| Mark Wendel photos
Sunday, March 16 -- Big Worm and the Nightcrawlers (top) and The Jon Justice Band at C & C Loft and Lounge. |
ST. MARYS, OHIO -- Wow.
A full house at C & C Loft and Lounge was treated to a fantastic blues show Sunday (March 16), in the third installment of the Riverside Bluesfest 2008 Blues Challenge.
Delphos band "Big Worm and the Nightcrawlers" started it off with an hour of scorching blues, rock and country favorites. Band members Dave Liles (guitar), Brett Mullins (guitar), Rick Yates (drums) and Bryan Wireman (bass) proved they are no mere "cover" band; they transcend that name with a top notch act that grabs listeners and holds them down.
The interplay between twin lead guitarists Liles and Mullins was reminiscent at times of the Allman Brothers' Dickie Betts and Duane Allman, and at other times of the Eagles' Don Felder and Joe Walsh. Mullins even threw in a couple of references to jazz guitarist George Benson with scat/guitar "duets" injected into his solo turns. The result, when combined with the solid rhythm section and a playlist well-tailored for the audience, was an exhilarating and satisfying show.
At the break, more than one audience member wondered aloud how the second band could top the act they had just heard.
"The Jon Justice Band" had very generously agreed to perform at this event although being excused from the competition, to introduce their band to this area while maintaining the Blues Challenge's local appeal. Nominally from Cincinnati, this group of four young men is drawn from the states of Ohio, Indiana and Washington, with their lead guitarist and vocalist Jon Justice the oldest at 25.
Although new to St. Marys, "The Jon Justice Band" is hardly new to the blues scene. In February they competed in the 2008 International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee, for which they qualified by winning the 2007 Cincinnati Blues Challenge.
In addition to Justice, band members Wade Baker (bass), Eric Manweiller (drums) and Ben Walkenhauer (sax) are serious and accomplished musicians in their own right. Together, they make "serious and accomplished" look like a whole lot of fun.
Performing all-original material ranging from gut-busting 12-bar blues to jazz-influenced rock, "The Jon Justice Band" won howls of approval from the audience with virtuosic turns from all four players and an infectious energy. For example, bassist Baker kept time not by tapping his foot but by bouncing up and down six inches off the stage for minutes at a time. The three others were equally showmanlike, and at the end of the 75-minute set, the crowd demanded and received an encore.
Afterwards, C&C Loft and Lounge owner Charlie Knous commented on the show. "An older gentleman just told me that he never thought he'd live to see the day that he'd see such quality entertainment in St. Marys," Knous said. "He said he was just glad he was here to see it."
The Blues Challenge is a series of one final competition following four preliminary events, with the first place prize being the opening act at the Riverside Bluesfest, to be held at K.C. Geiger Park on Saturday of Labor Day weekend (August 30, 2008).
"Big Worm and the Nightcrawlers" join "M.C. Blue" and "Lady Bird and the Dirty Dirty Earth Worms" (both from Celina) in advancing to the Blues Challenge Finals, to be held at the St. Marys Eagles Lodge on Sunday, May 18, 2008.
But first, one more finalist band will be determined at the Celina Moose Lodge at 1:00 pm on Sunday, April 13. "No Right Turn" from Lima will compete with "Back Beat Blues" from St. Marys for the last slot to fill out the final four.
For more information on the 2008 Blues Challenge and the Riverside Bluesfest, visit www.stmarysblues.com.
