MUSICIAN DAVID WINGO REMEMBERS A WILD AND SOMEWHAT LAWLESS UNINCORPORATED HILTON HEAD BACK IN THE LATE 1970S WHEN HE ARRIVED FROM ATLANTA WITH A BATCH OF ORIGINAL TUNES AND DREAMS OF CARVING OUT A FULL-TIME LIVING MAKING MUSIC IN AN EMERGING PARADISE.
Bales of contraband would wash up on local shores courtesy of waterborne area smugglers and an ensuing massive drug bust (Operation Jackpot) was followed by word that one of the crooks had buried a sizable cache of cash somewhere in Spanish Wells. So it became local sport, usually after a few drinks, to make like latter-day pirates and go on early morning hunts for buried treasure.
“It was like a Jimmy Buffett song back then,” smiles Wingo, who would soon go on to become the island’s first rock star.
LIVE MUSIC MEN
From left; Mark Ruplinger from the Old Post Office Emporium, Jesse Watkins of the The Mundahs, John Cranford of Cranford Hollow, Tristan O’Grady of the Big Bamboo Cafe, musician Martin Lesch and Thomas Reilley of The Boardroom.
Larry Perigno launched a high-flying and lucrative era of resort show bands when he brought his Headliners to Club Indigo at the Hyatt (today’s Marriott). “We came for a month in 1977 and stayed 19 years,” says Perigno, who recalls using the slow-swinging Byrnes Bridge as an excuse if running late for an engagement. The Headliners served up themed musical variety shows featuring costume changes, scripted patter and comedy skits for sit-down audiences of tourists and locals between dance sets.
Entertainer Bobby Ryder would soon arrive; turning a warm-up week for a run at a Hawaiian showroom into what would become a 14-year residency in Scarlett’s Lounge at the Mariner’s Inn (today’s Omni). Touring bands fetched up to $5,000 a week and players got complimentary suites as part of a perk-filled package that also provided lucrative daytime bonus jobs playing at corporate and celebrity golf events. “We did have a lot of fun back then,” says Ryder who, like The Headliners, would sometimes tour elsewhere when the resorts would be shuttered between October and April before settling into a yeararound groove.
Earl Williams would sing, tell jokes and play multiple instruments at the Crows Nest atop the Hilton Head Inn (today’s Marriott Grand Ocean) and horn man Bob Masteller, who would go on to open today’s thriving Jazz Corner, fondly recalls The Golden Rose, a Harlemstyled speakeasy on Beach City Road where “you had to know somebody to get in.” Celebrities would sometimes drop in — he remembers seeing baseball sluggers Willie Mays and Hank Aaron hanging out together one night — and jam sessions would last until the wee hours. Singer Teri Rini opened the Mockingbird Lounge at the Marriott (today’s Sonesta) and jazz began to take further hold with the formation of Jazz Reborn, a group of retired executives with musical aspirations who played private functions and community events. Singer Freddie Cole, brother of Nat King Cole, took up spring residencies at the Plantation Club at Sea Pines and the occasional touring big band would swing into the Crows Nest.
ROOTS TAKE HOLD
Meanwhile, roots of what would become a thriving rock scene were taking hold at a handful of small Coligny Plaza joints including the Earle of Sandwich and the original Wild Wings where John Brennan and the Wolves drew party-minded crowds. The adjacent Grog & Galley, which Bobby Mangan would close every full moon to avoid ensuing lunacy, became an early venue for jazz pianist Bill Barnwell and bassist Delbert Felix who would anchor the scene for years to come along with Savannah bassist Ben Tucker and Teddy Adams.
Former teen idol Frankie Avalon was much of the cash behind short-lived Scandals which attempted to bring national names to an area that was just finding its footing with talented locals. Bob Hope and the Las Vegas Follies opened the lavish mega-club circa 1980 and a cool yet unconfirmed local legend has Frank Sinatra playing the club at some point. No matter. An official roster of touring oldies acts such as The Platters and The InkSpots never gained traction and the club later became Jason D’s, then a strip club before becoming home to today’s Central Church on U.S. 278 outside Shipyard.
