Junior Wilson

1981 - The Movies (first trio)

1981 promo Strube, Junior & Bob

In the fall of 1981 our popular group "Tader and The Heart Beatz" broke up. I had several songs I wanted to record at my studio and Bob and Strube helped me arrange and record them. The sessions were productive and we did about 6 tunes. But after a few months we got musical cabin fever and decided to take the trio out. "The Movies" was born. Since we had recently been very successful as "The Heart Beatz" we followed a similar format. The song list also included originals and stylized cover tunes from the 50, 60s, 70s and 80s, focusing most heavily on the British Invasion era. Since neither Bob or I were really lead singers at the time we used two part vocal harmony extensively. The new band did real well from the first gig and was very busy in no time. A while later Rick Beck would join and help us with our recording project, which became a 45 release "Photograph". He then left the group and we became a trio again. Over the years there would be several other variations of the band. While doing "The Fantastic Cutters" in the early 90s Bob, Strube and I would play some pub gigs as the original trio. In the fall of 2006 we started performing out again. Rick would return in March of 2007.

1981-83 The Movies (quartet with Rick)

This was always my favorite version of "The Movies" band and it happens to be our current version as well. It consisted of the original trio lineup of Bob Barr, Ray Strube and I plus Rick Beck on guitar and later keyboards. Rick also contributed another lead vocal and strong harmony parts. He had worked with us in several other acts before joining "The Movies". "One Way" with Bob and Strube in the mid 70s and he was also the bassist for the "Tader & the Heart Beatz" trio in 1980. His addition to this group on guitar and later keyboards really clicked. This group was very popular and worked a lot.

Click here for more info on The Movies band

1984-90 - The Cutters

Members left to right - front row -Joey Fulkerson (guitar & vocals), 2nd row - Wayne Lopez (vocals), Bob Barr (bass & vocals) back row - Junior Wilson (vocals, organ, guitar, banjo & violin), Pedro Miller (keyboards & guitar) and Chris Jones (drums)

After the large Movies band split apart "The Cutters" was formed. Where the Movies generally had more of a British Invasion - folk rock sound, the Cutters song list had more soul music and American pop hits from the 60s to early 70s. There were also some 50s and novelty tunes in the mix and the third set usually included a show. The first version would include former Movies members Mike Halverson (organ & vocals), Gene "Grady" Griggs (sax & vocals(, Kendall "Sparky" Dixon (drums), Ed "Pedro" Miller (keyboards, vocals & guitar) and "Bouncin' Bobby" Barr (bass & vocals). Dover soloist Sol Knopf was hired to be lead singer and play guitar. The group worked hard and built a large following, playing several times a week and all over the mid Atlantic. Over the years it went through several member changes. Sol Knopf and Mike Halverson would leave and be replaced by Joey Fulkerson and Wayne Lopez. Chuck Sapp would come and go. Not long after I joined the band Grady Griggs and then Kendall Dixon left. Kendall was replaced by Chris Jones, who was later replaced by former Movies-Heart Beatz drummer Ray Strube. With all of the member changes going on "The Cutters" never lost it's identity and was always entertaining and energetic. The final version of the original band broke up in 1989 and was reformed using players from the Fredrick, MD area. That band would last another year or so before disbanding.

1991-94 - The Fantastic Cutters

Members left to right - Bob Barr (bass & vocals), Pedro Miller (keyboards, guitar & vocals), Mary Pat Hughes (tenor sax, flute & vocals), Junior Wilson (guitar, vocals & violin), Ray Strube (drums) and Roger Pace (alto sax & vocals)

