10129 - THE BEAT DADDYS - HOODOO THAT WE DOO (2015)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''THAT WE DO''
2015
39:13

1 These Chains (Maxwell Russell) 02:49
2 Sorry (Larry Grisham, Tommy Stillwell) 03:37
3 You Made Me Cry (Larry Grisham, Tommy Stillwell) 04:42
4 The Moment (Tommy Stillwell) 03:13
5 Pie or Cake (Larry Grisham) 03:26
6 Hoodoo Woman (Larry Grisham, Tommy Stillwell) 03:03
7 D.U.I. Love (A.D.Prestage, Tommy Stillwell, Larry Grisham) 03:51
8 Been Thinkin' (Larry Grisham, Tommy Stillwell) 03:30
9 Luck's Got To Change (Larry Grisham, Tommy Stillwell) 05:09
10 The Blues Can Heal Ya (Tommy Stillwell) 02:36
11 I Need A Woman (Larry Grisham, Tommy Stillwell) 03:12

Larry Grisham - Vocals, Harmonica
Tommy Stillwell - Guitars, Backing Vocals
David Parks - Drums, Percussion, Chains
John Gillespie - Additional Bass Guitar Tracks
Greg Franzman - Percussion
Patrick Preston - Organ On 4, 8


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REVIEW
Lawrence Specker, al.com
Some blues bands try too hard. From the opening notes of The Beat Daddys' latest release, it's blissfully clear that this isn't that kind of blues band.

"Hoodoo That We Do" opens with the swampy, slow-steaming "These Chains," one of only two songs on the disc that weren't written entirely by vocalist Larry Grisham and guitarist Tommy Stillwell. The song is by Maxwell Russell, but Grisham and Stillwell get credit for the utter confidence they bring to it, and for the way its irresistible steamboat churn drives into the next track, "Sorry," and the one after that, "You Made Me Cry."

Grisham has been at this long enough that he doesn't need to scream to get emotion across. Stillwell doesn't feel compelled to wail over the top of every track. Yet they both bring heavyweight punching power into the ring. These guys don't really swagger. They just walk the walk.

Let's be clear: "Hoodoo That We Do" isn't a revolutionary album. It doesn't push the blues envelope or stray outside traditional subjects and tones. It delivers the goods without posturing or exaggeration. And it covers the bases, ranging from "my woman done me wrong" laments to the blurry humor of "DUI Love" and "Pie or Cake" to the ballad "Luck's Got to Change."

Out of 11 songs, "Luck's Got to Change" is one of just two that are longer than four minutes long, and two run less than three minutes. That adds up to an engaging album that wins you over quickly and doesn't wear out its welcome.

The 39-minute run time is pretty clear evidence that Grisham and Stillwell didn't feel the need to overstate things. In fact, Grisham says, he was a little worried the project would come off as too understated. He's been pleased by early response.

"We just tried to write how we write," he said. "It just came out that way."

Gulf Coast fans will remember a time when Mobile-based Britt Meacham handled lead guitar duties and Grisham lived just up the road in coastal Mississippi. Hurricane Katrina drove Grisham north to Nashville, and the band's current home state, more or less, is Indiana: Stillwell resides in Owensboro, and what wasn't recorded at his Twin Lakes Sound Studio was done in at 77 Recording in Evansville.

When Meacham retired from the road, Grisham reconnected with Stillwell. Since he was an original member of the band, the new partnership was more of a continuation than a departure from the familiar Beat Daddys vibe.

Grisham says he hopes to book a Mobile-area show as a CD release party for Gulf Coast fans, maybe in October.


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BIOGRAPHY
Richard Skelly
An amalgamation of blues and Southern rock, the Beat Daddys are comprised of Lewis Ross (drums), Brill Morris (bass and vocals), Larry Grisham (guitar, harp and vocals), and Britt Meacham (guitar and vocals). Meacham, from Mobile, Alabama, was a member of Jackson Highway, a group that recorded for Capitol Records, and also toured with soul-blues man Little Milton Campbell. Bassist Morris was part of Mercury Records' David and the Giants and performed in a popular regional Gulf Coast band, Magik. Drummer Ross, also from Mobile, was a founding member of Wet Willie, and he was involved in co-writing the band's hits "Keep on Smilin'," "Red Hot Chicken" and "Macon Hambone Blues."the Beat Daddys formed in Evansville, Indiana in the mid-1980s and released their own self-produced album before signing with Malaco Records. Their two mid-1990s Malaco/Waldoxy releases, No, We Ain't From Clarksdale and South to Mississippi, are not straight-ahead blues, to be sure, but fans of blues, roots-rock and Southern rock can find much to appreciate in either of them.

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WEBSITE


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9151 - THE BEAT DADDYS - ROOT RUBBIN' BALL (2012) (REPOST)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''ROOT RUBBIN BALL''
JUNE 15 2012
55:45

1/Fuel for My Blues
Larry Grisham / Britt Meacham/4:23
2/Gimme Gimme
Larry Grisham / Fred James / Waldo LaTowsky/4:43
3/Tattoo Hell
Larry Grisham/4:43
4/Do These Blues Match This Stress
Larry Grisham / Fred James/4:24
5/How Fat Is Fat
Larry Grisham / Fred James/3:44
6/Monkey Man
Larry Grisham / Fred James / Waldo LaTowsky/5:04
7/Root Rubbin' Ball
Larry Grisham / Fred James/3:32
8/Hell & High Water
Larry Grisham / Fred James / Waldo LaTowsky/4:54
9/Nickels & Dimes
Larry Grisham/6:30
10/Highway Miles
Larry Grisham/5:15
11/Let the Guitar Talk
Larry Grisham / Don Rollins/4:52
12/I Ain't Afraid of the Fire
Larry Grisham / Fred James/3:41

Larry Grisham/Guitars, Harmonica, Vocals
Dennis Gulley/Bass
Fred James/Guitars, Vocals (Background)
Britt Meacham/Guitars
Pat Morley/Guitar, Soloist, Vocals (Background)
Johnny Neel/Hammond B3, Piano
David Parks/Drums, Percussion

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
The BEAT DADDYS
Larry Grisham is a survivor, plain and simple. Both personally and professionally, he has overcome obstacles most people will never face. Time and again he not only met these challenges, but rose to them and came out the other side stronger for the experience. But isn't that what the Blues is all about?

Larry was born in southern Indiana in 1953 and moved about much as a child, attending sixteen different schools before graduating from high school. He did, however, spend several formative years in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky living with his grandmother (whose first cousin happened to be legendary Country/Blues guitarist Merle Travis). This is where young Larry started to soak up the music. Not only was he exposed to the area's indigenous Bluegrass, Blues, Gospel and Soul Music, but like most kids his age he was taken with the new sound of Elvis, The Everly Brothers and later The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Stax and Motown. Soon Larry learned to play drums, and enough guitar to start fooling around with trying to write his own songs. He went off to Lander University in South Carolina on a basketball scholarship but moonlighted playing drums with various Rock and Soul bands. Like a lot of young musicians in the late 1960s Larry discovered the Blues. It was a powerful force and by the time he left university the die was cast. He'd decided to pursue music as a career.

He went back to his hometown of Evansville, Indiana and formed a Rock band called The Phonz in the late 1970s. Between 1980 and 1984 the group recorded two 45s and an EP for the small independent Limp Dog record label. The Phonz were a regional success but had run their course when Larry met Blues guitarist Tommy Stillwell and joined his band Stillwell in 1985, playing mostly Blues standards. By 1986 Larry and Tommy had decided to get serious about the music business and formed The Beat Daddys to showcase their original material. The band quickly became a success, toured the mid southern states and opened concerts for touring acts like Johnny Winter and Koko Taylor. In 1988 the group signed with Camelot Records and their debut album "Houserocking Rhythm & Blues" was released the following year. The record garnered substantial radio airplay and sold respectably enough to attract the attention of the most powerful Blues record company in the South.

The Beat Daddys signed with Malaco Records and in 1992 released the critically acclaimed album "No, We Ain't From Clarksdale" on the Waldoxy subsidiary imprint, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound studio. The record was an instant success and began a whirlwind of activity for the band. They toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with artists as diverse as B.B. King, Foghat, Mighty Sam McClain, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets, Omar & The Howlers, 38 Special, Tower Of Power, Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop and James Cotton. Needless to say, The Beat Daddys had a broad appeal and a bright future ahead. They followed up with the album "South To Mississippi" in 1994, on which the group is augmented by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The following year Tommy Stillwell decided to leave the band and was replaced by Britt Meacham, the legendary Muscle Shoals studio guitarist who played lead on Bob Seger's multi million seller "Old Time Rock & Roll". They also added original Wet Willie drummer Lewis Ross and recorded their "Live" album in 1997. Larry Grisham had a franchise to look after and was not about to let the Beat Daddys falter.

