Having previously seen quite a bit of the members of Shady Jake individually at Wha Bahs’ Sunday night blues jams, I was expecting blues, blues, and more blues for this, my first live listen to the band.

Much to my surprise what I heard was lots of rock too, and a nice selection to boot. Where your typical blues song has few words and more guitar, harp, etc., it was quite a contrast to hear Shady Jake & the Upsetters do “Like a Rolling Stone”. As singer and lead guitarist Sheldon Shaffer said, “…..that’s a lot of words!”. And the first set just continued to rock. Now I did hear they were playing quite a bit of new material, so if you’ve seen them before and this doesn’t sound like their style, maybe it’s time to see them again. I dug what they were doing. For the record, Shady Jake is a cover band. Of course, they do have this song called “Hootchie Mama” which I believe is all their own. But I will say no more – it’s best to experience it on your own.

The members of Shady Jake are no strangers to the Bowling Green music scene. Mr. Shaffer has been shredding his way through blues jams for years now. Bassist and vocalist Rick Mitchell, guitarist and vocalist Greg Williams, harmonica player and vocalist Tom Sullivan (and he does play some mean harp), and drummer Don Bunn have all been integral parts of the BG scene. Karen Russell, who said she joins the band whenever she’s in town, adds all sorts of little rhythm niceties (like spoons – yes, really) to the mix. It all makes for a good time.

The second set seemed to be going more to the blues side of things, but nonetheless the tunes were hot and the band was tight. A lot of this music is danceable, so next time you go see them bring your dancing shoes.  They are scheduled to play Wha Bahs again on March 3, so mark your calendar.

For more info you can find Shady Jake & the Upsetters on FaceBook.

Shady Jake & the Upsetters performed at WhaBahs on 1/7/2012.

About the author: Pennman boughthis first 45 at age nine and has been hooked on rock ever since. Hehas spent much of his disposable income on music, especially liveperformances. He writes reviews of the shows he sees and keeps akeen lookout for upcoming shows in or near Bowling Green. He has aBA in Communications, specializing in journalism, and has dabbledin music himself, both as a player and instructor. Find more ofPennman’s work at www.associatedcontent.com/user/165511/pennman.htmlor visit him at www.myspace.com/pennman_bgor www.facebook.com/pennman