Like the previous Cutters, this band focused on 60s-early 70s music and was very energetic. But with two horns the music focus was a bit more R&B and soul oriented than the previous Cutters versions. After the Fredrick based Cutters disbanded, Bob and I put together this group using former Cutters members Pedro Miller and Ray Strube. So we had the original core of the band again. We then added Roger Pace and Mary Pat Hughes, who were both outstanding sax players and fine performers. Roger had been a well known fixture in the Baltimore club circuit for many years and was known as the white James Brown for his wild dancing and stage antics. Mary Pat was a very accomplished player on several woodwind instruments and had a masters in music. Like the original Cutters, this band was a lot of fun and quite successful but it only lasted for a couple of years. Roger and Mary Pat would leave for a house gig and Pedro Miller would retire from health issues. Mary Pat would return and continue to work with us over the following year. Two very accomplished keyboard players would also work with us. Our old friend Tom Houska of Dover, DE (now of the "Funsters") and later Chuck Hasley from Odenton, MD. During the same era Bob, Strube and I also did regular "Movies" trio gigs at the MD-DE beach and WV ski pubs. This group finally ended when Bob left to work with Kathy Martin, who is presently with The Hubcaps. On a sad note, both Roger and Mary Pat have passed away.

1985-86 - Fun With Joan

Members left to right - Junior Wilson (keyboards, electric guitar, sequencer programming and vocals), Chris Pedler (lead vocals & keyboards), Dianne Donovan (lead vocals & keyboards) and Ray Sturbe (drums, electronic drums and drum machine programming

After the big "Movies" band broke up in 1984 another trio was formed by Ray Strube and I. We recruited former "Heart Beatz" bassist Steve Schellinger to handle bass and vocal chores. It was a good sounding rock trio but I was still more interested in having a big sound. Instead of looking for more members again I experimented with using a new medium called midi sequencing to add the extra parts that I felt would enhance the group's sound. Midi (Musical Instrument Digital Interface )technology had been around for several years and I had used it to interconnect my various synthesizers before. When personal computers became available some creative software guys wrote programs that would record the note parameters of the musical parts you played, allowing you to assemble the parts into songs. Sequencers don't record the actual sounds. They document the specs for the notes you played. All of the sounds are still housed in the synthesizer's sound banks, which the sequencer is hooked to via a special cable. Basic note specs include the note, duration of that note, the octave it's in and how loud you played it. It's Very similar in concept to a player piano. The technology allows an individual with arranging skills and imagination to do grand things. With the addition of some sequenced parts on tunes the group eventually morphed from the "Movies" trio into a whole new style of band. We renamed it "Fun with Joan". Joan was actually the computer (a hopped up Commodore 64. In the original version Steve still played bass and Chris Pedler, who we had worked with on various projects before, sang female lead and played keyboards. A while later Steve left the group and was replaced by Dianne Donovan on vocals and keyboards. Dianne and Chris had very different styles so it all worked out well. After Steve left I created the bass parts using the sequencer. We did a lot of 80s dance music, focusing on the more synth pop styles, and also rearranged some older songs to fit our new sound. We used really large hi fidelity PA systems, big lighting arrays and usually had world class sound men working with us out front. It was a big production with three to four hour setups and sound checks. Response to the group was always hot or cold. Some folks absolutely loved us, especially younger folks and technology freaks, while others, especially in this region, just didn't get it at all. After a year or so we disbanded.

1990 - Crabmeat, Pedro & Junior

Members left to right - Junior Wilson (electric guitar, vocals, fiddle , 5 string banjo and mandolin), Edward "Pedro" Miller (keyboards & vocals) and Jerry "Crabmeat" Thompson (acoustic 6 & 12 string guitars and vocals)

The best way I can describe the sound of this group is Frank Zappa meets Loretta Lynn and they become sailors. The group was an awful lot of fun. The song list was rather diverse with Crabmeat originals, sailor tunes,western swing, deep blues, Canadian country, traditional Bluegrass and even a few 60s folk rock tunes thrown in the mix. "Crabmeat" was a well known folk soloist in the DE-MD area with a couple of previous albums. He also wrote the Delaware state song "Small Wonder". Pedro and I had worked in several groups including "The Cutters". He did a great job of holding down the keyboard parts and bass lines. My main job was to play various stringed instruments to change the overall sound. Some memorable gigs were Earth Day's 20th year anniversary and a tour of Delaware schools to promote ecology ("Save the Bays"). Then there was a big show at a Delaware correctional facility. It was a very likable act and, beyond the silliness, very musical. One of the nicest comments I heard about this act was by a young black fellow at a Dover, DE club gig. He said that he usually didn't like any of the styles of music we were playing but he was very entertained anyway. Works for me.