By the mid 1990s Larry was firmly entrenched in the Malaco family. He co-wrote with George Jackson ("Down Home Blues", "One Bad Apple", "Old Time Rock & Roll") and A.D. Prestage ("Shade Tree Mechanic", "I'm A Blues Man") and Larry's songs were recorded by Little Milton ("Love Of A Woman"), Dorothy Moore ("I'll Always Love You" and "Blues In The Night" which was used as the theme song of a television show of the same name in Sweden) and One Eyed Cat ("Train In The Distance", "Ruby's Blues"). He also played harmonica on recording sessions at Malaco, most notably on Bobby "Blue" Bland's Grammy nominated hit record "I'm A Blues Man". The Beat Daddys recordings were also featured on several Malaco compilations, including the incredible box set "The Last Soul Company". By the late 1990s Larry was living in Pass Christian, Mississippi and the band was going strong. At the turn of the century The Beat Daddys recorded "Delta Vision" at Kingsnake Studio in Florida with the aid of Allman Brothers Band keyboard player Johnny Neel (the album also featured a guest vocal by Sonny Rhodes). The record was released in 2001 and the band continued its relentless working schedule. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for the Beat Daddys.

Then, in 2005, tragedy struck.

Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it completely wiped out the coast of Mississippi. Larry Grisham lost everything. Everything, that is, but his will to survive. Survive? Hell no! He found the strength to rise again even stronger. He lived in a FEMA trailer for the next eight months, trying to regroup and decide his next move. Out of all this turmoil came one of Larry's finest works. The album "Five Moons" was recorded in Nashville and released in 2006. It contains some of Larry Grisham's finest, most heartfelt songwriting. Wanting to put the Katrina nightmare behind him, Larry decided to relocate to the Nashville area, settling on a small farm outside of the city. The group continued to tour and released their second live album "Live At The Quincy Blues Fest" in 2007. Logistics were becoming an increasing problem for the group, however, as Larry was now living hundreds of miles from his Gulf Coast based musicians. Something had to give.

In early 2009 The Beat Daddys rhythm section quit en masse. Larry and Britt soldiered on for a few months using pickup musicians, when Larry contacted his old friend, bass player Jeff "Stick" Davis. Davis had played with the group for a while in the late 1980s and was happy to help out. Jeff had been a founding member of the Amazing Rhythm Aces as well as a veteran sideman with artists like B.B. King, Al Green, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Ron Wood, Memphis Slim, Otis Rush and Jesse Winchester to name but a few. When Larry laid out his concerns for the future of The Beat Daddys, Jeff suggested a couple of his Nashville pals. Guitarist/songwriter/producer (and a recording artist in his own right) Fred James soon came on board as Britt Meacham bowed out. Fred had also played with the Amazing Rhythm Aces and handled guitar chores for artists as diverse as The Sam Lay Blues Band, Tommy Tutone, Frank Frost & The Jelly Roll Kings, Dr. Hook and Billy Joe Shaver. His songs have been recorded by Johnny Winter, Koko Taylor, Charlie Musslewhite, Son Seals and Junior Wells & Bonnie Raitt. He's produced albums for Homesick James, Roscoe Shelton, The Delta Jukes, David Olney, Johnny Jones and many others. To complete his "wish list" rhythm section, Davis chose drummer Waldo LaTowsky. Waldo had played with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (appearing on his Grammy nominated Alligator Records release "No Looking Back") and Bo Diddley, as well as recording with Frank Frost, Homesick James, Al Garner, The Roadrunners, Johnny Neel, and Mary-Ann Brandon. He had also toured and recorded with Chet Atkins and Country Music chanteuse Suzy Bogguss. The Beat Daddys suddenly had a powerhouse, all-star lineup.

The newly revamped band is hard at work touring and writing songs for their next Malaco release. You've really got to hand it to Larry Grisham. Thanks to his unwavering dedication, The Beat Daddys have risen up yet again just when it seemed the odds were irretrievably against them. The future looks mighty bright for the group, but one thing you can be sure of......no matter where or when you encounter The Beat Daddys.......Larry Grisham will be at that drivin' wheel.

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9150 - THE BEAT DADDYS LIVE AT THE QUINCY BLUES FEST 2007 (2008)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''LIVE AT THE BLUES FEST 2007''
JANUARY 4 2008
67:26

1 She's All That 04:06
2 Train In The Distance 04:03
3 Beautician Blues 04:26
4 Beverly Hillbillies 05:27
5 Pale White Circle 05:32
6 Beg Borrow Steal 05:35
7 Evil Memory 05:18
8 Sloppy Drunk 03:25
9 Hey Joe 05:46
10 Little Wing 05:11
11 Bad News 04:35
12 I'll Always Love You 05:24
13 Big Thighs 04:07
14 Where Is She 04:24

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
The BEAT DADDYS
Larry Grisham is a survivor, plain and simple. Both personally and professionally, he has overcome obstacles most people will never face. Time and again he not only met these challenges, but rose to them and came out the other side stronger for the experience. But isn't that what the Blues is all about?

Larry was born in southern Indiana in 1953 and moved about much as a child, attending sixteen different schools before graduating from high school. He did, however, spend several formative years in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky living with his grandmother (whose first cousin happened to be legendary Country/Blues guitarist Merle Travis). This is where young Larry started to soak up the music. Not only was he exposed to the area's indigenous Bluegrass, Blues, Gospel and Soul Music, but like most kids his age he was taken with the new sound of Elvis, The Everly Brothers and later The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Stax and Motown. Soon Larry learned to play drums, and enough guitar to start fooling around with trying to write his own songs. He went off to Lander University in South Carolina on a basketball scholarship but moonlighted playing drums with various Rock and Soul bands. Like a lot of young musicians in the late 1960s Larry discovered the Blues. It was a powerful force and by the time he left university the die was cast. He'd decided to pursue music as a career.

He went back to his hometown of Evansville, Indiana and formed a Rock band called The Phonz in the late 1970s. Between 1980 and 1984 the group recorded two 45s and an EP for the small independent Limp Dog record label. The Phonz were a regional success but had run their course when Larry met Blues guitarist Tommy Stillwell and joined his band Stillwell in 1985, playing mostly Blues standards. By 1986 Larry and Tommy had decided to get serious about the music business and formed The Beat Daddys to showcase their original material. The band quickly became a success, toured the mid southern states and opened concerts for touring acts like Johnny Winter and Koko Taylor. In 1988 the group signed with Camelot Records and their debut album "Houserocking Rhythm & Blues" was released the following year. The record garnered substantial radio airplay and sold respectably enough to attract the attention of the most powerful Blues record company in the South.

The Beat Daddys signed with Malaco Records and in 1992 released the critically acclaimed album "No, We Ain't From Clarksdale" on the Waldoxy subsidiary imprint, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound studio. The record was an instant success and began a whirlwind of activity for the band. They toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with artists as diverse as B.B. King, Foghat, Mighty Sam McClain, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets, Omar & The Howlers, 38 Special, Tower Of Power, Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop and James Cotton. Needless to say, The Beat Daddys had a broad appeal and a bright future ahead. They followed up with the album "South To Mississippi" in 1994, on which the group is augmented by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The following year Tommy Stillwell decided to leave the band and was replaced by Britt Meacham, the legendary Muscle Shoals studio guitarist who played lead on Bob Seger's multi million seller "Old Time Rock & Roll". They also added original Wet Willie drummer Lewis Ross and recorded their "Live" album in 1997. Larry Grisham had a franchise to look after and was not about to let the Beat Daddys falter.

By the mid 1990s Larry was firmly entrenched in the Malaco family. He co-wrote with George Jackson ("Down Home Blues", "One Bad Apple", "Old Time Rock & Roll") and A.D. Prestage ("Shade Tree Mechanic", "I'm A Blues Man") and Larry's songs were recorded by Little Milton ("Love Of A Woman"), Dorothy Moore ("I'll Always Love You" and "Blues In The Night" which was used as the theme song of a television show of the same name in Sweden) and One Eyed Cat ("Train In The Distance", "Ruby's Blues"). He also played harmonica on recording sessions at Malaco, most notably on Bobby "Blue" Bland's Grammy nominated hit record "I'm A Blues Man". The Beat Daddys recordings were also featured on several Malaco compilations, including the incredible box set "The Last Soul Company". By the late 1990s Larry was living in Pass Christian, Mississippi and the band was going strong. At the turn of the century The Beat Daddys recorded "Delta Vision" at Kingsnake Studio in Florida with the aid of Allman Brothers Band keyboard player Johnny Neel (the album also featured a guest vocal by Sonny Rhodes). The record was released in 2001 and the band continued its relentless working schedule. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for the Beat Daddys.

