by Put Kramer

Big Papa & Thc TCBBund Wins lYutionul Exposurefrom Pupu John's Pizzu

Jt was a lucky break, a

| fluke, that landed BigLVapa' * The TCB (www.

bptcb.com) national airplaythis year when Papa John'sPizza chose their song, "GoBig Papa!," for a national TVand radio ad campaign. Ratherthan taking credit for this ma-jor coup, band leader Chris"Big Papa" Thayer credits itto "a whole lot of luck andbeing in the right place at theright time."

"I wish I had a really coolstory about how we workedreally hard and brokered a

deal with Papa Johns," says

Chris, "but the truth is theytracked us down last April -It happened really quickly. Ithink they knew they wantedthe song before they evencontacted us."

The commercial featuresPapa John Schnatter drivingaround in his car randomlydelivering pizza to people intheir homes. Right from thestarto 'oGo Big Papa!" com-mands your attention in thead. The song is off the band'slive CD,'oNice'n' Greazy" re-corded in 2007. It is also fea-tured as an 'emphasis track'on their upcoming CD *72

Gauge Insurance Plan," to be

released September 12, 2009at their CD release party at theFender Museum in Corona.

As a result of Papa John'snational campaign, Big Papa'sCD sales are spiking and theband is receiving heightenedattention. The ironic thingthough is that the cut almostdidn't make it onto the record-ing.

Chris recalls, "At thetime, we had so much moreinteresting material to choosefrom. Basically, I thought itwas sort of a silly song. Butmy dad said, 'If you don't re-cord this song, you're an idi-ot,' so we ended up using it."

In retrospect, he notes,"You have to find a balancebetween what you like andwhat other people want tohear."

But was it really "luek"that led a national brand tothis Inland Empire bluesband? Not really - Big Papa& The TCB's music has beencreating a buzz all along forits catchy blues style whichthey deflne as, "Back AlleyBrawlin' Rhythm 'no Bluesborn in the back alleys andseedy after hours juke jointsof the So. Cal blues scene."

There is a rawness, anauthenticity to their soundthat has sparked interest frommany well known blues artists.Since their formation in 2006,Big Papa has shared the stage

with Johnny Winter, Rod Pi-azza & the Mighty Flyers, TheFabulous Thunderbirds, Char-lie Musselwhite, Tommy Cas-tro and James Hunter. Clearly,Big Papa's music has an edgeall its own that is keepingthem in the spotlight as wellas making them commercial-ly viable. (The band also has

received endorsements fromHeil Sound microphones andFurman Sound products).

Named "Best BluesBand" in 2008 and 2009 bythe Inland Empire MusicAwards (IEMA), Big Papawon 'oBest Song" both years

for "Go Big Papa!" and "LittleMiss Mischief." Additionally,IEMA awarded them "BestLive Band" in 2008, while theOrange County Music Awardsnominated them for "BestSwing."

When not on the road, theband calls Corona's FenderMuseum "home." The mu-seum provides a great per-formance space where theband plays to its following.

The band recorded both of itsCDs at the Fender: o'Nice 'n'Greazy" was recorded in 2007at the Rhythm Lounge, while"12 Gauge Insurance Plan"used Studio FM. On Septem-ber l2th, the Fender will hostthe band's CD release partyfor o'12 Gauge" at the muse-um, 365. N. Main Street, Co-rona.

o'12-Gauge" features a16-song set displaying a va-riety of blues styles with fea-tured guest afiists: Jumpin'Jack Benny on harmonica,Gabe Hartman on tenor sax,and Marianne Keith and KellyMcGuire on backing vocals.The band's blues style comesfrom a medley of influencesincluding Robert Cray, LouisJordan, F.od Piazza and theMighty Flyers, and Jumpin'Jack Benny.

On a more personal note,Chris credits the Mighty Fly-ers with giving him the initialinspiration to play the blues."I started playing this musicafter I saw Rod Piazza andthe Mighty Flyers at CarlosO'Brian's in Riverside," says

Chris, "and they iust blew meaway. For the past few years,I've been lucky enough to be-come friends with Rod andHoney. They've been a hugehelp to me in getting to knowthe business better."

Likewise, Jumpin' JackBenny has been a great influ-ence. Chris jokes that meetinghim was like going to "BluesSchool" and that Jumpin'Jacktaught him to play blues the"right way." Jumpin' Jack

BIG PAPA see nage 25

JOHN LISI & DEUIAFLINKArcadia Blues Club, CAJune 20,2009

John Lisi hopped off the

plane from New Orleans, and

headed straight into the studiowith local So Cal musiciansSandy Vasquez (bass), AJ Cava-lier (drums), and Billy Webb Jr.

(gurtm) to record a new CD. Heappeared a week later at ArcadiaBlues Club for an inspired nightof both old classics and origi-nal new music. Delta Funk'sblues are heavily seasoned withfirnk that John Lisi describes as

"geasy", as evidenced by fatbass lines and sliding dobro riffs.

Delta Funk worked theirway through the best of theiroriginal tunes, though the bandsolicited requests as well and dida great rendition of Led Zeppe-lin's "Lemon Song". The club

had an ample dance floor, and

those who chose not to move tothe firnky rhythms were treated

to the lyrics of a man who has the

self-honesty to be able to laughat himself through life's twistsand tums. They played a favor-ite off John Lisi's first CD, "NoGood Man" and gave a taste ofthe new CD in flre works with"Got Cleaned Up" and "Break inthe Rain".

Always one to invite guest

artists on stage, John Lisi and

Delta Funk closed the show withthe addition of Billy Webb Sr.,

who's played with the BobbyFuller Band, Ricky Nelson, and

Alabama. Definitely looking formore to come from this band.

-Sharon Stunwick(JohnLisi and Delta Funkwill be

appearing at Arcadia Blues Clubon September l9th.)

BIG PAPA from page 8

appears on three cuts of theupcoming release: o'Lovin'

Man," "Another Ride," and"All I Need."

While Chris has per-formed different styles ofmusic over the past 20 years,

he says thisband, more thanany other he's played in, has

made his career as a musicianenjoyable. "The band bringstogether a unique array oftal-ent spanning three decadesand ranging in age from mid'20s to early '40s. We showup and take care of business

and we have a really goodtime doing it."

As the band's songwriter,vocalist and guitarist, Chrisis joined by Steve "The IceCream Man" Brown on bass,

keyboardist Quinton o'Dr. Q"

Hufferd and drummer Ray"l|i4r.Piltz" Wilson.

Reflecting on the band's

music, Chris states, "I lovehow raw the band is. We pur-posely left little imperfectionsin the recording because that'swhat you would hear in a liveperformance - I think it givesit its character. It's not script-ed, it's raw. I think that's whatmusic needs right now. Ev-erything is so perfect. If youlisten to the old blues records- they weren't perfect; therewere mistakes all over thembut you knew it was real. Youknew it was the real deal."

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