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ROCK ON! This Week's Sound Bites...3/19/15


By Danny Coleman

originally published: 03/19/2015

ROCK ON! This Week's Sound Bites...3/19/15"It was great!! I had no idea that we had sold it out; it was great," said an elated Dana Fuchs about her recent appearance at Mexicali Blues in Teaneck, NJ. 

 

Fuch's is a multi-talented siren who's credits include acting on both stage and screen, voice-over work and five CD's under her belt. Make no mistake however, Dana's powerful sexually edgy vocals are her bread and butter. 

 

Born a Jersey girl, Fuchs moved to Florida at a very young age where as an adolescent she joined a church choir and by the age of sixteen was fronting her first band at a local motel chain. Eventually coming north at the inexperienced age of nineteen; Dana was determined to make it on her own as she pummeled the pavement and streets of New York City hitting blues clubs and soaking up music and musicians like a sponge. The hard work paid off for her when by chance she met guitarist Jon Diamond; a seasoned player who had toured with another golden throat-ed vocalist by the name of Joan Osborne. Their connection was instant and they formed the "Dana Fuchs Band" and soon found themselves opening for the likes of John Popper and blues greats James Cotton and Taj Mahal.

 

"Honestly?" She asked when questioned on how or why she seemed to gravitate towards the blues genre; a label that she is quick to deny. "No. I may be soulful and bluesy but I am mostly just straight forward rock 'n' roll. I mean, I'm a white woman and you can only go so far in the blues. I've never been on "Tobacco Road" or been forced to work a cotton field so I never experienced that part of what the blues is all about. So no, I don't consider myself a true blues artist; I'm a rock 'n' roller."

 

To understand this incredible talent, one must understand where she draws her inspiration and determination from; today she sites Janis Joplin as both but it wasn't always the case. "Ya' know, honestly," she began with a hint of wonder in her voice. "I grew up the youngest of six kids and my parents were always playing music. I was always home or in the car but no matter where we went my parents always had music playing," she explained as she began to elaborate a bit. "My mom and dad listened mostly to classic rock and yet somehow Janis was not ever played in my house; oh she is now," she said with a laugh. "I was never really into Janis as much as I am now. People turned me on to her and when I had to learn a lot of her material in such a short time period; I learned much about her and who she was." 

Fuchs received an industry break due to her hard work and diligence but she was also somewhat discovered by a member of one of her audiences at a performance in New York City. When relaying the story she couldn't help but laugh a little as she recounted the chain of events which has affected her career to this day. "It was at one of my New York City shows and there happened to be some guys from MTV there. They liked my voice and asked me to do voice over work for MTV. That became my day gig and then I'd gig in the clubs at night and from that I began to get recommendations for more work which led to other doors opening."

Those "Other doors" included acting; something Dana was not looking for. "I'm not an actress," she stated with conviction. "No, no I am not an actress; acting gigs found me. Musician friends heard about this play being done and I was recommended by them for a part. Next thing I know, I'm auditioning with a very short section of "Piece Of My Heart" and I got the part. The play was "Love, Janis" and it was about Joplin. There were two women in the play; me and one other. She had the majority of the speaking roles, I had a few lines to learn but I did all of the singing. I learned nineteen songs and a fifty-two page script in eight days for that play; so yeah I became familiar with Janis Joplin real quick! It was a great experience and I became a Janis fan after that; I learned much about her and what drove her and it is really a shame that we lost her as early as we did." 

Playing a "Rock Star" on stage four nights a week had its advantages and Dana took full advantage of another fortunate break when film director Julie Taymor witnessed her Joplin portrayal and cast her in the role of "Sadie" in the Beatles movie "Across The Universe." The soundtrack went platinum and enlisted an entire new regimen of "Dana Heads" who were craving more of her vocals. 

Fuchs was more than willing to oblige and she once again took advantage of an opportunity and took her band on the road. A relentless "Road Warrior" she tours the majority of each year mostly in Europe as she finds the audiences and venues more receptive. "My band has always been pretty consistent. It is always me and my guitarist Jon Diamond and I use the same bass player for all of my U.S. tours. My drummer is from Italy but he is now here so I use him consistently too. The only change is when we go to Europe; I have a bass player from over there that I use. The European crowds are different than ours here in the States. Here in the States the clubs, owners, managers and promoters are all kind of following the old model; there are a lot of little clubs and it's hard to make money here. In Europe they love the blues, soul and rock and there are many of those clubs to play there. I think the U.S is coming around though and hopefully things will continue to turn for the better." 