Then, in 2005, tragedy struck.

Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it completely wiped out the coast of Mississippi. Larry Grisham lost everything. Everything, that is, but his will to survive. Survive? Hell no! He found the strength to rise again even stronger. He lived in a FEMA trailer for the next eight months, trying to regroup and decide his next move. Out of all this turmoil came one of Larry's finest works. The album "Five Moons" was recorded in Nashville and released in 2006. It contains some of Larry Grisham's finest, most heartfelt songwriting. Wanting to put the Katrina nightmare behind him, Larry decided to relocate to the Nashville area, settling on a small farm outside of the city. The group continued to tour and released their second live album "Live At The Quincy Blues Fest" in 2007. Logistics were becoming an increasing problem for the group, however, as Larry was now living hundreds of miles from his Gulf Coast based musicians. Something had to give.

In early 2009 The Beat Daddys rhythm section quit en masse. Larry and Britt soldiered on for a few months using pickup musicians, when Larry contacted his old friend, bass player Jeff "Stick" Davis. Davis had played with the group for a while in the late 1980s and was happy to help out. Jeff had been a founding member of the Amazing Rhythm Aces as well as a veteran sideman with artists like B.B. King, Al Green, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Ron Wood, Memphis Slim, Otis Rush and Jesse Winchester to name but a few. When Larry laid out his concerns for the future of The Beat Daddys, Jeff suggested a couple of his Nashville pals. Guitarist/songwriter/producer (and a recording artist in his own right) Fred James soon came on board as Britt Meacham bowed out. Fred had also played with the Amazing Rhythm Aces and handled guitar chores for artists as diverse as The Sam Lay Blues Band, Tommy Tutone, Frank Frost & The Jelly Roll Kings, Dr. Hook and Billy Joe Shaver. His songs have been recorded by Johnny Winter, Koko Taylor, Charlie Musslewhite, Son Seals and Junior Wells & Bonnie Raitt. He's produced albums for Homesick James, Roscoe Shelton, The Delta Jukes, David Olney, Johnny Jones and many others. To complete his "wish list" rhythm section, Davis chose drummer Waldo LaTowsky. Waldo had played with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (appearing on his Grammy nominated Alligator Records release "No Looking Back") and Bo Diddley, as well as recording with Frank Frost, Homesick James, Al Garner, The Roadrunners, Johnny Neel, and Mary-Ann Brandon. He had also toured and recorded with Chet Atkins and Country Music chanteuse Suzy Bogguss. The Beat Daddys suddenly had a powerhouse, all-star lineup.

The newly revamped band is hard at work touring and writing songs for their next Malaco release. You've really got to hand it to Larry Grisham. Thanks to his unwavering dedication, The Beat Daddys have risen up yet again just when it seemed the odds were irretrievably against them. The future looks mighty bright for the group, but one thing you can be sure of......no matter where or when you encounter The Beat Daddys.......Larry Grisham will be at that drivin' wheel.

WEBSITE

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9149 - THE BEAT DADDYS LIVE (2003)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''LIVE''
SEPTEMBER 1 2003
43:53

1 Hoosier Lottery 03:46
2 Different Name 04:24
3 Bad News 04:26
4 Mississippi 03:54
5 Reasons 04:59
6 Train In The Distance 04:30
7 Livin' This Love 05:00
8 Rainin' In The Real World 04:43
9 Ruby's Blues 08:07

Larry Grisham/lead vocals, guitar, harmonica
Britt Meacham/lead guitar, vocals
Russell Gulley/bass, vocals
Paul Scott/drums, percussion

REVIEW
By electricblues.com
The The Beat Daddys band was formed in 1986 in Indiana by founding member and lead vocalist Larry Grisham, but the band now calls the SouthEastern US home. The band has released two CDs on Malaco/Waldoxy, but released this Live CD independently. It was recorded at The Breakroom Too on May 9-10, 1997.
For this live recording The Beat Daddys stick to a fairly strict agenda, running tightly through a set of strong, all original blues and blues-rock. The band manages to vary the mood considerably without the use of ballads, funk, or jump blues. The songwriting is excellent, the entire CD is interesting an engaging. Lead vocals are powerful and convincing, and there's plenty of excellent (but not overbearing) guitar work throughout. Recording quality is very good, too. In fact, there's not a single significant negative aspect of this CD.
Because of the CD's level of consistency, picking favorites from this one is truly a challenge. "Hooshier Lottery" kicks things off with a spirited, upbeat feel, and was an excellent choice for the opening cut. "Mississippi" is a medium paced blues shuffle that downshifts to low gear and throws in some slide midstream for an interesting change-up. "Train In The Distance" features some more nice slide work and a heavy beat. "Livin' This Love" has a melancholy feel, a feeling that's enhancd by Grisham's heavy vocals. The staight ahead slow blues cut, "Ruby's Blues", closes out the set, and leaves the listener glad to have the blues and wanting more.
This Live CD should appeal to many blues fans. Throughout the disc the band delivers a style of all-original blues and blues-rock that is far from meek and mild, but at the same time never approaches the level of heavy-handed aggressiveness. The Beat Daddys style falls compfortably somewhere between those two extremes. Strong vocals and songwriting, plenty of guitar for most blues-rock fans, an interesting set list, and very good live recording quality. These guys cover all the bases pretty well on this disc.

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
The BEAT DADDYS
Larry Grisham is a survivor, plain and simple. Both personally and professionally, he has overcome obstacles most people will never face. Time and again he not only met these challenges, but rose to them and came out the other side stronger for the experience. But isn't that what the Blues is all about?

Larry was born in southern Indiana in 1953 and moved about much as a child, attending sixteen different schools before graduating from high school. He did, however, spend several formative years in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky living with his grandmother (whose first cousin happened to be legendary Country/Blues guitarist Merle Travis). This is where young Larry started to soak up the music. Not only was he exposed to the area's indigenous Bluegrass, Blues, Gospel and Soul Music, but like most kids his age he was taken with the new sound of Elvis, The Everly Brothers and later The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Stax and Motown. Soon Larry learned to play drums, and enough guitar to start fooling around with trying to write his own songs. He went off to Lander University in South Carolina on a basketball scholarship but moonlighted playing drums with various Rock and Soul bands. Like a lot of young musicians in the late 1960s Larry discovered the Blues. It was a powerful force and by the time he left university the die was cast. He'd decided to pursue music as a career.

He went back to his hometown of Evansville, Indiana and formed a Rock band called The Phonz in the late 1970s. Between 1980 and 1984 the group recorded two 45s and an EP for the small independent Limp Dog record label. The Phonz were a regional success but had run their course when Larry met Blues guitarist Tommy Stillwell and joined his band Stillwell in 1985, playing mostly Blues standards. By 1986 Larry and Tommy had decided to get serious about the music business and formed The Beat Daddys to showcase their original material. The band quickly became a success, toured the mid southern states and opened concerts for touring acts like Johnny Winter and Koko Taylor. In 1988 the group signed with Camelot Records and their debut album "Houserocking Rhythm & Blues" was released the following year. The record garnered substantial radio airplay and sold respectably enough to attract the attention of the most powerful Blues record company in the South.

The Beat Daddys signed with Malaco Records and in 1992 released the critically acclaimed album "No, We Ain't From Clarksdale" on the Waldoxy subsidiary imprint, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound studio. The record was an instant success and began a whirlwind of activity for the band. They toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with artists as diverse as B.B. King, Foghat, Mighty Sam McClain, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets, Omar & The Howlers, 38 Special, Tower Of Power, Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop and James Cotton. Needless to say, The Beat Daddys had a broad appeal and a bright future ahead. They followed up with the album "South To Mississippi" in 1994, on which the group is augmented by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The following year Tommy Stillwell decided to leave the band and was replaced by Britt Meacham, the legendary Muscle Shoals studio guitarist who played lead on Bob Seger's multi million seller "Old Time Rock & Roll". They also added original Wet Willie drummer Lewis Ross and recorded their "Live" album in 1997. Larry Grisham had a franchise to look after and was not about to let the Beat Daddys falter.

