that I was not able to interview the rest of Old School, but I’m honored to shout out a few points: Guitarist Taylor Knox studied at the Berkeley College of Music in Boston and is one of the hottest up and coming artists in Ocean City. Gerry Harvey has played with bands since the 1970’s and carries the greatest beat versus any drummer. Erve Cassell, before Old School, played with Spontaneous Combustion, and has a magical way of entertaining the crowd with both bass guitar, acoustic guitar and vocals. Me, I play guitar with Old School on the weekends, because I have a day-job in the Baltimore area during the week. But how I look forward to playing with the band on the weekends! Without her band members, Linda Sears would be alone on stage, and she depends on her band, Old School, the fun band.



]]> Fri, 23 Aug 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17211564707156 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/Randy-Lee-Ashcraft-and-The-Saltwater-Cowboys It’s 1984 and US Army Special Forces Sergeant Ashcraft is hiding behind a wall observing suspicious activity behind enemy lines in some foreign country. His mission is to observe the enemies and report on their activity before another unit enters to attack. It is a typical mission for the Green Berets. He completes his mission, and, after he returns to Ft. Bragg in North Carolina, he settles down, picks up his guitar and plays an old country song to relax. His four-year service term is up soon, so he reports into his re-enlistment officer, who tells him that, while he is a great soldier, he should really follow his dream of being a country singer and songwriter.

“Son, if you don’t get out there and try to be a musician, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life. And if you decide it’s not for you, then call me and we’ll get you back in the Army,” the officer said.

With that, Randy Lee Ashcraft left the US Army with his guitar in hand and signed up to study music at Salisbury College. Through the mid-eighties, he played gigs in Ocean City at a dock bar called Samantha’s, which stood at 45th St, where the Aloft Hotel is today. He also worked at Frontier Town, riding bulls for entertainment. In 1989, he decided to try his luck in the country music capital, Nashville, Tenn.

I called him on the phone on a sunny summer afternoon, and we chatted about his history.

Vincent: “So, Randy, what was it like trying to get started in Nashville?”
Randy Lee: “I first found a job waiting tables, rented an apartment, and started visiting open mic writers’ nights at bars, where only original songs are performed. I caught the attention of people there and got invited to more exclusive open mics, which were by invitation only, like The Bluebird and Douglas Corner Cafes. I then signed up with Fox Management and Ten-Ten Publishing and got to write with other song writers. And they gave me a stipend, so I didn’t have to worry about a day job.”

Vincent: “And that’s where you started to get noticed and win awards?”
Randy Lee: “Well, in 1987, I won the Jimmy Dean True Value Country Showdown contest and got to go on the Jimmy Dean Show in Nashville with other musicians like Mark Chestnutt. Then I won the Independent Music World Series, which was a competition for unsigned music acts at The Trocadero Theater in Philadelphia. For that one, I was the only country act; the other ones were rappers and pop bands. The Philadelphia Inquirer then named me the #1 Unsigned Act in America. So, things were going great.”

Note from Vincent: Being unfamiliar with these competitions, I googled them before writing this article and found that they are huge events, which showcase the hottest new and established musicians. Randy Lee is listed as winner of Season 16 of the Country Showdown.

Vincent: “Then, why did you leave Nashville?”
Randy Lee: “I had the opportunity to go mainstream country. I had recorded my first album and wanted to continue singing my country songs about the beach. But the company said, ‘That’s not country.’ They tried to put a cowboy hat and a big ole’ belt buckle on me to showcase me as a traditional country singer, but I wanted to do beach songs. So, I quit.”

Vincent: “But Randy, I figured with such a strong military background, you’d be one to follow orders and do what they tell you to do.”
Randy Lee: “You would think so, but the thing about the Special Forces (Green Berets), is that they train you to make your own decisions. I thought that the music company signed me because of my songs, now they didn’t want me to do them. I spent about eight more years there, did more competitions and events, like opening up for George Jones at the Georgia National Fair and playing at the Boggy Bayou Mullet Festival in Niceville, Fla. I toured around with my band in a fifteen-seat Econoline van. Then I came back to Ocean City in 2000 to play my music. I don’t feel badly about leaving; in fact, I feel like I paved the way for a lot of other beach country artists who followed me.”