Currently on a West Coast tour with shows this week in Oregon, Washington, and California followed by several East Coast dates at the beginning of April before leaving for Europe; Fuchs has plans for more touring and another possible recording towards the year's end. "It always seems that I make my records at the end of the year. I'm not sure yet, I'm trying to pinpoint my direction. I can tell you this; I am writing now so we will see what happens." 

Fuchs always has an eye to the future, with lofty aspirations and the determination to reach them. One of her hopes is to be spending more time at home in the U.S. "The future, well, hopefully I'll be able to do more dates here. I would love to play in my own country more, I want to focus on playing in the States. I am also going to focus on raising the bar, doing the best that I can and keep turning out a great product." 

To discover more about Dana Fuchs, please visit her web site at www.danafuchs.com . 

That's it for this week! Please continue to support live and original music and until next week....ROCK ON!

THIS WEEKS CALENDAR LISTINGS

Alchemist & Barrister

28 Witherspoon Street Princeton

(609) 924-5555

 

Thurs. 10 p.m. Paul Plumeri Blues Band

All shows 21+



 
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Amarones Windsor Inn

29 Church St. Windsor

 

(609) 448-7144

 

Thurs. 6:30 p.m. "Country" Ron Crites



 
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Fri. 8 p.m. Kindred Spirit

Sat. 8 p.m. Tony Malandro

Wed. 7:30 p.m. Robert Bruce

 

 

Blend Bar & Bistro

911 Highway 33, Hamilton

(609) 245-8887

 

Thurs. 9 p.m. Matt & Rachel "CD Preview Show" 



 
Advertise with New Jersey Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info



Sat. 9 p.m. Moot Davis

Tues. 8 p.m. Triviajam

 

The Backstage at Championship Bar 

931 Chambers St. Trenton

 

Fri. 7 p.m. levelhead,Spur, Dutch Boys, Brock Landers, Bigger Than Bears. All ages, $10

Sat. 4 p.m. Prosper Or Perish, Burial Mound, Dark Waters End, An Aborted Memory, Proletariat, Another Vendetta, Reborn Divided. All ages, $10

 

Candlelight Lounge 

24 Passaic St. Trenton

(609) 695-9612

 

Sat. 3 p.m. Orrin Evans Jazz Birthday Bash. (No cover-$10 minimum)

 

Chickie's & Pete's

183 US Highway 130 North Bordentown

(609) 298-9182

 

Tues. 8 p.m. Acoustic Music Night feat. The Dawgs

Dog & Bull Brew House

810 Bristol Pike (Rte. 13) Croydon, PA.

(215) 788-2855

 



 
Advertise with New Jersey Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info



Thurs. 8 p.m. Twin Ghost

Fri. (4 p.m.) Cecil Middleton (9 p.m.) Coco Butter Band

Sat. (11 a.m.) "Saturday Brunch Jam" feat. Jazz 180 (9 p.m.) Jack McTamney

Sun. (11 a.m.) "Sunday Brunch" feat. Keli Vale Jazz Duo  (3 p.m.) Pop Fiction Trio

Mon. 8 p.m. Nick & Greg

Tues. 8 p.m. A Thousand Days Band

Wed. 8 p.m. Heather Heather

 

Fran's Pub

116 S. Main St. New Hope, PA.

(215)862-5539

 

Mon. 8 p.m. Open Blues Jam

All shows 21+ 

 

Freddie's Restaurant & Tavern

12 Railroad Avenue

(609) 882-9845

 

Fri. 9 p.m. Paul Plumeri & Jerry Monk



 
Advertise with New Jersey Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info



 

Havana New Hope

105 S. Main Street. New Hope, Pa. 

(215) 862-9897

 

Thurs. 10 p.m. "Beat The Clock" College Night DJ Dance Party

Fri. 8 p.m. Hello I Must Be Going (Phil Collins Tribute). Doors at 6 p.m.. $15

Sat. 8 p.m. Chris Smither / Rusty Belle. Doors at 6 p.m., $35 (advance)

Sun. 2 p.m. Paul Mitchell Fashion Show

Mon. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ DJ Ron

Tues. 8 p.m. 92.5 WXTU Ticket Run

Wed. 8 p.m.  92.5 WXTU Ticket Run

All shows 21+

 

Ivy Tavern 

3108 S. Broad Street, Hamilton

(609) 888-1435

 

Fri. 10 p.m. F2 & The Anchovy Brothers

Sat. 10 p.m. The Dawgs

All shows 21+

 

John & Peter's 

96 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.

