If you’ve lived in Lethbridge for any length of time you’ve probably heard of the Chevelles. If the name doesn’t ring a bell it’s possible that you haven’t gone out of the house after 8pm for the last 15 years. I’m not judging you, you’re just missing out on seeing four guys who have honed their musical talents to create a memorable night out. While they’ve played every venue known to southern Alberta and garnered a reputation of being one of the best party bands around the rest of Canada has also taken notice as they’ve become a regular fixture at pretty much every major curling event from coast to coast. I’ve had the pleasure of working on a few projects with Chevelles’ vocalist and guitarist Tim Carter AKA Buck Chevelle. They were mostly silly projects like when he sang my fake “Vote Mark For Mayor” campaign song for April Fools and he helped me sing some goofy commercial jingles for a radio promotion that was raising money for the Chinook Hospital Foundation. And he gave me the absolute honor of becoming the 5th Chevelle one amazing night by getting on stage with them and singing the Tommy James song Hanky Panky. (Amazing for me that I got to do that…not so much for the audience.) Tim gives us an insight into his musical past, his love for music and a sense of what makes the Chevelles tick.
When did you first learn to play guitar?
I started trying to play around 10 years old. I never got guitar lessons so I’m self- taught, and I play by ear.
What was the first song you learned and performed?
I honestly can’t remember the first song, but I recall figuring out the whole first side of 2112 by Rush with my buddies and playing it incorrectly with pride for our friends!
Talk about your pre-Chevelle bands.
Believe it or not, but I’ve been in a band since 1978….here goes.
-1978-Gargoyle-We weren’t good enough to learn other songs, so we wrote our own. Sounds like it too.
-1980-Trance-High School, figuring it out slowly.
-1981-Salem-Played my first gig at Winston Churchill High School. This is where I started working with Scott Kanashiro (Woody Chevelle)
-1985-Mantis-My first bar band. Many line-up changes, many lessons about the business. This is where I started working with Don Plettell (TT Chevelle)
-1989-The Peace Dogs-Started out playing covers, and moved on to writing our own stuff. Recorded two albums of original songs, filmed two music videos, opened for many great recording artists, drank a lot of tequila.
-1998-The Beaumonts-A pre-curser to the Chevelles idea, working on the right line-up.
-2000-The Chevelles- Starting as primarily a classic rock cover band, and taking it way beyond that to the current Party Band Experience!!
The Chevelles have been together with this line-up for 15 years, longer than most marriages. Why does this work?
Finding four like-minded people with the same strong work ethic. We love what we do, and we are best friends. We consider ourselves the luckiest guys in the world to be able to go out every weekend and make music for people. It’s the old “sum is greater than the parts” thing. Are you kidding? They are gonna have to pry these guitars out of our hands to make us stop!
You’re a cover band. There are those who will criticize you for deciding that’s what you want to do. What’s your response to that?
Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I’ve written plenty of songs, and intend to continue. This band fits in with our lives right now, and frankly, I’ve never had more fun playing than I am. I suppose everyone measures success differently, but we leave our audiences hot, sweaty, exhausted and satisfied every weekend for the last 1235 shows….I’m keeping track.
How do you decide who gets a particular vocal on a song?
We are pretty diplomatic about who gets to sing what. Obviously some songs are better suited to certain band members, but if one of us really WANTS a crack at a tune, it’s no big deal to the rest of us to let them try it first. Most of the decision depends on the range and tone of the singer.
Do you still need to rehearse?
We still rehearse, but only when we are learning new material. We play so often, we stay pretty tight.
You have become the house band of all curling events across Canada. How did this all come about and talk about how special those gigs have become.
The Scotties Tournament of Hearts came through Lethbridge in 2007, and we were able to get on the bill with a number of other local acts. The promoter liked what we did, and through a lot of hard work on our drummer Don’s part, we were able to get some spots that year on the other major curling events. We started out playing the mid-week slots, and eventually worked our way up to the coveted weekend spots. It was new territory for us. We were up against the best corporate acts in Canada, and this was our chance to see how we measured up on the national stage. What a great time for the band. We really had something to prove, and we did. We went out there every night, and put on our best show. The audiences reacted so well to us, the promoter had to move us up fast. We kind of became the CCA house band. The next thing we knew, we were flying all over the country at the beginning of each year playing all the big events. We played from Halifax and Charlottetown to Vancouver and Victoria. All across Canada over the next few years. These have been the greatest gigs of our lives. It’s really magical to be able to see this amazing country of ours in this way, not to mention the people we’ve met and the friends we have made along the way. It’s funny, I remember the promoter saying “I don’t get it, the other bands play the same kind of music as you guys, but the audience goes bananas when you are up there”. We got it. We watched our competition play whenever we could, they were all very good bands, but sometimes they seemed to be going through the motions you know? We got up there and ripped it up! We played with every ounce of enthusiasm and authenticity we could possibly muster, and as usual the audiences responded in kind. It’s a big source of pride and accomplishment for us to have been given this opportunity, and to perform on the national stage at this level.
