WISCONSIN MUSIC PODCAST
WMP Linktree: https://linktr.ee/WI_Music_Podcast
AMPLFYING WISCONSIN MUSIC
Bruce Humphries
and the Rockabilly Rebels
EPISODE 137
Join us in the latest episode of the Wisconsin Music Podcast as we unravel the musical journey of the incredible Bruce Humphreys, frontman of the Rockabilly sensation,
Bruce Humphreys and the Rockabilly Rebels!
🎸 Known for his distinctive blend of hillbilly and rock and roll, Bruce has conquered the rockabilly scene, from high school drumming days to headlining major festivals and opening for big-name artists.
🔥 Dive deep into Bruce's experiences as an original artist, exploring the highs and lows of the music industry and the band's innovative marketing strategies.
🚀 Discover their unique approach to music releases, featuring multi-sensory physical albums with 3D artwork and custom-made glasses.
😢 The episode takes an emotional turn as Bruce pays a heartfelt tribute to John Steffes, the band's bass player, who recently lost his battle with cancer.
🌟 Bruce's passion for vinyl records adds a nostalgic touch, providing a fascinating dimension to the conversation.
👨👩👧👦 Get a glimpse into Bruce's personal life and how he balances family, work, and his musical passion.
🎧 The episode features tracks from his recent album, each with a unique narrative.
🌟 Wrap up the experience with Bruce as he shares remarkable gig experiences, from witnessing The Stray Cats live to the thrill of opening for Setzer.
🤘 These memories unveil his influences and profound love for music.
🎉 Tune in and Amplify Wisconsin Music! 🎶 #WisconsinMusicPodcast #AmplifyWisconsinMusic
--------------------------------------------------------
Transcript:
1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:11.760 Music.
2 00:00:11.777 --> 00:00:16.797 Welcome to the Wisconsin Music Podcast. This week we have Bruce Humphreys,
3 00:00:16.817 --> 00:00:18.877 and he belongs to the group.
4 00:00:18.917 --> 00:00:22.417 Bruce Humphreys and the Rockabilly Rebels. He has opened for major acts like
5 00:00:22.417 --> 00:00:28.697 the Brian Setzer Orchestra, Hazel Atkins, Hank Thompson, Rosie Flores, and much, much more.
6 00:00:28.997 --> 00:00:33.457 He has sold music worldwide and has played some major rockabilly festivals like
7 00:00:33.457 --> 00:00:37.777 the Coney Island Rockabilly Fest in Brooklyn, Franklin, Uno Go-Go in Chicago,
8 00:00:37.997 --> 00:00:43.577 Illinois, and Wisconsin's own S-Y-M-C-O, Simcoe, and Northern Roundup.
9 00:00:43.697 --> 00:00:45.717 Bruce, welcome to the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
10 00:00:46.177 --> 00:00:48.337 Thanks for having me. I appreciate it. Glad to be here.
11 00:00:48.817 --> 00:00:52.737 So, for the listeners, why don't you kind of give them your music origin story.
12 00:00:52.837 --> 00:00:56.317 How did you get started in the music and kind of how it got you to where you are today?
13 00:00:57.077 --> 00:01:01.157 Oh, I started playing music, well, I wouldn't consider it music back then,
14 00:01:01.217 --> 00:01:05.417 but in high school I started. I wanted to play drums and wasn't a very good
15 00:01:05.417 --> 00:01:07.677 drummer. And so I wanted to be more upfront.
16 00:01:07.937 --> 00:01:11.837 I didn't want to be sitting in the back. So I switched over to guitar and just
17 00:01:11.837 --> 00:01:15.137 kind of messed around on that and was in cover bands, you know,
18 00:01:15.137 --> 00:01:19.677 like alternative cover bands playing Ramones, Violent Femmes, Cramps.
19 00:01:20.157 --> 00:01:26.317 I then started writing my own stuff. And 30, 40 years later,
20 00:01:26.317 --> 00:01:32.517 I'm still playing, which is pretty amazing because, you know, you're a musician,
21 00:01:32.717 --> 00:01:35.237 you have lots of ups and downs and it takes a while.
22 00:01:35.397 --> 00:01:38.757 And a lot of people just kind of give up and quit and move on to something else.
23 00:01:38.797 --> 00:01:41.517 But for some reason it stuck with me.
24 00:01:41.577 --> 00:01:47.257 So yeah, here I am playing same kind of music and maybe a little bit calmer.
25 00:01:49.617 --> 00:01:52.657 So what kind of drew you to the rockability
26 00:01:52.657 --> 00:01:58.737 genre yeah well you know i i think it was about eight years ago i turned 50
27 00:01:58.737 --> 00:02:02.797 and i started kind of reflecting on you know my life and how i ended up getting
28 00:02:02.797 --> 00:02:08.397 where i am and that includes the music and i realized that i was really big
29 00:02:08.397 --> 00:02:09.657 into the the Beatles when I,
30
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Music.
(00:11):
Welcome to the Wisconsin Music Podcast. This week we have Bruce Humphreys,
and he belongs to the group.
Bruce Humphreys and the Rockabilly Rebels. He has opened for major acts like
the Brian Setzer Orchestra, Hazel Atkins, Hank Thompson, Rosie Flores, and much, much more.
He has sold music worldwide and has played some major rockabilly festivals like
(00:33):
the Coney Island Rockabilly Fest in Brooklyn, Franklin, Uno Go-Go in Chicago,
Illinois, and Wisconsin's own S-Y-M-C-O, Simcoe, and Northern Roundup.
Bruce, welcome to the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
Thanks for having me. I appreciate it. Glad to be here.
So, for the listeners, why don't you kind of give them your music origin story.
How did you get started in the music and kind of how it got you to where you are today?
