Back in February my band hosted an open jam at the Record bar in Westport.  One of the jammers who came out was a good friend of ours who goes by the name Paul Wilks.  Some people reading this might know that name and others might not be too familiar with him.  Either way, I really must report, his guitar playing has been phenomenal as of late.  I’ve known Paul for a while and I always thought he was a great player, but the last few times I heard him I would have to put him on the list of top guitarists in town.  He has been playing like a wild animal that just broke out of its cage, probably because he has been out of action for a while with some injuries.  Paul Wilks is generally known as the lead guitarist and vocalist for the Hard Likker band.  Hard Likker is a group of veterans on KC Blues scene who have had some hard times as of late. The band was formed in the early 1990’s by Paul and bass player Steve Pieman and keyboardist Fred Berry.  Over the years they have a number of lineup changes.  Some of the musicians they have worked with are drummer extraordinaire, Don Glaza, sax master Jimmy “Sweet Lips” Wilson and the outstanding vocalist Z.Z. Rose.  Back in October of ’09, Paul had a motorcycle accident that put him out of action for quite a while.  He recovered in time to play the Haiti benefit at the Double Nickel in early February, but shortly after that Fred Berry had a mishap at his home that caused HIM to be put out of action.  Hopefully everyone in the band can get healed up soon and they can get back on the local scene.  Until then, you can see Paul out and about playing the open jam circuit, displaying him amazing guitar skills. Check him out if you get a chance.  www.myspace.com/hardlikker.

            ON ANOTHER NOTE: Apparently things are going great in Detroit.  I guess they haven’t had any club closings or any outdoor festivals shut down.  I am lead to believe bands up in the Motor City can demand and get paid exactly what they ask to be paid, or maybe gigs are so plentiful there that bands can turn down offers from clubs that don’t live up to the standards set by award winning musical outfits.  Sound like a steaming pile of baloney to you?  That’s ‘cause it is.  You know what else is a steaming pile of baloney?  Claims that bands taking a low paying gig are out to pad their ego.  Believe it or not, but once in a while a band has to take less than what they would like simply to get their music heard.  This is the case with many new bands that can’t, for whatever reason, find booking agents or even veteran bands that aren’t considered marketable.  On top of that, occasionally a new club will come on the market, let’s say, maybe, a former owner of an established club will open a new place and his budget isn’t exactly the same as his old place.  Or maybe, JUST MAYBE, a bar & grill will be open for a while and decide adding live entertainment might be a good idea.  In order to test the waters that bar & grill will book bands at a lower pay rate just to see how successful the new venture might be.  Once in a while a band will take one of those low paying gigs from that bar & grill in hopes that live entertainment will catch on at said bar & grill and eventually that place will start booking bands and paying them what they deserve.  Yes, believe it or not, taking a low paying gig sometimes can HELP the greater good.  Isn’t that what this whole freaking thing is about?  Helping spread the Blues into new places and keep the music alive?  They don’t hand out Blues awards to every band that plays, and that sure as hell doesn’t mean those bands don’t deserve to be heard.

Got something to complain about?  Don’t take it to the editor.  My email address is coyotebillsband@yahoo.com.