1980-81 - Tader & The Heart Beatz

Rick Beck (bass & vocals), Tader (acoustic guitar & vocals) and Junior Wilson (electric guitar & vocals)

Junior Wilson (lead guitar & vocals), Ray Strube (drums), Tader (guitar & vocals) and Steve Schellinger (bass & vocals)

The Heart Beatz started out as a recording project at my studio in 1979-80. Ray Strube, Rick Beck, Bob Barr and I all contributed parts to several original songs that our old friend Tader had written. In the spring of 1980 Rick, Tader and I would form "Tader & the Heart Beatz". We all sang, Rick played bass, Tader played acoustic guitar and I played electric guitar. Though the music the trio played was very similar to the later band it was much more of an acoustic act and vocal harmonies were a very important part of it. With it's unique sound and Tader's unorthodox stage persona the trio made quite an impression at the MD-DE beaches over the next few months. We planned on adding Strube in the late spring and becoming a full band but before we could implement that plan Rick left the group. Rick was an important part of our sound too and we scrambled to find someone who could sing well and play bass. We wound up recruiting another old friend from the Dover area named Steve Schellinger. Steve was actually a guitarist but with little time he got up to speed. The group became an overnight success and dominated the DE-MD club scene in the summer of 1980. The audiences were simply blown away by the band's pumped up retro sound, stage chemistry and Tader's stage antics. The song list included favorite 60s tunes, old blues, novelty instrumentals and originals. There was a continuity to it all because every cover song we performed we had re-arranged in the band's style. In the fall of 1980 we continued performing more in the nearby cities and by New Year of 1981 Tader wanted a break to write. We recruited old friend and former "Serenade" front man Dave Brenton to sing and play guitar. That combination was different, not having a wild Tader front man, but the vocal harmonies were excellent and it did well. The group with Dave lasted until the late Spring when Tader returned. The summer of 1981 at the beaches was also a huge success but by fall the tension had grown and the group disbanded. We had recorded more originals during the winter and spring of 1981. A 45 was ready and most of an album was completed but it was never released. A few years later we reformed the band again with Bob Barr on bass.

The final Heart Beatz - Junior, Strube, Tader & Bobby Barr

1976-78 - Serenade

The final version of "Serenade" members left to right - Dave Brenton (bass & lead vocals), Edgar Fernandez (keyboards & guitar), Quay Rice (drums), Steve Fulkerson (guitar) and Junior Wilson (keyboards, guitar & vocals)

1976 - The 2nd version of Serenade playing at the Holiday Inn in Dover, DE. Pedro Miller (guitar & vocals) Junior Wilson (guitar Keyboards, banjo & fiddle). Not shown stage left are Quay Rice (drums) and Dave Brenton (bass & vocals).

"Serenade" was formed after Quay Rice, Edgar Fernandez and I left the "Gene Cook & Delaware" band in the mid 70s. Our friend Dave Brenton provided bass and strong lead vocals for the band. The song list included various rock styles and the hit dance songs of the era plus some jazz and even bluegrass instrumentals. A few months into the band Edgar would return to the Cook band. Pedro Miller (later of "The Movies", "The Cutters" & "Crabmeat, Pedro & Junior") was recruited to play guitar and keyboards. Pedro eventually left due to health problems. In the final version Edgar returned and Dover area guitarist Steve Fulkerson was also added. It was a creative band with a sound of it's own. In late 1978-79 we would reform as "Thumper" with Ray Strube (drums), Chris Pedler (vocals) and Lin Doughten (guitar & vocals). Thumper played a mix of rock styles, some blues and dance top 40 plus a few Charlie Daniels and bluegrass instrumentals thrown in the show as well. Lin would eventually form the long running "Fatback Blues Band". Dave would become an environmental trouble shooter and later start a successful company called Techclean. Chris would sing harmony on "The Movies" 45 release "Photograph" in 1982 and also sing in another band with us in the mid 80s called "Fun with Joan". She moved to the south west. Our long time friend Quay Rice passed away last year. We all miss him.