(00:57):
Oh, I started playing music, well, I wouldn't consider it music back then,
but in high school I started. I wanted to play drums and wasn't a very good
drummer. And so I wanted to be more upfront.
I didn't want to be sitting in the back. So I switched over to guitar and just
kind of messed around on that and was in cover bands, you know,
like alternative cover bands playing Ramones, Violent Femmes, Cramps.
(01:20):
I then started writing my own stuff. And 30, 40 years later,
I'm still playing, which is pretty amazing because, you know, you're a musician,
you have lots of ups and downs and it takes a while.
And a lot of people just kind of give up and quit and move on to something else.
But for some reason it stuck with me.
(01:41):
So yeah, here I am playing same kind of music and maybe a little bit calmer.
So what kind of drew you to the rockability
genre yeah well you know i i think it was about eight years ago i turned 50
and i started kind of reflecting on you know my life and how i ended up getting
(02:02):
where i am and that includes the music and i realized that i was really big
into the the Beatles when I,
you know, back in the early seventies, nine,
10, 12 years old.
And I didn't really put it together until years later that they were playing
a lot of rockabilly songs from Carl Perkins, Eddie Cochran, Chuck Berry,
(02:26):
all that kind of stuff. Okay.
And then the eighties came and there was the punk, punk new wave movement that
included the Stray Cats, the Neo Rockabilly revival.
And yeah, so that kind of started off a huge love for rockabilly and that old
(02:46):
school kind of rock and roll.
And also, I had been collecting Swing records from thrift stores for a while, so I knew about Swing.
Yeah. Yeah. So that's kind of what, what started that.
I just never thought about really playing it. I was much better at playing two
finger power chords, doing Ramones kind of thing.
(03:07):
Okay. And eventually said, well, let's start a rockabilly band, see what happens.
Gotcha. And for listeners that maybe haven't really experienced what rockabilly
is, what would, what would be your best description of what that genre encompasses?
Compasses i think i think they say it's the bastard son of the blues so it's
(03:29):
old school country hillbilly music and combined with some rock and roll so early early early elvis.
Elvis presley everybody knows elvis so that that would be my description what
it is if somebody was asking me what the heck is rock and roll which they do
a lot because people just don't know you know,
(03:50):
kind of hillbilly music with some rock and roll in it.
And what's the basic instrumentation for like a rockabilly group?
Well, for a true rockabilly band, it will probably be an acoustic guitar,
lead singer, upright bass, and a drummer with a stripped down drum set.
But then, you know, and you're playing songs kind of like Elvis Presley.
(04:13):
And then there's, you know, other genres that kind of came off of that, like psychobilly,
which is mixing the punk is a little bit closer to the punk rock,
you know, adding punk rock influences to that neo rockabilly,
which adds a lot more newer production in the studio, more players.
Players so currently we have four players
(04:36):
in our band it's me playing rhythm guitar on
electric and sometimes on acoustic a lead player a
bass player and drummer gotcha so what
is the local scene attitude towards your group like the positives of it yeah
we've gotten great response it's pretty amazing because i grew up in indiana
(04:58):
went to school in kentucky and kansas lived in texas lived in Tennessee,
lived in Philadelphia, and I've played music at all those places.
But usually you're just kind of like the backing soundtrack to something.
People are sitting at the bar watching television.
You're playing music to backs of heads. Right.
So it's been pretty amazing up here. It's like people are really into going
(05:23):
out and seeing music and seeing music and not just having it as the background noise. Right.
And plus, you know, rockabilly and beer kind of go hand in hand.
And I've been told there's a lot of beer drinkers up here.
And Harley, the Harley Davidson crowd, you know, motorcycles and rockabilly.
(05:44):
It's just that it kind of goes hand in hand also. Yeah.
Lifestyle there. The music that I'm writing fits in perfect with that.
And I get a really good response.
I've gotten a great response up here at festivals, at fairs, clubs.
And it's kind of odd. It definitely made me reflect back and, you know, why is that?
(06:05):
Why is all these other places that I've played like that?
And why is Milwaukee, Wisconsin in general, you know, different from all those other places?
I don't know if I've actually figured it out, but, you know, I'm not complaining.
Life is good. Good. Good. That's good. Is there any struggles you've seen in
(06:25):
the live scene that just seems to be a hindrance or something that could be
activated to help if it was turned around would help the scene for you?
I think it's just the support of original music acts is kind of the main hurdle.
And I feel like, you know, I've got two agents, three agencies that I work with.
(06:48):
And the two of those, the majority of the acts seem to be cover bands.
And so I feel very lucky to be a part of that crowd to be able to get booked
from those agencies because we play a majority is original music.
Now, if we're playing a three or four hour set, then we throw in covers from
(07:12):
Roy Orbison, Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, of course, all those.
Excuse me. But yeah, it's just kind of getting recognized as an original artist
because cover bands, that's where it's at.
You know, cover bands are going to make a heck of a lot more money than what
we're pulling in. Gotcha. People want to go out and hear things that they recognize.
(07:37):
Which I totally get. I understand that.
But again, for the response that we've been getting, playing my originals,
you know, I think we're pretty blessed.
Nice, nice. So with being a mostly original band, what do you do to help promote
like your shows and other things of that nature to keep people to notice your group?
(07:59):
Yeah, social media. And I'm not social media savvy at all.
Pretty much none of the guys in the band are. We're all at least in our 50s
at this point, pushing 60, if not, I think actually someone is in their 60s.
We're old school. We used to hang up flyers on telephone poles.
(08:20):
We don't do that anymore.
I'm on social media promoting it on all these different Wisconsin,
our Milwaukee music, Facebook pages.
I try to do some video of our songs.
