I will be back in central Fla at the end of March for a few shows with the “Charlie O. and The Houserockers” Band! Looking forward to seeing everyone and having some great shows. Can’t wait to be back in Fla. rockin! Hope to see you at the shows.
Hope everyone is having a great holiday season! We ended up the month of December with a show with Bobby Rush on Friday and a jam packed show at F. Jones Corner in Jackson MS. on Saturday night. I am heading down to Fla. to see all the family for x-mas and also my new Grandbaby, gonna miss the show in Meridian on the 26th but I will be back for the New Years Eve Show at 930 Blues Club in Jackson MS. You know the year 2009 was a rough one for alot of people and I can only hope 2010 is better. Members of our band lost close family members this past year and also have had to go through some rough medical issues. But therer were alot of highlights to the past year also and we are all blessed to be here. So I look forward to 2010 as 2009 was definatly not one of my favorite years either! So heres to a New Year full of Great Music and newfound prosperity to all! I am looking forward to it!!
Got a chance to see my old buddy Damon Fowler last Friday night in New Orleans! It sure was good to see Damon again along with Chuck Riley who plays Bass him. Well Damon has signed a major recording contract with Blind Pig Records! I always felt like Damon had a chance to make it big in the music biz and now I am so proud of him. So congratulations to Damon and the band as they set out on a new journey and hopefully future fame. Damon has been my favorite guitar player for a few years now and I credit him for helping me revive my musical career, in fact if it hadn’t been for Damon I probably would still be retired from music as I was when I first heard him play. So I wish him all the luck in the world and hopefully will see him again real soon headlining some major music festival. Congratulations Damon keep it real! 
Can’t wait for the Cotee River Music fest in New Port Richey Florida, we kick off Sunday May11th (Mothers Day) at noon. It is a great venue to play at, right on the river in New Port Richey, so bring out the whole family and come on out fo A GREAT MOTHERS DAY SHOW!
We would like to give a big Thanks to the city of Oldsmar Florida for welcoming us with open arms for there Oldsmar Days Music Festival! We had a Great Crowd and everyone associated with the Festival was first class. We look forward to seeing everyone again next year as we have already been ask to play. See you at the festival next year!
Just got back from our Mississippi Holiday Trip! Man we had a blast, got to see some old friends and party with some new ones also. Played in Hattiesburg Mississippi Friday night at the Just One More Blues Bar with a new friend that goes by 601 Blues and had a great time playing mostly original songs, then on Saturday I had the pleasure of sitting in with the Mississippi Houserockers at their gig in Jackson Mississippi. It sure was great to see them again and get to play some real blues! Everybody up there was so nice and we had some real Southern Hospitality. Sure can’t wait to get up their again soon, as the more time I spend up there the more I miss it, gotta get home someday for good. There are pics of the trip in the photo gallery link on the home page, check them out if you get a chance.
Well now that’s it’s November I’ve been thinking back to the last year and what a great year it has been for me. Getting to work with the kind of talent I have been able to is truly a blessing for me! To be surrounded by all my friends down here in the music scene is truly remarkable, the kind of talent that is right here in the Tampa Bay area is amazing. As I look back I remember seeing the maturity of a couple of young Lady Singers named Shevonne and Nalanie Rothrock who are both huge talents and a couple of the people I am lucky enough to work with. Shevonne is only 16 and I have watched her develop her talent this past year, she has a great future ahead of her, and Nalanie who has been singing with me since she was 13 years old has now matured into a fine young woman in College who is back in town for awhile and has been back out singing with us lately, what a powerful and beautiful voice she has and to have been able to watch her progress over the years has been quite remarkable. I got a chance last week to feature them both at one show and it was quite a night! Also some of the great shows we had over the Summer ( Summer Bluesfest, House of Blues, etc, etc.) some great music there. I have also had the pleasure of working with Lester Freeman the past few months filling in with his band while his guitar player has been ill. Lester is a great guy to work with and a great human being to boot, it has been my pleasure to work with him and all the super talented musicians in his band! And as always all the guys and gals I have the pleasure of working with in The Houserocker band has truly made for a great Summer! There are alot of shows coming up on the schedule for the Holidays, please try to get out and check out the shows and see for yourself what I am talking about, come on out and be a part of it, you never know what your going to see at the shows and there all different and we really do appreciate the support! See you out there!
Last Saturday night the Sean Carney Band came rolling through Tampa Fl. Sean and his band won the IBC Competition in Memphis this year and are out on tour now and are grtting ready to head over to Europe for a few weeks and then The Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise. So things are really happening for Sean and I couldn’t be happier for him. He is such a nice guy and a hard worker and deserves all the recognition he is finally getting! If you get a chance check him out if he comes to your area! I got a chance to sit in and play with him when he was here, and here are a couple pics from that night.
We had a great gig yesterday at The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tampa Fl. First of all The Hard Rock is First Class everything! Plus all the Vintage Guitars and Gold Records etc. that they have hanging around the place really make for a cool enviroment to play in. When you play there they give you these badges to wear which give you access to the Employee section of the Hotel. They even have their own cafeteria where you just swipe your badge to get in and you get your choice of some really good food and some Killer Deserts. It is also nice that they have their own changing rooms so you can change your clothes when your done playing. The crowd was great and the tip jar was well fed, we were also given $80. in coupons to play the slot machines in the casino, Tammy ended up winning $130. and we still have a $20. coupon for next time left over. All in all a great day and I have a New Favorite Gig! Can’t wait til next month to do it again.
