Sort of Fat Back Country Rock, Southern Roots Northern Whiskey Blues & Mountains of Rolling Groove!
"WHAT THEY ARE SAYIN'"
We have had some great opportunities to open for some of our musical idols over the last year or so and the best part is the response we have received after the shows from The Charlie Daniels Band to Paula Nelson shows fans have responded to CBR but here is what some of the musicians have said. Doug Gray (lead singer and founding member of Marshall Tucker) shouted to Linda from the stage "Hey, you all were awesome tonight!". David Nelson & Michael Falzarano of New Riders of the Purple Sage came up to the band after listening to our sound check and said "It's great to get a chance to play with like minded people and musicians". We have played with Blackberry Smoke numerous times, during the first show Charlie Starr (lead singer) got on the microphone and announced after our set to a sold out crowd "Those guys & gal are FANTASTIC". Greg T Walker (Bassist, singer and founding member of Blackfoot) was quoted as saying, "CB Radio has great focus and true dedication to their craft. They make it look easy. In today’s world of copycats and knock-offs, the Cber’s are the real deal". At a show in New York Shooter Jennings came up to Jay to ask him about his father's (Waylon) logo stickers on Jay's guitar case. The two exchanged positive comments about each others show and the band found out later that when Shooter walked into the show during CBR's performance of his mother's (Jessi Colter) song, "Why you been gone so long", he grabbed the venue's manager and said that this band is setting a great vibe for the night, it's perfect". CBR has played countless shows with Molly Hatchet and at every show lead singer Phil McCormack makes a point to announce to the crowd how much of a CB radio fan he is. Founding member Dave Hlubeck has always had positive things to say the band and has stated that our show is as good as any out there. AWESOME!
"SIRIUS XM RADIO"
The last three years have been a blast for Jay, CBR, Meredith Ochs and Sirius XM radio. CBR continues to receive regular airplay on the Outlaw Country station. Along with this, Jay has been welcomed as a special guest host regularly to Meredith's Freewheelin Show on 106. The show runs daily from 11am to 2pm and maintains an audience of mostly truckers. CB Radio songs can be heard on the show often and Jay, by himself and with Linda has performed a variety of times on air. Some highlights for Jay have been interviews with Charlie Daniels, Guy Fieri, Tony Danza, Randy Rogers, The Cowsills and a chance to get to watch a live performance in the "fishbowl" (Sirius' live room) of Whitey Morgan. Recently, brand new CBR tracks have been played over the Sirius XM airwaves and to great response. Jay said, "It's been a real treat to get a chance to go to Rockefeller Center on so many occasions and see the great studios, bump into all kinds of celebrities in the hallways and experience the biggest radio company in the world". By the way, Meredith who has done everything from write for Rolling Stone to interview for NPR is a big fan of CB Radio and she is a good friend to boot.
“THE ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL SAGA”
On November 21, 2010, CB Radio was scheduled to play with the legendary Texas Swing band “Asleep at the Wheel” in Newport, Rhode Island. When CBR arrived at the Historic Newport Blues Café, they were met by the owner Jim Quinn, who had some bad news. He informed CBR and their manager, Sean Gilday, that Asleep at the Wheel’s Prevost bus had broken down north of Boston and that they were “kind of stranded,” and with the show only a few hours away, it would take a miracle to get them to the venue in time. Well folks, that miracle came in the form of a 1957 GMC Bus we call the Ol’ Waylor. Without hesitation Jay jumped in the Ol’ Waylor with Sean Gilday, and rode hard and fast to rescue Asleep at the Wheel, who were not only extremely grateful, but put on a superb show to a fantastic crowd that night! From here the story continues! After arriving back in Austin, Asleep’s bass player, Dave Miller, contacted Jay, and the two had some very friendly conversations, during which Dave invited Jay and the band to stay at his place if CB Radio ever headed down to Austin. CB Radio learned shortly after that they had the opportunity to book several showcases at SXSW in Austin, and from there came a complete Southern tour in April 2011 – New Jersey to Texas and back in the Ol’ Waylor! Dave came true to his word and not only put up CBR, hosting the Ol’ Waylor in his front yard and half the band in his house, and two of Dave’s friends took in CBR members and road crew. Beyond this, Dave became a tour guide for the band, and showed us all the time of our lives! Some highlights included: a showcase on the same bill with Paula Nelson and Haybale; a trip to Luckenbach, TX; a video showcase for MusicFog at Threadgill’s next to the famous Armadillo Headquarters’ site; a special invite’s to Ray Benson’s private birthday party; Dale Watson’s show at Ginny’s Little Longhorn; Whitey Morgan & the 78’s showcase; a night at the Flying W Ranch; and all kinds of other good stuff, including too many awesome food joints to even name. It was hard to say goodbye to Texas and Dave, but northward we were bound. However, Asleep was scheduled to play at Hill Country, NYC (one of CBR’s regular show venues) in October of 2011. The band and friends showed up in “Dave Miller Fan Club” shirts and got to hang with Dave and see a great show. This was a great cap off to the whole Asleep at the Wheel / CBR connection but certainly is not the end of the Saga! Keep your eye out for show dates in the future. If you like CBR then you’ll love seeing us open for Asleep at the Wheel!
“Linda King performs with Barry Mitterhoff & Tony Trischka at Hazel Dickens Tribute”
On May 30, 2011, Linda and Jay were invited to perform at the Hazel Dickens tribute at Banjo Jim’s in New York City. Barry Mitterhoff, who is a member of Hot Tuna and played with Hazel for years, asked Linda if she and Jay would like to play a few songs at the tribute. The tribute gained a lot of buzz in the music industry, being advertised in numerous music rags. Jay and Linda were mentioned in the New York Times print article and Linda was noted in No Depression magazine, “It was then pretty much non-stop with Linda King going straight to the hard stuff and hitting us right between the eyes with "Don't Put Her Down, Cause You Put Her There" in a voice most like Hazel's”. Banjo Jim’s was packed from wall to wall when Linda and Jay opened up the show, backed by Barry Mitterhoff on mandolin, Tony Trischka on banjo, Skip Ward on bass, Kenny Kosek on fiddle and Danny Weiss on guitar. These guys are all heavy hitters and it was an honor for Linda and Jay to play with such stellar musicians.
Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich Endorses CBR?!?!
We actually got endorsed by a politician. Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich came to our concert in Washington D.C. (Abbey Road by the River) and after the show he told us that he loved the sound and our unique style and, by the way, his friend WILLIE NELSON has got to check us out. We were blown away by his positive words and his compliments for the band. It is always a great surprise who you meet on the road and who becomes a fan of your music. Congressman Kucinich was elected to congress in 1996 and has had the support of Willie Nelson for many years. Willie sold out a 1,400 seat theater in Lorain, Ohio, on Sunday (Jan. 29) in support of Congressman Dennis Kucinich. "Dennis and I go a long way back," Willie said before the show (quote via the Chronicle-Telegram). "Anything I've been interested in seeing done, he said, 'What can I do to help?". We are back at Abbey Road by the River this September and who knows maybe the Congressman will show up with the Texas Cowboy singer and we'll all get to hang out on either the Honeysuckle Rose or the Ol' Waylor.