Like so with this new album instead of dropping all the
songs dropping the whole album at one time
(08:41):
and having it get lost in the shuffle we're releasing a
single at a time so like every month i'll release another song i'll make a video
for it we'll post it all over social media in hopes that it will generate more
interest and kind of keep our name out there because our first album And we
just kind of, we just put it out there.
(09:03):
And, and then of course, three months later, COVID hit. Not that it would make
any difference, but I figured the, the, the worst thing that could happen by
releasing them via singles,
I'm losing 0.0003 cents a stream online.
And, you know, the fact is we're not getting that many streams no matter what. So, yeah.
(09:23):
If you are enjoying these episodes, please consider donating to the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
Donations help pay for the website and putting the podcast up on streaming services
and also getting our name out there to all Wisconsinites and others that are
interested in our great music here in Wisconsin.
Donations are secured through PayPal and Stripe.
(09:43):
Do is go to the website and click on Donate to WMP.
So you just mentioned your newest recording. Why don't you kind of give the
listeners a little journey from the beginning to the releases?
You know, how did you start the project? Who's involved?
Not only the musicians, but on the other side of the glass as well.
(10:04):
Was it a DIY or did you go to a studio?
Things of that nature yeah so our drummer has a home studio you know i've always
i've always wanted to go into a studio but if i'm going to spend that much money
it makes more sense to buy the equipment and i'll have the equipment and do
it ourselves now of course it's not going to sound the same.
(10:26):
But we'll save a lot of money and you know maybe the next album or the next
album will will be expensive studio quality.
So we started this almost two years ago. We recorded the basics in our drummer's basement.
I brought the files home. I started building a studio at my house,
(10:47):
so I started putting it together here.
It would not have taken, it just was released this summer, it would not have
taken as long if I went somewhere and paid a lot of money or if I knew how to
run the software that I was editing it on.
So there's a lot of trial and error, lots of error.
But it was rewarding in the process.
(11:09):
But yeah, so I got Lorenzo Rapani on lead guitar, John Steffes on bass,
Kurt Weber on drums, and I'm on guitar and singing.
I do play some piano on one song.
Unfortunately, we lost John Steffes earlier this summer.
To cancer, but was very grateful to have him on this album and kind of,
(11:34):
you know, he helped out so much with the process.
As far as, you know, other people, we did a Kickstarter campaign and I honestly
did not think because we're older, we don't have a big social media presence.
I did not think we would make our goal, but people really stepped up and we,
we made it And I was able to release it on a real CD, release it on vinyl,
(12:01):
you know, get a good recording and.
Well, the artwork for the CD and the vinyl are all both in 3D.
Oh, cool. And the glasses come with it. So they're custom made glasses.
So it's kind of a fun, different release. I'm trying to kind of come up with
different ways of releasing something to generate interest.
(12:23):
Yeah. You know, it's not just an audio experience. It's a visual experience too.
So I was really excited that that all turned out. On a side note,
I've heard that getting vinyl from sending them your music to receiving the
album back takes multiple months.
How many months did it take for you to get that turnaround?
(12:46):
That's what I heard too. In fact, I was told basically plan on it taking a year.
So I was expecting it to be done in March.
It came in the mail almost a month and a half, maybe two months ago at this point.
So it took about six months, if that.
Okay. It was quick considering what I was told. Right.
(13:07):
You know, six months is definitely a long time, but you know,
when you're expecting something a year later and it comes in half the time, you know.
That's pretty cool. Yeah. There's hope for people that want to release something
in a relatively short amount of time, half of a year.
At least the company I went with, you know, I don't know what other companies.
(13:32):
Are like but right and how
many did you have made did you like a thousand run or half of that or what was
it half of half of that we i think the total count was 245 that came in okay
so yeah it's very limited run we'll see how this one sells this one has tricolor vinyl.
(13:53):
The next printing if we actually are lucky enough to have to do that will just
be either one color or just black.
I don't think I'll have custom glasses made so that this first piece.
Pressing might be a little bit more, I don't want to say valuable,
because I don't think it will ever be valuable.
(14:15):
I'd like for it to be, but you never know. Chances are it won't be,
but it will be a special edition.
Cool. Yeah, it's nice to see that some of this music being reproduced back onto
vinyl has had a comeback.
It's very cool, because I think vinyl has a very, it's not just a nostalgic niche thing,
(14:37):
but it actually has a cool vibe to it of its
own you know yeah absolutely yeah i've
always i've always loved vinyl i obviously if
you see behind me there's a small collection just
just a small yeah yeah if someone asked you what were your i don't want to say
your top or your favorites but if you wanted to show them or have them hear
(15:01):
three great examples of songs off that album And what would it like be the three
that you would like to pick and maybe we'll have put them on the podcast for you.
The three songs would, first one would be coming down hard in my backyard would
be another one and probably leave the lights on if I had, I mean,
(15:22):
that's hard to pick three,
you know, yeah,
I would probably say those three because well, coming down hard,
it's just a rocker it's opens the CD.
Music.
(17:09):
In my backyard, I wrote during COVID. Well, I started writing before COVID.
I finished it during COVID.
I always joke that it was, well, it's not a joke.
It was a really depressing, sad time, and we needed happy songs.
And I ended up writing a song about growing old, falling apart, and dying.
A lot of my songs have humor in it. So that's in my backyard.
(17:33):
Ours just talks about, you know, getting older and, you know,
the issues health-wise.
I'll save the rest for you guys just to listen to.
Music.
(18:03):
Hell came of me it hurts to wake up in the morning and in the middle of the night i've got a pee,
no one ever said it easy no one ever said it could get this hard Just put me in a coffin,
(18:30):
and bury my ass in the backyard.
Well, that's what I get for daydreaming.
The problem is that I never woke up.
(18:53):
Now it's growing out of strange places and velcros replacing the laces,
and then leave the lights on is just a special song because my mom when we were
(19:16):
younger she said that she'd always leave the porch light on no matter what her kids were doing.
