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Ok, since no one wants to give an overview, I'll do it.
First up was Roger and The Wraybands. Steve (Panchinsin - CP guitar
player) and I actually stumbled upon these guys. We heard another surf
band was playing a club the week before we were so we had to check them
out. Anyway, they open the show with Walk Don't Run...but do the '64
version! Spot-on and a very cool start. They do a few standards but
also throw in a bunch of obscure covers like "TR6" from The Sandals
(Endless Summer SDK), "Midnight Surfer" (which they re-titled "My
Turban's a'Burnin" and dedicated to the troops in Iraq) by Jerry Cole &
His Spacemen. A great set!
I didn't get a chance to talk gear with those guys but I'll e-mail them
and get a list. I don't think they are on here.
Next up was The Troubadours. Wow. If you've seen them, then you already
know. If not, well, I'll try to explain. They do a Shadows tribute (I
don't need to go into who the Shadows were/are, right?). And they do a
damn fine job at it. To give you an idea, I was in the front (where the
bar is - the stage is in the back) talking to a few friends who came in
and one of them asked if the Shadows band started yet because he swore
he thought that a CD was playing. Yup, they're that good. Ivan (Space
Cossacks) handles the Hank Marvin part to a 'T' while his dad, Ivan
Sr., takes care of the Bruce Welch rhythm guitar. Perfect. The surprise
was that there were different songs than from the Exotica set. They
even played "Big Boy", a song Roger (from The Wraybands) requested.
Great stuff. Oh, Ivan played a Strat (black) thru a Vox (I'm guessing
an AC60) while Ivan Sr., played a black Tele thru a white Vox (once
again I'm gonna guess an AC60). Scott played a matching black P-Bass
thru a Sunn head.
We, The Cocktail Preachers, played next but I won't go into it because
I thought we had a bad night. Quick gear rundown: Steve - DeCola
Jazzcaster custom guitar thru a hot rodded silverface Princeton. Bruce
used his Fiesta Red AV Jag thru his modded silverface Bassman. I had my
Wilson Bros VMB-55 (black) bass thru my Bassman 400 head with the 410H
bottom. Rick used his red sparkle Trixon drums (you should see these
things! The front of the kick is, I think, 18" while the back is 22".
Crazy!).
Anyway, last up was The Reluctant Aquanauts. Another great surprise!
After talking with Bill here and a few failed attempts to see them at
The Big C Jamboree (A rockabilly Jam night held in Chicago the first
Thursday of every month), I didn't know what to expect. What a great
show! These guys are top-rate musicians and had a great set. Originals
even! They did Ventures melodys as well as classics. From the matching
black old-west sheriffs outfits (including cap guns and white Colonel
Sanders ties) to their vintage sound and their very young dancers,
totally enjoyable. Watch for these guys in the future! From what I saw,
Bill had a blackface Super with his CIJ LPB Jazzmaster, Matt had a AV
Oly White Jazz bass with an Ampeg head and Frank had Fibes drums. I'll
let Bill fill you in on the exact details.
I also must mention that there was a great turn-out. Especially
considering that there were Tornado warnings and some pretty heavy
rain. In fact, the guy who runs bookings said that there was a better
turnout than they had for the Punk Rock Fridays (with no rain) the
night before. Look for another surf show at The Lyon's Den at the end
of summer. We're already planning it.
Thanks to everyone who made it out as well The Lyon's Den. Also thanks
to Roger & The Wraybands, Ivan & The Troubadours, and Bill &Surf The
Reluctant Aquanauts. It was a great night for instrumental music.
I have pics and video that I need to post somewhere. Once I find a
spot, I'll let you all know.
I hope I didn't forget anything...
Phil Tiki
The Cocktail Preachers
Phil you got it right...I used the CIJ Jazzmaster and kept the Jag
as a backup. My Super Reverb is an all original 1965 with replaced
speakers.
As for the other guys in the band their gear is listed here
Matt our bassist was using a new custom cab, which I know little
about maybe he'll chime in.
Bill
--- In , Phil Kucer <philx@m...> wrote:
> Ok, since no one wants to give an overview, I'll do it.
