Seeing Them Live

S03E07 - Trumpets, Tunes, and Tales: Jose’s Journey from the Marines to Midwest Icon

Episode Summary

Join us on Seeing Them Live as we welcome Jose Rivera, founder, manager, and lead vocalist for the band Five Guys Named Moe. Jose shares his incredible journey from playing trumpet in the United States Marine Corps, performing for U.S. Presidents, and sharing the stage with trumpet legends like Doc Severinsen and Al Hirt. Listen in as Jose recounts inspiring stories, from sneaking into a nightclub to meet his trumpet heroes in the band Chase the night before he left for Marine Corps basic training to the devastating impact of the plane crash in 1974 that tragically ended the lives of several members of the band. Discover how he founded Five Guys Named Moe and grew the band into a Midwest sensation performing over a hundred gigs a year. Jose also dives into the importance of band dynamics, audience engagement, and the business side of music

Episode Notes

In this episode of Seeing Them Live, we are thrilled to have Jose Rivera, founder, manager, and lead vocalist of the band Five Guys Named Moe. Jose shares his extraordinary journey from a budding musician to a prolific performer. He narrates how his fascination with the trumpet began in his early childhood and flourished during his time as a section leader and soloist for the United States Marine Corps. Jose describes his experiences performing before U.S. Presidents and numerous heads of state from 1972 to 1977.

He shares captivating anecdotes about sharing stages with trumpet legends like Doc Severinsen and Al Hirt, and his early inspirations such as Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass, and Bill Chase. One particularly memorable story includes a chance encounter with Chase the night before he left for Marine Corps basic training, which solidified his passion for high register trumpet playing. Jose also talks about the devastating impact of the plane crash in 1974 that tragically ended the lives of several members of the band Chase, and the emotional 40-year reunion concert that followed, filled with nostalgia and respect for the members who were lost. 

Jose reflects on his post-Marine Corps life and the formation of Five Guys Named Moe in 1988. The band quickly gained popularity with their unique style and vibrant performances, playing at numerous gigs across the Midwest every year. Jose's attention to professionalism and the importance of band dynamics and promotions are evident as he speaks about managing the band over the years. The impact of the Moe Heads, the band's loyal fans, is also a testament to their ongoing success. 

Jose underscores the hard work, dedication, and strategic planning required to sustain a band’s longevity in the competitive music industry. As an experienced musician, he offers valuable insights about balancing artistic integrity with crowd-pleasing performances and the reciprocal importance of venue support in promoting events. By mingling with fans and maintaining a professional band practice, Jose ensures that Five Guys Named Moe remains a staple of vibrant live music in the Midwest.

BANDS: Al Hirt, Bill Chase, Blood, Sweat, and Tears, Blues Brothers, Chicago, Chase, Doc Severinsen, Five Guys Named Moe, Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass, Lovecraft, The Kind, United States Marine Corps

VENUES: CD and Me, Cousins, North and Maple, Tailgaters, Ballydoyle, Buddy Pals, Q Bar, Poplar Creek, Superdome

Episode Transcription

[00:00:00] Charles: Our guest today is Jose Rivera. Jose is the founder, manager, and lead vocalist for the band Five Guys Named Moe. In addition to vocals, Jose plays trumpet, flugelhorn, pocket trumpet, flute, bongos, congas, and timbals. His strong upper register horn playing dates back to his early days as a section leader and soloist for the United States Marine Corps.

[00:00:25] Jose has performed before U. S. Presidents and numerous heads of state between the years, 1972 and 1977. He has shared the stage with trumpet greats, like Doc Severinsen and Al Hirt. Jose and the Moes, as they are referred to, play over a hundred gigs a year at venues all over the Midwest. Jose, welcome to Seeing Them Live.

[00:00:51] Jose: Well, thank you. It's a pleasure to be here.

[00:00:53] Charles: And, we also have my cohost and producer, Doug Florzak here with us today.

[00:00:59] DougF: Hi, Jose.

[00:01:00] Jose: Hello Doug.