So basically, if we got sent to prison, not that that would happen,
and this is a drastic experience example, but if we got sent to prison,
she'd always have the porch light on and welcome us back home.
So no matter what happened, what the kids were doing, there'd always be a light.
(19:40):
And so that kind of stuck with me. So I wrote that.
The title inspired me. The lyrics themselves don't necessarily reflect that experience.
Music.
(21:45):
The Light Song is definitely a line that's stuck with me for 20, 30 years. Great.
And yeah, that's amazing. So I'll insert those songs in there for you,
and then the listeners can take a listen to that, and they can draw their own
conclusions if they want to, and then go and see you play. Yeah.
You and your group. Yeah.
(22:06):
So speaking, you said you released this on CD and also on vinyl,
but where can people see or hear this digitally?
Do you have band camp? I mean, are they on the streaming sites?
Where else can they hear this?
Yeah, I think you could actually hear all the songs on Bandcamp, now that you mention it.
Spotify, we have five singles from the album on there now.
(22:27):
You can go to my website at brucehumphries.com. We have videos,
links to all the YouTube and Instagram and all that, obviously come out to the shows.
Shows so right now we have the vinyl and
the cd we've been selling at shows we just don't not releasing
them all online right and then there's uh four local
(22:50):
record stores in town that you can pick them
up at a record head bullseye records lily
put and rush more cool so
listeners out there if you want to go get your your hard
copy of that you go see them at a show or go to
to those record shops and check them out there or online like
(23:10):
bandcamp.com where artists get a majority
of what you spend on their music goes
right back to them so that's definitely a good thing we're streaming
unfortunately you get 0.001 of a penny on the dollar basically yeah where can
they see you play yeah we've got a in february i believe i don't have the date
(23:33):
in front of me We're playing at OPE O-P-E Brewery Okay That's in,
West Allis Okay I believe It's right over there Near State Fair Park.
We have been asked back for the Port Washington Fish Fry Festival.
I don't have the dates for that, but you can go to my website,
(23:56):
BruceHumphreys.com, and you can check out the dates that we have.
Kind of in the middle of booking for next year.
So listeners, go to this website when this airs, once you hear this,
and go see when they're playing and go check them out.
Because Rockabilly is an experience in and of itself, for sure.
Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.
(24:18):
As we're winding down here, there's a couple more questions I have for you.
One of them is work-life balance.
Is that, I know you've talked about you're now, you know, in your,
close to your 50s or early 50s.
You've been playing a long time. Is it a struggle still or you kind of got a
good control over the balance?
I wish I was almost 50 or in my early 50s. I'm 58, so I'm pushing 60.
(24:40):
Okay. It could be a challenge because, well, you're getting older and you're
not as, you don't have the energy like you had when you were younger.
So I've realized that I need to go and do more aerobic workout exercises,
you know, during the week so that I can catch my breath when I'm playing.
(25:01):
Because there are definitely times when I get winded from running around there
on stage or into the audience. And yeah, so that's a big hindrance.
I do have an 11-year-old and a wife, so that could be challenging,
especially in the summer because weekends are the time to go camping and all that.
(25:25):
And so we're trying to find ways to be able to do that and do family stuff while
I do the band stuff. because, you know, we don't play a lot in the winter and
winter's obviously not a good time to go camping.
My 11 year old daughter does get up and sing with me on stage from time to time.
So that's a whole lot of fun. Very cool.
(25:46):
Yeah. What else? Yeah. So, you know, as far as other work goes,
I mean, I'm teaching guitar lessons.
I just was recently hired to do a
song for a soundtrack for an art video project that
a local artist is working on you know i
do ebay stuff so i mean it's just my life is insane nothing's
(26:08):
i don't make anything simple for me you know if i make a cd i've got to have
it in you know 3d so i got to figure out the 3d process and then figure out
the getting the glasses from china to the printing company so they can put it
in you You know, it's just like, why not?
I just simplify and just make it normal.
Yeah. I can't, I know I've never been that way. So. Gotcha.
(26:31):
Cool. Yeah. But, but it seems like, you know, you have at least a decent control
over, over the balance of most of the things that you're doing. It seems.
Sure. Sure.
As long as it appears that way. Your wife hasn't kicked you out of the house yet?
Not yet, no. Yeah. No. The last question I ask is, gigs that have made an impression
(26:52):
on you as an artist and even as an audience member, is there some experiences
that just blew your mind that you could tell the audience?
For my shows or just any shows? It could be a show that you performed at,
shows you've seen, things of that nature.
Sure well you know with the with the rockabilly thing since i've got a lot of rockabilly influence.
(27:15):
So i bought the stray cats album when i
was a kid and uh i listened to it and i'm
like yeah it's okay you know it wasn't something that blew
me away and then i saw them in concert
and watching you know the bass player
run around with his upright bass on his shoulder chasing guitar
player and the drummer getting up and standing on top of
(27:36):
his drums and jumping off and the guitar guitar
player getting up on the drums it was just such a
show yeah it was so high energy
and it was life-changing and then
you know on the opposite of that we went to go see
the cars before rick okasik passed obviously because yeah and he's never been
(27:58):
one to really move around on stage and he was a big influence when i was a kid
also so you know it's just kind of like watching Imagine a band stand there,
play their songs. Not real exciting.
I'm thankful I saw them, but it's like, I want to go see a show that's high
energy, that they're into it, they're moving around, they're doing something.
(28:19):
So it's not just audio experience, it's a visual experience also.
You know, so I try to incorporate that into our shows.
And, you know, we did open, you know, the other life changing or the great experience
was opening for Setzer for a few shows on the East Coast when he was doing his orchestra.