>
> First up was Roger and The Wraybands. Steve (Panchinsin - CP
guitar
> player) and I actually stumbled upon these guys. We heard another
surf
> band was playing a club the week before we were so we had to check
them
> out. Anyway, they open the show with Walk Don't Run...but do
the '64
> version! Spot-on and a very cool start. They do a few standards
but
> also throw in a bunch of obscure covers like "TR6" from The
Sandals
> (Endless Summer SDK), "Midnight Surfer" (which they re-titled "My
> Turban's a'Burnin" and dedicated to the troops in Iraq) by Jerry
Cole &
> His Spacemen. A great set!
>
> I didn't get a chance to talk gear with those guys but I'll e-mail
them
> and get a list. I don't think they are on here.
>
> Next up was The Troubadours. Wow. If you've seen them, then you
already
> know. If not, well, I'll try to explain. They do a Shadows tribute
(I
> don't need to go into who the Shadows were/are, right?). And they
do a
> damn fine job at it. To give you an idea, I was in the front
(where the
> bar is - the stage is in the back) talking to a few friends who
came in
> and one of them asked if the Shadows band started yet because he
swore
> he thought that a CD was playing. Yup, they're that good. Ivan
(Space
> Cossacks) handles the Hank Marvin part to a 'T' while his dad,
Ivan
> Sr., takes care of the Bruce Welch rhythm guitar. Perfect. The
surprise
> was that there were different songs than from the Exotica set.
They
> even played "Big Boy", a song Roger (from The Wraybands)
requested.
> Great stuff. Oh, Ivan played a Strat (black) thru a Vox (I'm
guessing
> an AC60) while Ivan Sr., played a black Tele thru a white Vox
(once
> again I'm gonna guess an AC60). Scott played a matching black P-
Bass
> thru a Sunn head.
>
> We, The Cocktail Preachers, played next but I won't go into it
because
> I thought we had a bad night. Quick gear rundown: Steve - DeCola
> Jazzcaster custom guitar thru a hot rodded silverface Princeton.
Bruce
> used his Fiesta Red AV Jag thru his modded silverface Bassman. I
had my
> Wilson Bros VMB-55 (black) bass thru my Bassman 400 head with the
410H
> bottom. Rick used his red sparkle Trixon drums (you should see
these
> things! The front of the kick is, I think, 18" while the back is
22".
> Crazy!).
>
> Anyway, last up was The Reluctant Aquanauts. Another great
surprise!
> After talking with Bill here and a few failed attempts to see them
at
> The Big C Jamboree (A rockabilly Jam night held in Chicago the
first
> Thursday of every month), I didn't know what to expect. What a
great
> show! These guys are top-rate musicians and had a great set.
Originals
> even! They did Ventures melodys as well as classics. From the
matching
> black old-west sheriffs outfits (including cap guns and white
Colonel
> Sanders ties) to their vintage sound and their very young dancers,
> totally enjoyable. Watch for these guys in the future! From what I
saw,
> Bill had a blackface Super with his CIJ LPB Jazzmaster, Matt had a
AV
> Oly White Jazz bass with an Ampeg head and Frank had Fibes drums.
I'll
> let Bill fill you in on the exact details.
>
> I also must mention that there was a great turn-out. Especially
> considering that there were Tornado warnings and some pretty heavy
> rain. In fact, the guy who runs bookings said that there was a
better
> turnout than they had for the Punk Rock Fridays (with no rain) the
> night before. Look for another surf show at The Lyon's Den at the
end
> of summer. We're already planning it.
>
> Thanks to everyone who made it out as well The Lyon's Den. Also
thanks
> to Roger & The Wraybands, Ivan & The Troubadours, and Bill &Surf
The
> Reluctant Aquanauts. It was a great night for instrumental music.
>
> I have pics and video that I need to post somewhere. Once I find a
> spot, I'll let you all know.
>
>
>
> I hope I didn't forget anything...
>
> Phil Tiki
> The Cocktail Preachers
>
Not too bad from the top of my head...
Phil
On May 30, 2004, at 3:29 PM, supertwangreverb wrote:
> Phil you got it right...I used the CIJ Jazzmaster and kept the Jag
> as a backup. My Super Reverb is an all original 1965 with replaced
> speakers.