The scene began to find cohesion, and welcome publicity, when Dick Mariotte began writing his “Talk of the Town” entertainment column in the early 80s for the twice-weekly Hilton Head News which would eventually give way to today’s daily Island Packet newspaper. Mariette was never short of supportive words and accompanying photos in his column helped turn The Headliners, Bobby Ryder and Earl Williams into island celebrities. He dubbed Teri Reni the island’s “First Lady of Jazz” and heaped praise on David Wingo, calling the Quarterdeck at Sea Pines “Wing land” in honor of popular performances that drew a growing and dedicated clientele of tourists and locals alike.
Wingo would continue to write and record originals while mastering the art of playing cover tunes with conviction and presence at the Quarterdeck through the decade ahead. One of his compositions would become “The Wedding Theme for Josh and Reba,” two crucial characters in the long-running CBS network soap opera, “The Guiding Light.” earning Wingo steady extra income and even a couple of on-air appearances when the show’s cast and crew came to Hilton Head for location shoots, filming island vegetation as stand-in for the jungles of Venezuela.
“The musical community was just starting to come together back then,” he remembers, “and everybody knew everybody and where we’d all be going out at night.” Musicians would mingle and get to know each other at Mariotte’s house for cookouts when venues were closed because of a since-rescinded ban on Sunday liquor sales.
On other nights, the sale of spirits in generous 1.75 ounce mini-bottles was suspended at 2 a.m. (midnight Saturdays) but enterprising locals relied on private clubs such as pro tennis player Evonne Goolagong’s self-named place (later Amadeus) which carried no signage and required key access to keep the revelry going, often until dawn. A couple bucks would secure a singlenight/ morning membership at The Ribet Room, later Sahari’s, and a dispute with new ownership led Ridgeland native Roy Prescott to change the scene with the opening of the original Remy’s in 1984. Jack Williams played the opening night with free booze for all and the first Remy’s, now a patch of grass at the southwest corner of Arrow Road and US 278, quickly became music central and the favored hang until 4 a.m. for off-duty food and beverage workers and resort entertainers such as Ryder and The Headliners. Legal poker and blackjack machines boosted the bottom line and dented paychecks at smoky nightspots everywhere.
Party bands such as the Lawn Jockeys became known for vigorous sing-along versions from the Styx and Eagles songbooks and The Chilly Willy Band, still working like most other acts noted in this chronology, developed a loyal following via Remy’s. But a player’s history of the island rock scene is forever linked to the Mundahs, an all-original progressive rock outfit that came this close to national prominence and the opening of the Old Post Office Emporium on Pope Avenue.
THE EARLY DAYS
Jesse Watkins came to the island from New York in 1982 to focus on golf — he currently teaches at Sea Pines — but brought his guitar along as well. “There wasn’t a lot of rock and roll back then,” says Watkins, who formed the Mundahs with bassist/vocalist Al Czech and a pair of bandmates. The popular group soon dominated the local scene and departed regularly for national tours, returning to play Remy’s and, starting in 1984, the Old Post Office founded in part by David Truly (of the Truly Dangerous Swamp Band) and long-time islander Mark Ruplinger.
The Old Post Office (today housing Time Warner Cable) became the town’s first outlet granting locals the chance to catch established touring rock acts that included Alice Cooper, The Tubes, Leon Russell and Bonnie Raitt. The Mundahs were the local heroes and Watkins recalls a night when a then-unknown band named Phish opened the show for them. Hootie and the Blowfish fronted by island regular Darius Rucker earned early success at the venue and tickets sold for up to $15 in a newly incorporated town where levying a cover charge is still considered a kiss of death.
Touring acts cost Ruplinger and company around $3,500 and the Old Post Office never made much money while sparking memories that linger to this day. “We made it a vacation for the acts with nice housing and a chance to relax for a few days,” says Ruplinger, who hit the links with then-upcoming country music superstar Vince Gill among others. “Bonnie Raitt came in before she won four Grammys and emceed our (1985) Halloween costume contest, then played with just another guitarist for the next couple of nights.”
