Honky Tonkin' With J. B. Beverly and the Wayward Drifters

This weekend it was great to hang out at the Full Moon Saloon in Baltimore and see JB Beverly and the Wayward Drifters. I was in town to work on our forthcoming CD by the Left with Mr Jim Swope who is sharing his time these days with his own rockin band, Lucky Man, and playing git for JB. Jim's been with JB for about a month and was coaxing me to catch their act so I did. JB Beverly is yet another byproduct of the dc punk scene and even once sang with the Murder Junkies, but these days his music is straight honky tonk mixed in with a little blues and played with a rowdy punk spirit. In case anybody's been paying attention, this whole country/punk/hellbilly scene has been erupting with great bands who have building up their scene for years. JB is part of that whole crowd and is buds with the great Wayne Hancock and Hank III as well as my pals Antiseen and he fits right in with that hell raisin crew.

JB's new Cd Dark Bar and a Jukebox will be out on April 2 and is well worth checkin out. The title cut is one of those honky tonk numbers that would sound great on a jukebox in a dark bar, and it laments the fact that there's no country played on country radio. Well now at least they have Outlaw Country on Sirius where you can hear some of these great new bands(and hopefully JB shortly) as well as classic country which never gets airtime. The Wayward Drifters would sound great on a jukebox or the radio, but live you get the whole shebang and with the addition of Jimmy's twangy Telecaster, you get a shit hot rockin combo that doesnt quit. It was a helluva lot of fun seeing these guys for the first time and their love and passion for the tunes they're playing is obvious.


Check out the nut Banjer Dan saluting the audience as he gets carried away! It musta been during JB's instant classic tune of heartbreak "Fuck You (and Anyone That Looks Like You)". It's no wonder that everyone in the band has the same whiskey bent and hellbound attitude. Like Hank III they are indeed crazed country rebels! I cant wait to hear the Dark Bar and a Jukebox CD and I am sure everyone will be hearing more about these hooligans soon. I'm gonna go back for a second round or two, cause once I had a little taste, I was hooked!