Vincent: “I’m sure you have a lot of stories about those days. What is the craziest thing that has ever happened to you, while performing?”
Randy Lee: “Oh, gosh, there are so many of them. One funny thing happened at the Mullet Festival, an outdoor show, in Niceville, Fla, where we opened up for a famous band, called Lonestar. Some guy was really drunk in the audience, and his girl, Darlene, had gone to the bathroom, and he lost track of her. So, he came up to the stage after we finished a song and asked me if I could help find her. I announced into the microphone, ‘Hey Darlene, your man is looking for you! Darlene are you out there?!’ Just then, Darlene raised her hand and yelled out, ‘Here I am!’. The whole crowd was laughing.”

Vincent: “Too funny. I noticed an award hanging in your home for your song, “Shore Thing.”
Randy Lee: “Yeah, that was given to me and my band, The Salt Water Cowboys, by the Governor of Maryland in 1999, while I was still in Nashville, for promoting the Eastern Shore through my music.”

Vincent: “What an honor. So where can people listen to you play your songs?”
Randy Lee: “My schedule is on https://www.randyleeashcraftmusic.com. We also are on Facebook, and of course, right here on coconuttimes.com. We’re usually at Johnny’s Pizza, Bourbon Street, or Smitty McGee’s. My songs are also on iTunes, CDBaby, Amazon, Rhapsody, as well as Pandora and Spotify!”

Vincent: “And what differentiates you from other musicians in Ocean City?”
Randy Lee: “It’s my originals. If you like the beach country sound of my music, then you gotta come see me to hear them. I’ve written enough music to do entire shows with only originals, so we can keep people entertained for a long time.”

Vincent: “What an interesting life you have had. And you seem to be in a good place at this point.”
Randy Lee: “I am, and I owe a lot of that to finally finding my love, Lisa (Randy’s wife). She has made my life complete. I don’t have any regrets about how things happened, and, as I say in the song I wrote, ‘I finally made it home.’”

With that, I thanked Randy for the interview and began to think how much he embodies the culture of Maryland’s Eastern Shore. If you listen to his song, “All Decked Out,” about a man ready to party at M.R. Duck’s, you can feel what life is like in Ocean City. His band is called The Salt Water Cowboys, referring to the cowboys who round up the ponies at Chincoteague every July. It is an event at which Randy is regularly invited to perform. In addition, he and the band have been invited to perform at least four times on the Delmarva Life TV show. His band consists of Jimmy Rowbottom, a premier guitarist and singer. Jimmy also hosts a recording studio and repairs guitars, all of which keeps him very busy. Leo Carlins is Randy’s bass player, who also repairs electrical appliances and plays in his wife’s band, The Billie Carlins Band. Kenny Roughten is the drummer, who also owns the Fenwick Island Surf Shop. Together, they form a tight beach country band that attracts an entourage which follows them all over, never getting enough of Randy Lee’s beach country music.

]]> Fri, 02 Aug 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17201564357408 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/VINCENT-PAEZ A few weeks ago, a friend was reading one of my columns on this Coconut Times website. He asked me while laughing, “Hey Vincent, you’re a local musician, so why don’t you interview yourself? Ha ha!”
I was surprised by the question and joined him with a chuckle. “Heh-heh, I never thought of that. But don’t you think that would be a little egotistical and arrogant?” I asked.
He replied laughing, “Well, you can just hide your real personality and make it a humble story about yourself instead.” Nice guy, my friend, huh?
And so, in the interest of artistic expression with no vanity intended, I interviewed myself. I hope you enjoy the resulting split-personality experience between Vincent (the interviewer) and Vince (the interviewee). Hang on for a crazy ride on the psychosis train:

I caught up with Vince at Coconuts on a warm summer evening right after he finished playing a gig as the guitarist for Old School. He had just finished packing up his gear and helping Erve Cassell, the bass player, load the band equipment in his van. Vince was sitting at one of the many tables, eating a juicy hamburger and drinking a plastic cup of chardonnay. The temperature was in the high eighties, and it was evident that Vince had been sweating profusely from playing directly in the sun on the Coconuts stage for most of the gig.

Vincent: “Hey Vince, can I interrupt you for an interview?”
Vince: “Hi Vincent. Sure, no problem. Nice to see you again. How’s that good-looking wife of yours?” I was not offended by his reference to my wife’s looks.

Vincent: “She’s fine, thanks. How was your gig?”
Vince: “The gig was great! I love playing at Coconuts. The staff treats us well, the audience is always in a party mood, and Old School really gets in its groove here.”
He had this great big smile on, as if he just won a race and received a trophy.

