THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, October 7, 1994 TAG: 9410070136
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E11 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY RICKEY WRIGHT, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
LADIES AND gentlemen, when they called themselves Blues Traveler, they meant Blues Traveler.
``In the last three years, we did about 800 dates,'' says drummer Brendan Hill of the band, touring with Sheryl Crow as an opening act.
``Now it's a little saner. We do, like, six-week tours, eight-week tours. Three nights on, one off; four on, one off; three on, one off. Then we take a week off and start again. We still love touring.''
Blues Traveler is one of the young bands linked by a common love of open-ended, classic rock-style jamming, including Spin Doctors, Big Head Todd and the Monsters and Widespread Panic. Much of their following sprang up in the wake of the incessant touring. So noted are they for their live shows that Hill even ventures the opinion that they're just learning how to make records.
``They definitely are a different animal,'' he says of Blues Traveler's albums, of which the latest is ``Four.'' ``Live, we've been doing for a long time, like (since) '87 or '86. We've only made four records, at two months each, so that's less than a year. We're starting to get our studio chops down.''
The group has made friends in high places since its debut album. Among their fans are David Letterman and Dan Aykroyd. And though not strictly a ``blues'' outfit despite their name, blues lovers have also taken to the band.
``A lot of it, I think, has to do with John's harmonica,'' Hill says. ``It's such a different instrument to have as a lead instrument for a soloist. And he plays it so well, all these blues guys really get on our side. I think it's our youth and our young energy that people like, too, and that we could stick with something even though we didn't have any support. I mean, we've got fans who'll drive three- to four-hundred miles to see a show. I don't wanna get too high-minded, but it shows how powerful music is.''
Powerful enough, too, for A&M, their label, to nurture hopes of taking ``Four'' to the next level commercially.
``I think they've said, `This is a band that sells 250,000 of each of their records,' so they see what the potential is. It can go higher,'' said Hill. ``It's just up to them to set them up.''
With the company's help, Blues Traveler hopes to be in it for the long haul.
``So many bands can have a success based on one song,'' he said. ``(Videos are) a good way to sell an album that may not be so good, but will have one good song on it.
``For us, we've always depended on the music, and we've been fortunate to have a lot of kids trading tapes through the years, and being able to spread it through word of mouth. It's a slow success, but we can do whatever the band wants to accomplish just from playing live, and it'll be a really enjoyable success. And that way, we will last longer and have some fun.'' MEMO: Blues Traveler with Sheryl Crow, rock/blues. 9 tonight at the Boathouse,
Norfolk. Tickets: $13.50 advance. 622-6395. To order, call 671-8100. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Blues Traveler appears tonight at the Boathouse, Norfolk. The show
kicks off at 9 with hitmaker Sheryl Crow.
by CNB