#springtimeisswingtime

Wayne Hancock. April 1, 2013.

Fed Live. Harrisburg, PA.

A Monday night road trip to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania sounds like an obvious recipe for a good time, right? And I haven't even mentioned the best part, the King of Juke Joint Swing himself, Wayne 'The Train' Hancock. We couldn't have bumped into Wayne at a better time. Coming off the February release of his new album, Ride, Hancock has been spending most of this year like he did the previous nineteen, on the road.

I could go on and on about how awesome the show was. Wayne is playing with a reinvigorated spirit and his vocals sound better than ever. You can tell he's having fun up there when he comes out of a verse with a huge smile on his face turning to call out the next solo. These days most of those solos are going to guitarist, Zach Sweeney, who kindly obliges. The songs come to life on stage; 87 Southbound, Deal Gone Down, Any Old Time, Cold Lonesome Wind, Hank Williams' I Heard That Lonesome Whistle Blow, Johnson City. As if naming a few comes anywhere close to hearing them all.

It's the epitome of live music. The energy between the artist and the audience, everyone giving and giving. The more Wayne rocks, the more excited they get. The more excited they get, the more Wayne rocks, and on a good night that just keeps building and building. Then you have to come down, go to the next city, and do it all again. Life on the road definitely takes it's toll; Wayne and his wife are separated, he has been battling clinical depression for years, and he has been battling alcoholism for even longer. So while his hardships might make for great songs, there has to be a better way.

Enter Ride. Not without it's own set of blues, the album, and riding itself, serve as a release for Hancock, a safe place. We asked Wayne what role riding has played in his sobriety, "You can't be drunk when you're riding a motorcycle, and you can't be too high. And I've met quite a few good people because I do ride, that have got my back so to speak, and have been very instrumental in helping me not to drink." 

He must be doing something right, Ride broke into the AMA top ten a few weeks ago. Hancock's renewed energy oozes out of the album and slaps you in the face at live shows. In a recent interview with BlueSkyCampfires Wayne talks about Ride's current success in the charts, his passion for riding motorcycles, sobriety, life, music, and more.

Wayne Hancock Interview - Campfire Sessions

#SpringTimeIsSwingTime. Photo by BlueSkyCampfires.

Zach Sweeney on lead guitar. Photo by BlueSkyCampfires.