Meanwhile, the football field at Hilton Head High School briefly hosted concerts featuring the Beach Boys and Jimmy Buffett in the early 80s as the town’s population began to surge and out-of-town promoters tested the waters of the Lowcountry market. The Dixie Dregs would stop by every year to play a dog’s birthday party and the musical party would continue through the decade, bringing the term “Sex, Drugs and Rock ‘n Roll” to life on a nightly basis.
SETTLING ON SNOW ISLAND
The show bands continued to earn big bucks at the resorts, the Techniques featuring islanders Mike and Marilyn Daly brought a contemporary rock vibe to the show scene and more musicians lucky enough to settle here started to realize that they could support themselves playing music full-time. Almost every performer opened a club of their own at some point, however briefl y, but David Wingo found the magic for a longer run when he opened Wingo’s at Park Plaza in 1988.
The well-appointed club with custom sound became a fresh focal point of an expanding scene, offering a rotating cast of mostly local musicians and friends. And at some point in time, a strange island ritual was created that found locals downing shots of Grand Marnier (aka “Granma”) as accompaniment to great live music and sundry party favors. Local legend has it that the makers of the orange-flavored liqueur, wondering why sales were so brisk on Hilton Head, made an island trek to find out why, only to be left aghast at seeing their product, designed for classy slowsipping after evening repasts, disappearing in a single gulp.
“We did go through a lot of Grand Marnier,” Wingo laughs, “and the stuff was expensive at $3.50 for each mini-bottle.” Prescott notes an ongoing “evaporation problem” with Grand Marnier at nearby Remy’s, but the weird tradition continues to this day in a town where many take pride in a national travel magazine’s recent ranking of Hilton Head as sixth on a list of the hardest drinking areas in the country. An underground local nickname, “Snow Island,” speaks for itself and still provokes knowing grins from area vets.
Wingo’s place also hosted weekly comedy nights and comics then paying their dues with regional one-nighters included Carrot Top, Ron White and Jeff Foxworthy, and the music scene moved forward without need to take out a newspaper ad thanks to the hospitality industry which continues to drive the scene with recommendations to tourists and in-person attendance.
Formation of the Hilton Head Jazz Society in 1986 would lead to a series of concerts at Wingo’s and the Old Post Office featuring nationally known jazz guitarists Joe Pass and Larry Coryell and the Buddy Rich Orchestra, while Sunday jams at the Top of the Isle further helped cement the local jazz scene. Bob Masteller and the Bay Street Stompers began playing jazz society gigs as the early 90s began and island entertainment continued to flourish in what many remember as a heyday that has yet to be duplicated.
GIVE THEM WHAT THEY WANT
The Simpson Brothers arrived in 1989 and were quickly adopted into the community, serving up Motown-drenched cover tunes at clubs and events all over the island before becoming the new house band at the Quarterdeck at Sea Pines in 1990, getting a free boat slip and two-bedroom condo at Harbour Town as part of the bargain. “It was a crazy time, all the kids loved the Mundahs and we just fell in love with the place,” remembers guitarist Mike Simpson, one-half of the duet featuring brother Brian on keyboards. “It didn’t take us long to realize that we could get off the road and have the people come to us … we weren’t crazy,” he laughs.
“You give em’ what they want,” Simpson continues as talk turns to the craft of turning cover tunes for tourists into something special — “Simpsonizing” if you will. “If you do what you’re supposed to do you can make a living playing “Brown Eyed Girl,” so you go out there, be nice to them and entertain them … the quickest way to clear a room is by saying, ‘Now I’d like to play a couple of originals for you.’”
Sterling and Chuvette Colvin arrived on the island with a welcome blend of jazz, funk and soul, and Big Rocco’s bolstered the scene with jazz-inspired pianist John “The Mayor” Bracket holding court for well-regarded shows and ongoing jam sessions. Of course, the venues would continue to come and go and the Old Post Office would succumb to that common malady known as “finances” in 1994. Likewise, Wingo’s would transition to the Monkey Business night club not long after, reopening anew in Park Plaza as the Wingo Hall Music Café where island regular John Mellancamp filmed an MTV music video and other artists utilized as a spot for quality remote recording. Singer-songwriter Edwin McCain would become an island star with shows at Wild Wings and other outlets before leaving to embark on national tours that continue today.
