Tadd is the main vocalist and second guitar in the band. He also doubles up on lead guitar from time to time and plays a little slide guitar as well. Having started playing and singing some forty plus years ago, Tadd holds down the vocals for most of the bands tunes with a powerful voice and lots of growl.
Tadd didn’t really start playing in bands heavily until the about 1972 but playing the blues has always been his passion. Some of his very early blues favorites were Johnny & Edgar Winter, and remembers running into Johnny in a club on Bourbon Street in New Orleans once, he was rendered speechless for a while. Johnny is an amazing player with some real blues stories to tell. Corky Siegel was another one of Tadd’s blues idols in those days. He used to play at the local pubs around the area occasionally, or perform concerts.
Tadd was a music major for a short time in college and never did quite get the hang of that music theory or voice class stuff, just really wanted to get as close as he could to the core of the music and learn as much as possible. He did learn enough to begin composing jazz pieces with his friends and begin playing the blues. There were a few notable local guys that were friends through high school that helped push him into the music scene too (Gil & Mike).
Always being prone to getting involved in with jam bands of one sort or another, one of the most successful bands was he played with was the Plain Dealin’ Band. Born in the late seventies, the band was not really a blues band but southern rock/blues, and performed many of the songs that marked the times. There were songs by the Allman Brothers, New Riders, the Greatful Dead, Waylon Jennings, Jerry Jeff Walker, the Flying Burrito Brothers, Marshall Tucker Band, and the Outlaws. Eventually the Plain Dealin’ Band evolved into more of a rockin’ blues oriented band called simply, Dealin’. Of course the band went through several iterations of personnel, and during his time playing with Dealin’ got the opportunity to share the stage with many notable players; like Asleep at the Wheel, Koko Taylor, Big Twist, Jimmy Vaughan, Kim Wilson and the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Mighty Joe Young, Lonnie Brooks, and many, many other notable Chicago area blues artists, “I consider myself pretty lucky to have had those experiences and brushes with greatness”.
Tadd was one of the original producers of the annual Blues on the Fox festival. He’s produced many, many great blues artists over his five year stint on the festival committee. A few of them no longer with us, like Junior Wells, and Sam Carr. But he did get the opportunity to work with many of today’s top blues artists, and even share the stage with a few. Here’s where we drop a few names like: the Kinsey Report, Sugar Blue, Robert Cray, Big Bill MorganField, Charlie Musselwhite, Otis Redding, Kim Wilson & the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Lonnie Brooks, Shirley King, Pistol Pete, WIllie Kent and the Gents & Bonnie Lee, Big Time Sarah, Billy Branch, Carl Weathersby, Jimmy Johnson, Robert Jr. Lockwood, Snooky Pryor, Sam Carr, Frank Frost, David Morgan, Eddie Campbell, Joanna Connor, Little Ed and the Blues Imperials, Kenny Neal, Lemont Cranston, James Cotton, Fruitland Jackson, Clarance Gatemouth Brown, Tommy Castro, Carey Bell, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Scott Dirks, Pine Top Perkins, Eddie Clearwater, Henry Townsend, Louisiana Red, Debbie Davies, Philadelphia Jerry Ricks, Ronnie Baker Brooks, Mighty Joe Young, Big Twist & the Mellow Fellows, Otis Rush, Son Seals
That pretty much brings us to today. Tadd started 61 Beale Street in the spring of 2005 along with Jeff Cali (guitarist) and Mike Frieders (drums). The original concept was to be a rockin’ blues band. They were able to play some pretty notable gigs during the first year, like the Madison Blues Festival and the Taste of Chicago and maintained a very heavy gig schedule as well. The band backed off from the blues concept for a couple of years to try and gather steam. Now they are back and better than ever. The new lineup is talented and powerful.
I think you’ll like what you here. |
