Big Hank and The Smokin’ Hot Toasters will have you dancing, or at least tapping your toes, on Oct. 29 when they play the blues and more in Parksville.
They will perform a diverse mix of blues, R&B, swing and originals starting at 2 p.m. at Knox United Church (345 Pym St.).
“We do some Los Lobos, we do some Stevie Ray, we do some classic R&B and we do some originals,” said ‘Big Hank’ Leonhardt, founder and lead vocalist.
“So it’s a pretty up-tempo show and it’s full of really great harmonies.”
Leonhardt’s favourite tune from the set list is the upbeat ‘Evangeline’ by Los Lobos.
“It’s just a classic great tune,” he said.
The band pays tribute to Los Lobos (which means “the wolves” in Spanish) — an American band famous for its sound influenced by rock and roll, country, zydeco, folk and R&B.
‘Devil with a Blue Dress’, made famous by Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels in 1966 is another standout in the Toasters’ repertoire.
The Toasters are Leonhardt on lead vocals, Steve Cross on guitar, Mick Woodhouse on bass, Steve Ranta on the keyboard, Andy Graffiti on drums and Paul Wainwright on the saxophone.
Leonhardt said he formed the group back in 1983 and within a few years they were opening for the Neville Brothers, John Mayall and Koko Taylor at Expo ’86 in Vancouver.
The band was a mainstay in the Vancouver A Circuit Blues Scene for the better part of 12 years.
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After Leonhardt left Vancouver for Edmonton and then eventually Victoria, the band reformed.
Several members are based in Vancouver, so they work together remotely and practise in person before a gig.
“We’re always continually trying to write stuff and work on different things,” he said.
This lineup also has a Christmas blues show planned in Parksville for December, Leonhardt added.
Leonhardt is also known as Uncle Wiggly, from Uncle Wiggly’s Hot Shoes Blues Band, and that band played a farewell show to a packed house several weeks ago in Parksville.
Leonhardt, who is also known for playing with the Kingpins, twice represented B.C., with Mark ‘Westcoast’ Comerford, at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tenn.
In 2016, the duo made it all the way to the semi-finals.
He is a member of RCA Recording Artists, and has played across Western Canada.
The music starts at 2 p.m. and doors open at 1:30 p.m.
Tickets are $25 each and are available online via Eventbrite and with cash at Parksville retailers Close to You Ladies Fashions (174 Corfield St.) and Fireside Books (114 Middleton Ave.).