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Band profiles: The Guitardogs
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The Guitardogs @ Musikfest 8-9-09
The Guitardogs got together in the summer of 1988 through the mutual interest of music, songwriting, performing and basically having a wild time. Refugees from a long line of bands from the Philly and suburban areas, they quickly drew a large grass roots following with their powerful mix of rock and blues. The original lineup included: Roger Williams and Karl Huf on guitar, Dave Eveland on bass, and Jimmy Parker (of Stockyard fame, the original Electric Factory house band in the 60-70’s) on drums. Dave moved on in 1990 and was replaced by Mark Ludescher who added his own touch to the band, by switching between guitar and bass, and adding a third vocalist with lead experience to the mix. Karl left the band to pay more attention to his music store “The Tinicum Guitar Barn” in 1996. The band appeared as a three piece ensemble for the next year and a half before adding old friend and sometime sound engineer, Rich Schock, on keyboards. Rich’s addition rekindled the Dog’s flair for vocal harmonies and added a dimension they hadn’t had before with his keyboard prowess. Jim Parker went into retirement in November of 2005, and the band didn’t miss a beat as they quickly added Don McCormick a veteran, well traveled, and outstanding drummer to the mix. The band’s music is centered around their original material, which is said to have a rock/blues texture. Their cover material leans toward the classic rock side with song selection ranging from: The Allman Brothers and Three Dog Night, to Deep Purple, 5 Man Electrical Band, and Black Crows. Led by the outstanding guitar play of Roger Williams, the band still frequently overwhelms the SRO capacity of area juke joints. Currently working on a new release, the band has three prior releases: Don’t Track it in the House (released 2003 recorded live at the Tohickon Tavern) New Tricks (released 1999 most recent studio release) Guitardogs (released1992) Roger Williams A founding member of the Guitardogs, Roger loves the blues/ rock texture of their music. This is a good thing since he writes and arranges (not to mention his lead vocals) a lot of it! His influences range from the great British guitarists: Beck, Clapton, and Page, to Jimi Hendrix, and a large helping of Allman’s style slide. Roger, who resides on his farm in Bucks County Pa., is an avid guitar collector who finds vintage Fender Guitars and amps irresistible. He even has a bass guitar in the “Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame”. Seen in and around the Philadelphia area for many years, Roger’s outstanding guitar work is the motor that drives this band and has left many an awed onlooker waiting for the next time the Dogs comes back to town. Mark Ludescher - Mark was born in Philadelphia and moved to the Doylestown area of Bucks County at an early age. He began playing guitar in high school and has been seen out with many bands in the suburban Philly area over the last thirty years. About two years after the g-dogs were formed Mark stepped in as a replacement bass player and has held the position ever since. He still gets his guitar time however, getting spelled by Roger and occasionally Rich on the bass. Mark is also an accomplished vocalist and is instrumental in helping to arrange the guitardogs outstanding harmonies. Lude, as he is known to many of his friends, finds the wind in his face a spiritual inspiration. Between gigs he can be seen riding his Harley to his favorite haunts. Mark resides in Perkasie, Pa. with his wife Joyce. Don McCormick – Drummer Don has played in the Philadelphia area for 30 years. The many local bands that he has played with include Steve Mackey, the New Deal, John Austin, the Nameless Faces, and blues man Frank Bey and his Swing City Band. He also plays and records children’s music with Steve Pullara and the Cool Beans Band. During his career he has played in the pit bands for various local musical productions and has recorded with various artists at Mad Ferret Studios. He has appeared at the Ambler Cabaret, The Cape May Jazz Festival, Warmdaddy’s, the Wilmington Opera House, and the Kimmel Center among other venues. He has toured with the Nashville casino act Jesse and Judy. Don studied drums with Buddy Depenschmidt – drummer with jazz guitarist Charlie Byrd and Lenny Vinci- Atlantic City casino jazz drummer. He also studied 11 years with Joe Morello of the Dave Brubeck Quartet. Rich Schock Veteran keyboardist Rich Schock is no stranger to the music scene, playing out with his first band at the ripe old age of eleven. The “doctor” has played in various venues in the Philadelphia and New York areas over his near 40 year career and also can be found doing session work at area studios, both vocally and on keys. Rich was classically trained, and you can hear this in many of his leads and original songs. He is a NARAS member and a one time Platinum award Recipient. Often heard singing the high parts on the Dogs’ tunes, Rich’s back-up and lead vocals add to the diversity that is the Guitardogs sound.
I had the good fortune of being able to photograph the Guitardogs at Musikfest in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 8-9-09. The Guitardogs were without a doubt a crowd favorite with much of the crowd up and dancing throughout much of the show. The band was tight, the decades of playing experience and honing their style was evident and any rock or blues fan would have surely enjoyed the show. I certainly did. I'm looking forward to the next time I'll have the opportunity to photograph this band. You can check out their MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/guitardogs or you can go to their web site at www.Guitardogs.com Well, It's time for me to go and as The Guitardogs would say "I Hate Long Goodbyes"
Keep Rockin' !
Rob Valine
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