Vincent: “You really seem to enjoy yourself up on stage. You’re always smiling. Where does this love for performing music come from?”
Vince: “Well, I learned to play guitar and sing from a neighbor when I was around twelve years old. He taught me to play songs by the Eagles, Led Zeppelin and Bob Marley. When I would play them at parties, I noticed a real positive reaction by listeners, which turned me on like crazy. When I was teenager, I started my own band and loved to play in front of people. I guess I’m just an attention seeker. To me, there is nothing like playing a popular song and having a listener sing along, dance and then clap for you afterwards. In fact, it was happening all evening here at Coconuts.”

Vincent: “And you certainly seem to love Ocean City.” I waited for him to swallow his last bit of hamburger and take a swig of his wine.
Vince: “Mmm…delicious. Yes, I do. I grew up in a place similar to this on the water in Bay Shore, Long Island, New York, very close to where Chris Button is from. My life revolved around boats, fishing, clamming, and hanging out at the beach. Bay Shore had a marina, the mainland, and across the bay an island, called Fire Island, where all the partying took place. Living in Bay Shore was just like living in Ocean Pines and going over the bridge to Ocean City to party. So, I feel very much at home here. It’s just like Bay Shore without the heavy New York accent.”

Vincent: “Ha ha. But you really don’t have a heavy New York accent.”
Vince: “Oh I’ve been away from New York for a long time. I studied chemistry in college on Long Island and moved away after graduation for a job as a chemist in Los Angeles. Everyone in LA made fun of my accent, so I worked very hard to lose it. After six years in LA, I moved to Wilmington, Del., for another job, and that is when I discovered Ocean City. I immediately fell in love with this place for its environment and for the live music.”
At that moment, Brenda Golden of the Coconut Times stopped by and gave Vincent a kiss on the cheek and congratulated him and Old School on a great show. Ted Gelinas, the bass player for The Lauren Glick Band, shook his hand and told Vince to meet up with him later at Bourbon Street.

Vincent: “And did you start playing in OC then?”
Vince: “No, not yet. I was busy with a great job in Wilmington. After a couple of years, the company I worked for, Hewlett Packard, sent me to live in Germany for three years and then to China for a couple of years. I was also busy raising two boys, who were born in Delaware. But I did keep ties with Ocean City by buying a condo at The Golden Sands, which is where my wife and I spend most of our free time.”

Vincent: “And how did you get into the music scene?” I tried to keep his attention, as he was hugging and saying good-bye to Linda Sears of Old School, who was leaving Coconuts for home.
Vince: “Eight years ago, I started introducing myself around. The first musician I met was Randy Lee Ashcraft. I love country music, and I was amazed at how many cool original songs he wrote. I introduced myself to him and asked if I could play his guitar and sing a song. Without hesitation, he gave me his Martin guitar, the instrument with which he earns a living, and helped me up on stage. I was amazed at his kindness. The second group that I met was Old School. At the time, Ray Perrone was the drummer and Michael Smith was the guitarist. Like Randy Lee, Michael immediately gave me his guitar, a beautiful Fender Stratocaster, to play during their gig. Again, I was amazed at how kind people in OC were. And I never dreamt that I would now be the guitarist for the band and have such great relationships with everyone, especially the band members, Linda Sears, Erve Cassell, Gerry Harvey and Taylor Knox.”

Vincent: “That’s wonderful. And what differentiates you as a musician, that would make people want to go and hear you play?”
Vince: As he belts out a good laugh, he says, “I’m the only one in town who knows the true words to “La Bamba!” No, seriously, as goofy as it sounds, I try to give the audience a different experience. I tell a little about my life story and mix the songs in with the story. For example, I tell about how my mom and dad met and play the songs that they loved. Or I tell about living in Germany, and then I’ll sing a song in German. I also sing songs in French and Spanish. Nobody else in Ocean City does that. I’m also one of the very few musicians who plays today’s country music with songs by Dierks Bentley, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, and Jon Pardi. If there is a fan of today’s country music in the audience, they’ll jump up and start clapping and singing as soon as I start playing those songs.”

Vincent: “And where can people see you play?”
Vince: “People can just check the Coconut Times’ “Who’s Where When” section to find me when I am playing. I play at Bourbon Street on the Beach every first Sunday of the month. Old School will be back here at Coconuts for a few dates in August and September.”

Vincent: “Is there anything else that you would like our readers to know about you?”
Vince: “Well, if you can’t tell already when you see me around, I’m incredibly in love with my wife, Sherri. She is the main reason I’m always smiling. We met when I was living in Florida and she was living in Iowa. That wonderful woman moved from Iowa to marry me at The Golden Sands four years ago, where my dear friends in Ocean City helped us put on one hell of a party.”