By the mid 1990s Larry was firmly entrenched in the Malaco family. He co-wrote with George Jackson ("Down Home Blues", "One Bad Apple", "Old Time Rock & Roll") and A.D. Prestage ("Shade Tree Mechanic", "I'm A Blues Man") and Larry's songs were recorded by Little Milton ("Love Of A Woman"), Dorothy Moore ("I'll Always Love You" and "Blues In The Night" which was used as the theme song of a television show of the same name in Sweden) and One Eyed Cat ("Train In The Distance", "Ruby's Blues"). He also played harmonica on recording sessions at Malaco, most notably on Bobby "Blue" Bland's Grammy nominated hit record "I'm A Blues Man". The Beat Daddys recordings were also featured on several Malaco compilations, including the incredible box set "The Last Soul Company". By the late 1990s Larry was living in Pass Christian, Mississippi and the band was going strong. At the turn of the century The Beat Daddys recorded "Delta Vision" at Kingsnake Studio in Florida with the aid of Allman Brothers Band keyboard player Johnny Neel (the album also featured a guest vocal by Sonny Rhodes). The record was released in 2001 and the band continued its relentless working schedule. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for the Beat Daddys.

Then, in 2005, tragedy struck.

Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it completely wiped out the coast of Mississippi. Larry Grisham lost everything. Everything, that is, but his will to survive. Survive? Hell no! He found the strength to rise again even stronger. He lived in a FEMA trailer for the next eight months, trying to regroup and decide his next move. Out of all this turmoil came one of Larry's finest works. The album "Five Moons" was recorded in Nashville and released in 2006. It contains some of Larry Grisham's finest, most heartfelt songwriting. Wanting to put the Katrina nightmare behind him, Larry decided to relocate to the Nashville area, settling on a small farm outside of the city. The group continued to tour and released their second live album "Live At The Quincy Blues Fest" in 2007. Logistics were becoming an increasing problem for the group, however, as Larry was now living hundreds of miles from his Gulf Coast based musicians. Something had to give.

In early 2009 The Beat Daddys rhythm section quit en masse. Larry and Britt soldiered on for a few months using pickup musicians, when Larry contacted his old friend, bass player Jeff "Stick" Davis. Davis had played with the group for a while in the late 1980s and was happy to help out. Jeff had been a founding member of the Amazing Rhythm Aces as well as a veteran sideman with artists like B.B. King, Al Green, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Ron Wood, Memphis Slim, Otis Rush and Jesse Winchester to name but a few. When Larry laid out his concerns for the future of The Beat Daddys, Jeff suggested a couple of his Nashville pals. Guitarist/songwriter/producer (and a recording artist in his own right) Fred James soon came on board as Britt Meacham bowed out. Fred had also played with the Amazing Rhythm Aces and handled guitar chores for artists as diverse as The Sam Lay Blues Band, Tommy Tutone, Frank Frost & The Jelly Roll Kings, Dr. Hook and Billy Joe Shaver. His songs have been recorded by Johnny Winter, Koko Taylor, Charlie Musslewhite, Son Seals and Junior Wells & Bonnie Raitt. He's produced albums for Homesick James, Roscoe Shelton, The Delta Jukes, David Olney, Johnny Jones and many others. To complete his "wish list" rhythm section, Davis chose drummer Waldo LaTowsky. Waldo had played with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (appearing on his Grammy nominated Alligator Records release "No Looking Back") and Bo Diddley, as well as recording with Frank Frost, Homesick James, Al Garner, The Roadrunners, Johnny Neel, and Mary-Ann Brandon. He had also toured and recorded with Chet Atkins and Country Music chanteuse Suzy Bogguss. The Beat Daddys suddenly had a powerhouse, all-star lineup.

The newly revamped band is hard at work touring and writing songs for their next Malaco release. You've really got to hand it to Larry Grisham. Thanks to his unwavering dedication, The Beat Daddys have risen up yet again just when it seemed the odds were irretrievably against them. The future looks mighty bright for the group, but one thing you can be sure of......no matter where or when you encounter The Beat Daddys.......Larry Grisham will be at that drivin' wheel.

WEBSITE

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9148 - THE BEAT DADDYS - 5 MOONS (2006)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''5 MOON''
2006
58:26

1 Pale White Circle (Larry Grisham, Tommy Stillwell) 06:00
2 Common Ground (Larry Grisham, Britt Meacham) 04:21
3 Been There, Like That 04:00
4 Bad Streak 05:35
5 Big Things 04:17
6 She Goes Down 04:22
7 Everybody Needs Some 06:07
8 Call Me Back 05:14
9 Lonely Road 04:56
10 Voodo Satin Doll 03:50
11 Five Moons 06:10
12 Where Is She 03:28
Tracks By Larry Grisham, Except As Indicated

Barry Bays/Guitar (Bass), Kanjira
Larry Grisham/Guitar, Harmonica, Mandolin, Vocals
Dennis Gulley/Bass
Britt Meacham/Guitar
Johnny Neel/Keyboards
David Parks/Drums
Paul Samuel Scott/Drums

REVIEW/AMG
by William Ruhlmann
Two decades and six albums into their career, the Beat Daddys, who are singer/songwriter/rhythm guitarist/harmonica player Larry Grisham, lead guitarist Britt Meacham and a changing rhythm section (here, for the most part, bassist Barry Bays and either Paul Scott or David Parks on drums), remain a Southern blues-rock outfit whose métier is the roadhouse rather than the recording studio. That's not to say there's anything wrong with their records. Although self-released, 5 Moons is a well-recorded effort that shows off Grisham's grainy baritone and Meacham's stinging guitar work on a set of traditional-sounding originals. But for a band like this, the perfect environment is a sweaty club, a side table, and a cold brewski close at hand. In such an environment, the Beat Daddys can evoke their better known predecessors, such as the Allman Brothers Band, the Marshall Tucker Band, and the Fabulous Thunderbirds, in songs that sound like you've heard them before the first time you hear them (because, in essence, you have), and nobody's going to mind. On disc, the discerning listener is going to examine those songs more closely as songs and find them, while sturdy vehicles for Grisham's emoting and Meacham's playing, nevertheless not up to the standard of the performers the Beat Daddys are emulating. Grisham may lament romantic disappointment ("Pale White Circle" refers to a spot on a woman's finger after she has removed a ring), declare his preferences in female attributes ("Big Thighs"), or simply reveal that "Everybody Needs Some" blues, and, on tracks that average just under five minutes in length, Meacham is given plenty of room to wail like Duane Allman or Johnny Winter or Stevie Ray Vaughan. But the Beat Daddys' albums remain souvenirs of Saturday nights to be popped in the CD player of the pickup on the way home, rather than memorable musical statements in their own right.

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
The BEAT DADDYS
Larry Grisham is a survivor, plain and simple. Both personally and professionally, he has overcome obstacles most people will never face. Time and again he not only met these challenges, but rose to them and came out the other side stronger for the experience. But isn't that what the Blues is all about?

Larry was born in southern Indiana in 1953 and moved about much as a child, attending sixteen different schools before graduating from high school. He did, however, spend several formative years in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky living with his grandmother (whose first cousin happened to be legendary Country/Blues guitarist Merle Travis). This is where young Larry started to soak up the music. Not only was he exposed to the area's indigenous Bluegrass, Blues, Gospel and Soul Music, but like most kids his age he was taken with the new sound of Elvis, The Everly Brothers and later The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Stax and Motown. Soon Larry learned to play drums, and enough guitar to start fooling around with trying to write his own songs. He went off to Lander University in South Carolina on a basketball scholarship but moonlighted playing drums with various Rock and Soul bands. Like a lot of young musicians in the late 1960s Larry discovered the Blues. It was a powerful force and by the time he left university the die was cast. He'd decided to pursue music as a career.

He went back to his hometown of Evansville, Indiana and formed a Rock band called The Phonz in the late 1970s. Between 1980 and 1984 the group recorded two 45s and an EP for the small independent Limp Dog record label. The Phonz were a regional success but had run their course when Larry met Blues guitarist Tommy Stillwell and joined his band Stillwell in 1985, playing mostly Blues standards. By 1986 Larry and Tommy had decided to get serious about the music business and formed The Beat Daddys to showcase their original material. The band quickly became a success, toured the mid southern states and opened concerts for touring acts like Johnny Winter and Koko Taylor. In 1988 the group signed with Camelot Records and their debut album "Houserocking Rhythm & Blues" was released the following year. The record garnered substantial radio airplay and sold respectably enough to attract the attention of the most powerful Blues record company in the South.