[00:01:00] Charles: Thanks for coming on, Jose. This is such a pleasure. I thought we would start out at the very beginning, the real, real beginning, dating all the way back to fourth grade. Was it the trumpet you started out on in fourth grade?

[00:01:13] Jose: I started trumpet, what it was, even before fourth grade. I would run around the house because at that time, a group called Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass was very popular.

[00:01:23] Charles: Oh, yeah.

[00:01:24] Jose: Trumpet thing, and I used to run around with a stick in my hand thinking it was a trumpet. Pretend it was a trumpet. So, my mother finally bought me a trumpet from a friend of mine for 25 dollars, okay. And then I started playing along with records, the Herb Albert records the Tijuana Brass records. And as time went on, I got into, uh, the Al Hirt records. I got into even, uh, Chicago when they debuted.

[00:01:44] Start playing around with those records, uh, played with, and then of course, Chase came out and that was just, and Blood, Sweat, and Tears as well, but Chase, my goodness, when I heard them, I went nuts, scared the crap out of me. I heard a guy play a trumpet so high. It was great. So, I did that. 

[00:01:58] And then, I went to the Marine Corps, took an audition and they accepted me in there and so, I was the solo and section leader for the Marine Corps for four years. So, it was great.

[00:02:07] Charles: But before you went off to the Marines, like literally the day before, you were in Kansas City, right?

[00:02:14] Jose: That's correct.

[00:02:15] Charles: And, being a big Bill Chase fan and his band called Chase, they happened to be playing in town right before you were going off to the Marine Corps, to basic training, I would imagine, right?

[00:02:26] Jose: Yeah. It was right the day before. I'm actually originally from Kansas, but my hometown's 130 miles west of Kansas, right by Kansas State University. And, I was going up there to get processed and go in and I happened to find out that they were in concert at a nightclub in Kansas City, and I went, Oh man, here's my one shot, you know. And at 17 years old with a baby face and no facial hair, it was like, how the hell am I going to do this?

[00:02:48] But anyway, I forgot how I got in, but I got in, I sat, way back in the corner of the darkness, they couldn't see me when they did their first set. And so, that was good. We did that. So, they got done with the first set of people left. I didn't leave. Band came right back to the back of the room. 

[00:03:03] They went and sat in a booth. I went, oh my God, I'm dying, you know? And so, they looked at me and went, how'd you get in here? And I went, well, you guys are my boys. You guys are the guys that I'm doing. I'm a trumpet player. It says, and I leave tomorrow for the Marine Corps. And then one trumpet player, Jerry Vanbury goes, really?

[00:03:19] But yeah, I was in the Navy. I played for the Trumpet in the Navy. I went, no kidding. He said, yeah. So, we struck a conversation up that way. And so I started just hanging out with those guys. He goes; you're with us. You're okay. You can stay. I said, thank you. Then Bill Chase himself came up to the table and was talking to the guys and who's this?

[00:03:35] Well, I introduced myself and stuff. And I had him sign the little card that was on the tables that said two drink minimum. Okay. So, I had to all autograph the card and stuff. So, I got to watch your second show. And it was just a wonderful, most wonderful thing. And that Jerry Van Blair himself, the trumpet player, he really inspired me a lot to be the trumpet player I became. So, that was, it was very cool to hang out with that band at that time. 

[00:03:59] Charles: Yeah, that's quite a story since you were a youngster in elementary school and listening to them, and then, yeah, getting to hang out with them and getting their autographs and such. Just by chance, you happened to get into that club. I mean, that's, that's crazy. Cause it was probably what? 18, at least. 

[00:04:15] Jose: That's not true. It's 21 because they were on the Missouri side of Kansas City. City, Kansas, Kansas City, Missouri. So, it was 21 then. And, I still don't know how I did it, but I did it, you know. You find a way, right? You find a way.

[00:04:29] Charles: Yeah. That's awesome. You know, not too long after that, unfortunately tragedy occurred with the band. I guess this was like August 9th, 1974. So, what about a year after you had kind of hung out with them and met them, their plane went down.