At that moment, Sherri arrived at our table and sat down on Vince’s lap. I could tell that the two love birds wanted some alone time, so I thanked him for the interview and went off to compliment the rest of Old School on a wonderful performance. Gerry Harvey, the drummer, told me that Vince lives in Hunt Valley, north of Baltimore, and drives to OC for his gigs. I was struck by how busy he is, dividing his time between his gigs, his day job in the chemistry field, writing articles for the Coconut Times, and Sherri. He seems to have a full life and is happy about it. To learn more about him, look for his performances in the Coconut Times and please make an effort to say hello to him. You’re guaranteed to get a smile in return. I know I always do.

]]> Fri, 26 Jul 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17191562288165 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/DAVE-SHERMAN Picture a sailor setting out to sea. He just got his haircut military-style and boarded a submarine in Ballast Point, San Diego, California, and is prepared to be underwater for months. Little did that submariner know, he would become one of the top booked performers in all of Ocean City, Md. That submariner is Dave Sherman, who has been entertaining crowds in our resort town for twenty years. He’s come a long way from his days in the Navy, judging from his long well-groomed hair, giving him that Neil Young look. Dave is a gracious person who invited me to his lovely home just before dinnertime for this interview. We shared a bottle of red wine as we talked.

Vincent: “Dave, you’re a staple here in Ocean City. You’ve been doing this for so long, and everyone knows you.”
Dave: “I think I’ve done more than 3,400 shows – not counting the ones where I got rained out.”

Vincent: “Wow! How did you get your start here in OC?”
Dave: “I’m originally from Baltimore. I had played in teen center bands in the mid-sixties. Then I joined the Navy after high school. After I got out in 1975, I couldn’t find any full-time work in San Diego, so I came back East. I met up with one of the guys in my teen center band, and we became a top 40’s disco band, playing throughout the southeastern USA for about a year. I met Mick (his wife is Mickey), we were married and I was doing regular jobs, building a family. Mick’s parents had a place here, and we would come down on the weekends. We used to go to the Carousel; that was the place to be back then. That’s where I met Kevin Poole. I was not an entertainer back then. I was working at a regular job in Baltimore. The popular acts were Kevin, Michael Tracy White, and Chameleon (with Lauren Glick). One night out in Baltimore, I went to a bar, and I met a musician who was entertaining that night, and he was telling me that he had been a musician since he got out of college. He said nine words to me, ‘There are a million ways to make a buck.’ And that’s all the spark I needed! I hadn’t played in almost seventeen years, but I was in a job that I really hated. So, I went home and pulled out an acoustic guitar that had been in its case for seventeen years. I learned five or six Eagles and America’s tunes and played at parties. I learned more songs and started playing some gigs on the weekends in Ocean City.”

Vincent: “So it was pretty easy to get work, right?”
Dave: “Well, I give a lot of credit to Kevin Poole, who first booked me at the Cottage Café. Mickey knew Buxy (of Buxy’s Salty Dog), and we went down to talk to him and got gigs there on the weekends. Then, [the late] Jeff Marx, the manager of the Caribbean Pool Bar, came into Buxy’s Salty Dog and heard me play and said that I’d be perfect for his pool bar on Mondays. Then his wife, Dawn Marx, who was the manager of Coconuts at the time, hired me for Wednesdays. I also had the Carousel booked. So now I had five days a week booked, and Mick and I made the decision to move here. My first summer here in 1999 was completely booked.”

Vincent: “How long have you been doing Saturdays at Harpoon Hanna’s?”
Dave: “This year will be my seventeenth year at Harpoon Hanna’s. As a matter of fact, July 13th of this year will be my 1,000th show at Harpoon Hanna’s. And I’ve been at The Carousel for nineteen years. I just took off one of the years in 2010 to play Coconuts with Chris Button and Joe Mama as Two Guyz and a Mama.”

Vincent: “What is it that attracted the bar managers to you, so they would book you?”
Dave: “Well, I wasn’t that great of a musician back then, so I don’t think it was my playing. I think it might have been my voice.”
Dave is very humble about his talent, and I could see he didn’t want to chat anymore along this line.

