Waddy Wachtel Band: Reviews and News


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Reviews and News - July 2011
Review: Waddy Wachtel Band 7/16/11

Note from Nina:

If there was a carmeggedon going on in Los Angeles Saturday night 7/16/11 you'd never know it by seeing all the wonderful Rockers who showed up at the Waddy Wachtel Band gig at The Joint. Everyone got there easily - less traffic than a usual Saturday night on the road - and they were all sure HAPPY they did. WWB gave all of us a GREAT night of fantastic Rock 'n' Roll. Of course they did - they always do!!!!!

Before I tell you about the gig, let me remind you we'll have one other WWB gig this month before Waddy takes off in August for a tour with Stevie Nicks:
Friday, 7/22/11
at The Mint, 6010 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90035
First Set: Around 10:15
Admission: $10
Let's Rock It Up there Friday night with WWB. Yes? Yes!!!!!!

About Saturday night 7/16/11..........
WWB decided to give us some songs we hadn't heard them do in a while, and a new one they hadn't performed before.

From the minute Waddy Wachtel hit the first guitar chords and Jamie Savko hit the high notes of their first song of the night "Immigrant Song" we all jumped to attention and knew we were in store for some mighty fine music. Put together all the incredible talent on that stage, and what do you get? Lots of smiles and tingles.

You can check out the set lists below to see the variety of songs WWB played - and all to perfection. They always manage to put their own "signature" on each tune - and take them to new Rockin' Heights. Yup - That's where we were - in the Rockin' Heights!

Brett Tuggle thrilled us all with his lead vocals and keyboards on "All The Way To Memphis" with Waddy playing some verrrry hot lead guitar through the end.

Jamie Savko came back to center stage and showed us the amazing versatility of his voice by singing "Ruby Tuesday" then letting it all loose on "Girl's Got Rhythm."

Waddy Wachtel burned on guitar through the first few songs, then took the mic to sing Warren Zevon's "Lawyers Guns And Money" - delightful vocals - and burnin' up those guitar strings.

Keith Allison jumped right in with "Pump It Up" - Keith is always ready to pump us up. He then treated us to "Just Like Me" - a song he played often with Paul Revere and The Raiders.

With all that great singing and playing going on, there has to be some of the best bass and drums keeping it all together. Rick Rosas and Phil Jones blasted through every song - perfect timing and easy moves through the tempo changes.

Our new song for the night: Waddy singing "Mr Tambourine Man." Loved it! When Waddy introduced it, he said: "We like to give you some more well-recognized songs too." LOL But I've gotta say - I never heard "Mr. Tambourine Man" ROCK like that. Waddy's vocals were amazing, Jamie's harmonies were right on, and Brett, Phil and Rick added that wonderful rockin' edge.

Another big treat...... Waddy performing his own song "High Maintenance Girlfriend." He and Brett had a great time with their guitars and vocal harmonies on it. You can see how much fun they were having in the photos. We all had fun too!!!! Big thanks to Waddy!

Here's the set lists so you can see what other songs they performed. A reminder for those of you who were there - and a temptation for those of you who weren't.

Set List:
For all songs:
Waddy Wachtel - Lead guitar
Phil Jones - Drums
Rick Rosas - Bass

First Set:
1. "Immigrant Song" (Led Zeppelin) Jamie Savko lead vocals; Brett Tuggle rhythm guitar
2. "All the Way to Memphis" (Ian Hunter) Brett lead vocals and keyboards; Waddy Wachtel and Jamie harmony vocals
3. “Ruby Tuesday” (The Rolling Stones) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy harmony vocals, Brett keyboards and harmony vocals
4. "Girl's Got Rhythm" (AC/DC) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy and Brett harmony vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
5. "Lawyers Guns and Money" (Warren Zevon) Waddy lead vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
6. "Pump It Up" (Elvis Costello) Keith Allison lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Waddy harmony vocals; Brett harmony vocals and keyboards
7. “Just Like Me” (Paul Revere and the Raiders) Keith lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Waddy harmony vocals; Brett harmony vocals and keyboards
8. “Itchycoo Park” (Small Faces) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy and Brett harmony vocals; Brett keyboards
9. “I Am The Walrus” (The Beatles) Brett lead vocals and keyboards; Waddy background vocals
10. “Substitute” (The Who) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy and Brett harmony vocals; Brett rhythm guitar