[00:04:46] Jose: Yeah, I went down in Iowa. He was on his way to a concert and there were like three or four other members of the band that passed away as well. The drummer and organist and the guitar player, I believe, along with the pilot and a girl friend of the pilot's. I was like, I took a shot in the chest or something, when I heard that happen, it was just devastating. It's like when people freaked out when they heard Elvis died, or John Lennon got shot. It was like that to me.

[00:05:06] Charles: Yeah. That must've had quite an impact on you. Then, I was reading, like, you had said 40 years later, they had this reunion concert. Literally. It was like about 40 years, wasn't it?

[00:05:17] Jose: Yeah, yeah. In Chicago. It was crazy. 

[00:05:20] Charles: So, the surviving members, they got together, I guess, probably with some other guest musicians, right?

[00:05:26] Jose: Well, they only had one guest musician. I forgot his name right now, but, he's a famous trumpet player as well, and, uh, he was doing Bill's parts in those songs and all those other guys did come back for the reunion. Now. Uh, Jerry Van Blair since then had passed away doing an illness that I don't recall what the illness was. So, a lot of the former members were there and the guys who put together that were there. And even Jerry Van Blair's two daughters were there. So, that was interesting to show respect and stuff like that. 

[00:05:54] And it was in a small club, actually, again, in downtown Chicago. And the thing was my wife and I went as we walked in there; we've got tickets for the second show. So, they come in there in the middle of the first show, you know, I went holy cow and there's nobody at the door. Nobody at the door I'm like, oh we're going in So, we went in nobody said boo. So, here I am 40 years later in the same scenario, I was at 17, I get into the club.

[00:06:20] It's like, are you kidding me? You know, and then after the show, people found out and it was such a small club. There was no dressing room. So, the band hung out in the club at the bar. Well, where do you think I was in my wife at the bar? Okay.

[00:06:34] So, we got to talk to all of them, hang out with all these guys, which is great. Got a lot of pictures. Just talking about my experiences and stuff and, and how I play and how, and of course, Mr. Van Blair's daughter's there. I went up to them and told them that was an inspiration for me. And they got a little misty eyed about it and said, thank you so much. We're friends to this day. We communicate through Facebook, his daughter's, which is kind of cool.

[00:06:58] DougF: Was the guest trumpet player, was it Eric Miyashiro?

[00:07:03] Jose: That's him. Thank you, Eric Miyashiro. That's him. Yep. Everyone was so very cordial, very nice. Gigi Shin, the second lead singer that was there, who since has passed away through an illness. He was standing at the bar. He didn't look good though, but he had a cane he was working with. And I just got to start talking to him. He said, how are you doing young man? I said, how are you, sir? And I said, I says, I'm just big fan, big fan. You know, I know you hear that all the time, but I'm, I'm serious. You have no idea. And I told my story about the first time. And so that's what they all got to kick out of the story, the first story. So, that gave me credibility.

[00:07:35] Charles: Yeah, Well, that's that's a great story. I love that. 

[00:07:40] Jose: I tell you one last thing, the odd thing about it was some of the other trumpet players, like the alumni guys too, I was amazed at how short a couple of them were. And height kind of stunned me. Because they look so big in their photographs with all the hair and everything, you know, and looking seventies hippies, looking thing, you know, so, yeah, so it was kind of ironic to see one guy was only five, five away. Dang.

[00:08:02] Charles: Yeah, back then the hair probably added another three or four right? Yeah, Jose. So, you also had mentioned that you played with Doc Severinsen, who was in what he was a band leader for Johnny Carson's band for many, many, many years. And was that when you were in the military? 

[00:08:18] Jose: That's correct. Like I said we turned over 100,000 air miles a year. And I was close to 300 events a year too. And so we did all these kind of things. There were state fairs. They were all the bowl parades, pregames for bowl parades, pregames for pro sports, whether it's football, baseball, hockey. Basketball, we did that. Different, winter festivals, that kind of stuff. This was at the Michigan State Fair we did this. And, he was coming up and he played two songs and that was cool. It was just the idea of seeing Doc Severson there. And he was such a great player to do that. So, it was a big thrill for us.

