Photo: Musicians Wally Wilson and Raul Malo.
Over the course of my, shall we say – interesting life – I’ve had the good fortune of playing music with some of the most exceptional players. Some were stars, and others were sidemen. But don’t let the term ‘sideman’ fool you – these “workaday” musicians are masters in their own right.
The music is the name-of-the-game, but sometimes the stories behind the music are what makes for good reading.
This series of articles – where I rub elbows and drop names unapologetically – will hopefully exemplify the comradery and sheer pleasure of playing in working bands; but, also the trials and tribulations. It’s all part of the surreal world of music – what I jokingly call my Evil Mistress.
I’ve played with a lot of great people, some of which are still friends after all these years. And then there were many of my old bandmates that were oddballs – I mean really weird! But these are the ones whose stories are hilarious. (Or sad, if you wanna know the truth of it.)
Enjoy yourself. And listen to the music!
(I’m not starting at the beginning of my career, but this first story will reveal why at the end.)
Stevie and the Stealers
In Dallas, 1981, I was contacted by Danny Brown, a manager and producer.
I had met Danny, and his famous wife, exotic dancer Chastity Fox, in 1977. I was playing with the Dallas band the Bee’s Knees at Fannie Ann’s on Greenville Avenue. Danny and Chastity strolled into the club with singer/songwriter Marc Benno. They came in specifically to see our blues guitar player Anson Funderburgh. After the show, Marc asked Anson and the rhythm section if we would consider doing a session in the near future – which we did. (That crazy story will be told later on in the series.)
In 1981 Danny asked me if I would play drums for Stevie and the Stealers. It seems that Stevie Davis was reforming his band and had written new songs for an album and subsequent roadwork. The important thing was that they had a Dallas millionaire backing the project! I knew who Stevie Davis was, and without hesitation, joined the band over the phone.
The first time I saw Stevie was in 1969. I was 18 and had a weekend gig with a shmaltzy jazz band called the Brack Shepperd Quartet. Stevie was playing with the legendary Bugs Henderson at the notorious Cellar in downtown Dallas. Bugs played his fiery, soulful guitar into the wee hours while Stevie sang and played a mean slide guitar. An early inspiration, Linda Waring, played drums and I believe Kenny Mathews was on bass. To say I was impressed is an understatement. (You will hear more about the Cellar, and all of the Cellar dwellers, I guarantee!)
Stevie played with Bugs into the mid seventies and then formed the Stealers. He had actually recorded at Muscle Shoals, in Alabama with his old line-up. Stevie Ray Vaughan called Slidin’ Stevie Davis “the most underrated guitar player in the state of Texas.” I can’t argue with that. Plus, he was a great guy.
Rodney Wall was the new bassman who had toured the UK, Scandinavia and Europe with the Bellamy Brothers (“If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body, Would You Hold It Against Me?” In 1979 the song became their first number 1 hit on the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles chart). Rodney was a strong, tasty bass player and one of the sweetest guys you’ll ever meet. I’m proud to say we’re still close friends to this day.
And then there was the one-and-only Wally Wilson banging away at his Yamaha electric grand piano. Besides being a keyboard virtuoso, he was a very engaging human being. Plain and simple, he’s a lovable character. He had played with his band Hot Sauce with Gary Nicholson and drummer Rosebud, managed by Bill Hamm (ZZ Top, Jay Boy Adams, etc.) I really perked up when he described a casual recording session with Stevie Nicks.
Together we formed a really tight little unit and an instant brotherhood. It looked as if we were really going somewhere this time. We immediately started rehearsing Stevie’s tunes and Danny booked a variety of gigs right off the bat. We actually perfected the music on stage. We played the old Bluebird Nightclub west of Ft. Worth and opened up for the Ozark Mountain Daredevils at the Agora Ballroom in Dallas.
Then the band did a Q102 radio simulcast from Pantego Recording Studios, west of Grand Prairie. There was a live studio audience, with our den mother Chastity Fox cheering them on and inspiring the band. It was a fabulous show. And we had a slick recording.
SAMPLE TRACKS:
Tonight (3:28)
Hot Summer (3:23)
Steal Your Love (3:33)
Things were progressing nicely. We were tightening up. And then the wheels fell off the cart.
One fine day Rodney and our roadie, David Weese (Bugs Henderson’s old road manager) showed up at my door. They informed me that our presence was required at the Hawn Mansion. This was the home of our so-called “money man.” I jumped on my Harley and took off. On the way over I became a bit apprehensive, and when I arrived… my suspicions were confirmed.
Instead of being paid money owed to us, we were informed that the backer had been wanted by federal agents and his house had been ransacked and property had been confiscated, including his Rolls Royce! It seems that large amounts of cocaine had been involved and the jig was up.
Dammit! Stevie was probably in the house with his wife, who knows? And Danny was nowhere to be found. Chastity tried to explain things, but her explanation was totally inadequate. Wally, Rodney and I were allowed into the kitchen where we opened a bottle of expensive whiskey. We were all in shock and knew that after three short months, Stevie and the Stealers was history.
Many Years Later
That was 44 years ago and life went on. But there were many other musical adventures! (And some of them actually paid off.) One story of great success was that of Wally Wilson. The boy had a magic touch and knew exactly what he wanted and how to get it. He moved to Nashville and worked his ass off in the music publishing business and other musical enterprises. In the nineties he produced two albums for Joan Baez.
In 2012, Wally had returned to songwriting when he collaborated with, Raul Malo, on the Mavericks’ reunion project. Raul is one of my favorite singers of all time, and his band, the Mavericks, are a colossal, Grammy award winning band that has been touring and recording for over 30 years. A truly remarkable powerhouse . . . and my old pal Wally is Raul’s brother-in-law!
Unfortunately, Raul Malo had been suffering from colon cancer but had been putting up a courageous fight.
Last Monday, December 8, we all heard the sad news that Raul had passed away. But his incredible music lives on forever; and I’ll be listening to it for as long as I live.
I’d like to extend my deepest condolences to Wally Wilson and his wonderful family.
DC has been a frustrated musician for over fifty years, and now has decided to become a frustrated writer. Learn more at DCDuncan.com. He’ll keep you posted.