The music features acoustic guitar, mandolin, fiddle, standup bass and brushy
drums with harmony vocals ... but what do you call it? 'Americana'? 'Newgrass'?
'Crabgrass,' maybe?
'Acoustic Mayhem' is the term that best sums up the sound of The Waybacks ... it's everything from Kumbaya-free folk to cowboy jazz to bluegrass, old-time, Tin Pan Alley, both country and western, Celtoid, agnostic gospel, rhumba, beat poetry, space-jam and Grappelli-esque swing, as well as eccentric originals.
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Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, The Waybacks are Wayne Jacques, Stevie Coyle, James Nash, Chris Kee and Peter Tucker. Nearly a century and a half of musical experience steps onstage with the lads every gig, including professional associations with Ramblin' Jack Elliot, Nanci Griffith, Tim Hardin, Michael Hedges, Peter Rowan, Frank Wakefield, Johnny Paycheck, The Beau Brummels, The Foremen, The Frontmen, Hearts On Fire, Occam's Razor, Me Jane, The Natives, plainjane and Jim Campilongo & The 10-Gallon Cats.
In the year since its release, Devolver - their debut CD - has received airplay on upwards of 65 radio stations worldwide, and their live shows have garnered them invitations to play mainstage sets at venues like The Birchmere (VA), Swallow Hill (CO), The Freight and Salvage (CA), The Old Town School of Music (IL), Bodle's Opera House (NY) and McCabe's (CA), and at such festivals as:
- Kerrville - Strawberry - Wintergrass - Four Corners - Winterhawk - Winnipeg
- Wings and Strings - Grand Targhee - Vancouver Island - Edmonton - Canmore
- Harvest Fest (GA) - Rootsfest - Anchorage - Stan Rogers
as well as formal showcases at:
- The Americana Music Association Inaugural conference in Nashville, TN, 11/00
- The Folk Alliance International conference in Vancouver, 2/01 and the Southwest Regional conference (SWRFA) at Kerrville, TX, 9/00.
"... the band of the year ...."
Sleepy John Sandidge, KPIG-FM
"... tight, crisp, sophisticated music ..."
John Lupton, SING OUT!
" ... chops to spare, a sense of humor, and no respect whatsoever for standard operating procedure ... very impressive ... do yourself a favor ..." Rick Anderson, BLUEGRASS UNLIMITED
"... a wickedly sharp band.... incredible eclecticism ... playing and singing are impeccable ... a nice bunch of talented guys.
Howard and Roz Larman, "Folkscene" on KPFK-FM
"... an album that no fan of string-band music should be without."
Teja Gerken, ACOUSTIC GUITAR MAGAZINE
"... geniuses ... whose playing stacks up with anything you'll find in Austin. ***½ "
Brad Kava, SAN JOSE MERCURY-NEWS
" .. the musicianship is first-rate ... "
Linda Dailey Paulson, DIRTY LINEN
"... as fine an example of hot picking as you're likely to find ... "
Chris Nickson, FOLK ROOTS
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