EVERYBODY WAS GOING TO BECOME A MILLIONAIRE
World-class pianist Martin Lesch arrived from New York in 1997 to record his first album, “Bambino,” with local musicians and decided to stay, soon forging a crucial link between the burgeoning rock and jazz scenes. The Martin Lesch Trio played a mix of rock covers and Lesch-written originals, and he recalls a time when soaring island real estate prices were helping fuel energetic island lifestyles. “There were bartenders who owned six properties,” Lesch says, “and everybody was going to become a millionaire.”
Dynamic singer-songwriter Angie Aparo, who would earn a Grammy Award for writing “Cry” recorded by Faith Hill, brought a decided sense of star power to the scene with riveting live performances at venues such as Moneypenny’s, opened by Tristan and Kieron O’Grady who would later debut the venerable and ongoing Big Bamboo. Rider’s would soon emerge to bolster a late night rock scene that hosted as many as five local bands on a single night, among them the Lesch Trio and various lineups fronted by Aparo, Zach Deputy and guitarist Billy Blair. Everybody played with everybody at some point and it was not uncommon for rock musicians to work with several bands simultaneously as the 20th Century moved down the homestretch, and Deputy and reggae-steeped Trevor Hall would soon play their way off the island to find ongoing success touring and playing the festival circuit.
Bob Masteller solidified the jazz scene when he and spouse Lois opened the cherished Jazz Corner in 1999. Pianist George Shearing opened the internationally renowned night spot and a listing of touring headliners who’ve stopped by since includes Bucky Pizzarelli and Mose Allison.
Nationally known players are still part of the picture, but Masteller fronts his own ensemble and has nurtured talented players such as Lesch and others who play most of the traditional jazz and songs from the Great American Songbook. Singer and
bandleader Reggie Deas arrived circa 2000 and his Deas Guyz, now featuring the versatile Leach on keyboards, quickly became a popular act at the Jazz Corner and other venues while continuing ongoing tours to Las Vegas and beyond.
NEW FACES IN THE CROWD
The resort show band scene hit a decline as resorts started using less costly dance DJs to anchor evenings with a subsequent increase in daytime and early evening jobs for solo acts. Wingo saw signs of trouble ahead when, in 2003, the town’s timeshare market switched to a points system that allowed vacationers to sample resorts elsewhere rather than return to Hilton Head at the same time every year. “Suddenly it was a bunch of strangers instead of people you counted on to come back at the same time every year and bring their friends,” says Wingo. “History started again every week after check-out.”
He would close Wingo’s in 2005 as a ban on smoking made it easier for patrons to step outside for a puff, spot goings-on elsewhere and disappear for the evening. South Carolina would become the nation’s final state to do away with mini-bottles in 2006.
UP AFTER DARK
A now-thriving rock scene would continue unabated with Leach forming Trophy Wife with fellow linchpin players Joe Vicars on bass, Jack Friel on drums and guitarist John Wilkins, the latter also a key member of The Storks and White Liquor, a Rolling Stones tribute band that continues to pack venues on occasion. White Liquor’s Mick Jagger impersonator, Rick Saba, would immortalize the scene with cheeky rock song parodies. The Beatles’ “Let It Be” became “F&B,” the Who’s “Magic Bus” became “Sea Pines Pass” and “Magical Mystery Tour” detailed a miserable timeshare tour.
Weary of touring and a back-stabbing vibe in New York, Craig Coyne moved to the island to be with family in 2003 and quickly became the island’s new guitar gunslinger. He landed a job his second night in town and within month became a fi xture in Spare Parts with Lesch, Friel and Vicars, dazzling onlookers with often inspired and extended solos on classic rock covers such as The Beatles’ “Dear Prudence” mixed with instrumental tributes to lesser-known artists such as The Meters of New Orleans renown. He would go on to form ongoing Shaky Bones playing nothing but ever-popular Grateful Dead covers and Spare Parts still gets together from time-totime. “I’m still amazed at how everyone welcomed me into the music community,” says Coyne. “There were no hassles … everyone just wanted to get together and play good music.”