(28:43):
Yeah, I mean, that's kind of a little bit longer story. And,
but yeah, it was very surreal to be up on stage at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic
City with Setzer standing to the side, watching us play.
And, you know, I was a guitar player for someone that I was very much into when
I was a kid and somehow it ended up playing with him and, you know,
(29:07):
and then the next day I'm back home raking leaves in the front.
I can't be playing a sold out show at the Trump Taj Mahal and then raking leaves.
Yep. Yep. But I learned so much from those experiences over there that,
you know, that I apply to the band now, you know, my, yeah, just so much, so many influences.
(29:30):
Wonderful. Wonderful. Is there anything you'd like to add for the listeners
to know about before I let you go today?
Um, I can't, I can't really think of anything right off except for,
you know, if you do Do pick up our CD, you know, with the glasses.
There's a QR code on the side that will take you to our secret web page on my
website that has more 3D images.
(29:52):
So, you know, it's just trying to make this more of an experience for people
that, you know, it's not just getting something and listening.
You can, you know, find these things and go explore other places and hear our
stuff. And yeah, support the band, support local music, support original music.
(30:15):
Excellent. Bruce, thank you so much for being on the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
It's been a pleasure talking with you, learning all about you and your music
and the things you've been doing. So thank you so much for being on the show.
Yeah, I appreciate you having me. Thanks, man.
Well, thanks again for tuning in to another episode of the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
Once again, I'm Zach Fell, your host and creator of the Wisconsin Music Podcast,
(30:38):
where I love to amplify the great sounds coming out of the Wisconsin state.
We have great talent here, great support, great listeners.
Thanks to Fox City's Indie Radio for syndicating this on Wednesdays and Sundays,
along with their other great programs.
So make sure you check out the Fox City's Indie Radio. Thanks so much to Bruce.
(31:00):
For being on the show this week.
If you'd like to be on the show, just go up to wisconsinmusicpodcast.com,
fill out the guest request form up at the top, ask for your email and your name,
and then I'll send you an auto email asking you for more information.
If you are enjoying these episodes, please consider donating to the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
(31:22):
Donations help pay for the website and putting the podcast up on streaming services
and also getting our name out there to all Wisconsinites and others that are.
Interested in our great music here in Wisconsin.
Donations are secure through PayPal and Stripe. All you have to do is go to
the website and click on Donate to WMP.
And also make sure you like and subscribe us on.
(31:45):
Music.
Music.
(00:11):
Welcome to the Wisconsin Music Podcast. This week we have Bruce Humphreys,
and he belongs to the group.
Bruce Humphreys and the Rockabilly Rebels. He has opened for major acts like
the Brian Setzer Orchestra, Hazel Atkins, Hank Thompson, Rosie Flores, and much, much more.
He has sold music worldwide and has played some major rockabilly festivals like
(00:33):
the Coney Island Rockabilly Fest in Brooklyn, Franklin, Uno Go-Go in Chicago,
Illinois, and Wisconsin's own S-Y-M-C-O, Simcoe, and Northern Roundup.
Bruce, welcome to the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
Thanks for having me. I appreciate it. Glad to be here.
So, for the listeners, why don't you kind of give them your music origin story.
How did you get started in the music and kind of how it got you to where you are today?
(00:57):
Oh, I started playing music, well, I wouldn't consider it music back then,
but in high school I started. I wanted to play drums and wasn't a very good
drummer. And so I wanted to be more upfront.
I didn't want to be sitting in the back. So I switched over to guitar and just
kind of messed around on that and was in cover bands, you know,
like alternative cover bands playing Ramones, Violent Femmes, Cramps.
(01:20):
I then started writing my own stuff. And 30, 40 years later,
I'm still playing, which is pretty amazing because, you know, you're a musician,
you have lots of ups and downs and it takes a while.
And a lot of people just kind of give up and quit and move on to something else.
But for some reason it stuck with me.
(01:41):
So yeah, here I am playing same kind of music and maybe a little bit calmer.
So what kind of drew you to the rockability
genre yeah well you know i i think it was about eight years ago i turned 50
and i started kind of reflecting on you know my life and how i ended up getting
(02:02):
where i am and that includes the music and i realized that i was really big
into the the Beatles when I,
you know, back in the early seventies, nine,
10, 12 years old.
And I didn't really put it together until years later that they were playing
a lot of rockabilly songs from Carl Perkins, Eddie Cochran, Chuck Berry,
(02:26):
all that kind of stuff. Okay.
And then the eighties came and there was the punk, punk new wave movement that
included the Stray Cats, the Neo Rockabilly revival.
And yeah, so that kind of started off a huge love for rockabilly and that old
(02:46):
school kind of rock and roll.
And also, I had been collecting Swing records from thrift stores for a while, so I knew about Swing.
Yeah. Yeah. So that's kind of what, what started that.
I just never thought about really playing it. I was much better at playing two
finger power chords, doing Ramones kind of thing.
(03:07):
Okay. And eventually said, well, let's start a rockabilly band, see what happens.
Gotcha. And for listeners that maybe haven't really experienced what rockabilly
is, what would, what would be your best description of what that genre encompasses?
Compasses i think i think they say it's the bastard son of the blues so it's
(03:29):
old school country hillbilly music and combined with some rock and roll so early early early elvis.
Elvis presley everybody knows elvis so that that would be my description what
it is if somebody was asking me what the heck is rock and roll which they do
a lot because people just don't know you know,
(03:50):
kind of hillbilly music with some rock and roll in it.
And what's the basic instrumentation for like a rockabilly group?
Well, for a true rockabilly band, it will probably be an acoustic guitar,
lead singer, upright bass, and a drummer with a stripped down drum set.
But then, you know, and you're playing songs kind of like Elvis Presley.