[00:08:47] And that was like the first time, outside of seeing Chase that I got to see someone who was, again, somewhat of my trumpet hero as well. I mean, Andy Gotti was famous for playing trumpet at that time. Then there's Doc Severson, Al Hirt, Blood, Sweat and Tears guys and the Chicago guys, Lee Longnane and any of those guys, they were my heroes. So, these guys, they were big influences for me in my horn playing.

[00:09:06] Charles: And then in a similar situation with Al Hirt, you just mentioned at the Superdome 

[00:09:11] in New Orleans. 

[00:09:12] Jose: Yes, we, played the grand opening. We did the superdome with Al Hirt. Okay. We only did one song when we played the national anthem, but I played it with him. Okay. So, and so we got to do that and he had a club down on Bourbon Street and it was so expensive to get into that place, but we saved my money and finally got to sit in and go to the club and see him one time. Got to say hi, shook hands and stuff and told him I was there for the grand opening. Oh, that was great kid. You know, ‘cause I was a kid, you know, I had an attempted mustache going, you know, they could have arrested me for attempted mustache at the time, but I had that baby face. So, but it was great to do that.

[00:09:45] And we also got a chance to do, we did a, uh, a special, a country special with Roy Clark at one time. And I think it was a Nashville, but that was like to the latter half of my service tenders. So, and Jimmy Dean, as a matter of fact, he was a guest. So, the sausage king. 

[00:09:59] Charles: Right. So, it sounds like you guys traveled a lot. You said a hundred thousand air miles? 

[00:10:05] Jose: Yeah, yeah. For four years. Played for Ford, Nixon, Carter, a lot of dignitaries. All the old guys, Rockefellers to Barry Goldwater, those kinds of guys from the past. Here's a crazy one. I'm playing for Gerald Ford in New Orleans. We just got doing our concert. I had to use the bathroom. So, I went to the bathroom and washing my hands. And as I turn around, who comes in? George Wallace, governor George Wallace from Alabama.

[00:10:28] A lot of people may not know who he is. He's one of the biggest racists that ever lived. And to see him in a wheelchair, 'cause he got shot. I was just going, Oh my God, governor Wallace. He goes, how are you doing Marine? He shook my hand and I just kept going. So, it was kind of a weird thing because he was always in the news for something, you know? So, it was never, ever any good. 

[00:10:45] Charles: So, your band, the Five Guys Named Moe I mean, I know you guys play a lot, but a hundred thousand air miles, like how often is that like? 

[00:10:53] Jose: No, Moes don't do that. I did that in the Marine Corps, not with the Moes.

[00:10:56] Charles: Right. But I'm saying like, how many gigs is that? Like about, would you say? 

[00:11:00] Jose: Uh, at least two to three a month, maybe, if not more. 

[00:11:05] Charles: Yeah, it seems like a lot to cover that amount of miles. 

[00:11:07] Jose: It is. And we did four Mardi Gras, we did four of those and that's, you have a parade every week, every night of the week there. So, you're doing those gigs, those every night, that's a show.

[00:11:18] And those parades, man, they killed you because they would start at five. And you'd march up and down these streets and around and up and down and all around. You wouldn't get done till 10:30, 11 at night. You're toast at that time, you know? And we were statues. You had to be statues. So, that was kind of tough. Yeah. That's a lot of gigs. 

[00:11:34] Charles: Yeah. It's, it sounds like it. 

[00:11:35] Jose: We get state fairs. We do a seven-day gigs at the state fairs. The Texas state fair and wherever we might be, we do that. We're there for the week. So, those are all shows. 

[00:11:45] Charles: And so that was during your time then while you were in the Marine Corps though, basically the whole time. 

[00:11:51] Jose: Correct. For the Moes we only do like, well, we used to do 100 show a year with day jobs, but, back in the late nineties, I'd not brought it down to like 80, 85 a year.

[00:11:59] Charles: Okay. And I was listening to an interview with you not too long ago. And, I think you guys are playing even more than a hundred shows early on, weren't you?

[00:12:06] Jose: A little bit, not a lot. Just really, we could have, we would have like 12 to 17 shows a month, especially during the summer.