1978-79 - Thumper

Members left to right - Dave Brenton (lead vocals & bass), Chris Pedler (lead vocals), Ray Strube (drums) Not shown stage left are Lin Doughten (guitar & vocals) and stage right Junior Wilson (keyboards, guitar & vocals)

1973-74 - The Stu Nunnery band (N.Y.C.)

Stu Nunnery's 1974 album cover

Around 1973 I did some studio projects in Manhattan. A friend named Geoff Daking had a first class studio on West 45th street. It was in the same building that had been occupied by Capital Records during the 60s and gold records of hits by Capital artists from that era still lined the hallways. Geoff had been the drummer for the 60s hit psychedelic group "The Blues Magoos". The Magoos were based in N.Y.C. but lead guitarist Mike Esposito's family had a home in Milford and Geoff's family was actually from Wilmington, DE. They usually vacationed at DE beaches. The guys stopped by our music stores often and we became good friends over the years. When the Magoos disbanded Geoff went into the recording studio business. A few months after the sessions I received a call from Geoff's studio and was connected to Stu Nunnery, who had recently finished recording his album for Evolution Records there. Evolution Records was actually a subsidiary of Westinghouse Broadcasting and the label had a hit "One Fine Morning" by "Lighthouse " the year before. A week or so later Stu met me here in Delaware and we had a meeting. I liked his singing, song writing and playing abilities. Stu was also a very intelligent and a likable fellow. We clicked so I decided to work with him as much as I could. But there was still our family run music store to run and my ill father to care for too. Over the next year I traveled to New York for a few days at a time to rehearse or do shows. Then I'd be back home for a week or so and head out for a few days more. It was great fun. The band we put together for the shows was excellent. Stu sang and played piano and acoustic guitar, Bob Guenvor played bass, Bob Hite, formerly of the Fifth Estate, played drums, a fellow named Steven played electric guitar and I switched from pedal steel to electric and acoustic guitar. We did several memorable performances in 1974-75 including an Easter Seals telethon and live radio shows with Al Stewart, Marshall Tucker and John Lee Hooker. My favorite was a stage show with Gordon Lightfoot at Princeton. Eventually it became too much hassle to take care of family & business and focus on the group so I bowed out. A while later the Evolution Record company would cease to exist and Stu's record contract was no more. That was a side effect of the mid 70s petroleum supposed shortage. Simply a loss of record company profits due to the high cost of petroleum beads required to manufacture the vinyl discs. That made it no longer feasible for smaller labels or subsidiary labels, like Evolution Records was, to stay in business. Stu is now a spokesman for the promotion of agriculture in the state of Rhode Island.

1971-72 - Barn Dance

Taken during band rehearsal with "Barn Dance"

I no longer have a photo of this band but this is a picture of me during a rehearsal.Barn Dance was the first rock band with both country and rock influences I had been in. At the time it was a fairly new medium and the Eastern Shore audiences were not always comfortable with country influences in their rock, or rock in their country for that matter. The group did well and worked steadily building a solid following of folks who appreciated a unique band. We even had a psychedelic country light show. The song list was a wild mix of tunes by popular west coast groups like Buffalo Springfield, Flying Burrito Brothers and The Byrds , some traditional country favorites by Conway Twitty, Buck Owens and others and some various styles of rock. The players were - Paul Burkett (vocals, 6 & 12 string guitar), Jim "Screamin' Eddie" Norris (bass, vocals & harmonica, Howie Mills, (drums) and Junior Wilson (lead guitar, 5 string banjo and pedal steel guitar. The general mindset was Mothers of Invention meets Buck Owens in space It was very creative and musical, at times very zany, but always a whole lot of fun. Jim Norris would start a very successful oldies band in the 90s called "The Convertibles".