Vincent: “I notice at your gigs that you have a good connection with the crowd.”
Dave: “I always show up an hour before the show, because I like to set up and observe the crowd, so I can form a set list in my head for that crowd. And here is my philosophy about being a musician here. People, who are in the audience, are not paying a lot of money to come and see me play. Those people are not there for you; you are there for them - to entertain them. My main purpose, as a bar professional, is to make those people ring the owner’s cash register. That’s what it’s all about.”

Vincent: “So, how do you know when you’re successful in doing that – pleasing the crowd?”
Dave: “Well, for one, people like it when I remember their names. Also, I respect a crowd that is more quiet. I call that a gray crowd. Maybe they don’t want engagement with the musician. So, I’ll just be the background music, and I’ll try to make eye contact with someone, and drag them in slowly and easily into my performance. Other times, you start playing, and everyone is out of their minds right from the start. Those crazy moments make it easy.”

Vincent: “Tell me about the craziest thing that has ever happened in a gig:”
Dave: “Well, I’ve seen a lot of drunken people and the weird things they do, but, other than inebriated people falling into my equipment, there hasn’t been anything in Ocean City really crazy at my gigs. When I was playing with the disco band years ago, we had something happen to us. Our agent booked us at a rock n’ roll bar in Edgewater, Maryland. It was really obvious that they didn’t want to hear songs like, “The Hustle” or “Fly Robin Fly.” But we didn’t play songs by Led Zeppelin or any other rock band. So, we played the song “Johnny B. Goode” for about thirty minutes to please the crowd. I remember that I could not wait to get the heck out of there!”

Vincent: “Where can people see you this summer?”
Dave: “On Sundays, I am at the Carousel Hotel. Mondays, I’m at the Caribbean Pool Bar. Wednesdays at Harpoon Hanna’s. Most Fridays I’m at Bourbon Street on the Beach. Other Fridays I’m at the Bethany Boathouse or Jake’s Seafood in Rehoboth. Saturdays, I’m at Harpoon Hanna’s. So, five shows a week with Tuesdays and Thursdays off.”

Vincent: “And on those days off, do you have another job?”
Dave: “Well, I’m the President of our Home Owners Association in this neighborhood. I’ve been doing that for years.”

Dave has management skills, of which I was unaware. At that point Mickey walked into the house with dinner. They graciously invited me to stay, but I needed to leave to go to my next interview. Dave has always struck me as such an approachable person. When you go to see his show, feel free to walk right up to him and introduce yourself. He will remember your name. And then, ask him to play “The Hustle,” just for laughs.

]]> Fri, 05 Jul 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17171561670491 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/33-RPM Three guys walk into a bar. A jock, a geek, and a stoner. They are the band. No, this is not the beginning of a joke. It’s what happens every time 33 RPM plays around town. Back in high school, Mike Beavan, lead vocalist and drummer, was the jock, Larry Biegel, lead guitarist, was the geek (who also lettered in three sports, for the record), and Rock Rollain, bassist, was the stoner. They are from Howard County, Md, and have been playing in Ocean City for about four years. Mike designs and builds luxury pools, and back in 2013, Larry was his customer. Upon noticing musical equipment in Larry’s home, Mike started discussing putting a band together with Larry. Rock was later found at a cancer benefit called Woodstock Rock, playing for another band. The result was 33 RPM, referring to the old LP records that played on a turntable at 33 1/3 revolutions per minute (RPM). If you knew that already, then you most likely are from the era of the songs that 33 RPM plays. The band had a very exciting gig at BJ’s on the Water on a Friday evening, and I caught up with them on Saturday morning at Mike’s home, where the band stays, when gigging in OC.

Vincent: “You guys always draw a good crowd. What makes your band so attractive to people?”
Rock: “People identify with us. We’re the guys you knew in high school. The jock, the geek, and the stoner! You can just picture us in the school cafeteria.”

Vincent: “And you must be the stoner, right, Rock? Or is that just an imitation of Grizzly Adams?”
Rock: “Yeah, the long hair thing works, and I swing it around constantly. I mean, people who go to see bands don’t want to see the boy next door; they want to see an alien being.” We laughed. “We all bring something different. Larry, you see, he’s the serious one – all quiet in the corner with all those guitars and electronics, and that’s part of his appeal.”

Vincent: “Larry, you’re in software sales, so you must be the geek, right?”
Larry: “Guilty as charged. I love technology. I have all my guitars set up with each one having different sounds coming from my electronics board.”

Vincent: “And what is that instrument that you blow into to play the Peter Frampton songs?”
Larry: “It’s called a mouth box. I use it when we play “Show me the Way” and also “Rocky Mountain Way” by Joe Walsh. It took me a while to figure out how to use it, because I had this tube in my mouth, and it wasn’t working out right, until I realized that I needed to contort my mouth to change the tone and presence of the sound. It’s all about practice really.”

