Howard and the White Boys

There is a local band here in Chicago named Howard and the White Boys and I bet I have seen them close to one hundred times. Sadly, it has been a couple of years since I last saw them live but, man back in the early to mid 1990’s my posse and I would go almost every weekend to see them play.

My friend Wally kept talking about this great local blues band he had seen a number of times called Howard and the White Boys. He kept insisting that I needed to see them live to appreciate them. For one reason or another I kept putting it off. Then one night, he called. They were playing at a small place in the Burbs called Del Rea’s Chicken Basket. He was going with a friend Don and our buddy from the Peace Frogs, Dave. With nothing else going on, I decided to tag along and see just how good these guys really were.

Simply put, I was blown away. From that first show, in like I believe 1993 I was hooked. We went the very next week and saw them at Fitzgerald’s in Berwyn and we kind of became stalkers. I have seen them at so many different places I can’t remember them all. In all that time, I have never seen them put on a bad show.

Seeing Howard live, is something you needed to experience for yourself. Words don’t do their live shows justice. They have put out some records, and while they are good, it is hard to duplicate the energy that a live performance from the Boy’s holds. If you have seen them you know what I am talking about.

I have so many great stories and memories from those times. I can’t even begin to try to catalog them all. Most of the memories are hazy simply because I usually got as drunk as a lemur at those shows. There was something about that band playing live that went hand in hand with drinking heavily.

Without a doubt my favorite place to see Howard was at Fitzgerald’s. They would usually play three sets there. The first set was usually just a warm up. The second set would be a complete mind blowing experience. The band would always end it with their fifteen minute jam of Bo Diddley. At this point many of the bar patrons would leave having seen a great show. The true diehards knew to stay as the third set at Fitzgerald’s was something you just had to see. The band would let loose, and with a couple of drinks in them, would just play music that would hit you right in the gut. The guys were just amazing rhythm and blues players. They would always end their shows playing a cover of James Brown’s Shake Your Money Maker which would rock the joint and leave the crowd screaming for an encore.

Sadly, Dan one of the original members of Howard and the White Boys had a falling out with the other guys and no longer plays with them. They are still good, but I miss Dan and his harmonica. When they would play I got My Mojo Working, there was nothing like it. Indescribable joy is the only thing I can think of.

I miss those nights. You could not, not have fun at a Howard show. As we all have gotten older and now have more responsibility nights like those have faded into the rearview mirror. Still, whenever I think back to those nights an instant smile gets glued to my face. The good times we all had listening to Howard, are what made life worth living back then. And no matter how much time passes, I will never forget those nights.

For a look at Howard and the White Boys here is a brief clip of them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3us67jn_0ao