[00:12:13] Charles: Wow. Yeah. I imagine that's busy. Then one more concert story before we get to your band, Five Guys Named Moe, you'd listed as the most surprising concert was at the Eagles show where, was it Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi? 

[00:12:28] Jose: It was the year they were filming the Blues Brothers in Chicago, and we were at the stadium in Chicago, the Eagles were at the stadium. Jackson Brown opened for them, and we're sitting there, and all of a sudden, here comes out, and he says, hey, we got some special friends to come out, and they come out, and here come out the Blues Brothers, and they sang Soul Man or something, I think it was. It was crazy. Just one song, the place went nuts. Because everybody knew they were in town filming, so it was kind of a neat treat. Then years later, I saw the Blue Brothers in concert at Poplar Creek. They were in concert out there. They put on a great show.

[00:12:59] Charles: Yeah. I remember they used to tour, but yeah, I never did get to see them. So, we want to talk about your band, which I think I heard you in an interview, say you guys formed in, was it 1988?

[00:13:12] Jose: I started in 1988. I had four neighbors across the street from my old house. They were producers for a Cabaret gambling thing at the local parish. Okay. And everybody was involved and I was peer pressured to get involved. Okay. I don't want to do that. Well, I said, how about if I get some guys together, we'll jam some songs. Play some music. What do you think? Oh, that'd be great. That'd be great. You can do that. 

[00:13:33] Well, now I'm a room director. I don't want to be a room director. So, we learned 12 songs. Honestly got 12 songs and we were in the holding room for the big cabaret show. So, they would rotate in and out. People would, after our first set, they go to the cab, break them out, new group come in. Well, after the first set, okay, good. Thanks. We'll be back. Go see the great show. 

[00:13:52] Nobody left. Nobody wanted to leave. There were people waiting outside. I'm like, you got to go. No, we don't want to leave. So, I turned around to the guy, I said, boys, I think we have something here. So, I made the decision. I said, look, here's the deal. First of all, a band has to have a boss.

[00:14:07] There's no democracy. It's a business. So, if you want to play out, you got to know what it takes to do that. So, I'm the leader, I'm in charge. It's what I said, now you can either be part of it or not be part of it. So, tell me now, don't waste my time. Everybody went with us. It was great. And in our starting our 40th year together.

[00:14:24] Charles: In that story too, Jose, because the people didn't want you to leave, but you only knew the 12 songs. So, you guys played the 12 songs again. 

[00:14:31] Jose: That's what we did. I said, they said, play 'em again. I'm okay.

[00:14:35] Charles: Yeah. Yeah.

[00:14:36] Jose: That really did happen. Yeah, that's funny.

[00:14:38] Charles: Thatreminded me, I had read this biography about Led Zeppelin, the same kind of thing they're on their first tour, first album. They play; the place goes nuts. It's all the songs they know. So, they played them all again and it was a three-hour concert, but they played them all again, and nobody cared. They loved it. So, it kind of reminded me of that story. You guys repeated the set. 

[00:15:00] Jose: It was crazy. It was a great time and then I said, you know, I want to play out. Honestly, I kind of know what it takes to do that. So, we're not just going to go in a garage or a basement and have beers and party and have a good time and do that and not play out. No, I want to play out. So, that's kind of where it went. It's been working ever since. I've been very blessed, very blessed by all that.

[00:15:19] Charles: Yeah, because you guys, you're named the best, band in the Southland. It's like a, a local newspaper. 

[00:15:25] Jose: Three years in a row. Yeah. 

[00:15:26] Charles: Yeah, three years in a row. And I was reading you play all over the Midwest. 

[00:15:31] Jose: I call it the world tour, Charles. I said, what it is, it's a world tour of the tri state area.

[00:15:36] Charles: Yeah. 

[00:15:36] Jose: So, we go to the Quad Cities, we'd go to Peoria, we'd go to Wisconsin, we'd go to Michigan and Indiana. And that's, that's pretty far. If we go further south, Springfield would be about as far as we go. 

