Megan Boyer Band

Artist Information

Biography

Megan Boyer Band


The Megan Boyer Band is a Blues and Roots band hailing from Central Missouri. MBB plays everything from traditional blues to contemporary roots music. The big-smiling, big-voiced, big-hearted, fearless front-woman of the band, Ms. Megan Boyer, is a natural born blues n roots singer/guitarist guaranteed to rock the house and delight audiences. Throw into the mix the years of solid musicianship and dedication to the craft represented by Ted and Shelly Tyson and Jimmy Steffan, and the Megan Boyer Band might just be one heck of a train ride from Bluestown to Rootsville.

Megan Boyer Band has opened for well known blues artists like Tab Benoit, Janiva Magness, the Bel Airs, and Cedrick Burnside and Lightnin' Malcolm (the Juke Joint Duo).

Instrumentation

Megan Boyer - Vocals and Guitar
Jimmy Steffan - Lead Guitar and Vocals
Shelly Tyson - Bass
Ted Tyson - Drums

(We are available for electric or acoustic gigs)

Discography

2009 - That's What My Baby Likes

Audio

• Pilot Light
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• My Heart is Gonna Pay
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• Two Cats
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• Cheap and Nasty Blues
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• Long Enough To Lose
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Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• Megan Boyer trio bridges age gap with bluesy vibes [+ Show ]
  

  By CHRIS BOECKMANN Published Thursday, May 22, 2008 When longtime blues guitarist Jimmy Steffa...By CHRIS BOECKMANN
  Published Thursday, May 22, 2008
  
  When longtime blues guitarist Jimmy Steffan wanted to start a band, he pined to create something new, something fresh, something young. So last year, he went to the place where young people go - the Internet - and discovered Megan Boyer, a vocalist from Jefferson City who had posted an ad on Comomusic.com, a Columbia music site.
  
  Boyer had graduated from college a few years earlier; months of studying and playing sports left her no time for singing publicly. She longed to return to the music world, a place that had provided much comfort during her high school years. Boyer works as an academic adviser in the Honors College at the University of Missouri, and one her duties is Webmaster - so it was only natural for her to post an ad online.
  
  When the two later met in real life for a mutual audition, they had no idea what to expect. Still, no real fears existed.
  
  "You’ve just gotta give some things a shot," Steffan said. "If it works it out, fine - if it doesn’t …"
  
  Steffan leaves the sentence blank; for him, there’s no reason to fill the ellipsis.
  
  "I was really impressed with Megan," Steffan said. "I saw a real, raw talent there. She had sort of a Janis Joplin-type repertoire."
  
  And in Steffan, Boyer - a self-described "rudimentary" guitar player - found the professional musicianship she needed to perform live. Along with bassist Tim Shields, Boyer and Steffan created the Megan Boyer Band - one of the few acoustic roots and blues acts in Columbia.
  
  "Our goal is not to stay at home watching TV at night," said Steffan, laughing.
  
  Boyer, 29, first started performing in Jefferson City coffee shops during the 1990s. Steffan and Shields have been a part of the local scene since the 1970s. The Megan Boyer Band has found a way to take advantage of that age gap: Steffan and Shields bring years of experience; Boyer brings the youthful energy.
  
  "I get to learn so much from these guys," Boyer said. "From where I stand, I’m really super lucky."
  
  "Our love for the same music really transcends the age thing," Steffan said.
  
  Though you’re most likely to find middle-aged fans at their concerts, the Megan Boyer Band creates music for everyone.
  
  "The people who grew up with this music - they’re solidly on our side," Steffan said. "If we could make more of a connection with the folks Megan’s age or younger, that would be great, too."
  
  Steffan said the blues fans of his generation enjoy Boyer; they see her as "a little hope for the future."
  
  Boyer laughed and said, "Yeah, right."
  
  With her alluring bluesy pipes, Boyer could just as easily be fronting a rock band, but her attraction to roots and blues is simple.
  
  "It’s music about people, places, things," Boyer said. "It’s all very tangible. Anyone can find some way to relate to the message because it’s about real things."
  
  When Boyer played in high school, she performed covers of "singer-songwriters" such as Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez - but after 10 years, she became immersed in the blues. She was "hungry to get back at it and do it right."
  
  "When you hear the reaction people have to Megan," Steffan said, "it’s so visceral that it seems she made a good choice by going back into it."
  
  The band now plays at shows all around the state - sometimes visiting Steffan’s old bandmates in Kansas City, other times playing for diners at Jazz. Typically the band performs blues standards and songs from the likes of Janis Joplin and Flying Burrito Brothers. Occasionally it throws in a few original tracks. Tomorrow, the band plays a happy-hour set at Mojo’s.
  
  "It’s kind of like a two-sided thing," Steffan said of the band’s goals. "You have to take the opportunity to come along and just enjoy everything that’s given and what you can do, but it’s also fun to set your sights on bigger things as well."
  
  In August, the Megan Boyer Band will compete in a regional blues competition through the MoBlues Association, Inc.; and if it wins that contest, it will move onto the nationals in Memphis.
  

Setlist

We prefer to do 45 minute sets.
We typically perform three 45 minute sets, however; we have enough material to perform four 45 minute sets.

A typical gig:

Two Cats (Original)
Long Enough to Lose (Original)
Cheap and Nasty Blues (Original)
My Heart is Gonna Pay (Original)
Pilot Light (Original)
How Come (Original)
I Don't Need Nobody (to tell me how to treat my man) (Etta James)
She Caught the Katy (Taj Mahal)
How You Want it Done? (Big Bill Broonzy)
Black Eyed Blues (Ma Rainey)
BBQ Blues (Lucile Boogan)
Countryboy
Honey Baby Blues (Doc Watson)
Rainy Night in Georgia
Proud Mary (Credence Clearwater Revival)
Six Days on the Road (Flying Burrito Brothers)
That's What My Baby Likes (Lucile Boogan)
Bootlegger's Blues (Bo Carter)
Every Night (Janiva Magness)
I Wanna Know (Janiva Magness)
Son of a Preacher Man (Dusty Springfield)
Rings (Cymarron)
Lodi (Credence Clearwater Revival)
Break My Mind (Flying Burrito Brothers)
Nobody's Fault but Mine (Paul Butterfield)
Whiskey Headed Woman (Sonny Boy Williamson)
Tip on In
Seventh Son (Willie Dixon)
I Can See Clearly (Johnny Nash)
Got My Mojo Workin' (in the style of Etta James)
Back to Louisiana (Delbert McClinton)
I Got Loaded (Los Lobos)
It's My Soul (Ronnie Earl)
Cheap and Nasty Blues (original)
Empty Bed Blues (Ma Rainey)
Big Road Blues (In the style of Bonnie Raitt)
Finest Lovin' Man (Bonnie Raitt)
Baby Please Don't Go (Big Joe Williams)
Let's Get Drunk
Shakey Ground (Delbert McClinton)
Sweet Home Chicago
Dust My Broom (Robert Johnson/Elmore James)
Nine Pound Hammer
Born Under a Bad Sign (Albert King)
No More Troubles Now
Young Thing
Tears of Joy (Etta James)
Chitlins Con Carne
Trouble in Mind (Traditional Blues)
Turtle Blues (Janis Joplin)
Me and Bobby Mcgee (In the style of Janis Joplin)

Basic Requirements

Calendar