As always, I like to hear about the nightmare gigs…fire away.
I’ve always tried to be very prepared for every show, and this minimizes the chances of a “nightmare gig”, however as they say….shit happens. We have been in so many adverse situations, this could be a whole book! Cold, hot, wind, rain, snow, you name it, we’ve played in it. Bad power, venue, audience, hotel, bar owner, etc. we’ve encountered it. Some funny things do come to mind, like playing in Taber for the “Tri-High Christmas Dance” in the eighties with Mantis. When my guitar chord gets too far from me, I grab it and whip it back behind me. This night the chord was wrapped around the high heel of our female lead singer. She was wearing a very short mini skirt (and little else).I didn’t know this, and yanked the chord with all my might pulling her leg straight up and sending her flying. She landed spread eagle at the front of the stage giving the young high school boys the show of a lifetime. Their eyes were popping out. It wasn’t very nice, but I couldn’t help laughing so hard I could barely play the next couple of songs. It’s live music ladies and gentlemen, anything can happen
What is the most memorable gig you’ve ever done?
There are too many amazing shows to pick just one. Some that stand out are, playing a Canada Day show in Medicine Hat at Kin Coulee Park for 10,000 people. We were opening for Prism, and what an amazing rush a crowd that big gives you. The east coast will forever be a high water mark for us as well. The shows we did in Halifax were magical.
When you’re doing a cover, do you try to do the song like the original artist or do you like to put your own spin on a classic?
We kind of end up with a mix of both. We stay true to the vision of original artist, but there is always room to put our mark on the song.
Do you find that the older you get, the more you’ve got to take down the key a little?
We’ve NEVER taken the key down. We still play in standard pitch (A-440). It’s not easy, but I think the songs and instruments sound better that way, and it keeps us on our toes….literally.
Give me your top 5 favorite bands.
I’m such a music fan, and record collector that this is a hard one. Here goes…
-The Beatles
-Led Zeppelin
-The Rolling Stones
-Booker T and the MG’s
-Creedence Clearwater Revival
Tomorrow the list will be completely different.
Who are your top 5 favorite vocalists?
Ray Charles (My all-time favorite artist)
Frank Sinatra
Elvis Presley
Little Richard
Muddy Waters
Are there songs you guys refuse to play?
No. There are no songs we refuse to play. There sure used to be, but the further we go down this road, the more we realize it is not about our personal taste or artistic integrity. We want to give our audiences the greatest live music experience we can, and that means playing what they want to hear. Years ago we started taking some chances and playing music outside of our “comfort zone”. When they went over BIG, we tried some more. We got braver and braver, and some of these songs are the most rewarding, and the most fun to play. I’m referring to electronic dance music, disco, country etc. Our versatility is probably our greatest strength.
You’re given $1 million to put on the ultimate Chevelle show. (Ron Sakamoto had some extra money he didn’t know what to do with so he gave it to you.) What will it look like?
I suppose the ultimate show for us would be to rent the best p.a., lights stage etc. and then fly all of our friends, loved ones and fans that are spread out all over the world to one central location, and put on one hell of a show for them. We wouldn’t still be doing this crazy job without all the support we get. A chance to pay it back to them would be awfully nice. Thank you Mr. Sakamoto.
As you’ve mentioned, you’ve written a lot of your own music. Is it any good?
Some of it is average, some is really good, I think. The process is fun, and full of self-discovery.
Best concert you’ve ever seen.
Years ago, my wife surprised me for my birthday, and took me to Calgary to see Ray Charles perform at the Saddledome with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra. That is the greatest concert I will ever see!
Who’s the best guitar player ever?
Believe me, I like a lot of guitar players. Who is the best is purely subjective. I am going to say Jimi Hendrix. Hendrix was groundbreaking. I have been listening to his music for most of my life, and I am still amazed at the things he was doing, and he died at 27!!!
Talk about what you do at Average Joes and fill us in on what’s coming up.
I am the General Manager at Average Joes. The job is very diverse, with many duties. This is one place where my people skills are utilized to the max! I love it here, and the staff are wonderful. There is always something going on at the Joe. If it’s not Yuk Yuks comedy, Name that tune, Dueling pianos, Karaoke, Salsa Dancing, or a UFC pay-per-view fight, it’s a concert by one of the greatest artists on tour today. Some upcoming events include Honeymoon Suite with Lee Aaron July 24th, Shooter Jennings (Waylon’s son) October 4th, Glorious Sons October 18th, and Brett Kissel on November the 26th.
Thank you for all your support over the years Southern Alberta. I love what I do, and we are proud to represent Lethbridge in the national arena. We are not shy when it comes to promoting our home town all over this beautiful country of ours. Cheers!
And for a taste of the Chevelles check out this Stones song from a recent Calgary show:
Mark Boogieman 