Get Into the Act... "Dave Mell Blues Band"
If it’s blues, the Dave Mell Blues Band plays it. “We touch on a lot of different styles,” says Mell, “British, Texas, Chicago, and Delta, and we do both electric and acoustic.” The band does nearly a hundred and twenty shows a year, including clubs, private parties, festivals, and carnivals. “We are even going to do our fourth Home Depot show,” he says.
The band also varies their tunes by having Mell, his wife Ellen, and bassist Tom Malafarina split the vocal chores about equally. When one sings lead, the other two often harmonize. Their gigs also feature drummer Stevie Vegas and a various harp players, usually Joe Stoebenau or Buddy Cleveland.
They often add horns, depending on the venue. Their CD “Live – Now That’s Cool” features the unusual addition of a trumpet, played by Bobby Savage. “That’s Cool” features seventeen tracks recorded in a club that puts you right in the middle of the action, since the recording mikes were in the middle of the audience.
The Reading-based Mell says that he only gets to the Lehigh Valley once or twice a month, but he likes the area. “The people there are a more aware of the blues than they are in Reading, largely because of the built in crowd based around the Lehigh Valley Blues Network.”
Dave Mell Blues Band, California Bar and Grill, Rt 724 and Mountain View Road, Grill, PA, 610-777-7224.
--Dave Howell, 5/04
(This article first appeared in The Morning Call newspaper.)
The band also varies their tunes by having Mell, his wife Ellen, and bassist Tom Malafarina split the vocal chores about equally. When one sings lead, the other two often harmonize. Their gigs also feature drummer Stevie Vegas and a various harp players, usually Joe Stoebenau or Buddy Cleveland.
They often add horns, depending on the venue. Their CD “Live – Now That’s Cool” features the unusual addition of a trumpet, played by Bobby Savage. “That’s Cool” features seventeen tracks recorded in a club that puts you right in the middle of the action, since the recording mikes were in the middle of the audience.
The Reading-based Mell says that he only gets to the Lehigh Valley once or twice a month, but he likes the area. “The people there are a more aware of the blues than they are in Reading, largely because of the built in crowd based around the Lehigh Valley Blues Network.”
Dave Mell Blues Band, California Bar and Grill, Rt 724 and Mountain View Road, Grill, PA, 610-777-7224.
--Dave Howell, 5/04
(This article first appeared in The Morning Call newspaper.)