>
> As for the other guys in the band their gear is listed here
>
>
> Matt our bassist was using a new custom cab, which I know little
> about maybe he'll chime in.
>
>
> Bill
>
A very nice writeup, Phil! I was going to write it myself, but came
down with strep throat and have not really been feeling up to it.
Anyway, Phil did a better job that I could have. I'll add some
comments:
I drove from Hillsdale, MI directly to the club, and it took three
and a half hours, and I had to drive through some weather that made
me think the world was coming to an end! Scary... Anyway, I was
pretty tired by then, and the first band (out of four total!) didn't
start until 10pm Chicago time, which is 11pm Michigan time. As a
result of the late night (didn't get to sleep till 4:30 Michigan time)
and considerable exhaustion, all the memories are a bit hazy.
In spite of all that, it was a GREAT night! Everything went really
smoothly, and all the bands were very cool. The club was very cozy,
with a great-sounding sound system (though a bit too loud sometimes -
not really a problem for me, but for some others).
Roger and the Wraybands: we were running around like crazy getting
ready to go on next, so I didn't really have a chance to take it all
in. I did listen for at least 20 minutes, and I liked what I heard a
lot. Very good players with a good feel for the music. I'd say guys
in their forties, mostly. Roger, who handled most of the leads,
played a Jazzmaster into a Fender Deluxe Reverb (I think), and the
rhythm guitar played a Strat into a another DR (don't know if any of
these were vintage or reissue). Roger also had a reverb unit. Song
selection consisting mostly of the classics (with a few surprises),
but usually played with a twist. I enjoyed them quite a bit, and
would have absolutely loved them if 1) their rhythm guitarists didn't
throw in some modern bluesy solos in the most unlikely of places
(Let's Go Trippin' comes to mind), and 2) they played with a bit more
pep and verve. To me surf music is to a big extent about nervous,
explosive energy and these guys were a bit more on the mellow side.
But that's nitpicking - a great band, and I hope to see them again
and play with them again.
We went on next, as Phil recapped. I was very happy with our set.
It was only our second show with Scott, the new bass player who
started playing with us in March. He did great, and I actually felt
that everybody did really well. As I'm usually supercritical of our
performances, I don't mind occasionally being satisfied. I played a
US '62 reissue black Strat, and my dad used a US/Mex California
Series black Tele; Scott played a Mexican black P-bass. I used a new
addition to my amp stable: 2000 Vox AC30 with Celestion Blue
speakers. I love the sound of this amp! It's amazing. I gave my
dad my old AC30, a 1992 reissue with Weber alnico copies of Celestion
Blues. Dane used his usual blue Yamaha drums. We played a bit more
rocking set than at last year's Exotica, where we tried to be more,
well, exotic. Anyway, a good time was had by all of us, and we were
very appreciative of the warm reception by the audience. Thanks
Chicago!
The Cocktail Preachers were next, and they opened, to my great
surprise, with a cover of the Space Cossacks' Red Sunrise, which put
a big smile on my face. They worked out sequeway bits for the first
few songs, and went straight from one to the other - very high
energy. I've seen these guys play three or four times now, and each
time I see them they are better than the last time. I thought they
played really well last Saturday, though I could tell they had some
gremlins, like Steve's reverb unit crapping out on him (damn
things!!), which I'm sure was a major bummer. But though it wasn't
perfect, the spirit in their playing was the best that I've seen from
them. I think they have an excellent lineup now - Steve is the only
member still in the band since the first time I saw them in 2000, and
he's a good surf guitarist with a lot of feel for the music; Phil is
a great bass player, and really holds it all together; I was
impressed with rhythm Steve last August, and he did not disappoint
this time either. A great surf rhythm guitar player, sporting his
own reverb unit and a beautiful recent US reissue Jag in fiesta red,
he played it appropriately and precisely. And the new drummer is
their best yet (they've had a different one each time I've seen
them), an experienced player (Phil told me the guy has played in many
bands around Chicago, including a relatively well-known indie band
the Madder Rose - I think!). Anyway, they had a great mix of
originals, which were alternatively rocking and exotic, as well as
covers of both first and third wave songs - one that really stuck out
for me was Satan's Pilgrims "Vampiro" - great song, and a great
version! The Cocktail Preachers have become one of the premiere surf
bands of the US, and I highly recommend that you all check them out.
