In 2006, Brian and his family settled into a cozy two-story house tucked away at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac in the charming suburb of Littleton, Colorado. Ever since his kids were old enough to hold an instrument, Brian and his sons would jam together most evenings, after dinner and homework, until the neighbors called the cops or Mom chased them all off to bed. But now that his oldest was off at college and the youngest was absorbed in typical teenage stuff, Brian was jonesing for the jam, so he decided to place an ad in the local classifieds…
The Toad Tavern was a charming nightclub just a stone’s throw from Brian’s place, featuring a mix of local talent and big-name acts, creating an electric atmosphere for music lovers. Keyboardist Marty Wallace had just received the green light from Tavern owner Brice Hancock to assemble a house band to support the solo performers he was eager to showcase. When Marty stumbled upon Brian’s ad in the newspaper, he was intrigued by Brian’s impressive background and decided to reach out to invite him to audition for the band.
Brian didn’t want to be pigeonholed again as everybody’s musical Swiss Army knife, so when he arrived for the audition, he brought only his guitar and amp. His strategy was simple: impress Marty with his guitar skills. His other musical abilities, if desired, could just sweeten the deal. The strategy worked like a charm. Marty was blown away by Brian’s guitar playing and hired him on the spot. Now, as a newly hired member of the Toad Tavern house band, Brian and Marty began piecing together a temporary setlist for an upcoming show when, during a break, Brian asked if he could take a crack at Marty’s keyboard and launched into his rendition of Billy Joel’s “Piano Man.” Marty couldn’t help but laugh and, ironically, said, “And the fucker sings…”
Marty wasn’t the only one who reached out about Brian’s ad. Will Young found himself in a tight spot because his classic rock cover band was without a guitarist for an upcoming gig. Intrigued by Brian’s ad, he decided to give him a call and invited him to sit in on one of their rehearsals. As with Marty, Will was blown away by Brian’s guitar skills and his impressive ability to sing just about anything you could throw at him. Band number 2.
But wait! There’s more! Local yodeler Eric Johnson (not to be confused with the guitar empressario from the 80s) toured northern Colorado and Nebraska with his country cover band and was in desperate need of a decent country picker. He, too, saw Brian’s ad, but unlike the other guys, there was no audition or rehearsal. After the initial call, Brian was unceremoniously emailed a setlist and a list of dates he was expected to perform. Band number 3.
And there were even more who called, like local legends country singer Walker Williams and Gary Dunn’s classic-rock cover band Burns Twice, but they were just looking to fill holes in their lineups and didn’t really offer anything worthwhile to pursue. For now, Brian was just happy he could jam again.
In the Eric Johnson Band, Brian was just another hired gun. A pretty regular one, but no one who played for Eric was a ‘regular’ member. The band was more like a revolving door, with Eric often scrambling to find anyone who would answer his call before a gig. The band mainly performed country covers that were standard for the time, but when Eric wanted to do a new song, he’d turn to Brian to learn it so Brian could, in turn, teach it to the rest of the band at their next performance. There were no rehearsals, so the band sounded as thrown together as it was. Brian eventually got fed up with the chaos after a little over a year, stopped answering Eric’s calls, and Eric faded into the background. Looking back, Brian reflects that the only good thing that came out of his time with the Eric Johnson Band was the chance to meet other hired guns like himself.