(04:13):
And then there's, you know, other genres that kind of came off of that, like psychobilly,
which is mixing the punk is a little bit closer to the punk rock,
you know, adding punk rock influences to that neo rockabilly,
which adds a lot more newer production in the studio, more players.
Players so currently we have four players
(04:36):
in our band it's me playing rhythm guitar on
electric and sometimes on acoustic a lead player a
bass player and drummer gotcha so what
is the local scene attitude towards your group like the positives of it yeah
we've gotten great response it's pretty amazing because i grew up in indiana
(04:58):
went to school in kentucky and kansas lived in texas lived in Tennessee,
lived in Philadelphia, and I've played music at all those places.
But usually you're just kind of like the backing soundtrack to something.
People are sitting at the bar watching television.
You're playing music to backs of heads. Right.
So it's been pretty amazing up here. It's like people are really into going
(05:23):
out and seeing music and seeing music and not just having it as the background noise. Right.
And plus, you know, rockabilly and beer kind of go hand in hand.
And I've been told there's a lot of beer drinkers up here.
And Harley, the Harley Davidson crowd, you know, motorcycles and rockabilly.
(05:44):
It's just that it kind of goes hand in hand also. Yeah.
Lifestyle there. The music that I'm writing fits in perfect with that.
And I get a really good response.
I've gotten a great response up here at festivals, at fairs, clubs.
And it's kind of odd. It definitely made me reflect back and, you know, why is that?
(06:05):
Why is all these other places that I've played like that?
And why is Milwaukee, Wisconsin in general, you know, different from all those other places?
I don't know if I've actually figured it out, but, you know, I'm not complaining.
Life is good. Good. Good. That's good. Is there any struggles you've seen in
(06:25):
the live scene that just seems to be a hindrance or something that could be
activated to help if it was turned around would help the scene for you?
I think it's just the support of original music acts is kind of the main hurdle.
And I feel like, you know, I've got two agents, three agencies that I work with.
(06:48):
And the two of those, the majority of the acts seem to be cover bands.
And so I feel very lucky to be a part of that crowd to be able to get booked
from those agencies because we play a majority is original music.
Now, if we're playing a three or four hour set, then we throw in covers from
(07:12):
Roy Orbison, Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, of course, all those.
Excuse me. But yeah, it's just kind of getting recognized as an original artist
because cover bands, that's where it's at.
You know, cover bands are going to make a heck of a lot more money than what
we're pulling in. Gotcha. People want to go out and hear things that they recognize.
(07:37):
Which I totally get. I understand that.
But again, for the response that we've been getting, playing my originals,
you know, I think we're pretty blessed.
Nice, nice. So with being a mostly original band, what do you do to help promote
like your shows and other things of that nature to keep people to notice your group?
(07:59):
Yeah, social media. And I'm not social media savvy at all.
Pretty much none of the guys in the band are. We're all at least in our 50s
at this point, pushing 60, if not, I think actually someone is in their 60s.
We're old school. We used to hang up flyers on telephone poles.
(08:20):
We don't do that anymore.
I'm on social media promoting it on all these different Wisconsin,
our Milwaukee music, Facebook pages.
I try to do some video of our songs.
Like so with this new album instead of dropping all the
songs dropping the whole album at one time
(08:41):
and having it get lost in the shuffle we're releasing a
single at a time so like every month i'll release another song i'll make a video
for it we'll post it all over social media in hopes that it will generate more
interest and kind of keep our name out there because our first album And we
just kind of, we just put it out there.
(09:03):
And, and then of course, three months later, COVID hit. Not that it would make
any difference, but I figured the, the, the worst thing that could happen by
releasing them via singles,
I'm losing 0.0003 cents a stream online.
And, you know, the fact is we're not getting that many streams no matter what. So, yeah.
(09:23):
If you are enjoying these episodes, please consider donating to the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
Donations help pay for the website and putting the podcast up on streaming services
and also getting our name out there to all Wisconsinites and others that are
interested in our great music here in Wisconsin.
Donations are secured through PayPal and Stripe.
(09:43):
Do is go to the website and click on Donate to WMP.
So you just mentioned your newest recording. Why don't you kind of give the
listeners a little journey from the beginning to the releases?
You know, how did you start the project? Who's involved?
Not only the musicians, but on the other side of the glass as well.
(10:04):
Was it a DIY or did you go to a studio?
Things of that nature yeah so our drummer has a home studio you know i've always
i've always wanted to go into a studio but if i'm going to spend that much money
it makes more sense to buy the equipment and i'll have the equipment and do
it ourselves now of course it's not going to sound the same.
(10:26):
But we'll save a lot of money and you know maybe the next album or the next
album will will be expensive studio quality.
So we started this almost two years ago. We recorded the basics in our drummer's basement.
I brought the files home. I started building a studio at my house,
(10:47):
so I started putting it together here.
It would not have taken, it just was released this summer, it would not have
taken as long if I went somewhere and paid a lot of money or if I knew how to
run the software that I was editing it on.
So there's a lot of trial and error, lots of error.
But it was rewarding in the process.
(11:09):
But yeah, so I got Lorenzo Rapani on lead guitar, John Steffes on bass,
Kurt Weber on drums, and I'm on guitar and singing.
I do play some piano on one song.
Unfortunately, we lost John Steffes earlier this summer.
To cancer, but was very grateful to have him on this album and kind of,
(11:34):
you know, he helped out so much with the process.
As far as, you know, other people, we did a Kickstarter campaign and I honestly
did not think because we're older, we don't have a big social media presence.
I did not think we would make our goal, but people really stepped up and we,
we made it And I was able to release it on a real CD, release it on vinyl,
(12:01):
you know, get a good recording and.
Well, the artwork for the CD and the vinyl are all both in 3D.
Oh, cool. And the glasses come with it. So they're custom made glasses.
