On the 'Wagon

Raising the roof with Rick Mendes and company

by Bob Gulla

Back in October, Rick Mendes and Blueswagon entered the studio to record their first CD. Three days of recording and as many days

of mixing and mastering later, they emerged with Jump Start, 13 great tunes of rollicking, authentic R&B that takes its proud place in the long, storied lineage of local R&B.

Produced by former Roomful of Blues producer/trombonist Carl Querfurth and complemented by the presence of outstanding baritone sax guy Doug James, the disc, which includes the band's first original ("Jump Start"), comes off sounding like an exhilarating R&B album should, live and loud.

"I think it's a really good start," says Mendes, a former member of the Probers and a longtime blues devotee. "It's a good representation of what we're about. Given our budget, it's a good project. It's not perfect, but it wasn't meant to be. I mean, we're not Steely Dan."

What it is, is a crystallization of Blueswagon's lengthy stint Wednesday nights at the Call, where they serve as the house band for the super-successful Blues Buffet. Haven't been yet? Five bucks gets you in, and while you're there you get great music, dance lessons, a DJ spinning big band music, hot and cold food, and tons of fun. With the Call's bonus punch card you'll even get in free on the fifth week to make a cheap night even cheaper. "We took a dead night and pumped it up," says Mendes. "Now on Wednesdays, we'll get 160 customers on a good night."

On stage, as on disc, Blueswagon visits classic blues and R&B, including time-tested tunes by Chess greats like Little Milton and Lowell Fulsom, along with anthems by B.B. King, Chuck Berry, and Albert King. Trombonist Claude Chouinard arranges the band's three-piece horn section, which also features Rich Gamelin on trumpet and Dave Bolender on tenor sax. Then there's Rob Nelson on guitar, Mark Taber on keys, and the solid rhythm section of "Doc" Grace on bass and Joe Groves on drums. With the spirited Mendes out front, Blueswagon consistently kicks it, but good. No wonder why they play between 150 and 180 gigs a year, and that's just in Rhode Island. Lest we forget, entertainment, from Limp Bizkit to Buddy Guy, comprises a large part of successful popular music.

"The swing crowd has supported us immensely," says Mendes. "We play music they love for people who enjoy it. How could it get any better? Well, I guess they could throw $1000 bills at us!"

And they just might, if the band keeps on rockin' like it does. Blues and R&B enthusiasts ain't heard nothin' 'til they get a load of Mendes and company digging into tracks like Jimmy Wiggins's "I Can't Stop It" and Lowell Fulsom's "Talkin' Woman Blues," and showstoppers like Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode." But don't call them a cover band.

"In blues or R&B, `covers' is not an apt descriptive," says Mendes. "Maybe it's more like paying homage. We take great tunes and put our slant on 'em. They were beautifully written and performed in the first place and by many other acts since. We just want to take our place in the back of that line."

Locally, they've found their place in that back of a long, luminous line, too; one that features legends like Duke Robillard, Greg Piccolo, Sugar Ray, and Roomful of Blues. "We're staying true to the music we love. But we've got a long way to go. The blues road is a long one."

In addition to Wednesday nights at the Call, Rick Mendes and Blueswagon will play Bovi's Town Tavern (278 Taunton Avenue in East Providence, 434-9670) on Friday, and they will be at the Red Rock Bar & Grill (6105 Post Road in North Kingstown, 884-1800) on Saturday.

AUBREY ATWATER. Local legend Aubrey Atwater at long last sees the release of his new songbook, Song By Song. The 130-page book is the tireless result of almost 10 years of effort, compiling and annotating tunes largely taken from Atwater's experiences teaching workshops in festivals.

"What a wonderful feeling to hand it over after proofreading it what seemed like a zillion times," he writes in an e-mail. "The book I spent the last 10 months writing additional text, having the tabs computerized, and correcting and editing, correcting and editing [is done]. Of course, I didn't work on it constantly. I took a few `breaks' from the project to perform!"

Song By Song includes 85 tunes as well as method for mountain dulcimer, old-time banjo, and Irish tin whistle. Backup chords are included throughout and there is a special ballad and song lyric section. If this sounds like something you'd dig, you can order the book on Atwater's web site: members.aol.com/AubreyFolk/order.html.

WANDERING EYE. The indefatigable John Fuzek alerts us to the impending 8th annual Hear In RI Music Festival. That means all you songwriters out there need to get John your best demos and discs so he can get his lineup set. The theme of this year's festival, which will take place June 9 and 10 at Roger Williams Park in Providence is, pithily, "Celebrating Songwriters." As usual, John is open-minded in terms of styles, and is simply looking for "good original music." For more info, call 949-0757, or e-mail hearinri@ids.net. Send promos to Box 367, Harmony, RI 02829.

Chris Daltry of Purple Ivy Shadows will be busy this weekend. In addition to a PIS gig at the Green Room on Saturday, the 24th, with members of Ida opening, he'll be playing an acoustic gig at the Custom House on Sunday. That night he'll be joined by friends and fellow band members on acoustic instruments and will strum up songs from PIS and his other band, the 'Mericans.

David Roth returns to Stone Soup on Saturday (the 24th). If you go -- and you should if you like acoustic music -- you'll not only hear one of the finest singer-songwriters in the land, but a man widely in demand at conferences and retreats for his inspirational and funny performances. The evening's festivities begin at 8 o'clock with Stone Soup's own Kathy Danielson. Admission is a paltry $10.

Congratulations and a solid whack on the back to Bob's Day Off, winners of the very competitive and phenomenally successful Rock Hunt. 700 fans saw them take home the prizes last Thursday at Lupo's. The runners-up -- Turning Blue, the Jim James Band, and M-80 -- should, of course, be commended as well.

Here we go again: more ink to publicize yet another theft. Someday we're gonna catch one of these bastards. Anyway, Dave Raymond, guitarist of Boston's Johnny Wishbone, had his car broken into and lost two of his guitars and some pedals, including the axe he's played for the past 11 years.

Here are the details: a 1990 ESP Custom Strat-style guitar with red crackle finish and a Bill Lawrence L500XL pickup in the bridge, serial # 002202. This guitar has a Johnny Wishbone and System of a Down stickers on the back, a signature by George Lynch on the back of the headstock, and a row of Spice Girls stickers along the bottom edge. Also lifted was a 2000 Grendel five-string bass with a tobacco sunburst finish. Pilfered effects include a red Zoom Pandora's Effects box, a black ProCo Turbo Rat Distortion pedal, a silver Bass Micro-Synth pedal, two 20' Monster cables, two 6" Monster patch cables, and a black SKB pedal bag. The gear was stolen around Boston, but no doubt could make its way to shops here. Send any info to contact@johnnywishbone.com.

Bob Gulla can be reached at b_gulla@yahoo.com.