The original Remy’s closed in 2006, had a brief run nearby as Prescott’s (today’s Fat Baby’s) and resurfaced again as Remy’s II, this time in Heritage Plaza on Pope Avenue. It became the new heartbeat of the rock scene as various bands and blissed-out audiences celebrated music and each other both inside and out at a busy bar and surrounding courtyard in the shadow of the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Department. Drummer and soulful singer Whitley Deputy would always rouse crowds with his take on James Brown’s “Sex Machine” and singer Jessica Sheridan might step from the crowd for a killer version of John Prine’s “Angel From Montgomery.”
RECESSION TAKES ITS TOLL
The Great Recession of 2008 took a toll on everyone, of course, and marked the end of rich corporate jobs for area musicians as belts tightened across the country. What was once a high-roller horde of visitors to Hilton Head started giving further way to today’s more coupon savvy flock. The 1,500-capacity Shoreline Ballroom at Hilton Head Beach & Tennis booked blues greats such as B.B. King and Johnny Winter, not forgetting rapper Snoop Dogg, but never made a go of it as homegrown players further dominated the scene and erased much need for big-name acts and their risky guarantees.
On seasonable weekends, island musicians and their followers would ferry merrily to Daufuskie Island for memorable performances by Spare Parts and The Storks among others at Wick Scurry’s Freeport and Beth Shipman’s Marsh Side Mama’s, the latter backyard hideaway reportedly set to call it a day at the end of this summer after 17 years of good times. Rider’s would succumb to financial reality in 2008, then a new landlord demanding dismantling of the outdoor bar at Remy’s would lead to another scene-denting shutdown in 2010. Remy’s would emerge a final time at a defunct urban dance club on Arrow Road, but the cavernous space and an off-putting sunken dance floor help prevent the place from catching steady stride with musicians and fans. Remy’s III closed last year and Roy Prescott vows to stick to catering and special events after 29 infl uential years supporting the local music scene. He’s without regrets even as he views a modern scene “that’s not as kind as it used to be.”
MORE LIVE MUSIC THAN EVER
The O’Grady Brothers’ Big Bamboo in tourist-driven Coligny Plaza has remained an island constant for years, successfully blending food and a retro WW II tropical atmosphere with early evening entertainment via acts such as the Beagles who cover Beatles classics. Local rock and reggae bands take over late evenings and the Mundahs (with drummer Dave Myers) still reunite occasionally for rare advanced sell-out shows at The Bamboo. “We’ll still bring in a big act like Drivin’ and Cryin’,” says Tristan O’Grady, “but at the end of the day we have musicians here who are as good as or better than anyone, and people love and support the local guys.”
Today there’s more music being heard than ever on the island if including all the familiar songs echoing from solo acts playing resorts and seemingly every restaurant that has a deck or inside performance space. These are rent-paying engagements for local players who can earn a couple of hundred bucks if their tips jars get a workout; standard pay in a band is a hundred bucks per player, and there’s admirable chat about an island musician pulling in close to $70,000 last year by working almost non-stop.
New bands and venues are moving onto an ever-changing scene and quality players continue to emerge in a maturing scene that’s spawned a second generation of island-reared musicians.
THE SECOND GENERATION
Jevon Daly remembers watching his parents playing rock covers of Blondie, The Police and Guns & Roses with The Techniques during the 1980s, and the ensuing Daly Planet found him in a power trio with dad Mike and brother Gavin.
His “bodacious rock and roll” singing mom Marilyn would die in 1999, however family tradition endures today in Lowcountry Boil, currently working on a fifth album of all-original bluegrass material. Jevon Daly also plays precise covers in Mike Cavanaugh’s popular Jo Jo Squirrel and the Home Pickles plus crazed booze-fueled tributes to 80s hair bands in Silicone Sister. “I’m looking forward to the day when I’m playing in a band with my own kids,” says Daly, who figures he’ll log more than 200 varied shows by the end of this year. Luke Mitchell is another respected performer with island roots and his younger sister, Hannah, is the lead singer for the young yet up-and-coming Steppin’ Stones.