So it's kind of a fun, different release. I'm trying to kind of come up with
different ways of releasing something to generate interest.
(12:23):
Yeah. You know, it's not just an audio experience. It's a visual experience too.
So I was really excited that that all turned out. On a side note,
I've heard that getting vinyl from sending them your music to receiving the
album back takes multiple months.
How many months did it take for you to get that turnaround?
(12:46):
That's what I heard too. In fact, I was told basically plan on it taking a year.
So I was expecting it to be done in March.
It came in the mail almost a month and a half, maybe two months ago at this point.
So it took about six months, if that.
Okay. It was quick considering what I was told. Right.
(13:07):
You know, six months is definitely a long time, but you know,
when you're expecting something a year later and it comes in half the time, you know.
That's pretty cool. Yeah. There's hope for people that want to release something
in a relatively short amount of time, half of a year.
At least the company I went with, you know, I don't know what other companies.
(13:32):
Are like but right and how
many did you have made did you like a thousand run or half of that or what was
it half of half of that we i think the total count was 245 that came in okay
so yeah it's very limited run we'll see how this one sells this one has tricolor vinyl.
(13:53):
The next printing if we actually are lucky enough to have to do that will just
be either one color or just black.
I don't think I'll have custom glasses made so that this first piece.
Pressing might be a little bit more, I don't want to say valuable,
because I don't think it will ever be valuable.
(14:15):
I'd like for it to be, but you never know. Chances are it won't be,
but it will be a special edition.
Cool. Yeah, it's nice to see that some of this music being reproduced back onto
vinyl has had a comeback.
It's very cool, because I think vinyl has a very, it's not just a nostalgic niche thing,
(14:37):
but it actually has a cool vibe to it of its
own you know yeah absolutely yeah i've
always i've always loved vinyl i obviously if
you see behind me there's a small collection just
just a small yeah yeah if someone asked you what were your i don't want to say
your top or your favorites but if you wanted to show them or have them hear
(15:01):
three great examples of songs off that album And what would it like be the three
that you would like to pick and maybe we'll have put them on the podcast for you.
The three songs would, first one would be coming down hard in my backyard would
be another one and probably leave the lights on if I had, I mean,
(15:22):
that's hard to pick three,
you know, yeah,
I would probably say those three because well, coming down hard,
it's just a rocker it's opens the CD.
Music.
(17:09):
In my backyard, I wrote during COVID. Well, I started writing before COVID.
I finished it during COVID.
I always joke that it was, well, it's not a joke.
It was a really depressing, sad time, and we needed happy songs.
And I ended up writing a song about growing old, falling apart, and dying.
A lot of my songs have humor in it. So that's in my backyard.
(17:33):
Ours just talks about, you know, getting older and, you know,
the issues health-wise.
I'll save the rest for you guys just to listen to.
Music.
(18:03):
Hell came of me it hurts to wake up in the morning and in the middle of the night i've got a pee,
no one ever said it easy no one ever said it could get this hard Just put me in a coffin,
(18:30):
and bury my ass in the backyard.
Well, that's what I get for daydreaming.
The problem is that I never woke up.
(18:53):
Now it's growing out of strange places and velcros replacing the laces,
and then leave the lights on is just a special song because my mom when we were
(19:16):
younger she said that she'd always leave the porch light on no matter what her kids were doing.
So basically, if we got sent to prison, not that that would happen,
and this is a drastic experience example, but if we got sent to prison,
she'd always have the porch light on and welcome us back home.
So no matter what happened, what the kids were doing, there'd always be a light.
(19:40):
And so that kind of stuck with me. So I wrote that.
The title inspired me. The lyrics themselves don't necessarily reflect that experience.
Music.
(21:45):
The Light Song is definitely a line that's stuck with me for 20, 30 years. Great.
And yeah, that's amazing. So I'll insert those songs in there for you,
and then the listeners can take a listen to that, and they can draw their own
conclusions if they want to, and then go and see you play. Yeah.
You and your group. Yeah.
(22:06):
So speaking, you said you released this on CD and also on vinyl,
but where can people see or hear this digitally?
Do you have band camp? I mean, are they on the streaming sites?
Where else can they hear this?
Yeah, I think you could actually hear all the songs on Bandcamp, now that you mention it.
Spotify, we have five singles from the album on there now.
(22:27):
You can go to my website at brucehumphries.com. We have videos,
links to all the YouTube and Instagram and all that, obviously come out to the shows.
Shows so right now we have the vinyl and
the cd we've been selling at shows we just don't not releasing
them all online right and then there's uh four local
(22:50):
record stores in town that you can pick them
up at a record head bullseye records lily
put and rush more cool so
listeners out there if you want to go get your your hard
copy of that you go see them at a show or go to
to those record shops and check them out there or online like
(23:10):
bandcamp.com where artists get a majority
of what you spend on their music goes
right back to them so that's definitely a good thing we're streaming
unfortunately you get 0.001 of a penny on the dollar basically yeah where can
they see you play yeah we've got a in february i believe i don't have the date
(23:33):
in front of me We're playing at OPE O-P-E Brewery Okay That's in,
West Allis Okay I believe It's right over there Near State Fair Park.
We have been asked back for the Port Washington Fish Fry Festival.
I don't have the dates for that, but you can go to my website,
(23:56):
BruceHumphreys.com, and you can check out the dates that we have.
Kind of in the middle of booking for next year.
So listeners, go to this website when this airs, once you hear this,
and go see when they're playing and go check them out.
Because Rockabilly is an experience in and of itself, for sure.
Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.
(24:18):
As we're winding down here, there's a couple more questions I have for you.
One of them is work-life balance.
Is that, I know you've talked about you're now, you know, in your,
close to your 50s or early 50s.
You've been playing a long time. Is it a struggle still or you kind of got a
good control over the balance?
