Magic Dick and Bluestime

Magic Dick and Jay Geils go back to their first love: vintage blues and classic jazz covers

by Don Fluckinger

Listen to "The Bluestime Theme"

The J. Geils Band formed almost 35 years ago, and broke up 15 years ago. "Magic Dick" Salwitz is and Jerome "Jay" Geils both are 50-something, and members of the Pearl Jam Generation have good reason to wonder what these old guys could possibly offer with their retro R & B band Bluestime.

What the Pearl Jam Generation might not recall is that the J. Geils Band played the most raucous party music around, and blues was the base on which that manic sound was built.

With Bluestime--featuring a journeyman rhythm section that has played with some of the biggest names in blues--Magic Dick and Geils are playing party music once again. Only this time, they're not playing pop songs like "Centerfold." Instead, Bluestime pays homage to the roots of rock: classic blues and jazz.

"Rock and roll has a rhythmic base to it, which is the one fundamental thing you can say about pop music," Magic Dick says. "The one thing that it all has in common is this element of swing. Even Pearl Jam swings in a certain way, though it's a stiff sort of a swing."

Rock trivia buffs know that the J. Geils band was originally called The J. Geils Blues Band, an acoustic trio with Geils, Magic Dick, and stand-up bassist Danny Klein. It was only when joined by lead singer Peter Wolf, keyboard player Seth Justman, and drummer Stephen Jo Bladd that the soul sound and name change came about.

"The music that we play now was sort of half the roots of the J. Geils Band," Magic Dick says. "Peter and Seth and Stephen . . . were all a little more into the Apollo Theater rhythm and blues and soul aspect of popular music; Jay, Danny, and myself were more into blues and classic jazz."

Bluestime plays mostly cover versions of blues tunes by the likes of Little Walter Jacobs, Big Walter Horton, and Willie Dixon. The jazz in their repertoire includes compositions from Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong. Throw in some R&B and even soul tunes from Marvin Gaye and Etta James, and you get an idea of the sound.

As blues players, this pair knows its stuff. Jay Geils hasn't lost a beat, and plays the swingin'est licks and solos in the laid-back way these period re-creations demand. On vocals, Magic Dick stays in tune, and he has an innate feel for blues timing. Still, he's no Howlin' Wolf; for that matter, he's no Peter Wolf. But he doesn't need to be, because on harmonica, he's still Vladimir Horowitz.

The band formed a few years ago after Magic Dick was invited to front a blues band at a cartoonists' show in Haarlem, Holland. Magic Dick hadn't played out much since the end of the J. Geils Band in 1984, consumed with creating his own line of harmonicas with partner/inventor Pierre Beauregard.

When he returned stateside, Magic Dick called up Geils and told him about how great his experience was, and they got a band together including bassist Michael "Mudcat" Ward, drummer Steve Ramsay, and rhythm guitarist Jerry Miller. Between them, the sidemen have logged tours with Buddy Guy, Chuck Berry, Big Mama Thornton, and James Cotton.

For the Bluestime recordings Geils dusts off vintage guitars like a '65 Strat and a '38 Gibson ES-350, and Magic Dick plays Marine Band chromatic harmonicas and his own Magic harmonicas. The tracks were laid down in North Brookfield at Long View Farm studios, where many of the J. Geils Band recordings were done. But these tunes are recorded live, in a conscious effort to re-create their original spirit.

The first album, 1994's Bluestime, concentrated on Chicago blues. The second CD, Little Car Blues ranges back further into earlier jazz styles and forward to a soul tune from the 1960s.

"When you're making a rock record, a lot of stuff actually develops in the studio," Magic Dick says. "Rock records are more crafted, rather than a record of the performance. [With Bluestime], more of a focus is put on spontaneity."

Wherever Magic Dick blows the harp, there's a houseparty going on. The J. Geils Band would tour to back up a new album release, tour some more, and, in 1976, toured without an album. Defying conventional industry logic, the band just loved to play.

Just like the old days, Geils and Magic Dick are playing mostly in several-hundred-seat clubs. Bluestime has played in Europe and elsewhere abroad, and has even logged some arena shows.

One thing that Bluestime concert attendees should not expect is any J. Geils Band tunes whatsoever, except for Magic Dick's signature instrumental "Whammer Jammer," considered by many a harp classic. That's contrary to how some promoters bill Bluestime gigs.

"You spell it out letter for letter how to indicate that we're playing at a place, and sometimes they still advertise it as J. Geils Band," Magic Dick says. "Sometimes you don't know it until the afternoon of the gig when you pull up and see it on the marquee. It's unfair to the audience and it infuriates me."

Would the J. Geils band ever get back together? When asked, Magic Dick plays his cards close to the vest.

"Who's to say? I don't know," Magic Dick says. "There have been a number of attempts when we've tried to get it back together and it just--due to irreconcilable differences with Peter--hasn't happened."

Right now, Magic Dick and Jay Geils are focused on showing the Pearl Jam Generation where rock and roll came from, and they're having a great time doing it.