Finally, the Reluctant Aquanauts - a great band! A trio of young
guys, in their early twenties, but damn, can they play! The drummer
and bass player sounded like Ventures live in '65, oodles of energy
and aggression. The bass player would often doublepick his bass a la
Bob Bogle, which was very cool. The drummer had probably the most
traditional surf sound and style of the night, and he was tight and
explosive. Very impressive. Bill the guitar player did a fantastic
job with his Jazzmaster and Super Reverb, sans reverb unit. though
I'm usually pretty down on trios, these guys sounded really full and
great. VERY trad and very energetic. Lots of covers, both obscure
and standards (the memory is very hazy on this, it was getting very
late by this point), and some very cool originals. I think we will
be hearing a lot more from these guys in the future. Bill told me
that they would like to add a fourth member, and they will truly turn
into a monster if they can find a member that'll match their
abilities. One word of advice I would give is this: lose the silly
sherriff's costumes. It doesn't match the music (you guys look like
a rockabilly band), and you really don't need a schtick - just play
your ass off like you did on Saturday, and you'll have people eating
out of your hands.
There's a lot of reason to be optimistic about the state of surf
judging from Chicago! I hope it's like this elsewhere, too... A
great night of surf music, and I hope we can do it again. Thanks to
Steve and the Cocktail Preachers for pulling it all together.
Ivan
--- In , Phil Kucer <philx@m...> wrote:
> Ok, since no one wants to give an overview, I'll do it.
>
> First up was Roger and The Wraybands. Steve (Panchinsin - CP guitar
> player) and I actually stumbled upon these guys. We heard another
surf
> band was playing a club the week before we were so we had to check
them
> out. Anyway, they open the show with Walk Don't Run...but do
the '64
> version! Spot-on and a very cool start. They do a few standards but
> also throw in a bunch of obscure covers like "TR6" from The Sandals
> (Endless Summer SDK), "Midnight Surfer" (which they re-titled "My
> Turban's a'Burnin" and dedicated to the troops in Iraq) by Jerry
Cole &
> His Spacemen. A great set!
>
> I didn't get a chance to talk gear with those guys but I'll e-mail
them
> and get a list. I don't think they are on here.
>
> Next up was The Troubadours. Wow. If you've seen them, then you
already
> know. If not, well, I'll try to explain. They do a Shadows tribute
(I
> don't need to go into who the Shadows were/are, right?). And they
do a
> damn fine job at it. To give you an idea, I was in the front (where
the
> bar is - the stage is in the back) talking to a few friends who
came in
> and one of them asked if the Shadows band started yet because he
swore
> he thought that a CD was playing. Yup, they're that good. Ivan
(Space
> Cossacks) handles the Hank Marvin part to a 'T' while his dad, Ivan
> Sr., takes care of the Bruce Welch rhythm guitar. Perfect. The
surprise
> was that there were different songs than from the Exotica set. They
> even played "Big Boy", a song Roger (from The Wraybands) requested.
> Great stuff. Oh, Ivan played a Strat (black) thru a Vox (I'm
guessing
> an AC60) while Ivan Sr., played a black Tele thru a white Vox (once
> again I'm gonna guess an AC60). Scott played a matching black P-
Bass
> thru a Sunn head.
>
> We, The Cocktail Preachers, played next but I won't go into it
because
> I thought we had a bad night. Quick gear rundown: Steve - DeCola
> Jazzcaster custom guitar thru a hot rodded silverface Princeton.
Bruce
> used his Fiesta Red AV Jag thru his modded silverface Bassman. I
had my
> Wilson Bros VMB-55 (black) bass thru my Bassman 400 head with the
410H
> bottom. Rick used his red sparkle Trixon drums (you should see
these
> things! The front of the kick is, I think, 18" while the back is
22".
> Crazy!).
