Shayn Wills and the Swamp Diggers

Shayn Wills and the Swamp Diggers

At The Thirsty Dog
469 Karangahape Road Newton Auckland Time 8pm – 11 pm
Date Saturday the 8th of September 2018 door charge $20.00

On 8th of September 2018 Shayn Wills and the Swamp Diggers reunite for one night only, playing for the Auckland Blues Music Club, this will be one of the best nights of live blues all year! From Contemporary to traditional, acoustic to electric and from standards to originals this show has something for everyone.

Shayn Wills and the Swamp Diggers

Shayn Wills: (New Zealand), rhythm and lead guitar, harmonica and vocals.
Gordon Joll: (New Zealand), drums.
Alex Griffith: (New Zealand), Bass.
These boys are the top of their field. They are well established sought after and stand out players in the Wellington, Auckland, New Zealand and indeed international music scenes.
Throughout the 90's and into the 2000's Shayn Wills and the Swamp Diggers played thousands of gigs all over Aotearoa and held down a Thursday night residency at the Java Jive in Ponsonby which became famous for being one of the best nights out in Auckland week after week for many years.

Hurricane Shayn Wills

Albert King, Junior Wells, Robert Cray, John Hammond Jnr, Canned Heat, Duke Robilard. These names form the basis of the Blues as we know it today. To play support for one of these musicians could be a musician’s career highlight, but to have played support for ALL of them, you have to agree that musician would be of world class standard. Well, between 1992 and 2005 Shayn Wills played support for each one of these legendary innovative musicians.
Watching Wills play it becomes glaringly obvious he is something special. For starters his ability to play harmonica, guitar and sing at once is astounding and entertaining. His complex guitar rhythms, innovative harmonica riffs and melodic voice make him a must-see act. Julie Oakley, a reviewer for the national music magazine ‘Real Groove’ is quoted to say, “Wills is one of the original black Mississippi Blues legends, reincarnated and living in Auckland, (New Zealand)”.

Gordon Joll, Drums
30 years of experience in the music industry, in demand session player, comfortable with all styles, fluent reader, member of herbs since 1988, performed and recorded with, Hello Sailor, Prince Tui Teka (no1 hit E I Po) Mockers "forever Tuesday morning" Tim Finn " Parihaka" Hammond Gamble

Recollection and Ninety mile days CD's, Toured and recorded with Joe Walsh, Orchestral gigs including Symphony under the stars, Xmas in the park.
Joll is one of the most sought after drummers in Aotearoa, he can play any style you throw at him from complex jazz to country swing and low down blues shuffles, but what really makes Joll a stand out player in any line up is that every note he plays from rudiments to complex fills are full of that elusive but essential part of any musicians arsenal (especially with regards to the blues) heart and feel !

Alex Griffith, Bass
When not touring Aotearoa and the world with the Dave Alley band Griffith play’s with, a host of great bands all over the north island holding down the bottom end with the seamless flow and precision that can only come from someone with thousands of hours of live performance experience and complete dedication to their instrument.
Griffith is one of those rare players that lives and breathes within the realms of his instrument. He truly adds real soul and feel to any line up he is involved in.

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