[00:15:46] Charles: Because I was looking at your website and you already have quite a number of gigs booked all the way out to, you know, many months this year. But what I was going to mention, Jose, is like, you know, you're the leader, you take this very seriously. Everybody in the band has to take it seriously and so I was listening to some of your recordings, I listened to LA woman and some of your other recordings and to me, I'm not a musician, when I listened to those recordings, you guys are, you're really bringing it. 

[00:16:15] And I did see some video as well. It's like, a full sound. It's big and you could feel the party atmosphere in the song you're playing. You guys bring everything to that song, and even though it was a Doors song, you kind of made it your own, you know?

[00:16:33] Jose: I say we Moe them up. 

[00:16:34] Charles: Yeah. So, you want to talk about that? 

[00:16:36] Jose: That's what we do. We do decide what songs we do as a group, but then I kind of have to make the final decision because I don't want to do something that every other band is doing, number one, and number two, it's gotta be something the crowd likes. What the non-musician likes. If you want to play out, if you want to have gigs, you're going to check your ego at the door. 

[00:16:54] I mean, I've got great players in my band, killer players, guys that, you know, graduates that guy, all of them teach, you know, all of them teach. One guy's a graduate of Berkelee even. You got to just make a decision whether you want to play out or whether you just want to be your, be the artist. You can be both, but you got to know your limits, where to go. And so, I'm a firm believer and you got to promote. And that's another big deal. I carry flyers with me all the time. I hand them out to total strangers. I mean, it got to the point when we first started, my wife and son got kind of upset cause we were getting noticed everywhere.

[00:17:23] I'm at the gas. Hey, it's the Moes can we get a picture of that kind of thing? So, I, I don't take that for granted, man. You want to do that? I'll take as many as you want. You go right ahead, you know. But, it's a business thing, and I think that's what a lot of bands fail to realize, is that you gotta check your ego at the door, man. You just can't do that. I'm sure you're a great player, I'm sure you do all this stuff, these wonderful things, but that's not what the people, they want to dance, they want to party, and if you can't bring that, you’re not going to get rebooked or if you don't have the butts in the seats because of that. 

[00:17:51] Cause the clubs and venues, it's a business for them as well. You're only as good as how many people you have in the crowd. No matter how good a position you are, if you don't have people in those seats, you won't get rebooked. It's just that simple.

[00:18:02] DougF: I can vouch for your keyboard player, Jim Lunsford.

[00:18:05] Jose: I heard that. 

[00:18:07] DougF: Absolutely phenomenal. He's played with my band, Wrought Iron Soul, a couple of times, and it's funny, the first time we ended up playing with him, we were playing at Q Bar, which is... 

[00:18:19] Jose: I know that. 

[00:18:20] DougF: It's, a chain, it's a restaurant, combination restaurant, bar and performance venue because they usually have nice stages and everything in addition to the bar and the restaurant. And, so we were booked there and our drummer at the time, this is on the day of the gig. Okay. During the day he calls us and we have a conference call and he says guys, there's this guy I know, this keyboard player. He'd like to play with us and trust me he's really great. 

[00:18:50] And we're like, oh my god. It's like we've never played with this guy before. We've never practiced with him before. It was a big risk, but he convinced us, our drummer. And so, all we did was we sent him our set list. And, he showed up and we had dinner with him and we talked a little bit over dinner before the gig about changes to some of the arrangements, from what the original artist did.

[00:19:16] He only had to hear that once. Absolute perfection when he came in, you know, was just fantastic. And even threw in some vocals, we didn't ask him to do that, on some of the songs and it was just a pure joy to play with him. He's like one of the most phenomenal local musicians that I've ever played with and we ended up playing with him a couple more times after that.

[00:19:38] If I ever get a chance, I'd love to steal him from your band, but, uh, I realize that that's a tall order. And that's just one of your guys, so I'm sure the others are just as good. And I've seen you guys play. So, it really does help to have committed quality players in a band.

[00:19:55] Jose: it's just true. And that's a great story. Jim is a great guy. He's a great musician. And I even have him doing a couple of leads on songs on vocals, and he is a top shelf musician, without a doubt. My guitar player, his name is Frank Capek. He was with the group called The Kind back in the eighties. And, had a hit record and toured the country. He is with a group called Lovecraft as well. And he played with Jimmy Rogers, blues great, Buddy Guy, Muddy Waters. He's played with all those guys. He's a known guitar player on the Southwest side. 

