"Buffalo is hardly the kind of town that one would normally associate
with Rockabilly and old-time Rock-n-Roll. We're a steel town in the
North East. What do we know about torch and twang? Plenty, apparently. Local acts like The Quakes and The Irving Klaws havehelped to popularize Rockabilly in the Queen city. And then there's Josie Kreuzer.
Josie grew up in Buffalo, and it was here that the groundwork was laid
for what would become a love affair with the old-school forms of the
1950's. She makes her home in San Diego these days, where she's started
her own record label, She Devil Records, and made a name for herself,
both as a member of the all-girl Rockabilly outfit Whistle Bait, and
now, as a solo artist with a taste for Gene Vincent twang and Patsy
Cline torch, all rolled up in a ball of Sun-era boogie.
Not bad for a Buffalo gal, whose first taste of recording came via a
tiny tape recorder and the a capella melodies she would intone into it,
sans musical instrument.
I spoke to the Hot Rod Rocker turned entrepreneur recently about her
blossoming career and impending Buffalo homecoming. Here's how it went.
BB: Tell me a bit about how you became enamored with Rock-n-Roll and Rockabilly as a kid growing up in Buffalo. Who were you listening to?
JK: Well, my parents had a wonderful and diverse record collection. They were seriously into music. I was exposed to a lot of Jazz and Blues froma very early age. I really fell for Billie Holliday in a big way. The same with B.B. King. They would play the Beatles, and of course the Beatles covered Carl Perkins, which was the only Beatles music I liked.I really loved Gene Vincent and the early Elvis stuff. But it was my older sister, who was also really into music, who really messed me up by introducing me to The Cramps! (laughs)
BB: How did you make the transition from being a teenager writing songs in Buffalo to a musician fronting your own Rockabilly band in Los Angeles?
JK: Well, I started writing songs when I was 11, just with my voice and
a cheap tape recorder. I couldn't play an instrument, but I would sing
these melodies that I wrote. It was really when I moved to New Orleans
that I began translating these ideas into songs. I lived in the French Quarter with my mom, and I worked in a record store, where I just started studying any kind of music I could get my hands on. It was a good environment to learn about Rockabilly, to study the roots. Plus, you couldn't walk down the street in New Orleans without hearing some amazing music. The only problem was that there were no musicians in New Orleans who were into what I was into. I couldn't find anyone to play with. So I headed to San Francisco, but I still couldn't find people who were on the same wavelength musically. Then I moved to Austin, Texas, and concentrated on writing, holed up in a little apartment, basically never going out. Then I moved to L.A. I put an ad in The Recycler, which is the same paper that the band X were formed out of, and I eventually met Terry Tom. She was one of the greatest guitar players I'd met, male or female. She was hip to Cliff Gallup, (Gene Vincent's guitarist). We put together Whistle Bait as an all-girl group because we figured we were half way there with the two of us. It took off really quickly. More quickly than we were ready for, I think. We were getting all kinds of gigs, and we barely had enough material! It was a great band, but we just started to grow apart, both musically and philosophically.
BB: Are you enjoying running your own label, or do you have aspirations to land a major label deal?
JK: I'd never do it any other way than this, particularly for my first record. I wanted to produce it myself. I've had bad experiences in the past, and I needed to have some control in the studio. You don't often get that with the majors. You know, they assign you a producer who has no idea what you're doing musically, and the end result is nothing like what you wanted. I might sign with a major label, if it was the right kind of deal. Ideally, though, I'd like to do it like Ani DiFranco, who I respect immensely. I think that what she's done is incredible, and ideally, that's the way it should be done.
BB: How did you hook up with Hot Rod Lincoln, the band who back you on your album? Are they touring with you?
JK: We're old friends. I've always admired their musicianship. Buz(Campbell, guitarist) is amazing, one of the best guitarists I've worked with aside from Terry Tom. He's always looking to learn new things, which is what I think makes a great guitarist. I'm not touring with them though, because they're busy doing their own thing. My band is called Sun 209, (after the Sun records catalog # for the first Elvis single, Blue Moon of Kentucky b/w That's Alright Mama - ed.). We have no drummer, which is something I've wanted to try for some time. Wayne Hancock's band does the same thing. My bassist, Davey Ketchum, plays slap bass on an upright, and he's phenomenal. If you play upright well, you don't need a drummer! Adam Payne is my lead guitarist, and he's great as well - sort of like a Merle Travis style.
BB: Is this your first time back in Buffalo since you headed west?
JK: Yeah. This is it! We're real excited.
BB: Any advice for musicians trying to build a career in Buffalo?
JK: You don't need to leave, necessarily. You can make it here, but you
need to tour. I will say that unless you're being courted by a major label, I recommend skipping the Indie labels and doing it yourself. Its so easy to put out a CD today, that I think its foolish to go with an indie. That's it, I guess. Don't expect to get signed in your hometown just by playing the same places over and over again. Get out there. You know, either do it or don't!"