Vincent: “That’s a rare sound to hear in a band in Ocean City.”
Larry: “Right, but also we pack a big sound for a band with three guys. I think that is what differentiates us. We have a big sound coming at you from vocals to bass to drums to guitars.”

Rock: “More than anything else, we hear from people that they cannot believe we are only a trio.”

Mike: “We have a very full sound. Larry brings so many guitars, Rock has a couple of guitars. So we’re able to vary the tones and sound throughout the night from song to song, and it gives a lot of dynamics to the performance, especially with our repertoire.

Larry: “And I have an amp simulator, so, as the night goes on, I am going from a Rocket to a Fender to a Marshall to a Mesa Stiletto amp sound to enable us to come closer to the attitude of song that we are covering. Not many guys out there do that, because they don’t want to bring all these amps to a gig. So, unless you’ve got an amp simulator and a special effects simulator, through the fractal, you’re not getting that kind of capability.”

Vincent: “Spoken like a true geek.” We all chuckled. I felt like I was speaking to the amplifier sales person at Guitar Center. “Your sounds are very entertaining. Speaking of entertaining, Mike, you’re the front man of 33 RPM, and you wear many hats.” It’s true, Mike switches hats from song to song during the performance.
Mike: “I started to sing years ago out of necessity, now I’m singing most of the songs and playing guitar on some songs. Lately, I’ve been trying to get up front a little more. Fortunately, in central Maryland and here in Ocean City, we have a handful of local drummers who enjoy sitting in with us and that allows me to get up front from behind the drums and play guitar and sing and become more of a true front guy. And I like getting closer to the crowd, especially when I switch hats, which the audience can see better up front.”

Vincent: “Tell me about a crazy incident that has happened at a gig?”
Mike: “Well, you were at one of them, Vince. I would say that one of the craziest things was when our PA (Pre-Amp) ‘blew up’ (Mike meant ‘stopped working’) after our first set at BJ’s. I immediately grabbed my phone and started calling friends who might have an extra PA that we could use. One of my calls was to Barry Reichart, the owner of Bourbon Street on the Beach. He had one, and he saved the day. So, you remember, you drove over there to pick it up and get it to BJ’s for us. Meanwhile, I was at BJ’s tearing cables off and on, trying to figure out what happened to our PA. Then you arrived with Barry’s PA, and we were up and running again.”

Vincent: “Yep. Once again, Barry delivers.” We all burst out into laughter. This is a reference to Barry Reichart having delivered a baby in his restaurant several weeks ago.
Larry: “Then there was another crisis in a similar vein, where you’re forced to contend with technical issues, again at BJ’s. Mike brought to our gig these huge fifteen-inch Peavey speakers that are taller than I am, and he was keeping them in his pickup truck. Unfortunately, it rained the night before, and Mike’s truck was outside. When we arrived at BJ’s, we couldn’t get them to sound right. He finally decided to take the horns out, and water started pouring out of them! We let them dry out, and in about an hour, they were working perfectly again!”

Mike: “For the longest time, BJ’s was haunted for us. So now, we have invested in a backup PA, cables, and other equipment. I was just telling Billy Carder (owner of BJ’s) last night, that we bought all this equipment, because we never want these things to happen again.”

Vincent: “Unbelievable about BJ’s. So, do you play more in Ocean City or in Howard County.”
Rock: “This year, we play mostly in Ocean City and at Players in Woodstock, Md., once every three months.”
Mike: “And we’ve played at T-Bonz in Ellicott City and The Woodstock Inn.”

Vincent: “And where can music lovers find you playing this summer?”
Mike: “They can check out our website, www.33rpmband.net, and that will lead them to our Facebook page. We have gigs at Bourbon Street, Beach Barrels, High Stakes and BJ’s. We hope to see everyone come out. We love to be in Ocean City, because our fans are what gives us our energy.”

With that, the band needed to get back to Howard County. They expressed how much they love Ocean City and the folks here. And in a flash, they were gone. But they will be back for regular gigs. Keep an eye out for them on Who’s Where When in coconutimes.com.

