Little Elmore Reed Blues Band
http://www.littleelmorereed.com/
Before coming to the Legendary White Swan in July, 2011, the Little Elmore Reed band got their start performing at TC’s Lounge way out East 12th Street on Webberville Road in far East Austin. The remarkable gig at TC’s Lounge began with the unlikely booking of a white blues band in a bad time slot at a deep East Austin dive bar, but for seven years blues lovers and sweaty dancers packed the Little Elmore Reed Blues Band early weekday, late-night slot at the Lounge. The band, the lounge, and the parking lot scene became the stuff of Austin music legend. In so many ways, TC’s Lounge was the Wikipedia definition of a dive bar — the building was so decayed that it looked like a strong wind could knock it down. Old tires, dumpsters and parked eighteen-wheelers were scattered about the large parking lot. Inside the lounge, Christmas lights adorned the stage, the floor bounced along with the dancers, and in summer the heat drove patrons into the relative coolness of the parking lot.
Yet, a dive bar was the authentic habitat for a blues band, and at TC’s gig the Little Elmore Reed Blues Band flourished like the bourbon bottles on the card tables in the club. The core of the band included bass player J.P. Whitefield, drummer Mark Hays, guitarists Mike Keller and Willie Pipkin, and front man Dale Spalding, vocals and harmonica. The band was a shifting compilation of these great blues artists along with a wide variety of brilliant guest stars. And all the while the legend grew in little circles by word of mouth, until the gig was known as far away as Tibet, Russia, Brazil, Spain and Canada. No blues lover’s visit to Austin was complete without catching the Monday night performance by the Little Elmore Reed Blues Band at TC’s Lounge.
Nearly everyone had the same reaction to TC’s Monday night gig when they first came – there was something special that was impossible to define, but you could just feel it. It was like the best party you had ever been to, only every Monday night! Jimmy, one of the regulars, used to say, “Places remember events. At TC’s we dance, we chat, we eat, we drink, we court. We hiss and whirl, we pull and chatter. It glistens, sparks, glows and flares!” Many first-time visitors were surprised and delighted by the indefinable “we-ness” of the place, which was it’s joyous collective spirit — a swarming and frenetic nexus of people, great blues music, camaraderie, drugs, excitement, courtship rituals, romance, sensuality – forming a rich ambiance that gave it an enduring life of its own.
When asked to explain where TC’s was, Jimmy once said, “It’s not down on any map — true places never are. Go east on 12th Street until you find happiness. Go where there’s life…”
The Little Elmore Reed Blues Band performs every Monday Night at 10:00 PM at the Legendary White Swan, 1906 East 12th Street, Austin, Texas
Yet, a dive bar was the authentic habitat for a blues band, and at TC’s gig the Little Elmore Reed Blues Band flourished like the bourbon bottles on the card tables in the club. The core of the band included bass player J.P. Whitefield, drummer Mark Hays, guitarists Mike Keller and Willie Pipkin, and front man Dale Spalding, vocals and harmonica. The band was a shifting compilation of these great blues artists along with a wide variety of brilliant guest stars. And all the while the legend grew in little circles by word of mouth, until the gig was known as far away as Tibet, Russia, Brazil, Spain and Canada. No blues lover’s visit to Austin was complete without catching the Monday night performance by the Little Elmore Reed Blues Band at TC’s Lounge.
Nearly everyone had the same reaction to TC’s Monday night gig when they first came – there was something special that was impossible to define, but you could just feel it. It was like the best party you had ever been to, only every Monday night! Jimmy, one of the regulars, used to say, “Places remember events. At TC’s we dance, we chat, we eat, we drink, we court. We hiss and whirl, we pull and chatter. It glistens, sparks, glows and flares!” Many first-time visitors were surprised and delighted by the indefinable “we-ness” of the place, which was it’s joyous collective spirit — a swarming and frenetic nexus of people, great blues music, camaraderie, drugs, excitement, courtship rituals, romance, sensuality – forming a rich ambiance that gave it an enduring life of its own.
When asked to explain where TC’s was, Jimmy once said, “It’s not down on any map — true places never are. Go east on 12th Street until you find happiness. Go where there’s life…”
The Little Elmore Reed Blues Band performs every Monday Night at 10:00 PM at the Legendary White Swan, 1906 East 12th Street, Austin, Texas
The Little Elmore Reed Blues BandThe Little Elmore Reed Blues Band | Format: MP3-Download
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