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...the highlight of last night was seeing The Beggars. I don’t give The Beggars enough love on this site — I don’t see them very often because they’re usually not paired with the faggotty bands I normally see, but they’re one of the most entertaining Rock ’n’ Roll bands out there. And the not-so-recent addition of a saxophone in all their songs has improved their sound immensely. Combine their party jams with the most charismatic front-man I’ve ever seen, and you get one hell of a show every time. At the end of the set, Steven gave his socks to a pair of young girls dancing up front. His wet socks. They happily accepted them and wrapped them around their necks. The Beggars should have headlined. They’re an impossible act to follow. -Webvomit.com "If you bowl good enough, you can join the band," says Beggars frontman/vocal-stylist Steve Tuthill in his Midwestern-surfer accent. He hoists two 14-pound balls over his head with a theatrically victorious glow in his eyes, a hybrid of Elvis, Michael Jackson and Macho Man Randy Savage. Meanwhile, the rest of the band finishes off the pitcher of beer in the nearly empty, retro-mod-hideaway Madison Park Bowl, remarking casually on the noble philosophies and revolving cast of their band, which let’s face it, is probably the greatest party band you could ever hope to find: embracing, laid-back but insane, good-time rock ’n’ roll! "Our debut album," Steve says, "is called Party to the People because The Beggars believe that rock ’n’ roll doesn’t judge; rock ’n’ roll is for everybody. We want the crowd to get nuts, get crazy. We want the crowd to believe in rock ’n’ roll; we don’t want people being embarrassed by rock ’n’ roll anymore." Thieves, junkies, hookers — they don’t care! Business suits, comic book geeks, artsy babes — they don’t care! "What’s this, the eleventh incarnation of the Beggars?" asks bassist Jeremy Cybulski, a.k.a. Face Freely, who’s tenured in The Vespas. "We’re actually like the farm league for other bands," jokes guitarist Johnny Wilkins, a.k.a. Johnny Hair, who started the band with drummer (and original vocalist) Joe Senac (Jo-Jo Bangs). Loose jazz mixed with steady rock styles are what influenced Jo-Jo, who admits, "I wanted it to be an all-star band, like The Who, where everybody held their own. I’ve been in (conservative) bands where I was the over-the-top guy, then I met Steve and it’s the freshest and most enjoyable it’s ever been." The Beggars in their own words: Jo Jo: It’s clever, in a real sort of way. Steve: Sensational. Rod: It’s probably a copout, but "eclectic"? Johnny: I think it’s fun. Face: Musical effervescence. -JEFF MILO, REAL DETROIT The Beggars Keep Unbounded Rock Rollin' Ask any member of the Beggars who’s in charge of the band, and each one will probably give you a different answer. “Nature rules this band,” says bassist Jeremy “Face” Frehley. “There are a lot of very strong personalities in this band, and it depends on the day whether one wins out over another.” Despite being a group of “strong personalities,” no one really knows who rules the Beggars, and it doesn’t really matter. Vocalist Steven Davis, guitarist Johnny Wilkins, saxophonist Rod “Pool Party” Jones, drummer Jim Faulkner and bassist Frehley all seem generally less concerned with power struggles and more concerned with the power of their genre-hopping garage “party rock.” “We want people to have fun,” says Davis. Of those strong personalities in the group, Davis easily comes off as the strongest. With a mop of curly hair recalling Robert Plant, Davis is a ball of reckless energy onstage, constantly in motion to the music. (Frehley, when asked what his job is onstage, replies: “Maintaining high energy and not getting in Steven’s way.”) Offstage, Davis is easygoing, endlessly talkative and filled with enthusiasm for the music. “I’m a kid from the '80s, the golden age of pop culture,” Davis says. “Shit was good back then. If you got in a time machine you’d love it.” Listing Led Zeppelin and Guns N' Roses among his favorite bands, Davis repeatedly returns to his belief that rock should be fun. “Rock ‘n' roll is like a spiritual thing,” Davis says. “It’s great. It’s totally harmless. It’s a great way to get your ya-yas out. In the '60s, the '70s, the '80s, people felt more free about it. Now it’s like people are scared about it.” Although described by a fellow Beggar as the band’s “spiritual leader,” Davis is not even a founding member of the group. Guitarist Wilkins is the sole “original Beggar.” Wilkins, who describes himself as “more of a rhythm guitar player,” is modest about his status in the band. “I do occasionally play leads, and I can slaughter them, but I do it anyway,” he says. “I barely trust me.” The role of playing most of the leads falls to saxophonist Jones. A black horn player in an otherwise all-white garage-rock band, Jones is a self-described “odd man out.” Jones is a precise, cerebral kind of guy; when asked about his musical influences, he deliberates before naming three top influences in jazz, classical and rock, a list ranging from Duke Ellington to Chopin to the Police. Jones started out playing classical music at age four, and spent time in Grand Rapids-area jazz groups before Wilkins approached him to take the place of lead guitar in the Beggars. Jones’ style seems to add an extra dimension to the Beggars’ stylistic range. “We have that versatility to do different tempos and styles,” Jones says. “It can get a little more soulful and it doesn’t have to be all up-tempo.” Wilkins says the band can “go back and forth in terms of genre,” jumping from blues-based rock to glam influences to a touch of Sabbath, while still sticking to their “party rock” philosophy of fun. Wilkins says the band is at a “creative point” right now. The Beggars just released their first music video, and a 7” single for their song “Us Dudes (Wee Get So Rad)” is on its way, marking their first recording on vinyl. The Beggars seem prepared for the possibility of a shot at stardom, but again, the band isn’t blinded by ego. “It’d always be nice to make it bigger, but we’re under no illusions that that might not happen,” says Wilkins. “We’re not going to give any less if we don’t.” | RDW
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