Paul Szmal: It is 7.52 on FLX Morning on Finger Lakes News Radio, and I'm happy to be joined once again by Jimmy, guitarist from Bad Juju. Good morning, Paul.
Jimmy: Morning. How are you, man?
Paul Szmal: I'm doing well this morning. How busy have you guys been in the last time since we talked?
Jimmy: You know, it's been a great summer for us. We've been playing every weekend and going all around the Finger Lakes, having some great shows and it's so good that, you know, these venues are having live entertainment every weekend for the people to enjoy. So yeah, it's been a busy summer for us.
Paul Szmal: Yeah, you know, that's a good point to make is that there are plenty of venues around the area. So if you want to see good local live music, this is actually a good town, a good area to be in for that.
Jimmy: Oh, absolutely. It's a beautiful area for that and people are coming out and that's always good.
Paul Szmal: So tell me a little bit about the, for people that may not have heard the last time that you and I talked, tell me a little bit about the formation of the band, how long it's been together.
Jimmy: Well, we put Bad Juju together in 2013. So this is our 12th year and we call it Rockin' Around the Finger Lakes. And I surrounded myself with some very, very talented musicians. We have Bob Bachta on guitar, Carl San Giacomo on drums, Bernie McNabb is the vocalist and I play bass. And it's been going very, very well. We do classic rock, both from AM and FM stations, songs from the 60s, 70s, and some of the 80s. So it's very, for me, it's very enjoyable and the crowd comes up to us and say, boy, they love the music. They love the songs. A lot of bands aren't playing these songs. So you know, for me, it's been a successful event.
Paul Szmal: Now correct me if I'm wrong, did Bernie do Prison City Rockers?
Jimmy: Bernie, it was in the Prison City Rockers along with our guitarist, Bob Bachta.
Paul Szmal: Oh, okay. And they're doing some reunion dates around the area, so I'm sure you guys, you can catch those if you look for them. I have to tell you, I caught Bernie years ago in a production of Jesus Christ Superstar.
Jimmy: Right, he did that.
Paul Szmal: And oh, he killed it. He was amazing.
Jimmy: Yeah, he's a talent.
Paul Szmal: Yeah, absolutely.
Jimmy: So you guys enjoy rock and roll. Is it a blues-influenced rock and roll or does it really not matter to you guys just as long as it rocks, you'll play it?
Paul Szmal: Yeah, it's more of a harder edge rock and roll, you know, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, Deep Purple, Bon Jovi, you know, tunes like that. And some are danceable, some are for listening, but not so much blues. I came from a blues-influenced band back in the 80s. I played with Savoy Brown for four and a half years, and that was a blues rock band. So I love the blues as well, but for around this area, I think rock and roll is really what's happening. So that's where our mainstay is at.
Paul Szmal: So this is like a rock and roll party band.
Jimmy: Absolutely. I like the way you say that. Very good. Yeah, the whole idea of just playing tunes that people enjoy, and yeah, some of them you're going to listen to and tap your toes, and other ones you're going to want to get up and dance to.
Paul Szmal: Absolutely.
Jimmy: You know, tomorrow night we're at the Vista in Seneca Lake Resorts, and that's a great place to go and listen to live music, and you can dance there, you can enjoy the music. We're so happy to be returning there, so we're looking forward to tomorrow night.
Paul Szmal: What happens after tomorrow night, Shaw? How many more gigs do you have?
Jimmy: We've been very busy, blessed this summer, like I said earlier, and we're playing at Dewey's on Tuesday, the Clam Man Party House. We've got a couple weekend dates at the end of the month. I think one is the Tin Barn, which is down in Dundee, New York, I believe. And we're going to be in Auburn at Swifty's for their Labor Day weekend celebration. So bands remain busy. Things will slow down for us in the colder weather, but right now we're still going strong.
Paul Szmal: Are there any particular songs that you enjoy playing?
Jimmy: Oh my god, I enjoy every song that we're playing, because the reason we picked those songs is because those are the ones we've always wanted to do. They have some meat to them, they're challenging, and I just love playing everything. Led Zeppelin is one of my favorites, Bad Company is my favorite, so you'll hear those tunes when you come and see us play.
Paul Szmal: Is it important as a musician, when you're playing in a band like this, or you're playing a lot of shows and stuff, to challenge yourself?
Jimmy: For me, yes. I don't know, I can't speak about other bands, but yes, because otherwise it's kind of commonplace. You're not really putting your heart and soul into it, I don't think. When you're challenged and a song comes together and gels, and you look around and you go, wow, that was great, for me that's why I keep doing it.
Paul Szmal: And how often do you mix up the playlist? Is it different every night? Do you sometimes call an audible, based on how the crowd is reacting, of, hang on, we're going to play this one now?
Jimmy: Absolutely, all that. We also have people that want to hear a certain tune, they'll come up to the stage, and it wasn't on our set list, but we know it, so we throw that in. We fly by the seat of our pants sometimes. That's not necessarily a bad thing, though, because it keeps you on your toes, keeps you fresh.
Paul Szmal: Yeah, and the whole point is to be entertaining, so we want to entertain the audience. That's one of the main factors, as well as being accomplished musicians.
Jimmy: So you see this going for a good long time to come?
Paul Szmal: I'm going to do this as long as I can. I'm in my early 70s right now, and I still feel like I can put it out.
Paul Szmal: I wouldn't know it looking at you.
Jimmy: Well, I am, and this keeps me young, I think.
Paul Szmal: There you go. So yeah, I'll keep doing this as long as I can do it.
Paul Szmal: Beautiful, beautiful. Well, listen, I really appreciate you being here. You're going to be at the Vista at Seneca Lake Resorts, live at the Vista tomorrow night, which is a place I know you guys love to play. And I encourage people to go out and check the show out, because you know what, it doesn't cost anything to go see the show.
Jimmy: It sure doesn't, and we're going to rock the place tomorrow, so please come out and join us.
Paul Szmal: All right, that is Jimmy from Bad Juju. They are playing tomorrow night, again, 7.30 start time. Actually, tomorrow night is 6 o'clock start time.
Jimmy: Oh, it's 6 o'clock start time. Yeah, 6 to 9.
Paul Szmal: That's right. So yeah, three full hours of entertainment with Bad Juju. That is tomorrow night, live at the Vista at Seneca Lake Resorts. You can go to Seneca Lake Resorts' website to find out more information. It's 7.58 on FLX Morning.