The Beat Daddys signed with Malaco Records and in 1992 released the critically acclaimed album "No, We Ain't From Clarksdale" on the Waldoxy subsidiary imprint, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound studio. The record was an instant success and began a whirlwind of activity for the band. They toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with artists as diverse as B.B. King, Foghat, Mighty Sam McClain, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets, Omar & The Howlers, 38 Special, Tower Of Power, Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop and James Cotton. Needless to say, The Beat Daddys had a broad appeal and a bright future ahead. They followed up with the album "South To Mississippi" in 1994, on which the group is augmented by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The following year Tommy Stillwell decided to leave the band and was replaced by Britt Meacham, the legendary Muscle Shoals studio guitarist who played lead on Bob Seger's multi million seller "Old Time Rock & Roll". They also added original Wet Willie drummer Lewis Ross and recorded their "Live" album in 1997. Larry Grisham had a franchise to look after and was not about to let the Beat Daddys falter.

By the mid 1990s Larry was firmly entrenched in the Malaco family. He co-wrote with George Jackson ("Down Home Blues", "One Bad Apple", "Old Time Rock & Roll") and A.D. Prestage ("Shade Tree Mechanic", "I'm A Blues Man") and Larry's songs were recorded by Little Milton ("Love Of A Woman"), Dorothy Moore ("I'll Always Love You" and "Blues In The Night" which was used as the theme song of a television show of the same name in Sweden) and One Eyed Cat ("Train In The Distance", "Ruby's Blues"). He also played harmonica on recording sessions at Malaco, most notably on Bobby "Blue" Bland's Grammy nominated hit record "I'm A Blues Man". The Beat Daddys recordings were also featured on several Malaco compilations, including the incredible box set "The Last Soul Company". By the late 1990s Larry was living in Pass Christian, Mississippi and the band was going strong. At the turn of the century The Beat Daddys recorded "Delta Vision" at Kingsnake Studio in Florida with the aid of Allman Brothers Band keyboard player Johnny Neel (the album also featured a guest vocal by Sonny Rhodes). The record was released in 2001 and the band continued its relentless working schedule. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for the Beat Daddys.

Then, in 2005, tragedy struck.

Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it completely wiped out the coast of Mississippi. Larry Grisham lost everything. Everything, that is, but his will to survive. Survive? Hell no! He found the strength to rise again even stronger. He lived in a FEMA trailer for the next eight months, trying to regroup and decide his next move. Out of all this turmoil came one of Larry's finest works. The album "Five Moons" was recorded in Nashville and released in 2006. It contains some of Larry Grisham's finest, most heartfelt songwriting. Wanting to put the Katrina nightmare behind him, Larry decided to relocate to the Nashville area, settling on a small farm outside of the city. The group continued to tour and released their second live album "Live At The Quincy Blues Fest" in 2007. Logistics were becoming an increasing problem for the group, however, as Larry was now living hundreds of miles from his Gulf Coast based musicians. Something had to give.

In early 2009 The Beat Daddys rhythm section quit en masse. Larry and Britt soldiered on for a few months using pickup musicians, when Larry contacted his old friend, bass player Jeff "Stick" Davis. Davis had played with the group for a while in the late 1980s and was happy to help out. Jeff had been a founding member of the Amazing Rhythm Aces as well as a veteran sideman with artists like B.B. King, Al Green, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Ron Wood, Memphis Slim, Otis Rush and Jesse Winchester to name but a few. When Larry laid out his concerns for the future of The Beat Daddys, Jeff suggested a couple of his Nashville pals. Guitarist/songwriter/producer (and a recording artist in his own right) Fred James soon came on board as Britt Meacham bowed out. Fred had also played with the Amazing Rhythm Aces and handled guitar chores for artists as diverse as The Sam Lay Blues Band, Tommy Tutone, Frank Frost & The Jelly Roll Kings, Dr. Hook and Billy Joe Shaver. His songs have been recorded by Johnny Winter, Koko Taylor, Charlie Musslewhite, Son Seals and Junior Wells & Bonnie Raitt. He's produced albums for Homesick James, Roscoe Shelton, The Delta Jukes, David Olney, Johnny Jones and many others. To complete his "wish list" rhythm section, Davis chose drummer Waldo LaTowsky. Waldo had played with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (appearing on his Grammy nominated Alligator Records release "No Looking Back") and Bo Diddley, as well as recording with Frank Frost, Homesick James, Al Garner, The Roadrunners, Johnny Neel, and Mary-Ann Brandon. He had also toured and recorded with Chet Atkins and Country Music chanteuse Suzy Bogguss. The Beat Daddys suddenly had a powerhouse, all-star lineup.

The newly revamped band is hard at work touring and writing songs for their next Malaco release. You've really got to hand it to Larry Grisham. Thanks to his unwavering dedication, The Beat Daddys have risen up yet again just when it seemed the odds were irretrievably against them. The future looks mighty bright for the group, but one thing you can be sure of......no matter where or when you encounter The Beat Daddys.......Larry Grisham will be at that drivin' wheel.

WEBSITE

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9147 - THE BEAT DADDYS - DELTA VISION (2001) (REPOST)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''DELTA VISION''
JULY 24 2001
56:00

1 Miss Dixie (Larry Grisham, Russell Gulley) 4:08
2 Delta Vision (Larry Grisham, Britt Meacham) 4:30
3 Ten Pounds of Love (Bob ''Rattlesnake'' Greenlee) 4:53
4 Telephone, Telephone (Larry Grisham, Tommy Stillwell) 2:15
5 Luna Blue 4:40
6 Beg Borrow Steal 3:16
7 She's All That 3:40
8 After the Mystery 5:07
9 Lien on Your Love 5:34
10 Can't Be Satisfied 4:42
11 Somebody's Waiting 5:07
12 You Make It Hard 3:35
13 Reasons 4:33
Tracks By Larry Grisham, Except As Indicated

Ronnie Foster/Drums
Bob "Rattlesnake" Greenlee/Bass, Guitar (Acoustic)
Larry Grisham/Harmonica, Vocals
Britt Meacham/Guitar, Tambourine, Vocals (Background)
Johnny Neel/Organ, Percussion, Piano, Synthesizer
Sonny Rhodes/Vocals

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
The BEAT DADDYS
Larry Grisham is a survivor, plain and simple. Both personally and professionally, he has overcome obstacles most people will never face. Time and again he not only met these challenges, but rose to them and came out the other side stronger for the experience. But isn't that what the Blues is all about?

Larry was born in southern Indiana in 1953 and moved about much as a child, attending sixteen different schools before graduating from high school. He did, however, spend several formative years in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky living with his grandmother (whose first cousin happened to be legendary Country/Blues guitarist Merle Travis). This is where young Larry started to soak up the music. Not only was he exposed to the area's indigenous Bluegrass, Blues, Gospel and Soul Music, but like most kids his age he was taken with the new sound of Elvis, The Everly Brothers and later The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Stax and Motown. Soon Larry learned to play drums, and enough guitar to start fooling around with trying to write his own songs. He went off to Lander University in South Carolina on a basketball scholarship but moonlighted playing drums with various Rock and Soul bands. Like a lot of young musicians in the late 1960s Larry discovered the Blues. It was a powerful force and by the time he left university the die was cast. He'd decided to pursue music as a career.

He went back to his hometown of Evansville, Indiana and formed a Rock band called The Phonz in the late 1970s. Between 1980 and 1984 the group recorded two 45s and an EP for the small independent Limp Dog record label. The Phonz were a regional success but had run their course when Larry met Blues guitarist Tommy Stillwell and joined his band Stillwell in 1985, playing mostly Blues standards. By 1986 Larry and Tommy had decided to get serious about the music business and formed The Beat Daddys to showcase their original material. The band quickly became a success, toured the mid southern states and opened concerts for touring acts like Johnny Winter and Koko Taylor. In 1988 the group signed with Camelot Records and their debut album "Houserocking Rhythm & Blues" was released the following year. The record garnered substantial radio airplay and sold respectably enough to attract the attention of the most powerful Blues record company in the South.

