Piedmont Piano Company is pleased to present
S.E. Willis and the Willing
S.E. Willis and his band, Ruth Davies on bass and Bobby Cochran on drums and vocals, invite you to their own holiday party, joined by local favorite and great musician Nancy Wright on saxophone and vocals. The music (mostly originals by Willis) draws on a wide base of American musical forms, including Country, Zydeco, Soul, R&B, and of course Blues, with covers from such artists as Muddy Waters, Hank Williams, Fats Domino, Merle Haggard, Clifton Chenier, Robert Johnson, and Ray Charles. This is a band that delivers a solidly entertaining show of music, executed with superb musicianship, while never losing sight of the goal of providing a danceable good time!
$18 advance tickets
$20 cash at the door
S.E.Willis plays piano, accordion and harmonica and is the principle songwriter for the band. He's released 6 CDs of classic and original material and is a member of the Arizona Blues Hall of Fame. Together with Cochran and Davies they form one half of the Blues Foundation's 2015 Blues Band of the Year, the Elvin Bishop Band. sewillis.com
Bobby Cochran has had a long and important career in music, beginning in the Bay Area with a stint in the Army Band that brought him here. He subsequently played with Bobby Freeman, Carol Doda, Edwin Hawkins, Cold Blood, Tom Fogerty's Ruby and, of course, Elvin Bishop.
Ruth Davies, certainly one of the finest upright bassists around, is a legend in blues circles for her ten years with Charles Brown's late-life band. She has performed and recorded with John Lee Hooker, Maria Muldaur, Sammy Hagar, Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe, Norton Buffalo, Barbara Dane and many others. She was recently a key member of Pamela Rose's successful staging of "Blues Is a Woman" in San Francisco. ruthdavies.com
Nancy Wright is everybody's favorite tenor saxophonist. She is a band leader in her own right and has released two CDs under her name, including last year's "Playdate" that won her a BMA nomination as instrumentalist of the year. She has performed and recorded with guitar legend Lonnie Mack, the Bey-Paule Soul Orchestra and many others. She just started a new career as a vocalist in the last few years and has won strong acclaim for her work. nancywrightmusic.com