Two Anniversaries -- Elvis and JP

Saturday night at the Quarry House Tavern we'll be celebrating two big rockabilly dates -- well, one big one and one small one -- Elvis' 75th birthday, and the 10th anniversary of the first time I ever appeared in public as JP McDermott

The events of January 8, 1935 in Tupelo, Mississippi would be far-reaching -- Elvis went on to change the popular music of the entire planet. The events of January 9, 2000 in Rosslyn, Virginia were near-reaching -- the DC music scene got another good rockabilly band to keep things rocking into the 21st century.

That first performance was at the Tex Mex Grill in Rosslyn, VA. I was the featured showcase artist in Kenny Haddaway's (very influential) open mic. It was one full set with Kenny on bongos and Terence McArdle on guitar. I can’t quite remember if we had anyone on bass that night. I do know I was in the studio with Eric Shramek soon after that. The first song we played was Warren Smith’s great “Rock and Roll Ruby”.

The show at the Quarry House Tonight will be a celebration of both events – Elvis’ and mine. The QHT is the home of the 200+ item beer list, tater tots, a funky little dance floor, a great crowd, and rockabilly every week. It's always your best Saturday night bet, so come on out!

Week Two of the Three Week Stand at the QHT

Another hot night at the Quarry House. I suspected it would be a little crazy -- it just seemed like it would be one of those nights, and it was.

My lifelong best friend, Al, was in town from Atlanta. We formed our first band together way way back in the olden days. He was the guy who turned me on to Gene Vincent, Robert Gordon, and Link Wray. This guy knows rockabilly, and has a very popular channel on YouTube (Gatorrock786), featuring the largest collection of Collins Kids videos on the internet among many other things.

One of the most important events of my musical life was when Al and I ventured all the way to Bethesda to go to the PsycheDelly and see rockabilly god Tex Rubinowitz. We drank a lot of cheap beer and went nuts to the raw power of Tex. That was an inspiration that's been with me to this day.

So it was only fitting with Al in town that Western Bop should pull out a full Tex tribute. After all, we do have Dr. Bob Newscaster -- he was in the original band that Tex recorded with, and shares songwriting credits with him. When you've got the weapons, you've got to use them.

Here's the set list from that segment of the show:

Ain't It Wrong
Flood of Love
No One Left to Turn To
Everybody's been Lovin' My Baby
Feelin' Right Tonight
Red Cadillac and a Black Mustache
Bad Boy
and of course, Hot Rod Man

If missed it, and want to get a taste, you can see a video of "Hot Rod Man" here.

The third set was a blast, too. Phil Matthieu took over the lead guitar duties and really blew us all away. Phil and I have worked out a couple of parts, and he's a real joy to work with.

Lots of regulars turned out (Suzanne, Justina, Margaret -- it is always a real pleasure to see your smiling faces). We had Andrew and John from the Four Star Combo sit in for a few numbers which is always fun.

By the end of the night the whole place was up and dancing like mad -- just like back in the day at the PsycheDelly.

Can't wait for Week Three!