Wayne Hancock looks and sounds like he wears a throw-back jersey
with a GPS in the pocket. That's how in touch he is with the tradition of yesteryear and the vibe of today. He can tell what it feels like to get sweat and dirt in your
eye at the same time. Feeling overwhelmed with life? Hancock's got just the thing
for that. Call it caring the country & western sort of way. To get yourself on the road to recovery grab your wig-hat and find a live set of Hancock’s signature hillbilly jazz sound;
then pick out a spot on the adjacent dance floor. Now you've got it. Let it move you by the soul. “Dancing
is the best expression to release that bad energy,” Hancock said. Just what the folks have been grooving to, in particular, for the past 17 years is Hancock’s version of Texas dance hall and jump
blues. “Whether it was the hand clapping or what, the originals played jump
blues so people could dance,” Hancock said on his way to a sold out gig Urbana, IL.
“I like it upbeat. If you can swing your blues then you’re there.” Ever the
humanitarian Hancock has everybody's interest in mind but his own. “When people
leave my shows I want them to feel like they got a leg up on some of their
worst times.” Wayne Hancock, appearing at the Tip Top on Oct 9, presents a
roots music experience as it was first intended. He cites Bob Wills as a contributor
of some of the best blues he’s heard. “He conveyed the down side of how he
was feeling,” Hancock said. “But he put a swing to his music that made it seem like
that no matter how bad things got, you still had the upper hand.” He writes the
lyrics of a laborer but delivers with a vocal style that's more
uppity big city. Hancock admits to an affinity for vocalists like Billie
Holiday and Frank Sinatra. He has a penchant for gems from the American song
book. Thus he records a version of “Midnight, the Stars, and You” (Ray Noble) on
his disc Viper of Melody (2009). “My
parents were born in the 1920s," Hancock said. "I grew up listening to “Stardust” and Hoagy
Carmichael. No matter what they had on the radio I never was happy with it.” He
says he thinks the blues ain’t nothing you need to be afraid of. “Blues are expressions
of life,” Hancock said. “They’re like feeling good and having sex. It’s just
another emotion.” The hillbilly portion of hillbilly jazz is all Jimmie Rodgers and
Hank Williams, perhaps Hancock's most handy comparison. Hancock is putting out new
disc in early 2013 called Ride. Songs
topics are expected to include a new found love of riding motorcycles and the ever
trusty murder ballad. Hancock recently hired a manager after many years
without one. He is reported to be very pleased so far with a new booking agency. If things are looking up for Wayne The Train then the rest of us might have a chance. “I’ve gone through some changes in the
past two years,” Hancock said. “But now I feel like I’ve got my yodel back.”
Wayne "The Train" Hancock wsg The True Falsettos at the Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill tonight. Show at 8 pm.
Ticket information at:
http://www.ticketweb.com/
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