![]() What he brought to the table was an innate love for rootsy guitar playing, inspired by his love of artists like Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker (the latter’s song “Serves You Right to Suffer” was brilliantly covered by the Geils Band). It’s true that he rarely contributed original songs to the band’s repertoire: Wolf and Justman wrote the lion’s share of their music, although Geils wrote the killer instrumental “Icebreaker” and co-wrote the live staple “Hard Drivin’ Man” with Wolf, both on their debut album. Geils Band making their unique stew of rock, soul, blues and funk without the six-string buzz of Geils. While it’s impossible to picture the Stones without Keith, it’s equally baffling to imagine the J. The Stones/Geils comparison makes more sense - both bands are dedicated to the preservation of their beloved blues and R&B roots, and while they meandered down more modern musical roads over the years - some exciting, some ill-advised - they always managed to retain that sense of tradition. Forget Aerosmith and consider instead their Boston-based cousins in the Geils Band (worth nothing - for a band known for being “from Boston”, Bladd is their only Massachusetts native). While some rock writers and fans of all stripes like to consider Aerosmith the American equivalent of the Rolling Stones, I personally think that’s an unfair assessment, as long as the J. Geils Band fare like “Whammer Jammer” and “Stoop Down #39.” While he clearly had fun on stage and was a natural with his five bandmates, Geils was only too happy to let his guitar do the talking. Even Magic Dick regularly vied for the audience’s attention, with his amped-up blues harp wailing away on standard J. ![]() Wolf - a former WBCN Boston disc jockey nicknamed the Woofa Goofa - oozed charisma with his rapid-fire between-song dialog, soulful vocals, and in-your-face stage presence. They signed to Atlantic Records, and their self-titled debut album was released in 1970.Īlthough the band was Geils’ namesake, he was far from the center of the band’s attention. They later moved to Boston, met drummer Stephen Jo Bladd, keyboard player Seth Justman, and vocalist Peter Wolf, and what started out as the J. While attending Worcester Polytechnic Institute, he hooked up with bassist Danny Klein and harmonica player Richard “Magic Dick” Salwitz. Geils was born in New York City in 1946 and raised in New Jersey, moving to Massachusetts in 1964 to attend college. Geils Band died of natural causes in Groton, the town he called home for the past 35 years. The guitarist and founding member of Boston’s J. Geils - passed away in his Massachusetts home at the age of 71. The news was a tough blow for rock fans earlier this week when it was reported that John Warren Geils, Jr.
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