“A typical Eric Johnson show was a drunken fuck fest, with Eric sneaking off with some girl, sometimes two or three times a night, and the drummer getting so plowed that he would literally fall off his drum throne, hurl, crawl back up, and play as if nothing happened. Eric wasn’t very particular and had quite a following of women to choose from. At one show in Nebraska, we had to show up early to set up our gear and soundcheck. Then we’d go eat or grab some zzz’s before the show. When we got back to the club, heifer-sized panties in various colors and states of use were hanging from everyone’s microphones and strewn all over the stage. I learned to stuff my microphone in my pocket before leaving the stage after that.” – BGW
After Eric, Brian continued to sit in with local country bands whenever he got the itch, performing across Colorado and neighboring states. He had regular gigs with Chris Lawson, Chris LeDoux, and Walker Williams, and he even shared the stage with Idaho native Pinto Bennett and Texan Cody Canada, who was fronting Cross Canadian Ragweed at the time. Brian was a staple at the Greely Stampede in Colorado, The Million Dollar Cowboy in Jackson, Wyoming, and The Cheyanne Frontier Days, also in Wyoming, where he opened for everyone from Brooks & Dunn to Phil Vasser. He also made quite a few new friendships with fellow musicians, including drummer Kelly Ireland, bassist Isaac Perry, and the up-and-coming Chris Tracy…
Brian first met Chris Tracy while sitting in with Walker Williams at some nameless venue in northern Colorado. Tracy was primarily a vocalist, and Brian didn’t know how he muscled in on Walkers’s action, but the kid was really impressive! And ambitious to boot!
Chris had heard that Brian was also a producer, and he lobbied him hard to create an album for him. But he also needed Brian to write the songs, and for Brian, that was a bridge too far this early in the collaboration. Instead, he talked the kid into settling on a 3-song demo he could then use to book gigs.
Somehow, within a week of finishing the demo, Chris had managed to get bookings at the Grizzly Rose in Denver and the Rocky Mountain Saloon in Longmont. Both huge venues that even Brian, with all his connections, had not yet had the occasion to perform at. And he didn’t have a band either. So Brian suggested he hire the Toad House band, and off they went under the band name Roughshod, which was a nod to Chris’ Grandpa back in Texas.
The shows went over really well, and Chris displayed amazing talent as a frontman. Brian was impressed enough to consider doing that album after all, but as Brian recalls, Chris had some trouble back home in Texas and took off to deal with it, never to be seen or heard from again.
Toad House band leader Marty Wallace’s daytime job was as an educator at the University of Colorado, where he taught music theory, putting him in a prime position to headhunt aspiring talent. After bringing Brian aboard, he often invited students to sit in on rehearsals, during which both he and Brian would take turns teaching his students. The most talented students joined the band, including Ron Ohren on drums and Percival Johnston on bass, and Marty maintained a pool of percussionists and brass players he could rotate through the rest of the time.
The Toad Tavern earned its reputation by bringing national Rhythm & Blues acts to Colorado and supporting local bands, but everyone had to bring their own P.A. Once Marty had his house band together, Tavern owner Brice Hancock invested in a house sound system to support the acts he wanted to bring in. Pretty soon, the band was backing such legends as Bobby Rush, Koko Taylor, Bettye LaVette, and Charlie Musselwhite.
Brian remembers working with the Toad House band as one of the most rewarding experiences he’d ever had. Not only did he have the opportunity to teach, but he also met a steady stream of talented, exciting musicians with whom he could jam. Many of them he collaborated with on other projects outside the band. Every gig felt like Christmas, and Brian, rightly, began to think that the Blues was the next chapter in his career.
The Toad Tavern, once a cherished venue for local musicians in Littleton, Colorado, underwent a significant transformation in 2020 following a change in ownership. It was renamed Fraco’s Bar and Live Music. This venue has always been more than a place to enjoy drinks; it has served as a vital cultural hub for the community. Aspiring artists now have the opportunity to showcase their talents in an atmosphere that fosters creativity and connection. Fraco’s continues to promote local music and provide a platform for emerging musicians, contributing to the area’s vibrant arts scene. – The Denver Post
Remember Will Young and his classic rock cover band? Well, Brian stuck with them, getting really tight with Will and bassist Ken Martinez, and it was while they were rehearsing a ZZ-Top song one day that Ken began calling Brian ‘GeeDub,’ which was a play on Brian’s full name, but in the spirit of ZZ-Top’s cool style. Going along with the gag, Brian began calling Ken ‘Rev’ for his penchant for wearing black button-down shirts over white t-shirts, and Will ‘BigDub’, well, because he was exactly the opposite. Will was the shortest guy in the band.