1968-70 - Love Special Delivery

Members left to right - Jim Truitt (drums), Junior Wilson (elctric guitar and electric banjo) and Skip Tumbleson (bass, vocals and harmonica)

We all met at my family's music store in Dover in the late 60s. Skip and Jim's families were Air Force stationed in Oahu and they had grown up there. Later their families were transferred to Dover. Skip was a very talented all around musician and a very natural, uninhibited entertainer. Jim was an outstanding drummer and had been tutored by drummer Dino Dinelli of the Young Rascals. I mostly played electric guitar and would switch to electric banjo now. Compared to most bands at the time, our shows were quite extravagant. We had a large PA system, a full psychedelic light show and our old friend and electronics wizard Bill Etherington out front running sound, various sound effects and the light show. The group was well known for it's crazy stage antics, musicianship and long creative jams. Our song list included a lot of 60s heavy, psychedelic and blues music. Eventually Jim grew tired of Delaware and returned to Oahu. Mark Lovelace then joined the band. Like Jim Truitt, Mark was a very fine drummer and a good fellow but I never felt that the chemistry was quite as good. After several months we disbanded and both Skip and Mark joined the popular Dover group Scuzzy Frog. I learned this year that Skip passed away in the late 70s while playing in a blues band in Texas. Mark was killed in the mid 70s in the Dover, DE area. I have lost contact with Jim Truitt.

1966-68 - The Sovereign

1966 publicity photo - Members left to right - Guy Priou (drums & vocals, Frank May (guitar & vocals), Jerry McPhereson (bass & vocals) and Junior Wilson (lead guitar & harmony vocals)

We put this band together when I was still a junior in high school and I was the youngest in the band. Prior to becoming bassist for The Sovereign, Jerry McPhereson had formed several successful bands in the area and had also toured with "Gene Pitney" and others. He was a fine player and sang well. Frank May (lead vocals & guitar) was from N.Y.C. and was an outstanding vocalist and all around musician. Guy Priou was from Cherry Hill, NJ. Guy played very solid drums, sang good harmonies and some ead. He was also a very entertaining performer and a lot of fun to work with. At the time both Frank and Guy were medics stationed at the Dover Air Force Base and I had met them at my family's music store. I was an pretty advanced lead player by the time I joined the band but no singer. They pushed me to learn to sing harmony better. The group's music had a lot of energy and arrangements were very tight. Our vocal harmonies quickly became outstanding and often 3-4 parts. As a gimmick we would always sit on high stools for the first set. Later on we wore clothing much like that of the early 1800s. The Sovereign was popular and played all over the Eastern Shore of DE-MD. A favorite memory is the band going to Newport News, VA to perform for the opening of a new Hullabaloo Club there, accompanied by the TV show dancers. We also recorded several tunes of Frank's as a band but never released them. During the sessions Alan Fitzgerald form Salisbury, MD (Hammond organ & vocals)joined the band. Alan had perfect chemistry with us and the group never sounded better. Later he would go on to play bass with west coast rocker Ronnie Montrose and then keyboards with 80s recording artists Night Ranger. We finally broke up in late 1968. It was a truly fine band and it's attention to detail has influenced every project I have been in since then.

1966 - "The Sovereign" performing at "The Sound Room", a popular club on Lockerman Street in Dover, DE

1964-65 - Junior Wilson radio show band

1963-64 Radio show band standing in front of W.J.W.L. in Georgetown, DE - members left to right - Bob Ellers (fiddle), Herb Lane (guitar), Junior Wilson (5 string banjo & electric guitar), Reds Stacey (bass & vocals), Vernon Lyons (steel guitar) and Sammy Travis (vocals & guitar) Not shown are Ginger Lee (female vocals) & Rick Shelton (vocals & guitar)

This group came together from weekly country-bluegrass jam sessions held at our family music store. Eventually this group had a Saturday morning radio show on W.J.W.L. in Georgetown, DE, which lasted about a year. We didn't do night clubs but we performed for stage shows often. It was always an entertaining act and a great group of singers and players to work with. Music included bluegrass, country (both traditional and the newer Bakersfield style), western swing and early rock a billy.

1964 - Performing with the band at the Milford Theater