A FAMILY OF MUSICIANS
Reilly’s Plaza, aka the “Barmuda Triangle” off Sea Pines Circle on Greenwood Drive, is party central for a younger set that mostly eschews the joys of live music in favor of prerecorded rap and sundry synthesized pop hits, but Thomas Reilly has given crowds a chance to hear the island’s best musicians playing outside The Boardroom. It’s a regular performance home for Cranford Hollow, currently the island’s hottest original band courtesy of an aggressive blend of American and Celtic influences and the allure of ambitious front man John Cranford. He arrived from Wisconsin in 2008 and first stepped on stage at an open mike night hosted by the Mundahs’ Watkins, and the pair would form Treble Jay with top-notch percussionist Johnny Ruxton. Cranford also teams up occasionally with scene mainstay Vicars in Flux, the island’s only outfi t playing dubstep and other offshoots of electronic dance music.
“What’s unique about Hilton Head is that it’s not competitive,” says Cranford. “There’s a family kind of feeling and (other musicians) want to see you succeed. Everybody is trying to pull each other up.” Cranford Hollow continues to work at home when not out touring, and the band joins a line of island ensembles that have found themselves on the brink of breakout success. As always, time will tell in a mercurial commercial market where timely luck factors as much as talent.
Other present day bright lights include Whitley Deputy’s B-Town players featuring highly regarded jazz/rock bassist Will Snyder, the metal-tinged hard rock and funk of Souls Harbor and the original moody rhythm and blues of La Bodega featuring funk-schooled guitarist Todd Toho and smooth vocalist Frederick Capers, aka “Guy Smiley.” Sara Burns, who used to perform at the Old Oyster Factory, has put out a Nashville-rooted debut recording while Joe Vicars’ musical range is on display on a recently released effort. Greg Critchley opened The Sound, a fully equipped modern recording studio that finds musicians helping each other out with guest appearances on works in progress. And the same group of seminal players is always ready to help out a cohort in need as evidenced by recent benefi ts for Billy Blair after the guitarist suffered a disabling stroke.
The Smokehouse on Palmetto Bay Road mixes bookings of local bands with occasional touring acts and nearby Cool Cats hosts a wide range of emerging acts including Groove Town Assault which fuses rock and hip-hop behind rapper Cory Brodsky. The Wrong Way Up features guitarist Tyler Desjean, bassist Warrens (CQ) Owen and hyperkinetic drummer Chase McCord, and the island-born trio (with guitarist Ferris Ruplinger) slipped into local lore recently with a trippy, start-to-finish cover of the Beatles’ “Abbey Road” in a wee hours show at Tim Moore’s new post-hippie clubhouse, the laid-back Broken Spoke on Arrow Road. Wild Wings on Pope Avenue continues to showcase local bands on Thursdays and will add Saturday night shows after Memorial Day.
FIVE DECADES OF LIVE MUSIC
The island music scene now spans five decades and has become as entrenched in community culture as great golf courses, nifty bike paths and sprawling stretches of sand. Town officials have, perhaps belatedly, bolstered the scene by adding live music at themed food and wine fests and Cranford Hollow was the main attraction at the Town’s 30th Anniversary bash on the beach last summer. The future of the thriving island jazz scene seems assured by way of the Junior Jazz Foundation and Hilton Head Jazz Camp which is guiding youngsters to a possible future in music with instructors such as Eric Jones and Chris Russell.
“Now we’re the old guys,” says a smiling Mike Simpson, age 61, “but we’ve had a grand time and feel very fortunate to have stayed here and become a part of it … we’ve had the best seat in the house for 25 years.” The Simpson Brothers returned to the Quarterdeck to entertain post-play crowds at last month’s RBC Heritage golf tournament – as did Larry’s Perugino’s enduring Headliners – and the brothers still play regular gigs at the Electric Piano in Park Plaza, owned by Adam and Kelly Nemetz since 2006. The intimate EP, once steady home for Sterling and Chuvette, currently presents solo performers such as Darryl Van Horne and “Dueling Pianos” shows that generate mixed-age audiences and no shortage of rousing sing-along sessions.
