Weird Gig # 9

Sometime back in the mid-'80s I joined the David Brewer Band for a gig at the clubhouse of a well-known one-percenter motorcycle club in Salem, OR.  The band included myself on harp, David on guitar, drummer Kirk "KT" Tuttle, and Abu Nafee on bass.  Abu normally played guitar and slide guitar in David's band, and I don't recall why he was playing bass on this particular gig.

The four of us met at the old Fremont Tavern that afternoon, loaded our gear into a small rented trailer, and split for Salem in KT's suicide door Lincoln Continental.   Things were going fine until the Lincoln's engine started running badly enough for us to have to stop several times by the side of the road.  After cooling off for a while it would start up again, but the problem continued until KT discovered the fuel filter was clogged.  After removing the debris from the filter, we were on our way.

We arrived in Salem many hours late, but set up and played anyway.  We probably would have played the whole night except that Abu, who had not been ingesting any of the abundant party favors, announced that that was it, he wasn't playing any more!  And not another bass note was played. 

The rest of the night is a blur, but at some point, I recall unrolling my sleeping bag on a couch in the clubhouse and making a futile attempt to sleep.  After a few minutes, I heard this faintly familiar (and for some reason, ominous) rattling sound.  I peeked out of the bag and saw a leering club member getting ready to spray paint the sleeping bag.  Okay, I got it - no sleeping during parties at the clubhouse!

Later the next morning we pulled ourselves together and started packing our stuff up for the trip home.  One problem - Abu and his bass guitar had disappeared.  His amp was still there, but he was nowhere to be seen.  We searched the premises and the neighborhood, but no Abu.  Bleary and tired, the remnants of the band headed back to Seattle.

It turned out that Abu, fed up with the shenanigans at the gig and its aftermath, had somehow got himself to the Salem Greyhound bus station in the middle of the night and went home.  He actually arrived in Seattle before the rest of us.

I'm outta here!

I should say that, when I talked to Mr. Brewer about this gig he said that he didn't see anything "weird" about it.  It was just like all of his other gigs, except for, you know, the disappearing bass player part.

You can check out the Boneyard Preachers here.  See you at the nightclub!

David Brewer at the Salmon Bay Eagles

I dropped in at the Salmon Bay Eagles club last night and caught a few minutes of a rare set of David Brewer music.  No Intimidators backing him up this night - just David singing and picking his recently refurbished Gibson ES-345 guitar through an Acme amp, accompanied by bassist Charles Mack.

It took me back to the old Fremont Tavern days 20+ years ago, but, you know, not as loud!  As a matter of fact, several of the denizens of that long gone dive were in attendance to hear David play again, including long time Brewer Band bassist Bill Freckleton..

I could only stay a little while, but did manage to get a couple of photos:

David Brewer

 

Charles Mack and David Brewer

You can check out the Boneyard Preachers here.  See you at the nightclub!

Blues Eye Photos

Here are some photos that David Brewer sent to me some time ago of his Seattle band Blues Eye.  From the clothes and hair styles, I'm guessing that these photos were created sometime in the '70s.  I recall seeing Blues Eye at the old Pipeline Tavern, and believe that they used to back up Albert Collins when he came to town.

Sunburn City!  Hey Dave, where was the band playing this summer day?

This looks like an "Images by Edy" photo to me.  Edy and her little poodle dog ran a studio in Seattle's University District.  Many Seattle bands had promo photos created by Edy.  I wonder what happened to her photo stash after she passed away?

I believe that our drummer friend Les Hutchinson (second from left here) is in all of these photos.  He lives in Portland now. Maybe Dave can identfy the other players for us.

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By David Brewer

Hey Mike,

Remember when I told you I was going to put out the CD of Albert (Collins) and I playing on the 4th of July, 1976?

Well I've just finished mastering it. There's about 59 minutes of live Albert, with me on guitar, Darell "Rabbit" Warren on bass, "Boom" Gasper on Hammond B-3, and Les Hutchinson on the drums. It was recorded on 8-track at The Hayloft in Vancouver, Washington, on the bicentennial.

I must say it kicks ass - all I have to do now is get the liner notes done and make up a CD jacket..coolbeans! You can put up a blog about it, and give everybody a heads up that it is coming real soon

..and oblige - Brewer

David Brewer Turns 60

Article and photos by Phil Chesnut

Seattle's Thursday night blues bastion, the Salmon Bay Eagles, held a rare blues celebration on a Friday night last week. If Thursday's Mike Lynch show wasn't enough, the SBE then gave us blues fans a very special show commemorating Seattle blues legend David Brewer's 60th birthday.

