Ah it is fun to grab the JB and tail it down to the Canberra Blues Society jam session on a Sunday arvo and have a nice simple blues blow with that loud and clear backline. The host band this day was Wally & Eric Crew and they are long termers in the CBS and authentic in their renditions and voices so a great pleasure. The first item I encountered the CBS was yonks back at a venue near the Manuka Oval, was it the first location of the Eastlakes Club? Then Tuggers, Austrian Club, Spanish Club, perhaps more, and now the Harmonie German Club with a decent hall and wonderful gear. I'm revisiting recently. My blow band just came together literally minutes before we went on stage. Vox, 2 x guit, bass, drums. Just three tunes, loud, D blues, A blues, an original with instructions: E, don't play the third. Well I played maj and min thirds in chromatic runs and b7 of course and it was a blast. Again, noisy. Aaron on vox, I missed the other names but drums was an ex-Army Band Euphonium player. Big smiles. Then a string of bands with familiar faces, some of whom I'd played with. Once again no pic of my jam band. Just one excellent German beer (dunkel) on tap and I had to leave before the end, but I came away with a smile on my face. It's not complex music but it does have its style and authenticity and can merge into rock and it is fun.
Wally & Eric Crew were the host band at the Canberra Blues Society jam session at Harmonie German Club. W&EC comprise John Van Buuren (guitar, vocal), Steve Hartnett (harmonica, vocal), Brian O’Rourke (bass) and Jonathan Jones (drums).