The Beat Daddys signed with Malaco Records and in 1992 released the critically acclaimed album "No, We Ain't From Clarksdale" on the Waldoxy subsidiary imprint, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound studio. The record was an instant success and began a whirlwind of activity for the band. They toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with artists as diverse as B.B. King, Foghat, Mighty Sam McClain, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets, Omar & The Howlers, 38 Special, Tower Of Power, Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop and James Cotton. Needless to say, The Beat Daddys had a broad appeal and a bright future ahead. They followed up with the album "South To Mississippi" in 1994, on which the group is augmented by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The following year Tommy Stillwell decided to leave the band and was replaced by Britt Meacham, the legendary Muscle Shoals studio guitarist who played lead on Bob Seger's multi million seller "Old Time Rock & Roll". They also added original Wet Willie drummer Lewis Ross and recorded their "Live" album in 1997. Larry Grisham had a franchise to look after and was not about to let the Beat Daddys falter.

By the mid 1990s Larry was firmly entrenched in the Malaco family. He co-wrote with George Jackson ("Down Home Blues", "One Bad Apple", "Old Time Rock & Roll") and A.D. Prestage ("Shade Tree Mechanic", "I'm A Blues Man") and Larry's songs were recorded by Little Milton ("Love Of A Woman"), Dorothy Moore ("I'll Always Love You" and "Blues In The Night" which was used as the theme song of a television show of the same name in Sweden) and One Eyed Cat ("Train In The Distance", "Ruby's Blues"). He also played harmonica on recording sessions at Malaco, most notably on Bobby "Blue" Bland's Grammy nominated hit record "I'm A Blues Man". The Beat Daddys recordings were also featured on several Malaco compilations, including the incredible box set "The Last Soul Company". By the late 1990s Larry was living in Pass Christian, Mississippi and the band was going strong. At the turn of the century The Beat Daddys recorded "Delta Vision" at Kingsnake Studio in Florida with the aid of Allman Brothers Band keyboard player Johnny Neel (the album also featured a guest vocal by Sonny Rhodes). The record was released in 2001 and the band continued its relentless working schedule. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for the Beat Daddys.

Then, in 2005, tragedy struck.

Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it completely wiped out the coast of Mississippi. Larry Grisham lost everything. Everything, that is, but his will to survive. Survive? Hell no! He found the strength to rise again even stronger. He lived in a FEMA trailer for the next eight months, trying to regroup and decide his next move. Out of all this turmoil came one of Larry's finest works. The album "Five Moons" was recorded in Nashville and released in 2006. It contains some of Larry Grisham's finest, most heartfelt songwriting. Wanting to put the Katrina nightmare behind him, Larry decided to relocate to the Nashville area, settling on a small farm outside of the city. The group continued to tour and released their second live album "Live At The Quincy Blues Fest" in 2007. Logistics were becoming an increasing problem for the group, however, as Larry was now living hundreds of miles from his Gulf Coast based musicians. Something had to give.

In early 2009 The Beat Daddys rhythm section quit en masse. Larry and Britt soldiered on for a few months using pickup musicians, when Larry contacted his old friend, bass player Jeff "Stick" Davis. Davis had played with the group for a while in the late 1980s and was happy to help out. Jeff had been a founding member of the Amazing Rhythm Aces as well as a veteran sideman with artists like B.B. King, Al Green, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Ron Wood, Memphis Slim, Otis Rush and Jesse Winchester to name but a few. When Larry laid out his concerns for the future of The Beat Daddys, Jeff suggested a couple of his Nashville pals. Guitarist/songwriter/producer (and a recording artist in his own right) Fred James soon came on board as Britt Meacham bowed out. Fred had also played with the Amazing Rhythm Aces and handled guitar chores for artists as diverse as The Sam Lay Blues Band, Tommy Tutone, Frank Frost & The Jelly Roll Kings, Dr. Hook and Billy Joe Shaver. His songs have been recorded by Johnny Winter, Koko Taylor, Charlie Musslewhite, Son Seals and Junior Wells & Bonnie Raitt. He's produced albums for Homesick James, Roscoe Shelton, The Delta Jukes, David Olney, Johnny Jones and many others. To complete his "wish list" rhythm section, Davis chose drummer Waldo LaTowsky. Waldo had played with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (appearing on his Grammy nominated Alligator Records release "No Looking Back") and Bo Diddley, as well as recording with Frank Frost, Homesick James, Al Garner, The Roadrunners, Johnny Neel, and Mary-Ann Brandon. He had also toured and recorded with Chet Atkins and Country Music chanteuse Suzy Bogguss. The Beat Daddys suddenly had a powerhouse, all-star lineup.

The newly revamped band is hard at work touring and writing songs for their next Malaco release. You've really got to hand it to Larry Grisham. Thanks to his unwavering dedication, The Beat Daddys have risen up yet again just when it seemed the odds were irretrievably against them. The future looks mighty bright for the group, but one thing you can be sure of......no matter where or when you encounter The Beat Daddys.......Larry Grisham will be at that drivin' wheel.

WEBSITE

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9146 - THE BEAT DADDYS - SOUTH TO MISSISSIPPI (1994)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''SOUTH TO MISSISSIPPI''
1994
41:56

1 Delta Lady 03:47
2 Train In The Distance 03:42
3 How Blue Must I Get 02:52
4 Rainin' In The Real World 04:49
5 Love Of A Woman 06:12
6 Woman's Got The Power 04:43
7 Good Time 04:12
8 Hoosier Lottery 02:53
9 She Got The Moves 04:14
10 Amazing Grace 01:35
11 Mississippi 02:53

Thomisene Anderson/Vocals (Background)
Jewel Bass/Vocals (Background)
Vinnie Ciesielski/Trumpet
Larry Grisham/Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals
Roger Hawkins/Drums
David Hood/Bass
Clayton Ivey/Keyboards
Jimmy Johnson/Guitar
Will McFarlane/Guitar (Acoustic)
Dorothy Moore/Vocals (Background)
Charles Rose/Arranger, Trombone
Tommy Stillwell/Guitar, Guitar (Steel), Slide Guitar, Vocals
Dennis Taylor/Sax (Baritone)
Harvey Thompson/Sax (Tenor)
Ken Vogelsang/Drums

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
The BEAT DADDYS
Larry Grisham is a survivor, plain and simple. Both personally and professionally, he has overcome obstacles most people will never face. Time and again he not only met these challenges, but rose to them and came out the other side stronger for the experience. But isn't that what the Blues is all about?

Larry was born in southern Indiana in 1953 and moved about much as a child, attending sixteen different schools before graduating from high school. He did, however, spend several formative years in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky living with his grandmother (whose first cousin happened to be legendary Country/Blues guitarist Merle Travis). This is where young Larry started to soak up the music. Not only was he exposed to the area's indigenous Bluegrass, Blues, Gospel and Soul Music, but like most kids his age he was taken with the new sound of Elvis, The Everly Brothers and later The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Stax and Motown. Soon Larry learned to play drums, and enough guitar to start fooling around with trying to write his own songs. He went off to Lander University in South Carolina on a basketball scholarship but moonlighted playing drums with various Rock and Soul bands. Like a lot of young musicians in the late 1960s Larry discovered the Blues. It was a powerful force and by the time he left university the die was cast. He'd decided to pursue music as a career.

He went back to his hometown of Evansville, Indiana and formed a Rock band called The Phonz in the late 1970s. Between 1980 and 1984 the group recorded two 45s and an EP for the small independent Limp Dog record label. The Phonz were a regional success but had run their course when Larry met Blues guitarist Tommy Stillwell and joined his band Stillwell in 1985, playing mostly Blues standards. By 1986 Larry and Tommy had decided to get serious about the music business and formed The Beat Daddys to showcase their original material. The band quickly became a success, toured the mid southern states and opened concerts for touring acts like Johnny Winter and Koko Taylor. In 1988 the group signed with Camelot Records and their debut album "Houserocking Rhythm & Blues" was released the following year. The record garnered substantial radio airplay and sold respectably enough to attract the attention of the most powerful Blues record company in the South.

The Beat Daddys signed with Malaco Records and in 1992 released the critically acclaimed album "No, We Ain't From Clarksdale" on the Waldoxy subsidiary imprint, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound studio. The record was an instant success and began a whirlwind of activity for the band. They toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with artists as diverse as B.B. King, Foghat, Mighty Sam McClain, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets, Omar & The Howlers, 38 Special, Tower Of Power, Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop and James Cotton. Needless to say, The Beat Daddys had a broad appeal and a bright future ahead. They followed up with the album "South To Mississippi" in 1994, on which the group is augmented by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The following year Tommy Stillwell decided to leave the band and was replaced by Britt Meacham, the legendary Muscle Shoals studio guitarist who played lead on Bob Seger's multi million seller "Old Time Rock & Roll". They also added original Wet Willie drummer Lewis Ross and recorded their "Live" album in 1997. Larry Grisham had a franchise to look after and was not about to let the Beat Daddys falter.

