User:HTownBluesBoy

The H-Town Jukes are a traditional blues band based in Houston, Texas. Band personnel are "Longwind" Larry Bernal(harmonica and vocals), Steve Gilbert(guitar and vocals), Kirk Schafer (stand-up bass guitar), and Donny Payne (drums). The H-Town Jukes repertoire includes classic and obscure blues songs from the 1940s-1960s, as well as original blues songs in the same style. Their bandname reflects an affinity for their hometown and for traditional harmonica-based blues music. The "Jukes" in their bandname was inspired by Little Walter's 1950s blues band.

History
In early 2003, at a weekly jam session held at Danelectro’s club in Houston, Larry Bernal and Steve Gilbert were paired onstage for the first time. They quickly found out their styles complimented each other well, and a close friendship was born. In May of that year, Houston blues legend Joe “Guitar” Hughes passed away. Hughes was a well-known guitarist on the Houston blues scene, and both Larry and Steve had sat in separately with Hughes at club shows in the past. It was at his funeral that Larry and Steve decided that the time was right to begin playing shows in the Houston area. They named the band the Dukes of Houston, in honor of Hughes' mid-1950s band, the Dukes of Rhythm. This incarnation of the band (later known as Larry and the Jukes) played clubs around the area from 2004-2006, often employing Houston blues scene legends Eugene “Spare Time” Murray and Charles McCall on bass guitar and Johnny Prejean on drums. Bernal and Gilbert decided to take an extended break in August 2006 in order to work on other projects.

In March 2007, Bernal and Gilbert decided was to re-form the band, and a new band name was in order. Combining their two previous band names, they called the band The H-Town Jukes. They had been searching for a standup bass player to augment their sound, and they found one in Kirk Schafer, a veteran of the Houston music scene. To round out the band, Larry and Steve found Houston theatre musician and big band drummer Donny Payne, who augments the sound with his cocktail drum kit. The H-Town Jukes keep their sound true to the blues of Houston’s past, playing original blues tunes and cover blues songs from the 1940s-1960s. They continue to perform regularly around Houston and Southeast Texas.