[00:20:24] Bass player is the Berklee School of Music graduate. He lives in Plainfield. He's a phenomenal drummer too, by the way. And, my bass player, he lives in Bolingbrook. He's the newest member of the band. He was in the army as well as musician. And he also went on some cruise ships for several years. Actually, he was a trombone player on the cruise ships, but he also plays bass and brings vocals to it. So, I'm trying to get the band back to a four-part harmony kind of vocal thing situation we had that years ago and it would just kill and I'm learning to get that back. So, that's we're working on trying to get that, uh, nailed down like it used to be, and it'll be fine, but right, the music's tightest it ever will be. 

[00:21:01] We wouldn't be anywhere after all these years either without our fans. Moe Heads. Without the Moe Heads, we wouldn't be doing what we're doing. We wouldn't be known as much as we're known in the Southwest side. We wouldn't get the cool seating at restaurants sometimes, you know, or anything like that.

[00:21:17] But, I'm so blessed as the leader and founder of that, and I'd be able to do it. I would never have thought in a million years that I'm still doing this in my 40th year. And I thank all the guys who were in the band. I'm the only original left. And I want to thank all the guys, on this forum, whoever was in the band and did that. Cause I had like 30 guys to the band all these years. Come in, come out, come in, come out, you know, or you can come for a gig and come out, that kind of thing. 

[00:21:40] So, it's been quite a ride, quite a ride. We're not done yet either, so I'm very happy about it. So, my wife keeps asking me, are you ready to retire yet? I went, nah, I think when they stop coming to our shows. I think I'll know that then. 

[00:21:52] Charles: Yeah. Jose, I wanted to talk to you about the Moe Heads and obviously the music's great and you guys pour everything into it. Is there any other thing you do to cultivate that or to grow that?

[00:22:05] Jose: Well sure, we do that. Well, first of all, we did a lot of festivals. That helped us generate our following by doing festivals constantly in the park. That's how that works. And then you'll come to the clubs and see it too. At each club show that we're at, during the break, I don't sit down. The other guys go take a break, sit down, have a beer, eat, whatever.

[00:22:21] I don't. I go to every table and thank people for coming, give them a flyer, this is our next show, and tell your friends about us, bring one, and like us on Facebook. Every table in the venue I'll make during that break. That's how important I think it is. Promotion doesn't rest. It never stops.

[00:22:40] And the venues can take a lesson on that too. You gotta. Venues have to promote as well. It's gotta be a team sport. And it's a shame that a lot of venues don't do that. Put your name on a marquee and they think that's all they gotta do. It needs more of that too.

[00:22:52] DougF: Yeah. They expect you to bring everybody in it. I think I heard you on an interview say, yeah, well, I'm bringing my people, are you bringing yours? 

[00:23:00] Jose: You heard that. That's awesome. That's my big line now. 

[00:23:02] DougF: I think that was the Rock and Roll Chicago podcast.

[00:23:05] Jose: That's correct. Yeah. Yeah. It's just true though. You know, you're in trouble as a musician, when you walk into a venue and they go, hey, you guys, great to see you. You got a lot of people coming? And you hear that line, that's the phrase that kills. That makes you say, man, maybe I should just go home. Because it's solely relying on the band for a draw. And that's the place you don't come back to. It's gotta be 50/50, and it's just amazing how many venues don't promote, just don't get it. And then they sing the blues about nobody there.

[00:23:31] DougF: Yeah. A lot of times they don't even put it on their Facebook page or any other social media. 

[00:23:36] Jose: That's right. They haven't, they don't, any social thing, nothing. They don't even have a mailing list themselves to get there. All they want to do is Facebook. It shows pictures of food.

[00:23:44] DougF: Right. 