By the mid 1990s Larry was firmly entrenched in the Malaco family. He co-wrote with George Jackson ("Down Home Blues", "One Bad Apple", "Old Time Rock & Roll") and A.D. Prestage ("Shade Tree Mechanic", "I'm A Blues Man") and Larry's songs were recorded by Little Milton ("Love Of A Woman"), Dorothy Moore ("I'll Always Love You" and "Blues In The Night" which was used as the theme song of a television show of the same name in Sweden) and One Eyed Cat ("Train In The Distance", "Ruby's Blues"). He also played harmonica on recording sessions at Malaco, most notably on Bobby "Blue" Bland's Grammy nominated hit record "I'm A Blues Man". The Beat Daddys recordings were also featured on several Malaco compilations, including the incredible box set "The Last Soul Company". By the late 1990s Larry was living in Pass Christian, Mississippi and the band was going strong. At the turn of the century The Beat Daddys recorded "Delta Vision" at Kingsnake Studio in Florida with the aid of Allman Brothers Band keyboard player Johnny Neel (the album also featured a guest vocal by Sonny Rhodes). The record was released in 2001 and the band continued its relentless working schedule. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for the Beat Daddys.

Then, in 2005, tragedy struck.

Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it completely wiped out the coast of Mississippi. Larry Grisham lost everything. Everything, that is, but his will to survive. Survive? Hell no! He found the strength to rise again even stronger. He lived in a FEMA trailer for the next eight months, trying to regroup and decide his next move. Out of all this turmoil came one of Larry's finest works. The album "Five Moons" was recorded in Nashville and released in 2006. It contains some of Larry Grisham's finest, most heartfelt songwriting. Wanting to put the Katrina nightmare behind him, Larry decided to relocate to the Nashville area, settling on a small farm outside of the city. The group continued to tour and released their second live album "Live At The Quincy Blues Fest" in 2007. Logistics were becoming an increasing problem for the group, however, as Larry was now living hundreds of miles from his Gulf Coast based musicians. Something had to give.

In early 2009 The Beat Daddys rhythm section quit en masse. Larry and Britt soldiered on for a few months using pickup musicians, when Larry contacted his old friend, bass player Jeff "Stick" Davis. Davis had played with the group for a while in the late 1980s and was happy to help out. Jeff had been a founding member of the Amazing Rhythm Aces as well as a veteran sideman with artists like B.B. King, Al Green, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Ron Wood, Memphis Slim, Otis Rush and Jesse Winchester to name but a few. When Larry laid out his concerns for the future of The Beat Daddys, Jeff suggested a couple of his Nashville pals. Guitarist/songwriter/producer (and a recording artist in his own right) Fred James soon came on board as Britt Meacham bowed out. Fred had also played with the Amazing Rhythm Aces and handled guitar chores for artists as diverse as The Sam Lay Blues Band, Tommy Tutone, Frank Frost & The Jelly Roll Kings, Dr. Hook and Billy Joe Shaver. His songs have been recorded by Johnny Winter, Koko Taylor, Charlie Musslewhite, Son Seals and Junior Wells & Bonnie Raitt. He's produced albums for Homesick James, Roscoe Shelton, The Delta Jukes, David Olney, Johnny Jones and many others. To complete his "wish list" rhythm section, Davis chose drummer Waldo LaTowsky. Waldo had played with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (appearing on his Grammy nominated Alligator Records release "No Looking Back") and Bo Diddley, as well as recording with Frank Frost, Homesick James, Al Garner, The Roadrunners, Johnny Neel, and Mary-Ann Brandon. He had also toured and recorded with Chet Atkins and Country Music chanteuse Suzy Bogguss. The Beat Daddys suddenly had a powerhouse, all-star lineup.

The newly revamped band is hard at work touring and writing songs for their next Malaco release. You've really got to hand it to Larry Grisham. Thanks to his unwavering dedication, The Beat Daddys have risen up yet again just when it seemed the odds were irretrievably against them. The future looks mighty bright for the group, but one thing you can be sure of......no matter where or when you encounter The Beat Daddys.......Larry Grisham will be at that drivin' wheel.

WEBSITE

TO THE TOP

8843 - THE BEAT DADDYS - NO, WE AIN'T FROM CLARKSDALE (1992)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''NO, WE AIN'T FROM CLARKSDALE''
1992
40:03

1 Tear The House Down 04:27
2 Livin' This Love 04:07
3 Evil Memory 05:27
4 This Is Gonna' Change Your Mind 03:21
5 She Knocks Me Out 02:50
6 Bad News 03:54
7 Different Name 04:20
8 I'll Always Love You 04:38
9 Tick Of The Clock 02:43
10 The Delta Song 04:08

Thomisene Anderson - Vocals (Background)
John Anthony - Hammond B3, Organ (Hammond), Piano, Piano (Grand)
Jewel Bass - Vocals (Background)
The Beat Daddys Primary Artist
Harrison Calloway - Horn (Alto), Horn Arrangements
Larry Grisham - Composer, Harmonica, Vocals
Jim Horn - Sax (Alto), Sax (Baritone), Sax (Tenor)
G. Jackson - Composer
Paul "Heavy" Lee - DrumS, Percussion
Geri O'Neal - Guitar (Bass)
Terry Ownby - Trumpet
Charles Rose - Trombone
Tommy Stillwell - Composer, Guitar, Vocals (Background)

OFFICIAL BIOGRAPHY
The BEAT DADDYS

Larry Grisham is a survivor, plain and simple. Both personally and professionally, he has overcome obstacles most people will never face. Time and again he not only met these challenges, but rose to them and came out the other side stronger for the experience. But isn't that what the Blues is all about?

Larry was born in southern Indiana in 1953 and moved about much as a child, attending sixteen different schools before graduating from high school. He did, however, spend several formative years in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky living with his grandmother (whose first cousin happened to be legendary Country/Blues guitarist Merle Travis). This is where young Larry started to soak up the music. Not only was he exposed to the area's indigenous Bluegrass, Blues, Gospel and Soul Music, but like most kids his age he was taken with the new sound of Elvis, The Everly Brothers and later The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Stax and Motown. Soon Larry learned to play drums, and enough guitar to start fooling around with trying to write his own songs. He went off to Lander University in South Carolina on a basketball scholarship but moonlighted playing drums with various Rock and Soul bands. Like a lot of young musicians in the late 1960s Larry discovered the Blues. It was a powerful force and by the time he left university the die was cast. He'd decided to pursue music as a career.

He went back to his hometown of Evansville, Indiana and formed a Rock band called The Phonz in the late 1970s. Between 1980 and 1984 the group recorded two 45s and an EP for the small independent Limp Dog record label. The Phonz were a regional success but had run their course when Larry met Blues guitarist Tommy Stillwell and joined his band Stillwell in 1985, playing mostly Blues standards. By 1986 Larry and Tommy had decided to get serious about the music business and formed The Beat Daddys to showcase their original material. The band quickly became a success, toured the mid southern states and opened concerts for touring acts like Johnny Winter and Koko Taylor. In 1988 the group signed with Camelot Records and their debut album "Houserocking Rhythm & Blues" was released the following year. The record garnered substantial radio airplay and sold respectably enough to attract the attention of the most powerful Blues record company in the South.

The Beat Daddys signed with Malaco Records and in 1992 released the critically acclaimed album "No, We Ain't From Clarksdale" on the Waldoxy subsidiary imprint, recorded at the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound studio. The record was an instant success and began a whirlwind of activity for the band. They toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with artists as diverse as B.B. King, Foghat, Mighty Sam McClain, Anson Funderburgh & The Rockets, Omar & The Howlers, 38 Special, Tower Of Power, Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop and James Cotton. Needless to say, The Beat Daddys had a broad appeal and a bright future ahead. They followed up with the album "South To Mississippi" in 1994, on which the group is augmented by the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section and the Muscle Shoals Horns. The following year Tommy Stillwell decided to leave the band and was replaced by Britt Meacham, the legendary Muscle Shoals studio guitarist who played lead on Bob Seger's multi million seller "Old Time Rock & Roll". They also added original Wet Willie drummer Lewis Ross and recorded their "Live" album in 1997. Larry Grisham had a franchise to look after and was not about to let the Beat Daddys falter.