Obviously, the power trio had a sense of humor and now an identity, so they decided to run with it. By then, Brian had converted the basement of his house into a professional-grade home studio so he could continue his regular production work for Capitol Records. He dragged Will and Ken in to create a demo they could shop around for gigs. The demo was as lighthearted and self-deprecating as the boys themselves, and they began booking gigs around the Denver area. At first, it was just beer joints like the Open Tap and Ziggies Saloon; within a short time, it was outdoor festivals and more established venues like Oskar Blues and Little Bear. But when the offer to tour with the Black Crowes came in, it was time for a come-to-Jesus moment.
You see, the entire GeeDub experiment was meant as just a way for the boys to blow off steam and jam. Will had a family and a full-time job as a manager for a national electronics chain; Ken was an attorney and was studying for his Doctorate; and Brian had his day job, his regular gig with the Toad House band, and was constantly off somewhere pickin’ for some country band. None of them had any bandwidth to be more than weekend warriors, and a multi-city tour was completely out of the question.
So, it wasn’t so much that the band dissolved; it evolved. Will took over the reins, renamed the band JetBlack, and hired a female singer, freeing Brian up to work on his solo career while still remaining part of the band. Eventually, a few years later, the band did fade as the members got busier with their personal lives and careers, but Brian, Will, and Ken reminisce to this day about being the goofiest blues-rock band of the time.
GeeDub Members:
Brian was getting increasingly serious work from Capitol Records; he had just wrapped up the soundtrack for the American Revolutions: Southern Rock documentary and had 3 other projects waiting in the queue. Brian needed professional representation, so he signed with K&P Enterprises in early 2009. As part of his intake interview, he was asked what he wanted to do with his solo career.
Yeah, about that. At the time, country music, with its rap elements and over-engineered sound, wasn’t anything Brian could identify with anymore. Brian had just made a cameo appearance at the Crossroads Music Festival with his old friend Albert Lee and had opened for the Black Crowes at the Red Rocks Amphitheater. It seemed like blues-rock and crossover-rock were in resurgence, and with the recent success of his song Black Widow and constant nudging from his friends, Brian began seriously considering reinventing himself as a blues-rock artist.
The decision was pretty much made for him when the offer to open for Robert Randolph & the Family Band fell into his lap. Coincidentally, the Toad House band was in trouble, too. With the economy going belly up, the Rhythm & Blues scene took a big hit, and many artists retired or opted not to tour. As a result, Toad Tavern owner Brice Hancock began hiring cheap local talent to fill the roster, and the Toad House band was forced to look elsewhere for work.
At the same time, the summer season was gearing up, and Brian, who now had a concept and a band, needed to sign with a talent agency to get on the festival circuit. K&P Enterprises worked closely with Creative Artists Agency, which gave him access to the national circuit, but CAA farmed out much of its work in the central part of the country to, wait for it, 5 Star Talent & Entertainment. No relation to Mike Lieberberg’s 5-Star Talent Agency, which Brian worked for in the 90s in Germany.
Over the summer of 2009, Brian and the Toad House Band were cooking, performing at major venues such as the Utah Blues Festival, Oskar Blues Festival, and the Telluride Blues and Brews Festival. They also opened for well-known acts, including the Black Crowes again at Red Rocks Amphitheater and Robert Randolph & Family Band at Fiddler’s Green Amphitheater. The phone just would not stop ringing, and if you’re waiting for the next shoe to drop, well, here it is…
Brian had been diagnosed with diabetes a couple of years earlier and was taking medication to manage it, but one of the drugs was having an adverse effect on his system. “One minute I was watching TV and the next I woke up in the hospital and was told I was out for a day or two,” Brian recalls of his mini-stroke. Brian needed to recuperate, and nobody was going to let him near a stage until he had. That was Marty talking. So Brian canceled the remainder of his bookings, and the life of another promising project was cut short.
Marty and the boys went on with the Toad House band and eventually toured with Robert Randolph and the Black Crowes, this time with a different singer/guitarist. Bummed, Brian needed a change of scenery and decided to hit the road…