>
> Anyway, last up was The Reluctant Aquanauts. Another great
surprise!
> After talking with Bill here and a few failed attempts to see them
at
> The Big C Jamboree (A rockabilly Jam night held in Chicago the
first
> Thursday of every month), I didn't know what to expect. What a
great
> show! These guys are top-rate musicians and had a great set.
Originals
> even! They did Ventures melodys as well as classics. From the
matching
> black old-west sheriffs outfits (including cap guns and white
Colonel
> Sanders ties) to their vintage sound and their very young dancers,
> totally enjoyable. Watch for these guys in the future! From what I
saw,
> Bill had a blackface Super with his CIJ LPB Jazzmaster, Matt had a
AV
> Oly White Jazz bass with an Ampeg head and Frank had Fibes drums.
I'll
> let Bill fill you in on the exact details.
>
> I also must mention that there was a great turn-out. Especially
> considering that there were Tornado warnings and some pretty heavy
> rain. In fact, the guy who runs bookings said that there was a
better
> turnout than they had for the Punk Rock Fridays (with no rain) the
> night before. Look for another surf show at The Lyon's Den at the
end
> of summer. We're already planning it.
>
> Thanks to everyone who made it out as well The Lyon's Den. Also
thanks
> to Roger & The Wraybands, Ivan & The Troubadours, and Bill &Surf
The
> Reluctant Aquanauts. It was a great night for instrumental music.
>
> I have pics and video that I need to post somewhere. Once I find a
> spot, I'll let you all know.
>
>
>
> I hope I didn't forget anything...
>
> Phil Tiki
> The Cocktail Preachers
>
LOL thanks for the review Ivan! I've said it a million times but you
guys were unbelievable and probably the toughest act to follow for
this genre!!
In defense of the old sheriff costumes...the band name Reluctant
Aquanauts comes from a Don Knotts movie, and one of our originals is
called the Deputy's Empty gun, which is another Don Knotts nod. We
wanted some sort of funny gimmick...but it looks like NOBODY is
getting it lol so maybe we should change it around.
Bill
--- In , "ipongrac" <ipongrac@g...>
wrote:
> A very nice writeup, Phil! I was going to write it myself, but
came
> down with strep throat and have not really been feeling up to it.
> Anyway, Phil did a better job that I could have. I'll add some
> comments:
>
> I drove from Hillsdale, MI directly to the club, and it took three
> and a half hours, and I had to drive through some weather that made
> me think the world was coming to an end! Scary... Anyway, I was
> pretty tired by then, and the first band (out of four total!)
didn't
> start until 10pm Chicago time, which is 11pm Michigan time. As a
> result of the late night (didn't get to sleep till 4:30 Michigan
time)
> and considerable exhaustion, all the memories are a bit hazy.
>
> In spite of all that, it was a GREAT night! Everything went really
> smoothly, and all the bands were very cool. The club was very
cozy,
> with a great-sounding sound system (though a bit too loud
sometimes -
> not really a problem for me, but for some others).
>
> Roger and the Wraybands: we were running around like crazy getting
> ready to go on next, so I didn't really have a chance to take it
all
> in. I did listen for at least 20 minutes, and I liked what I heard
a
> lot. Very good players with a good feel for the music. I'd say
guys
> in their forties, mostly. Roger, who handled most of the leads,
> played a Jazzmaster into a Fender Deluxe Reverb (I think), and the
> rhythm guitar played a Strat into a another DR (don't know if any
of
> these were vintage or reissue). Roger also had a reverb unit.
Song
> selection consisting mostly of the classics (with a few surprises),
> but usually played with a twist. I enjoyed them quite a bit, and
> would have absolutely loved them if 1) their rhythm guitarists
didn't
> throw in some modern bluesy solos in the most unlikely of places
> (Let's Go Trippin' comes to mind), and 2) they played with a bit
more
> pep and verve. To me surf music is to a big extent about nervous,
> explosive energy and these guys were a bit more on the mellow
side.
> But that's nitpicking - a great band, and I hope to see them again
> and play with them again.
>
> We went on next, as Phil recapped. I was very happy with our set.