]]> Fri, 28 Jun 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17151561115380 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/JACK-WORTHINGTON Adversity. Some people let it strike them down forever. Others face it head-on and overcome it. It is with great pride that I tell you about such a person, who has overcome great adversity in his life. Jack Worthington grew up in Montgomery County, Maryland, near Gaithersburg. He started playing guitar much later in life, compared to other musicians. He took a classical guitar course in college and fell in love with the instrument. He learned quickly, started to play solo gigs, and then put together a band, called Riptide, which played originals and covers. Things were going well for Jack and Riptide. Then, adversity knocked on the door in 2002, when Jack suffered an untimely stroke. It left him with slurred speech and a fairly crippled right hand. He spent the next years overcoming this affliction with tenacity. He focused on singing and pronouncing lyrics. To compensate for his right-hand problems, he designed a special guitar pick with an extension, so that he can grip it tightly. Today, he sings with a clear voice, as he belts out songs by Crosby, Stills and Nash, and plays with a steady hand, as he strums away on songs by Stevie Ray Vaughn. It’s easy to become a fan of Jack for both his musical talent as well as his determination to succeed in the face of adversity.

I met up with Jack as he was setting up his speakers at The Good Earth in Clarksville, Del., near Bethany Beach. He was getting ready to play in the garden area behind the restaurant, where they grow their own organic herbs, like basil and mint. I could smell the wonderful herbal scents as I began the interview.

Vincent: “You have had such an interesting life story. Tell me about the early band days.”
Jack: “Well, my band Riptide once played at the Concession Party of Al Gore, when he lost the election to George W. Bush.”

Vincent: “You mean Al Gore and team were partying until he found out he lost, right?”
Jack: “No, Al Gore had already conceded to George W. Bush, and the party was a celebration for his staff that worked so hard to keep him in the race. So, my band, Riptide, together with a well-known DJ from Washington DJ, Jack Diamond, were requested to play, and we played for about two thousand people. We got our security clearance, set up, and then played a set, when, all of a sudden, Tom Petty, Jon Bon Jovi, Stevie Wonder and John Popper of Blues Traveler all walked in, and we ended up jamming on stage.”

Vincent: “That’s an amazing story! What was going through your mind?!”
Jack: “I saw this whole thing unfold in front of me, and I thought, ‘I can’t believe this is happening!’ I just rolled with it. We played for three or four hours, and these celebrities joined us for about an hour.”

Vincent: “Wow. Any other cool gigs that you had?”
Jack: “My band also did a closing party for Hootie and the Blowfish on their first tour. We already knew them. You see, two of the members of Hootie and the Blowfish are from my area. The guitarist, Mark Bryan, and another band member (bassist Dean Felber) grew up in my area. Mark was best friends with my brother-in-law, and I met him years ago. My future brother-in-law had a party in his townhouse basement, when he was sixteen. I was playing guitar, and Mark asked if he could play on my break.”

Vincent: “Then, later, he went to the University of South Carolina and met Darius Rucker and Hootie and the Blowfish was born.”
Jack: “Yeah, so, in their first tour, our band went to their last concert and left the concert early to go set up at a place called Margarita Maggie’s in Columbia, Maryland, which Hootie rented out for the party, and played for about four hundred Hootie friends after the concert.”

Vincent: “Wow. Fantastic. Any other cool gigs?”
Jack: “The other thing we did that was really cool came to us through our DJ contact, Jack Diamond of 107.3 in Washington DC, and we opened up for the Moody Blues at Merriweather Post Pavilion.”

Vincent: “Wow. Incredible. OK, let’s talk about this summer. Where can folks see Jack Worthington this summer?”
Jack: “My full schedule is on www.jackworthington.com and you can find me on Facebook and in coconuttimes.com. My schedule is full for the summer, so just look me up.” Jack’s website includes his history, his original songs, and his schedule. Check it out and see his photos from that golden era.

Vincent: “And who will you be playing with?”
Jack: “Sometimes I’m with T. Lutz on percussion, sometimes I’m with bass player, Eddie Saah, and Harmonica player Mickey Meiklejohn. Just check my website.”

At that point, Jack needed to set up amongst the herb plants. It was a beautiful afternoon and the crowd started to arrive to hear Jack’s renditions of classic rock songs. The Good Earth provided the ambience of a small family farm/restaurant. The menu includes fresh ingredients and a friendly atmosphere for Jack to fill out with his music.


]]> Fri, 21 Jun 2019 00:00:00 -0400 17131560512431 http://coconuttimes.com/articles/Meet-the-Band/CHRIS-BUTTON Meet the Band: Chris Button
Vincent Paez, June 2019
It was a beautiful, warm, sunny Saturday, and about thirty patrons were all smiling and quietly chatting around the bar at the Harborside Bar and Grill, watching the working and pleasure boats cruise by. A seemingly quiet man with short white hair entered the bar area and scanned the crowd. He looked carefully at each customer, then walked away. It was Chris Button, and he was studying each person in the crowd.