Some links about Buffalo, NY:

Living with Steam - The Sounds of Railroading in Buffalo
The Buffalo History Works' Photograph Collection
MUSE Inc. Homepage

COMBINED LOCKS, WI 4/24/98...

"Rosey and all,

Let it be publicly known that listmember and fellow HOF buddy Rod Pyke paid for the preshow meal for Josie, Sun 209, Bob, and promoters Phil and Danielle Saturday evening. We have some good Mexican cuisine. Well,Rod, there goes your wages for 1998. Josie, the boys and we all thank you.

The Bad Cats went on a little late, because of Rod's offer to spring for the meal and we had to enjoy every minute of it (including the chatting).
Denny & The Bad Cats are getting a little tighter now and Josie enjoyed our opening set. She's a real sweetheart, a genuine classy person wth a great talent for songwriting and performing. She had the crowd instantly upon their feet and eating out of her hand performing cuts from her current CD and upcoming CD.

The big thing that she'll remember from this tour is all the great people
she has met along the way...listmembers, new fans, other band members and some very nice promoters. She trades CD with groups that perform with her and listens to them each day while traveling on the road. She agreed to supply the Rockabilly HOF with a cut for our Volume #2 or #3 CD for relased later this year.

Josie ... a true professional ... and I still stand by my previous statement that she is one the best young performers in Rockabilly today and a big part of the future of rockabilly music. I can just picture her performing on the Tonight Show or Letterman and stealing the hearts of America."

Bob Timmers, curator,Rockabilly Hall of Fame (as told to
The Rockabilly List 4/25/98)
postscript: "Josie is one classy lady. (you can quote me on that, too.)"

Thanx Bob & you too Rod! RABHOF RULES!

RoseyTues. 4/21: Columbus,OH. Old Fields on High Nightclub
Wed. 4/22: Ann Arbor,MI "Go Cat Go" with Del Villarreal/WCBN FM
Thurs.4/23: Detroit, MI The Magic Stick
Fri. 4/24: Fairmount, IN. The Fountain Room
Sat. 4/25: Greenbay,(Combined Locks) WI.
Ryan's Bar & Ballroom, w/Denny & the Bad Cats
Sun. 4/26: Chicago, IL. Schuba's

PIX from Chicago!

Wed. 4/29 - Denver, CO. 9th Ave. West
Thurs. 4/30 .- Colorado Springs -CO. Colorado Music Hal w/ Hillbilly Hellcats

MAY.......
Fri. 5/1 Breckenridge CO , Alligator Lounge
Sat. 5/2 Saturday-Salt Lake City, UT. Spanky's
Wed. 5/6: San Jose, Agenda Lounge=cancelled
Thurs. 5/7: San Francisco, CA. Cafe Du Nord

Josie in San Francisco pix

Fri. 5/8 Bakersfield, CA. Parks Place
Sat. 5/9: Simi Valley, CA The Simi Valley Drive-In=venue changed to The Garage, Santa Monica Blvd. Psychobilly Festival

CONGRATULATIONS, ON A GREAT FIRST TOUR!!!

Contact: SheDevil Booking - (619) 229-9338 / Fax-(619)229-0774, PO Box 151318, San Diego, CA 92175

HOT ROD GIRL available from:
Hepcat Records 1(800)404-4117
Miles of Music 1(888)766-8742
Borders Books & Music

Or Buy it HERE!