Second Set:
1. “You Shook Me" (AC/DC) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy harmony vocals
2. "Mr. Tambourine Man" (Bob Dylan) Waddy lead vocals; Jamie harmony vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
3. “Till The End Of The Day” (The Kinks) Brett lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Waddy harmony vocals
4. “Honky Tonk Women" (The Rolling Stones) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy harmony vocals; Brett harmony vocals and rhythm guitar
5. "High Maintenance Girlfriend" (Waddy Wachtel) Waddy lead vocals; Brett harmony vocals and rhythm guitar
6. "Stop Breakin' Down" (Robert Johnson) Keith lead vocals, guitar and harmonica; Waddy slide guitar; Brett keyboards
7. “Somethin’ Else” (Eddie Cochran) Keith lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Brett keyboards
8. “Live Wire” (AC/DC) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy harmony vocals; Brett harmony vocals and rhythm guitar
9. “Won’t Get Fooled Again” (The Who) Jamie lead vocals; Brett keyboards

Hope to see all of you at The Mint Friday night!
Waddy, Phil, Rick, Brett and Jamie thank all of you for coming down to share in the fun. As Waddy says: "It wouldn't be rockin' without you!"

Click on any photo to enlarge.....

Waddy Wachtel, Phil Jones, Jamie Savko, Rick Rosas, Brett Tuggle	Waddy Wachtel, Phil Jones, Jamie Savko, Rick Rosas, Brett Tuggle	Waddy Wachtel, Phil Jones
Rick Rosas	Brett Tuggle	Phil Jones
Jamie Savko, Brett Tuggle	Phil Jones, Jamie Savko, Rick Rosas, Brett Tuggle	Brett Tuggle
Waddy Wachtel, Phil Jones, Brett Tuggle, Rick Rosas	Waddy Wachtel, Phil Jones, Brett Tuggle, Rick Rosas	Waddy Wachtel, Phil Jones, Brett Tuggle, Rick Rosas

"All The Way To Memphis"

Review: Waddy Wachtel Band 7/22/11

Note from Nina:

Those of you who were at The Mint in Los Angeles Friday night 7/22/11 for the Waddy Wachtel Band show know what a great night we all had! Rocked up real good we were! Everyone kept saying how lucky we are. Those of you who couldn't make it - I'm soooo sorry. I'll try to give you a vicarious thrill with my review, but you really have to be there to hear how fantastic these guys are.

First..... some other sightings......
July 28 - Waddy Wachtel will be appearing on The Tonight Show with Stevie Nicks.
July 27 - Phil Jones and Rick Rosas performing with Jack Tempchin at The Piano Bar in Hollywood.

About our great WWB Friday night show........

This wasn't the first time the Waddy Wachtel Band performed at The Mint. The first 2 shows WWB ever did were at The Mint in May 2000. Since the folks who ran the club at the time didn't realize what a treasure they had, they decided not to let the band play there any more. Would the band stop rockin'? Never! They simply moved down the street to The Joint where they continued to bring in tons of wonderful Rockers for the next 11 years. Charlie McIntosh was running The Joint at the time, and he definitely knew great R 'n' R when he heard it.
Fast forward...... Charlie, who is now involved with The Mint, asked WWB to come back and perform there again. Thank you, Charlie!

So, you wanna hear about the music?
There wasn't a moment our hearts weren't thumping, our feet weren't stomping, our skin wasn't tingling, and our faces weren't wearing big smiles as WWB blasted through 2 incredibly fantastic sets.

The Waddy Wachtel Band not only selects great songs to play, but they add their own signature to each one of them. You hear these songs played by WWB, and they come alive in the most delightful Rockin' way. The WWB Way!!!

They started the night with Jamie Savko wailing through lead vocals on "Substitute." Jamie ain't no substitute. He's the real deal. What a clear crisp voice - singing every song with perfection. He can hit notes that are almost - unearthly! Shivers.

Waddy Wachtel added his great harmony vocals to many of the songs, and took over on lead vocals on his own composition "High Maintenance Girlfriend" and Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man." That man can sing! Waddy's fingers flew all over his guitar all night. This is something you gotta see to believe. One guy making all those WWonderful sounds with no special effect pedals - just running through his 2 Vibro King amps. It makes other guitar players say: "I better go home and hit the shed." Waddy wails!!!! So much talent in one guy.