Vincent: “Hi, Chris, why were you just staring at everyone in the crowd?”
Chris: “Hey, Vincenzo.” That’s what he calls me. “I do that before every gig. I try to see the ages, genders, and possible backgrounds of the people in the crowd, so that I can put together the most enjoyable set for that particular group.”

Vincent: “That’s smart. I don’t know of too many musicians who do that so intensely. What else makes Chris Button different from the other bands?”
Chris: “Well, you have to be in tune with the crowd. Sometimes, I’m just background music, and that’s ok. Other times, I have a fun crowd, and I can joke around with them a little more. But no matter what the crowd is like, I try to do different stuff that nobody else does. Everybody plays your standard songs, you know, like Margaritaville and Brown Eyed Girl. But I play some different songs, and I play them differently, you know, the guitar lead stuff.”

Vincent: “Well let’s talk about that. There are people who go to listen to you because of your guitar skills. You even play like Jimi Hendrix with you teeth and behind your back!”
Chris: “Awww, that’s just all show! Anybody can do that.”

I couldn’t believe he actually said that. I thought of all the times I tried to do the teeth trick and ended up cutting my lip on the guitar strings.

Vincent: “But the way you riff through the scales? Where does that come from?” For all of you reading this, guitar scales take years to learn, and Chris blends them together so quickly, that you cannot see his fingers move.
Chris: “Yeah, well, that’s kind of my thing, because a lot of people don’t do that. They just kind of strum the guitar and sing.”

Vincent: “Did you have that from an early age or acquired that skill later on in life?”
Chris: “Oh, I started playing guitar at six years old. I’ve been playing in bands since I was thirteen. Then I started doing the acoustic solo thing, because, well, you can make more money that way. The more people you have in the band, the less money you make, unless you’re with one of those big well-known touring bands.”

Vincent: “Do you prefer to play solo or do a duo?”
Chris: “Whatever works. If I play by myself it’s fine, if I play with a bunch of guys like I do at the Sunday Jamm sessions at the Bayside Crabcake Factory, that’s fine too. I play with Joe Mama a lot, I played with Sean Loomis the other day, and I played last week with Jimmy Charles, a country artist who was on American Idol, and I had never played with these guys before. Someone came up to me and said that Jimmy Charles and I sounded great and wanted to know how long we had been playing together as a duo. I told them since tonight at 6:00 PM!“

Vincent: “And how do you get your gigs? Do you go out and find gigs or do the gigs come to you?”
Chris: “Both. Very often, I’ll be playing and someone will ask me to do a gig at either their establishment or at a private party, which is real good money. And sometimes I’ll walk into a place and ask if they have any entertainment and give them my card.”

Vincent: “And now you’re starting to play on the other side of the bridge in Annapolis.” Chris’ fiancé lives in the Annapolis area and he gets to see her and do gigs there once in a while.
Chris: “Yes, I’ll be doing that quite a bit. It’s a stepping stone. One gig, and now I’m getting calls from other places around there. I’ll probably not play over there in the summer, but maybe after the summer, when it’s slow at the beach.”

Vincent: “Speaking of summer, where can our readers find Chris Button playing?”
Chris: “My schedule this summer will pretty much be the same every week. I’ll do Harborside every other Saturday, I’m at The Crabcake Factory Bayside on Sundays, Fox Pizza in Millville on Mondays, Summer Salts in Bethany on Tuesdays, Coconuts or Lobster Shanty on Wednesdays, Bourbon Street on Thursdays, and Crabcake Loca Madre on Fridays.”
Whew! I was exhausted just listening to his schedule.

Vincent: “That’s a busy schedule. And how long have you been doing this?”
Chris, “Here in the Ocean City area, I’ve been doing it since 1992. I came down from Long Island to play here. This is my home, and I have no intentions of going back. I’m happy here, and I get paid per gig here, while in New York, you get paid by how many tables are filled or by how many people go through the door.”

At that moment, it became 2:00 PM and Chris needed to get on stage. He tuned his guitar one last time, greeted the crowd and started playing something upbeat. I could sense that he loves his job. The crowd definitely liked it, and it was clear that he had a fun crowd. Apparently, Chris read the crowd perfectly.

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