> It was only our second show with Scott, the new bass player who
> started playing with us in March. He did great, and I actually
felt
> that everybody did really well. As I'm usually supercritical of
our
> performances, I don't mind occasionally being satisfied. I played
a
> US '62 reissue black Strat, and my dad used a US/Mex California
> Series black Tele; Scott played a Mexican black P-bass. I used a
new
> addition to my amp stable: 2000 Vox AC30 with Celestion Blue
> speakers. I love the sound of this amp! It's amazing. I gave my
> dad my old AC30, a 1992 reissue with Weber alnico copies of
Celestion
> Blues. Dane used his usual blue Yamaha drums. We played a bit
more
> rocking set than at last year's Exotica, where we tried to be more,
> well, exotic. Anyway, a good time was had by all of us, and we
were
> very appreciative of the warm reception by the audience. Thanks
> Chicago!
>
> The Cocktail Preachers were next, and they opened, to my great
> surprise, with a cover of the Space Cossacks' Red Sunrise, which
put
> a big smile on my face. They worked out sequeway bits for the
first
> few songs, and went straight from one to the other - very high
> energy. I've seen these guys play three or four times now, and
each
> time I see them they are better than the last time. I thought they
> played really well last Saturday, though I could tell they had some
> gremlins, like Steve's reverb unit crapping out on him (damn
> things!!), which I'm sure was a major bummer. But though it wasn't
> perfect, the spirit in their playing was the best that I've seen
from
> them. I think they have an excellent lineup now - Steve is the
only
> member still in the band since the first time I saw them in 2000,
and
> he's a good surf guitarist with a lot of feel for the music; Phil
is
> a great bass player, and really holds it all together; I was
> impressed with rhythm Steve last August, and he did not disappoint
> this time either. A great surf rhythm guitar player, sporting his
> own reverb unit and a beautiful recent US reissue Jag in fiesta
red,
> he played it appropriately and precisely. And the new drummer is
> their best yet (they've had a different one each time I've seen
> them), an experienced player (Phil told me the guy has played in
many
> bands around Chicago, including a relatively well-known indie band
> the Madder Rose - I think!). Anyway, they had a great mix of
> originals, which were alternatively rocking and exotic, as well as
> covers of both first and third wave songs - one that really stuck
out
> for me was Satan's Pilgrims "Vampiro" - great song, and a great
> version! The Cocktail Preachers have become one of the premiere
surf
> bands of the US, and I highly recommend that you all check them
out.
>
> Finally, the Reluctant Aquanauts - a great band! A trio of young
> guys, in their early twenties, but damn, can they play! The
drummer
> and bass player sounded like Ventures live in '65, oodles of energy
> and aggression. The bass player would often doublepick his bass a
la
> Bob Bogle, which was very cool. The drummer had probably the most
> traditional surf sound and style of the night, and he was tight and
> explosive. Very impressive. Bill the guitar player did a
fantastic
> job with his Jazzmaster and Super Reverb, sans reverb unit. though
> I'm usually pretty down on trios, these guys sounded really full
and
> great. VERY trad and very energetic. Lots of covers, both obscure
> and standards (the memory is very hazy on this, it was getting very
> late by this point), and some very cool originals. I think we will
> be hearing a lot more from these guys in the future. Bill told me
> that they would like to add a fourth member, and they will truly
turn
> into a monster if they can find a member that'll match their
> abilities. One word of advice I would give is this: lose the silly
> sherriff's costumes. It doesn't match the music (you guys look
like
> a rockabilly band), and you really don't need a schtick - just play
> your ass off like you did on Saturday, and you'll have people
eating
> out of your hands.
>
> There's a lot of reason to be optimistic about the state of surf
> judging from Chicago! I hope it's like this elsewhere, too... A
> great night of surf music, and I hope we can do it again. Thanks
to
> Steve and the Cocktail Preachers for pulling it all together.
>
> Ivan
>
>
> --- In , Phil Kucer <philx@m...> wrote:
> > Ok, since no one wants to give an overview, I'll do it.
