By Monte Adkison

 

Roger "Hurricane" Wilson

Photo courtesy of www.hurricanewilson.com

 

From the publisher of BluesWax, Chip Eagle: I have known Roger Wilson for a few years now, but really got a chance to sit down and get to know him during this year's Blues Music Awards. It has taken us way too long to get around to covering his work (like so many fine artists out there today) and I am proud that we have finally fixed that lapse in our coverage for you. I will add that Roger is a guy that you want to sit down and have a beer with because he tells a good story and, like Koko Taylor says in this week's Ezine, that's what the Blues is all about. Since you might not get the chance to shoot the bull with Roger, his latest album, The Way I Am, is proof of is ability and wit. Enjoy this look at this modern American road warrior of the Blues, but I would suggest that you pop a cold one and listen to his latest CD. You will find warmth, insight, humor, and just damn good Blues. And, hell, he needs the gas money! 

 

Monte Adkison for BluesWax: Roger, please tell us about yourself. How did you become a musician and how did you come to embrace the Blues?

 

Roger Wilson: When I was nine I began taking guitar lessons, mainly because this kid around the corner was taking them. It seemed like it would be fun, but I had no idea what was involved. I didn't even know that you had to press the string against the neck to change the tone. When the teacher actually showed me how to press the first finger of the left hand on the string at the first fret to get the F note, I was blown away. 

 

BW:  How did you acquire the nickname "Hurricane"?

 

RW: My band was on tour in the summer of 1992, headed for Washington, D.C., for some dates there. Driving along on a Sunday afternoon in North Carolina we ran across a station playing some really cool Blues, Shag, and Beach music. The guy was really digging into some classic stuff. Big Al Jano, my bass player and producer of my first two CDs, along with drummer Butch Cooper, and I called the guy up to tell him we loved the music he was playing. He, in turn, invited us to come to the station to go on the air with him. After spending 30 or so minutes talking and playing a track or two from the first CD, Hurricane Blues, at the end of the segment the DJ was folding up all of my promo with my name printed in black and white and actually said without missing a beat, "We've been on the air here with Roger Miller." Well, I've been used to people screwing up my name and have been called worse, so I just chalked it up to paying my dues. Once outside the station, I looked at Al and I thought he was going to blow a gasket. He said, "Man, you need a moniker that is going to separate you and keep what just happened from happening again." I said OK, and we got into our respected vehicles and headed north.

 

When we got to our hotel outside of D.C., Al said, "Man, I got it! From now on, you are Roger 'Hurricane' Wilson." He said he has been watching me going from joint to joint and tearing the place up for years while getting out quick to maintain my teaching and broadcasting careers. The fact that my childhood hometown was devastated by a hurricane in 1960 when I was seven even reiterated the logic. It took a long time to get over that event. The name stuck.    

 

BW:  Is music your fulltime profession? How many gigs a year do you play?

 

RW: I've been playing 200 or so dates for about 15 years. One year I did around 240, but the last couple of years, I more or less slacked off to about 180 or so.

 

BW:  Please give us a brief summary of each of your releases. You self-produced them correct?

 

RW:  1994: Hurricane Blues, Hottrax Records, produced by Big Al Jano. A decent studio effort with some great players, horns, keyboards, backing vocals, etc.

 

1996: Live From The Eye Of The Storm, Hottrax Records, produced by Big Al Jano. Recorded straight to two-track in one night. Old-style recording methods used. Received good reviews.

 

1998: The Business Of The Blues, first self-produced effort on my own label. Part electric and acoustic studio effort. Mostly good reviews.

 

BW: Who would you consider to be your major influences?

 

RW: After watching Duane Allman close up in January of 1971, I was pretty much ruined for life. I had never seen anybody play guitar like that. Seems like I felt different about everything after I left that show, really knew what I wanted to do from that point on.

 

 

BW: You have toured in Europe, right? Where did you play there?

 

RW: In June of 2001, I did a few dates in England. Later, I went back to do some dates in Ireland with Gary Moore, Omar & The Howlers, and Candye Kane, as well as some venues in England. I flew back from that tour on September 10, 2001, and unfortunately the day after that, the world changed. I hope to get back sometime.

 

BW: Who have you been onstage with that inspired you or humbled you?

 

RW: The early days put me onstage with Albert Collins, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and 38 Special. I was also good friends with Roy Buchanan, who showed me a few things. The past few years I have become friends with Les Paul and his son Rusty. Whenever I go to New York now I always stop by the Iridium to jam with Les, as well as one of Rusty's gigs anywhere in New Jersey. Some other Blues guys I sat in with have been Charlie Musselwhite, Lucky Peterson, Jimmy Thackery, and, most recently, Magic Slim.

 

BW: You perform at a large number of festivals. Do you prefer playing at festivals or smaller intimate venues?

 

RW: I enjoy playing wherever the people are into the music. That could be a small listening room or a huge outdoor event. Venues that are about the music are always better as opposed those that just amount to a room full of self-important people there for other reasons with no clue. Of course, any venue or festival that takes care of the artist is nice.

 

BW: Who have you been listening to when you aren't playing?

 

RW: I love the guitar. I like to listen to anybody that plays well.

 

BW:  Whom would you like to meet or play with that you haven't already?

 

RW: I wouldn't mind hanging with Eric Clapton for a little while. He has influenced many, myself included.

 

BW:  As records sales drop and attendance wanes at live music venues, what suggestions as a veteran musician can you give all of us that can help us save and energize the industry?

 

RW: Support the guys out on the road and buy their CDs. Also telling them how much you enjoy what they do means more than you could possibly imagine.