[00:23:45] Jose: Pictures of food. Never show the stage, never show the band, never show whatever else is going on at that venue, whether it's a bar or whatever, because you want to give it the whole experience. You would think you want the whole experience, not just food. Although it's important, but you got to do more than that. You know, how bad do you want to do this? You know, it's amazing that I see that so many guys do this. Open a club, try this. And they're great for maybe six months, a year, if they're lucky, and then they close. You know well, they do the marketing and the work background to promote it, or they're their own best customer and so are their friends and that don't work either. 

[00:24:18] Charles: Jose, what are some of your favorite clubs to play at around the Chicago area and other surrounding states? 

[00:24:25] Jose: I enjoy playing at several of them. We do big ones, small ones, like this. CD and Me is one we love to appear out in Frankfurt. We also play oddly enough, we play a place called North and Maple, which is kind of nice.

[00:24:36] We enjoy that. We play even a small venue called Cousins, which is down the street from here. That's just a gas all the time. We're in Indiana and Buddy Pals. We go to there. We're going to go to Tailgaters here in Bolingbrook here soon too. Ballydoyle, like I said, in Downers. And then we do a lot of veteran’s organizations too. VFWs, American Legions.

[00:24:56] Charles: Now the band, Five Guys Named Moe, there's more than five guys, right? 

[00:25:01] Jose: No, we have five. I started the band with six when I started it. And, our logo is a hand with six fingers. So, you got some old folklore there. Okay. But, the thing about it is, I started with six and, in the nineties, I downsized to five because they had two guitar players. And I realized that although it was great having a rhythm and a lead. Lead can also do the rhythm and the rhythm can also do the lead.

[00:25:20] And that means more dough for the guys and my guy currently, my guy's running today as well. A lot of them, this is how they make their living. So, I take that very seriously too. I want to make sure that that they get paid. And they're not getting 20 bucks a guy or something. That's not going to fly. So, I'll turn down shows if they don't want to meet our threshold of what we need to have.

[00:25:39] Charles: Okay.

[00:25:40] Jose: We'll get a booking somewhere at some point. We do work with a lot of agents throughout the Chicago area as well, over the years. I think that's the other thing about being around so long. We're just very blessed in that respect because we have a name and people recognize the name. So, we'll get a booking a lot of times at new venues without having to go through the rigmarole of an audition or set up with another two-band gig or that kind of thing. So, that's always a nightmare because we're a big production. Keyboards and drums and my percussion, and then a bass and a a guitar. So, it's a pretty big stage setup sometimes. We try to downsize it, but you don't always get that luxury. Sometimes I'm on the floor. I'm not on stage; I'm on the floor.

[00:26:17] Charles: Cause I've seen a video of you playing, I guess the bongos or congas. 

[00:26:22] Jose: I play bongos, congas, and timbales, yeah. And the congas and bongos are always, I always bring those out, but sometimes I can't bring the timbales because there's no space. There's no room to bring them. And that's extra stuff I gotta carry.

[00:26:35] Charles: Yeah. That's a lot of stuff, that would be. Anything else, Jose, that you'd like to mention or cover or plug. 

[00:26:43] Jose: I'd like to thank you guys for having me on. I appreciate it. It's been fun. I enjoyed it. And good meeting you guys finally and stuff. And then we have Doug and I have a connection with Jim. That's kind of cool. But yeah, check out our website, fiveguysnamedmoe.Com. You got to spell the word five out F I V E named Moe dot com. And we have two Facebook sites, so check that out as well. I got other stories, but I'll leave it for another time. 

[00:27:06] Charles: Yeah. So, check out Five Guys Named Moe. And, if you do, I'm sure you'll meet Jose. 'Cause he's going to come up and say hi and give you a flyer probably, right? 

[00:27:15] Jose: Please always come up to say hello to the stage. Anybody's welcome. We'd love to have you out. Be one of the many Moe Heads. The Moe Heads are also for friendly people. 

[00:27:23] Charles: Jose, thanks so much for being on, Seeing Them Live. I really appreciate it. Love your stories. And, we'll hopefully meet up one of these days.

[00:27:32] 

Jose:

 Oh, thanks a lot. I appreciate it. It's been an honor and good talking with you guys. Look forward to seeing you soon at the Moes show.