Our man Brett Tuggle gave us some great lead vocals too. I think most people's favorite is "I Am The Walrus" - which he does so well - but when he sings "Till The End Of The Day" I sure want him to keep it up all night. And his perfect keyboard playing on "Won't Get Fooled Again" - ahhhh yes. A special treat is when Brett and Waddy share solos (Brett on keyboards and Waddy on guitar) on "All The Way To Memphis." Your head keeps ping-ponging between them trying not to miss a thing.

Keith Allison was in great shape with searing vocals and rhythm guitar. He might have sang the lyric "You don't know The Shape I'm In" but we do. He's in great shape, and always adds so much musically to the shows. And what a beautiful smile!

What about Phil Jones and Rick Rosas? Phil and Rick were there from the beginning forming the band with Waddy, and playing since the first gigs at The Mint in 2000. They never cease to amaze us, creating that wonderful wall of sound that really makes our hearts go thump, thump, thump. The best drummer and bassist anyone could wish for. And we got 'em!

And..... You great WWB Rockers! You're the best! As Waddy says: "It wouldn't be rockin' without you." We love seeing all your beaming faces. Thank you all!

Another thing that makes these shows run so smoothly - our great crew. John Philbrick and Charlie Wood are always right there ready to unload, tune up, and keep all those instruments in perfect shape. Numerous tasks for those dudes, and they accomplish it! Mark Nathanson works the knobs on the sound machine and keeps the levels like we want them - he does a great job. Charlie McIntosh kept things humming by setting up the gig, making sure The Mint was comfortable for us, and serving those drinks with lightning speed along with his pro bartenders. Anna was a delight at the door, greeting everyone with a big friendly smile. Big thanks to everyone else who was there to lend a hand, and the sweet folks at The Mint who were always ready to help with smiles.

Well, my sweet Rockers, we won't be back to Rockin' It Up again with WWB until some time in September. I'll let you know when we can all get together again. In the meantime, I'll keep you updated on the other stuff the guys are doing.

I didn't take any photos last night. I was too busy rockin' & rollin'. But I can tell you...... They all looked fabulous!

Set List:
For all songs:
Waddy Wachtel - Lead Guitar
Phil Jones - Drums
Rick Rosas - Bass

First Set:
1. “Substitute” (The Who) Jamie Savko lead vocals; Waddy Wachtel and Brett Tuggle harmony vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
2. “Dog Eat Dog” (AC/DC) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy and Brett harmony vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
3. "All Down the Line" (The Rolling Stones) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy harmony vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
4. “Revolution” (The Beatles) Brett lead vocals and keyboards; Waddy harmony vocals
5. “Misty Mountain Hop” (Led Zeppelin) Jamie lead vocals; Brett keyboards and harmony vocals
6. "Up On Cripple Creek" (The Band) Keith Allison lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Waddy, Brett and Jamie harmony vocals; Brett keyboards
7. “Poor Poor Pitiful Me" (Warren Zevon) Keith lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Waddy harmony vocals and slide guitar; Brett harmony vocals and tambourine
8. "High Maintenance Girlfriend" (Waddy Wachtel) Waddy lead vocals; Brett harmony vocals and rhythm guitar
9. "All the Way to Memphis" (Ian Hunter) Brett lead vocals and keyboards; Waddy Wachtel and Jamie harmony vocals

Second Set:
1. “Itchycoo Park” (Small Faces) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy and Brett harmony vocals; Brett keyboards
2. "Immigrant Song" (Led Zeppelin) Jamie lead vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
3. “Till The End Of The Day” (The Kinks) Brett lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Waddy harmony vocals
4. “Honky Tonk Women" (The Rolling Stones) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy harmony vocals; Brett harmony vocals and rhythm guitar
5. "Mr. Tambourine Man" (Bob Dylan) Waddy lead vocals; Jamie harmony vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
6. “The Shape I’m In” (The Band) Keith lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Jamie and Waddy harmony vocals; Brett keyboards
7. “I Am The Walrus” (The Beatles) Brett lead vocals and keyboards; Waddy background vocals
8. "Girl's Got Rhythm" (AC/DC) Jamie lead vocals; Waddy and Brett harmony vocals; Brett rhythm guitar
9. “Won’t Get Fooled Again” (The Who) Jamie lead vocals; Brett keyboards

See you sooooon!!!!

Photo and videos by Carey Smith........

"Misty Mountain Hop"

"Won't Get Fooled Again"

"Poor Poor Pitiful Me"