I wish I was almost 50 or in my early 50s. I'm 58, so I'm pushing 60.
(24:40):
Okay. It could be a challenge because, well, you're getting older and you're
not as, you don't have the energy like you had when you were younger.
So I've realized that I need to go and do more aerobic workout exercises,
you know, during the week so that I can catch my breath when I'm playing.
(25:01):
Because there are definitely times when I get winded from running around there
on stage or into the audience. And yeah, so that's a big hindrance.
I do have an 11-year-old and a wife, so that could be challenging,
especially in the summer because weekends are the time to go camping and all that.
(25:25):
And so we're trying to find ways to be able to do that and do family stuff while
I do the band stuff. because, you know, we don't play a lot in the winter and
winter's obviously not a good time to go camping.
My 11 year old daughter does get up and sing with me on stage from time to time.
So that's a whole lot of fun. Very cool.
(25:46):
Yeah. What else? Yeah. So, you know, as far as other work goes,
I mean, I'm teaching guitar lessons.
I just was recently hired to do a
song for a soundtrack for an art video project that
a local artist is working on you know i
do ebay stuff so i mean it's just my life is insane nothing's
(26:08):
i don't make anything simple for me you know if i make a cd i've got to have
it in you know 3d so i got to figure out the 3d process and then figure out
the getting the glasses from china to the printing company so they can put it
in you You know, it's just like, why not?
I just simplify and just make it normal.
Yeah. I can't, I know I've never been that way. So. Gotcha.
(26:31):
Cool. Yeah. But, but it seems like, you know, you have at least a decent control
over, over the balance of most of the things that you're doing. It seems.
Sure. Sure.
As long as it appears that way. Your wife hasn't kicked you out of the house yet?
Not yet, no. Yeah. No. The last question I ask is, gigs that have made an impression
(26:52):
on you as an artist and even as an audience member, is there some experiences
that just blew your mind that you could tell the audience?
For my shows or just any shows? It could be a show that you performed at,
shows you've seen, things of that nature.
Sure well you know with the with the rockabilly thing since i've got a lot of rockabilly influence.
(27:15):
So i bought the stray cats album when i
was a kid and uh i listened to it and i'm
like yeah it's okay you know it wasn't something that blew
me away and then i saw them in concert
and watching you know the bass player
run around with his upright bass on his shoulder chasing guitar
player and the drummer getting up and standing on top of
(27:36):
his drums and jumping off and the guitar guitar
player getting up on the drums it was just such a
show yeah it was so high energy
and it was life-changing and then
you know on the opposite of that we went to go see
the cars before rick okasik passed obviously because yeah and he's never been
(27:58):
one to really move around on stage and he was a big influence when i was a kid
also so you know it's just kind of like watching Imagine a band stand there,
play their songs. Not real exciting.
I'm thankful I saw them, but it's like, I want to go see a show that's high
energy, that they're into it, they're moving around, they're doing something.
(28:19):
So it's not just audio experience, it's a visual experience also.
You know, so I try to incorporate that into our shows.
And, you know, we did open, you know, the other life changing or the great experience
was opening for Setzer for a few shows on the East Coast when he was doing his orchestra.
(28:43):
Yeah, I mean, that's kind of a little bit longer story. And,
but yeah, it was very surreal to be up on stage at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic
City with Setzer standing to the side, watching us play.
And, you know, I was a guitar player for someone that I was very much into when
I was a kid and somehow it ended up playing with him and, you know,
(29:07):
and then the next day I'm back home raking leaves in the front.
I can't be playing a sold out show at the Trump Taj Mahal and then raking leaves.
Yep. Yep. But I learned so much from those experiences over there that,
you know, that I apply to the band now, you know, my, yeah, just so much, so many influences.
(29:30):
Wonderful. Wonderful. Is there anything you'd like to add for the listeners
to know about before I let you go today?
Um, I can't, I can't really think of anything right off except for,
you know, if you do Do pick up our CD, you know, with the glasses.
There's a QR code on the side that will take you to our secret web page on my
website that has more 3D images.
(29:52):
So, you know, it's just trying to make this more of an experience for people
that, you know, it's not just getting something and listening.
You can, you know, find these things and go explore other places and hear our
stuff. And yeah, support the band, support local music, support original music.
(30:15):
Excellent. Bruce, thank you so much for being on the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
It's been a pleasure talking with you, learning all about you and your music
and the things you've been doing. So thank you so much for being on the show.
Yeah, I appreciate you having me. Thanks, man.
Well, thanks again for tuning in to another episode of the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
Once again, I'm Zach Fell, your host and creator of the Wisconsin Music Podcast,
(30:38):
where I love to amplify the great sounds coming out of the Wisconsin state.
We have great talent here, great support, great listeners.
Thanks to Fox City's Indie Radio for syndicating this on Wednesdays and Sundays,
along with their other great programs.
So make sure you check out the Fox City's Indie Radio. Thanks so much to Bruce.
(31:00):
For being on the show this week.
If you'd like to be on the show, just go up to wisconsinmusicpodcast.com,
fill out the guest request form up at the top, ask for your email and your name,
and then I'll send you an auto email asking you for more information.
If you are enjoying these episodes, please consider donating to the Wisconsin Music Podcast.
(31:22):
Donations help pay for the website and putting the podcast up on streaming services
and also getting our name out there to all Wisconsinites and others that are.
Interested in our great music here in Wisconsin.
Donations are secure through PayPal and Stripe. All you have to do is go to
the website and click on Donate to WMP.
And also make sure you like and subscribe us on.
(31:45):
Music.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Nikki Glaser Podcast
Every week comedian and infamous roaster Nikki Glaser provides a fun, fast-paced, and brutally honest look into current pop-culture and her own personal life.