> >
> > First up was Roger and The Wraybands. Steve (Panchinsin - CP
guitar
> > player) and I actually stumbled upon these guys. We heard another
> surf
> > band was playing a club the week before we were so we had to
check
> them
> > out. Anyway, they open the show with Walk Don't Run...but do
> the '64
> > version! Spot-on and a very cool start. They do a few standards
but
> > also throw in a bunch of obscure covers like "TR6" from The
Sandals
> > (Endless Summer SDK), "Midnight Surfer" (which they re-titled "My
> > Turban's a'Burnin" and dedicated to the troops in Iraq) by Jerry
> Cole &
> > His Spacemen. A great set!
> >
> > I didn't get a chance to talk gear with those guys but I'll e-
mail
> them
> > and get a list. I don't think they are on here.
> >
> > Next up was The Troubadours. Wow. If you've seen them, then you
> already
> > know. If not, well, I'll try to explain. They do a Shadows
tribute
> (I
> > don't need to go into who the Shadows were/are, right?). And they
> do a
> > damn fine job at it. To give you an idea, I was in the front
(where
> the
> > bar is - the stage is in the back) talking to a few friends who
> came in
> > and one of them asked if the Shadows band started yet because he
> swore
> > he thought that a CD was playing. Yup, they're that good. Ivan
> (Space
> > Cossacks) handles the Hank Marvin part to a 'T' while his dad,
Ivan
> > Sr., takes care of the Bruce Welch rhythm guitar. Perfect. The
> surprise
> > was that there were different songs than from the Exotica set.
They
> > even played "Big Boy", a song Roger (from The Wraybands)
requested.
> > Great stuff. Oh, Ivan played a Strat (black) thru a Vox (I'm
> guessing
> > an AC60) while Ivan Sr., played a black Tele thru a white Vox
(once
> > again I'm gonna guess an AC60). Scott played a matching black P-
> Bass
> > thru a Sunn head.
> >
> > We, The Cocktail Preachers, played next but I won't go into it
> because
> > I thought we had a bad night. Quick gear rundown: Steve - DeCola
> > Jazzcaster custom guitar thru a hot rodded silverface Princeton.
> Bruce
> > used his Fiesta Red AV Jag thru his modded silverface Bassman. I
> had my
> > Wilson Bros VMB-55 (black) bass thru my Bassman 400 head with the
> 410H
> > bottom. Rick used his red sparkle Trixon drums (you should see
> these
> > things! The front of the kick is, I think, 18" while the back is
> 22".
> > Crazy!).
> >
> > Anyway, last up was The Reluctant Aquanauts. Another great
> surprise!
> > After talking with Bill here and a few failed attempts to see
them
> at
> > The Big C Jamboree (A rockabilly Jam night held in Chicago the
> first
> > Thursday of every month), I didn't know what to expect. What a
> great
> > show! These guys are top-rate musicians and had a great set.
> Originals
> > even! They did Ventures melodys as well as classics. From the
> matching
> > black old-west sheriffs outfits (including cap guns and white
> Colonel
> > Sanders ties) to their vintage sound and their very young
dancers,
> > totally enjoyable. Watch for these guys in the future! From what
I
> saw,
> > Bill had a blackface Super with his CIJ LPB Jazzmaster, Matt had
a
> AV
> > Oly White Jazz bass with an Ampeg head and Frank had Fibes drums.
> I'll
> > let Bill fill you in on the exact details.
> >
> > I also must mention that there was a great turn-out. Especially
> > considering that there were Tornado warnings and some pretty
heavy
> > rain. In fact, the guy who runs bookings said that there was a
> better
> > turnout than they had for the Punk Rock Fridays (with no rain)
the
> > night before. Look for another surf show at The Lyon's Den at the
> end
> > of summer. We're already planning it.
> >
> > Thanks to everyone who made it out as well The Lyon's Den. Also
> thanks
> > to Roger & The Wraybands, Ivan & The Troubadours, and Bill &Surf
> The
> > Reluctant Aquanauts. It was a great night for instrumental music.
> >
> > I have pics and video that I need to post somewhere. Once I find
a
> > spot, I'll let you all know.
> >
> >
> >
> > I hope I didn't forget anything...
> >
> > Phil Tiki
> > The Cocktail Preachers
> >