David Brewer

The SBE's longtime house band, "All Stars-No Stripes," set the mood for the night with their own, familiar blues - with Stan Eike fronting on the majority of the vocals, while both Stan and Scotty Lind gave all a dose of their own high energy guitars. It was, however, the mighty tenor sax of Raven Humphres that actually dominated the sets, more than holding his own among the pair of power guitars.

Though not official, I don't feel bad by saying that the second band of the evening, starring the Man of the Hour, could certainly be called the "Intimidators." With veteran Intimidators Bill Freckleton on bass, the horn of Raven, and "Pete the Beat" Langhans righteously filling the drummer spot usually held by Chris Leighton, it looked and sounded like the Intimidators to me. Of course, David Brewer & the Intimidators have been mesmerizing Northwest blues fans for decades, but since Brewer is usually on a European tour this time of year, it made this event all the more extraordinary.

Left to right: Pete Langhans, Bill Freckleton, and David Brewer

Playing to an appreciative, eager full house, 'til well into the AM hours, Brewer & Co set the room's energy level to an even higher notch. With a pair of sets featuring all of those unique Brewer originals, plus a few new Brewerized cover tunes, this remarkable night of the blues was truly be memorable for all. Sounding like a well rehearsed band, with a ton of shows behind them, Brewer and crew were sharp and on it, contrary to the fact that it was only their second show. With their first show played to a less than savvy crowd at Tacoma's JazzBones, the band was more than appreciative to then play to true fans while laughingly calling the JazzBones gig their rehearsal.

This was also my first chance to get my hands on Brewer's brand new, CD! Going in a different direction on this newest project, The new album is all Brewer and nothin' but. Covering ten blues standards, all with that special Brewer arrangement, David Brewer's "Ghost Dance" is certainly destined for wide recognition and accolades, not only in the Pacific Northwest, but world-wide. Created and produced at Sheri and Raven Humphres' Black Wing Studio, all of the instruments and vocals are rendered, by Brewer himself, and though no credit is given, it's obviously Brewer's pen and ink illustration on the back, tray card.

Though well known in the US and Europe for his power bands, Brewer has recently revised is presentation and now tours solo, making "Ghost Dance" his first album featuring this new side of David Brewer. Long known to be proud of his native heritage, the CD's title is derived from a cherished Native American parable, who's essence is emoted in each and every of these selections. Certainly a landmark album of 21st century American Blues, "Ghost Dance" will be essential to any true blues fan's audio collection.

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By David Brewer

Hey ya'll,

I'm back - three months was a long time on the road, but Europe, Scandinavia, Germany, and Poland were all Big Fun!

I sold a lot of CDs and made many new fans. Argentina will be the next tour for old man Brewer, but I refuse to go until next summer. So, I'll be out and about and around my home town to see some folks play, just see some friends, and generally run amuck.

So until I see you all, have a Merry Christmas and Happy New year...

And oblige.. Brewer

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By David Brewer

Well I'm back from Japan and it was great!! I had the best time, and now I'm on my way to Germany, Poland, etc..

I was just reading John Lee's latest blog. I was touring with Albert Collins at the time of the show he mentions. We were on our way to play the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver, B.C., and we were added on to the bill. It was so cool to meet Howlin Wolf...Coco Montoya was Albert's drummer at the time, and my ex-brother-in-law "Boom" (now with Pearl Jam) was on B-3 (plus me on guitar, of course). I'd love to get my hands on a copy of that poster, John.

Anyway, I'm on my way again soon and I should be back home sometime in October. Then I'm off to Nashville to back up my daughter Rachel. I may stop over in North Carolina and see Roberta Penn.

By the way, my friend Darin Wade's father was murdered up on Crown Hill, on 90th and 14th. I just heard about it on the news the day I got back. They're trying to find out who did it, so if anybody knows anything, call Crime Stoppers.

And oblige..Brewer...

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This just in from David Brewer:

Hey Kids,

I'm back from a month in Europe. I leave for Japan on August 5th, then go to Eastern Germany and Poland in September and October, then to Nashville and finally back to Seattle to work on my acoustic CD.

Travel is sure not what it used to be, I tell you, but what can a poor boy do?

...and oblige, Brewer