 

BW: You have another disc out, tell me about it...

 

RW: My latest CD, The Way I Am, was released in December of 2006. It is an acoustic project and I recruited producer Michael Traylor of Tallahassee to produce this and my next effort. He seems to have a handle on what I am all about and seems to be able to reach in and grab what I couldn't get out of myself .

 

BW: You book yourself, you network like crazy, work with the Blues societies and fan bases...care to comment on being a spoke in the wheel that keeps on rolling?

 

RW: I just think that music always came natural to me and it still does. It's like medicine for the soul. It invigorates me and I still love to do it. I feel I've gotten better with age, but still have a long way to go. I was told once that there are good people out there. You just have to get in the truck and go find them.

 

BW: You are active on satellite radio, how is that working for you and what do you think is the future of it?

 

RW: The latest CD has gotten a lot of airplay on worldwide radio as well as satellite. Obviously, satellite can pack more of a geographical punch with just one whack. The future is there for it. I think AM and FM radio will hang around, but may go through some changes. When I was in radio I always had respect for the local station that served its own market well, as in sponsors and local sports, etc. Many local stations are taking satellite feeds because high quality local programming is tough to maintain.

 

BW: You were instrumental in the formation of the Suncoast Blues Society [based around the Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida area], how important are Blues society contacts in the industry?

 

RW: The quality and level of Blues societies really vary from place to place. Some are very dedicated to preserving and promoting the Blues art form and some seem to just be there for their social and ego fix as well as personal agendas. Sometimes the weekly jams seem to be the priority, with any other focus on the backburner. While it's well and good to give someone a shot onstage that may not usually get the opportunity, learning, researching, and discussing the history beyond Stevie Ray Vaughan is important. More times than I care to mention I've seen a person placed in charge of an organization have it suddenly change to become his or her Blues society, promoting what they want. And of course, there are the ones that are active in all areas of promoting, preserving, and teaching folks about the Blues.

 

BW: I understand you were quite an "Angel of Mercy" during one of the hurricanes that hit South Florida and that you collected and delivered quite a bit of much-needed supplies to that area. Care to tell the readers about that?

 

RW: I just happened to be in position in Florida when Hurricane Wilma hit in October of 2005. While I rode the storm out in Orlando, I still had gigs booked in South Florida that I was obligated to make. While a few got washed out, a few hung in there and a couple of new ones even made themselves available.

 

I didn't have the heart to just turn around and go home, not while I was mobile and still able to make an impact, meager as it might be. When I was seven years old, my childhood hometown was virtually wiped out in New Jersey by Hurricane Donna in 1960. While my town and house were two to three feet underwater, I remember what folks went through. It seems that the physical recovery was quick, but the mental impact and scars remained for years. Whenever I would, and still, do return there, I can still feel effects of what happened. In thinking about that, I just wanted to try to do whatever I could do.

 

After turning to the people in my database for help via my website, some funds started to come in. I started filling my travel trailer with basic items like water, flashlights, and various foodstuffs and paper goods that I could hand out as needed. As I ventured into the damaged areas I realized how small I was in the great scheme of things, but how important what I was doing was to someone that needed help at that moment. That was revealed to me through hugs and handshakes I received at a shelter in Marathon, Florida. I remember how small my van and travel trailer looked next to the five FEMA 18-wheelers that were unloading supplies and appeared to dwarf my efforts, but it didn't seem to matter. Although I didn't seem to make a huge difference, I appeared to at least have made one.

 

Roger "Hurricane" Wilson's The Way I Am

Click Cover For More Info

 

BW:  Do you feel that club owners do enough to promote the artists they have booked? What would you like to see?

 

RW: Venues that care about the music are usually the ones that promote the best. At this point in my career it seems that the number of joints I have to play with the salad bar on the stage, along with the bartender being clueless of music booked that day, is diminishing. Not totally, but let's hope the trend is headed that way. Unfortunately, usually gigs booked closest to home are the most trouble.

 

BW: What are some of the clubs that you currently play where you get a very warm reception?

 

RW: Many clubs in the Northeast and New England are very appreciative and responsive. The Stanhope House in New Jersey, where I recorded my fourth CD, was a favorite, but it just got sold. I'm told the music will remain. That being said, there are little active pockets all over the country and the world where the music is loved. It seems that a lot of the music Mecca such as Chicago, Memphis, and New Orleans, to name a few, are now more tourist oriented. If I went down the list I could give you the pros and cons of each place. 

 

BW: You are working on your eighth CD. How is that project coming along?

 

RW: I went in the studio for about two weeks in mid-January and recorded 15 tracks. There will be 75 minutes of music on this disc, which is an electric guitar-oriented project. Michael Traylor, who produced my last CD, is also producing this one. He and I have developed a good working relationship. He seems to know what I need to do to accomplish what I need and want to. Michael is also the drummer with The Magic Band, formerly with Captain Beefheart. CB no longer tours due to health reasons, but The Magic Band still does some international dates. To round things out on this project, Michael enlisted Mark Boston, aka Rockette Morton, the original Captain Beefheart bassist. So that means that I have the Magic Band's rhythm section on my new CD, which is pretty powerful stuff. We even re-cut the old Beefheart tune "Sure Nuff n' Yes I Do," a rolling Elmore James/Delta-style track, along with a couple of Ventures things. I have several originals on the project, but also pulled out a few other surprises on it that still impress me. I'm looking for an early to mid-2008 release for this project.

 

Monte Adkison is a contributing writer at BluesWax. You may contact Monte at blueswax@visnat.com.