(215) 862-5981

 



 
Advertise with New Jersey Stage for $50-$100 per month, click here for info



Thurs. 9 p.m. John & Peter's Comedy Night

Fri. 9 p.m. Sounds of Urchin w/ Thundr Villain

Sat. (3 p.m.) Strange Brew Crew (9 p.m.) Bluebalz

Sun. (3 p.m.) Jamie Salvatore (9 p.m.) Michael Robert

Mon. 9 p.m. Open Mic. Night w/ Tim

Wed. 9:30 p.m. The Invitational

All shows 21+

 

JoJo's Tavern

2677 Nottingham Way Hamilton

(609) 586-2678

  

Wed. 10 p.m. Karaoke

 

Paint the Roses Tea and Café

37 West Broad Street Hopewell

(609) 466-8200

 

Sat. 11 a.m. Bryan Hill

 

Palermo's Of Hamilton

310 Klockner Rd. Hamilton

(609) 838-7979

 

Thurs. 9 p.m. Karaoke

All shows 21+ 

 

Patriot's Crossing

1339 River Rd. Titusville

(609) 737-2780

 

Sat. 7:30 p.m. Blues In Disguise

 

Pete's Steak House

523 Whitehorse Ave. Hamilton

(609) 585-8008

 

Fri. 9 p.m. Deep Release

 

Randy Now's Man Cave

134 Farnsworth Avenue Bordentown

(609) 424-3766

 

Check web site for upcoming events

 

RHO Waterfront

50 Riverview Plaza Trenton

(609) 393-7300

 

Thurs. 10 p.m. "College Night" w/ DJ Paul Desisto

Fri. (4 p.m.) Happy Hour Buffet. $10 (8:30 p.m.) The Reminis

Sat. (2 p.m.) "St. Patrick's Day Parade After Party" w/ Radio Fiction (9 p.m.) "The I'm So 90's" Dance Party w/ DJ Ty Boogie. $20 (advance)

All Shows 21+

Tavern On The Lake

101 Main St. Hightstown

(609) 426-9345

 

Fri. 9 p.m. Far Cry

Sat. 9 p.m. Country Night w/ City Hicks

Wed. 8 p.m. Karaoke Night

 

The Cool Cricket

216 4th St. Fieldsboro

(609) 291-9110

 

Sat. 9 p.m. Alright Alright 

 

The HOB Tavern

146 Second Street

(609) 291-7020

 

Sat. 9 p.m. Karaoke

 

The Ivy Inn

248 Nassau St. Princeton

(609) 921-8555

 

Thurs. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ DJ Ron

Fri. 10 p.m. Rainbow Fresh

Sat. 10 p.m. Twisted Charm

Tues. 8 p.m. Quizzo w/ Bob E Luv

Wed. 10 p.m. Heads Up / DJ Rockn Ron

 

The Record Collector

358 Farnsworth Avenue Bordentown

(609) 324-0880

 

Sat, 8 p.m. John Ford Band. All ages, doors at 7:30 p.m., $17 (advance) 

 

The Sticky Wicket 

2465 South Broad St. Hamilton

(609) 439-0007

Fri. 9 p.m. Out of The Red

 

The Sun National Bank Center 

81 Hamilton Ave. Trenton

(609) 656-3200

 

Check web site for upcoming events

 

Tir Na Nog 

1324 Hamilton Ave. Trenton

(609) 392-2554

 

Fri. 9 p.m. Bill Shannon

Sat. "Parade Day" feat. (12 p.m.) Eugene O'Neal & Joey Krame (2 p.m.) Seamus Kelleher(6 p.m.) Tommy Glover (9 p.m.) Some Assembly Required

All shows  21+

Trenton Buzz

702 Pine St. Trenton

(609) 392-6000

 

Thurs. 8 p.m. Open Mic. w/ Hek Cat

 

Trenton Social

449 South Broad Street Trenton

(609) 989-7777

 

Fri. 7 p.m. First Friday

Mon. 10 p.m. Service Industry Night w/ DJ-Jay Kountree 

Tues. 7 p.m. Open Mic.

 

Triumph Brewing Company (New Hope, Pa. Location)

400 Union Square New Hope, Pa.

(215) 862-8300

 

Fri. 10 p.m. You Do You. ($5 cover charge)

Sat. 10 p.m. Brotherhood Of Thieves. ($5 cover charge)

Sun. 7 p.m. Open Jam Night

Tues. 9 p.m. Challenge Accepted

All shows 21+

 

Wildflowers Inn

2572 Pennington Rd. Pennington

Sat. 9 p.m. Live Acoustic Rock 

Mon. 9 p.m. Karaoke

 

 



Danny Coleman is a veteran musician and writer from central New Jersey. He hosts a weekly radio program entitled “Rock On Radio” airing Sunday evenings at 7:000pm EST on multiple internet radio outlets where he features indie/original bands and solo artists.

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