THE JAM BAND
( aka The Gone Pecans)
(L-R) Johnny Hozey, Pat Murphy, Steve Sandberg, Eric Watkins, Tommy Moran
As you've probably already know from reading the Friends and Family page, Eric Watkins and Tommy Moran go way back with me in the music business and we have played on and off with each other since the late sixties. In the Spring of 2004 I talked with Eric and Tommy about the possibility of putting together a loose jam format group to play about once a month for fun and to do something musically different from what we were doing in our regular bands. Pat Murphy Band drummer, Steve Sandberg expressed an interest in the project so he came on board. About three days before the band played our first gig Johnny Hozey, another Dock of the Bay Music Company alumni with Eric and Tommy asked if he could come out and jam with us. Johnny did come and play and has been with us ever since.
It is truly magical when this band plays. The music is obviously very guitar driven with players like Johnny and Tommy on the stage and Eric and Steve really pump the band. I hold on for dear life!! We play a lot of extended jam type music and the crowds are just packing the club when we play locally. Another thing that really appeals to me about the idea of this band is that it is such a great nucleus for other friends like Duke Bardwell or Mike Keel to play with when they are in town. This is a project that we're all really having fun with. Since hurricane Katrina wiped Bay St Louis' Beachfront Club district clean the band has taken up residence back at Jack's Restaurant in the Depot District on Blaize Avenue. The music just keeps getting better and better and and the crowds that follow the band get bigger and bigger.