Bobby Ryder fronts live ensembles at the Jazz Corner when not working selfcontained to recorded tracks, playing onenighters at country clubs and restaurants. He’s fashioned a series of tributes to the great saloon singers of yesteryear that, of course, includes a Frank Sinatra retrospective. The money is not as good as it used to be (low four figures), but this is home and Ryder welcomes added time for fishing and golf when not onstage. And he still loves to perform. “I mean, what the hell else you gonna do?” he says in a mock New Jersey accent.
As for the island’s first rock star, David Wingo, he’s battling arthritis but continues to play somewhere nearly every day including regular gigs at The Kingfisher Restaurant where fellow scene forerunner Earl Williams still holds court on a weekly basis. “I feel very lucky to have moved here and make a living playing music, ”says Wingo, who urges young players to master the basics by learning to play a stringed instrument before turning to computerdriven tricks and such. “It’s still all about the same twelve notes that everybody’s been playing forever.”
Thus the island music scene continues and is sure to keep providing soul-enriching thrills as long as there are quality musicians, supportive venues and supporters … and a few shots of “Granma” for good measure.
DOCUMENTARY ON LOCAL MUSIC SCENE BEING MADE
Local musician Jared Templeton is shooting a documentary on the history of Hilton Head Island’s music, from the spiritual hymns and prison songs in the colonial times of the Gullah up to the present scene. He hopes to raise $20,000 to complete the project and is accepting donations through Kickstarter. For more information on the project, visit Kickstarter.com and search for “Hilton Head Island: a Music Documentary.”
BANDS OF HILTON HEAD ISLAND
If you’re looking for live music, look no further. Here’s a list of the areas hottest bands.
Angie Aparo
Anneliza Ithkor
Alexandrea Da nyale
The Beagles
Big Awesome
Big B and the Stingers
Bob Masteller
Bobby Ryder
Broad Creek Rum
Runners
Bruce Crichton
B-Town Project
Candac e Woodson & the
Domino Theory Band
Chas Perry
Chilly Willy Band
Chris and Christian
Chris Jones
The Common Wealth
Craig Coyne
Cranford Hollow
Da rryl Van Horne
Dav e Kemmerly
Dav id Carroll
Dav id Marshall
Dav id Wingo
Deas GuyZ
DJ Alan
Dos Amigos
Earl Williams
Flux
Frank Baron
Frequently Asked
Questions
Gary Pratt
Greg G
Gregg Russell
Gina Rene
Glen Jac obs
The Groovetones
Groove Town Assault
Hannah Mitchell
Harry Santana
The Headliners
Ja y Samuels
Jim Harper
John Wa sem
JoJo Squirrel & The Home
Pickles
Jon Bruner
Joe G
Joe Vica rs
Jordan Ross
Kirk O’Leary
Kris “Jelly” Gloer
La Bodega
Lav on Stevens
Louise Marie Spencer
Low Country Boil
Luke Mitchell
Maggie & Jac kson
Martin Lesch
McKenzie Eddy
Michael Wilson
Mike Kava naugh
Mike Korbar
M.O.B.
The Mundahs
Pa twa Reggae Band
Permanent Tourists
Peter Buonaiuto
Pete Carrol
Phil Mullins
Port O Johns
Positive Vibrations
Quick Trixie
Reggie & Lav on
Reid Richmond
Reymundo Elias
The Rosies
Rowdy Cloud/Luke
Mitchell
The Seadaddies
Todd Cowart
Tom Crenshaw
Sara Burns
Shannon Ta nner
Silicone Sister
The Simpson Brothers
Souls Harbor
Soulmate
South Beac h Orchestra
Spike Ivory Band
Spare Pa rts
Sterlin & Shuvette
Steppin’ Stones
Ta rget the Band
Teri and Larry Kopp
Terry Herron
The Storks
Tim Malchak
Tom Coulton
Tommy Da rgan Sims
Tom “Vegas” Vica rio
Treble Ja y
Trillium
White Liquor
Will Snyder
Wrong Wa y Up
Zac k Stiltner Band