By the mid 1990s Larry was firmly entrenched in the Malaco family. He co-wrote with George Jackson ("Down Home Blues", "One Bad Apple", "Old Time Rock & Roll") and A.D. Prestage ("Shade Tree Mechanic", "I'm A Blues Man") and Larry's songs were recorded by Little Milton ("Love Of A Woman"), Dorothy Moore ("I'll Always Love You" and "Blues In The Night" which was used as the theme song of a television show of the same name in Sweden) and One Eyed Cat ("Train In The Distance", "Ruby's Blues"). He also played harmonica on recording sessions at Malaco, most notably on Bobby "Blue" Bland's Grammy nominated hit record "I'm A Blues Man". The Beat Daddys recordings were also featured on several Malaco compilations, including the incredible box set "The Last Soul Company". By the late 1990s Larry was living in Pass Christian, Mississippi and the band was going strong. At the turn of the century The Beat Daddys recorded "Delta Vision" at Kingsnake Studio in Florida with the aid of Allman Brothers Band keyboard player Johnny Neel (the album also featured a guest vocal by Sonny Rhodes). The record was released in 2001 and the band continued its relentless working schedule. It seemed there was nowhere to go but up for the Beat Daddys.

Then, in 2005, tragedy struck.

Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it completely wiped out the coast of Mississippi. Larry Grisham lost everything. Everything, that is, but his will to survive. Survive? Hell no! He found the strength to rise again even stronger. He lived in a FEMA trailer for the next eight months, trying to regroup and decide his next move. Out of all this turmoil came one of Larry's finest works. The album "Five Moons" was recorded in Nashville and released in 2006. It contains some of Larry Grisham's finest, most heartfelt songwriting. Wanting to put the Katrina nightmare behind him, Larry decided to relocate to the Nashville area, settling on a small farm outside of the city. The group continued to tour and released their second live album "Live At The Quincy Blues Fest" in 2007. Logistics were becoming an increasing problem for the group, however, as Larry was now living hundreds of miles from his Gulf Coast based musicians. Something had to give.

In early 2009 The Beat Daddys rhythm section quit en masse. Larry and Britt soldiered on for a few months using pickup musicians, when Larry contacted his old friend, bass player Jeff "Stick" Davis. Davis had played with the group for a while in the late 1980s and was happy to help out. Jeff had been a founding member of the Amazing Rhythm Aces as well as a veteran sideman with artists like B.B. King, Al Green, John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Ron Wood, Memphis Slim, Otis Rush and Jesse Winchester to name but a few. When Larry laid out his concerns for the future of The Beat Daddys, Jeff suggested a couple of his Nashville pals. Guitarist/songwriter/producer (and a recording artist in his own right) Fred James soon came on board as Britt Meacham bowed out. Fred had also played with the Amazing Rhythm Aces and handled guitar chores for artists as diverse as The Sam Lay Blues Band, Tommy Tutone, Frank Frost & The Jelly Roll Kings, Dr. Hook and Billy Joe Shaver. His songs have been recorded by Johnny Winter, Koko Taylor, Charlie Musslewhite, Son Seals and Junior Wells & Bonnie Raitt. He's produced albums for Homesick James, Roscoe Shelton, The Delta Jukes, David Olney, Johnny Jones and many others. To complete his "wish list" rhythm section, Davis chose drummer Waldo LaTowsky. Waldo had played with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown (appearing on his Grammy nominated Alligator Records release "No Looking Back") and Bo Diddley, as well as recording with Frank Frost, Homesick James, Al Garner, The Roadrunners, Johnny Neel, and Mary-Ann Brandon. He had also toured and recorded with Chet Atkins and Country Music chanteuse Suzy Bogguss. The Beat Daddys suddenly had a powerhouse, all-star lineup.

The newly revamped band is hard at work touring and writing songs for their next Malaco release. You've really got to hand it to Larry Grisham. Thanks to his unwavering dedication, The Beat Daddys have risen up yet again just when it seemed the odds were irretrievably against them. The future looks mighty bright for the group, but one thing you can be sure of......no matter where or when you encounter The Beat Daddys.......Larry Grisham will be at that drivin' wheel.

OFFICIAL SITE

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3535 - THE BEAT DADDYS - Root Rubbin' Ball (2012)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''ROOT RUBBIN BALL''
JUNE 15 2012
55:45

1/Fuel for My Blues
Larry Grisham / Britt Meacham/4:23
2/Gimme Gimme
Larry Grisham / Fred James / Waldo LaTowsky/4:43
3/Tattoo Hell
Larry Grisham/4:43
4/Do These Blues Match This Stress
Larry Grisham / Fred James/4:24
5/How Fat Is Fat
Larry Grisham / Fred James/3:44
6/Monkey Man
Larry Grisham / Fred James / Waldo LaTowsky/5:04
7/Root Rubbin' Ball
Larry Grisham / Fred James/3:32
8/Hell & High Water
Larry Grisham / Fred James / Waldo LaTowsky/4:54
9/Nickels & Dimes
Larry Grisham/6:30
10/Highway Miles
Larry Grisham/5:15
11/Let the Guitar Talk
Larry Grisham / Don Rollins/4:52
12/I Ain't Afraid of the Fire
Larry Grisham / Fred James/3:41

BIOGRAPHY
by Richard Skelly
An amalgamation of blues and Southern rock, the Beat Daddys are comprised of Lewis Ross (drums), Brill Morris (bass and vocals), Larry Grisham (guitar, harp and vocals), and Britt Meacham (guitar and vocals). Meacham, from Mobile, Alabama, was a member of Jackson Highway, a group that recorded for Capitol Records, and also toured with soul-blues man Little Milton Campbell. Bassist Morris was part of Mercury Records' David and the Giants and performed in a popular regional Gulf Coast band, Magik. Drummer Ross, also from Mobile, was a founding member of Wet Willie, and he was involved in co-writing the band's hits "Keep on Smilin'," "Red Hot Chicken" and "Macon Hambone Blues."
the Beat Daddys formed in Evansville, Indiana in the mid-1980s and released their own self-produced album before signing with Malaco Records. Their two mid-1990s Malaco/Waldoxy releases, No, We Ain't From Clarksdale and South to Mississippi, are not straight-ahead blues, to be sure, but fans of blues, roots-rock and Southern rock can find much to appreciate in either of them.

MC

3534 - THE BEAT DADDYS - Delta Vision (2001)

THE BEAT DADDYS
''DELTA VISION''
JULY 24 2001
56:00

1/Miss Dixie
Larry Grisham / Russell Gulley/4:08
2/Delta Vision
Larry Grisham / Britt Meacham/4:30
3/Ten Pounds of Love
Bob "Rattlesnake" Greenlee/4:53
4/Telephone, Telephone
Larry Grisham / Tommy Stillwell/2:15
5/Luna Blue
Larry Grisham/4:40
6/Beg Borrow Steal
Larry Grisham/3:16
7/She's All That
Larry Grisham/3:40
8/After the Mystery
Larry Grisham/5:07
9/Lien on Your Love
Larry Grisham/5:34
10/Can't Be Satisfied
Larry Grisham/4:42
11/Somebody's Waiting
Larry Grisham/5:07
12/You Make It Hard
Larry Grisham/3:35
13/Reasons
Larry Grisham/4:33

Ronnie Foster /Drums
Bob "Rattlesnake" Greenlee /Bass, Guitar (Acoustic)
Larry Grisham /Harmonica, Vocals
Britt Meacham /Guitar, Tambourine, Vocals (Background)
Johnny Neel /Organ, Percussion, Piano, Synthesizer
Sonny Rhodes /Vocals

BIOGRAPHY
by Richard Skelly
An amalgamation of blues and Southern rock, the Beat Daddys are comprised of Lewis Ross (drums), Brill Morris (bass and vocals), Larry Grisham (guitar, harp and vocals), and Britt Meacham (guitar and vocals). Meacham, from Mobile, Alabama, was a member of Jackson Highway, a group that recorded for Capitol Records, and also toured with soul-blues man Little Milton Campbell. Bassist Morris was part of Mercury Records' David and the Giants and performed in a popular regional Gulf Coast band, Magik. Drummer Ross, also from Mobile, was a founding member of Wet Willie, and he was involved in co-writing the band's hits "Keep on Smilin'," "Red Hot Chicken" and "Macon Hambone Blues."
the Beat Daddys formed in Evansville, Indiana in the mid-1980s and released their own self-produced album before signing with Malaco Records. Their two mid-1990s Malaco/Waldoxy releases, No, We Ain't From Clarksdale and South to Mississippi, are not straight-ahead blues, to be sure, but fans of blues, roots-rock and Southern rock can find much to appreciate in either of them.

MC