Johnny Duke and the Aces
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Johnny Duke and the Aces

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The best kept secret in music

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"Blues trio skilled beyond their years"

07/12/2005

Johnny Duke & the Aces is a young band.

Two of the members of the electric blues trio are 17 and the other is 16.

The vocals of lead singer and guitarist Johnny Duke Lippincott can veer sometimes into an uneasy warble.

And bassist Ian Walsh says, "I didn't know that!" when Lippincott mentions that his mentor David Bromberg played with Bob Dylan back in the day.

But you shouldn't mistake their youth for inexperience.

All three have been playing their respective instruments for six to eight years. And, if you sit back and close your eyes, you will be awed that a band this young can play so well, especially the howling guitar solos of Lippincott.

Day by day, performance by performance, they improve, much to the awe of the producer of their new, self-titled debut album.

"Because they're so young and the learning curve is so steep, I could notice an improvement from week to week in their vocals and musicianship," says Kevin Walsh, Ian's father and lead guitarist of the local band Vinyl Shockley. "So this album is just a snapshot in time."

Along with drummer Cam Tyler, the threesome have made a name for themselves in the year they've been together, playing mostly in New Castle County, where all three live with their parents.

While the members of the band are each into varied styles of music, Lippincott brings the hard-core blues drive to the band and writes almost all of their songs. He usually spends his summers living with his father in Scobey, Miss. -- and that's where he gets his Delta blues flavor.

A fan of bluesmen like Albert King, B.B. King, Freddie King and Stevie Ray Vaughan, Lippincott is well versed in blues history for a 17-year-old.

Just look at the four cover songs on their album: Howlin' Wolf's "Killing Floor," Willie Brown's "Mississippi Blues," Buddy Guy's "First Time I Met the Blues" and Jimi Hendrix's "Who Knows?"

Each song gets a reinvention by Johnny Duke & the Aces, making a 40-year-old song like "Killing Floor" something that even the teenage girls in the audience can dance to.

"When we play 'Killing Floor,' people love it," Ian Walsh says. "They just eat it up."

Lippincott traces his blossoming guitar skills back to the first time he went to a blues jam session at 4W5 Café in Wilmington, usually hosted by Bromberg, who lives in town.

He impressed Bromberg, who called Lippincott "the best electric-guitar player in town" in a Philadelphia Inquirer article earlier this year. The two have become close, with Bromberg even co-writing and performing on one of the songs on their album called "Something's Wrong Here."

"I just came up with a cool riff and he said, 'Let's make a song out of this,' " Lippincott says.

Lippincott also has been working with Bromberg recently on his vocals and his showmanship, two things that have taken a bit of a back seat to his dogged focus on his guitar work and songwriting.

"I'm really lucky to have somebody like that," Lippincott says of Bromberg.

Not every 17-year-old guitarist has a legendary master musician in his corner.

Bromberg even sat in at a Johnny Duke & the Aces show at Wilmington's Blue Parrot last year.

"We were just doing a regular show and then we said, 'We'd like to call up a good friend," Ian Walsh remembers. "Then big David Bromberg gets up there, tears it up and blows everybody away."

And Bromberg isn't the only famous guitarist Lippincott's played with. Last month, he traveled back to Mississippi to take a workshop with B.B. King, one of his heroes.

"I'll remember that one when I'm 300," he says.

Along with help from Bromberg, Lippincott also is taking voice lessons at the Grand Opera House, determined to become the total package.

"I don't want to be known as a good guitar player with [mediocre] vocals," he says flatly.

Though they aren't even out of their teens, the band is headed toward the end of the road.

College is calling.

Lippincott is preparing for his senior year at Sanford School and already has snagged a scholarship at Boston's Berklee College of Music, and Tyler is looking at prospective schools.

Walsh, who is entering his junior year, is preparing for life without his bandmates when next summer rolls around.

"Oh, and my girlfriend is leaving, too," he says, mentioning that she's a year older than him, and headed to college as well. "My life ends senior year," he jokes.

Reach Ryan Cormier at 324-2863 or rcormier@delawareonline.com. - By RYAN CORMIER / The News Journal


"Johnny Duke - The Next Generation of The Blues Has Arrived"

Meet Johnny Duke, vocalist/lead guitarist of Johnny Duke and The Aces. Johnny Duke and The Aces are a great young blues band that I recently witnessed open for B.B. King in Philadelphia. They've got a great vibe - respectful and true to classic blues sounds, yet fresh and vibrant adding their own style to it. At the B.B. show, they won over the crowd with a mix of blues standards and original material - they even drew praise from B.B. himself. These guys are going to be a force to be reckoned with in the blues/rock world. Take a listen to my recent Q & A with Johnny, then visit the band at www.johnnydukeandtheaces.com. - www.themusiciansvoice.com


"Four of a Kind"

Johnny Duke and the Aces ante up

Let’s face it, BB King isn’t exactly who you’d expect to find on a high school kid’s iPod. Maybe, just maybe, you might find one kid with a blues song on his headphones, but to find a whole group of teens that are so into blues, well, you’d probably have better luck finding a kid that refers to Pluto as a “dwarf” planet.

The blues inspires a lot of “seasoned” musicians. Johnny Duke and the Aces haven’t been at it that long, but they’re accomplished at their craft.

The band is comprised of “Johnny Duke” Lippincott, lead guitar and lead vocals, Cam Tyler, drums, Ian Walsh, bass and backup vocals and Parrish Warrington, guitar and backup vocals. The group hails from Northern Delaware and they started playing together in high school. In fact, Lippincott and Tyler are attending music schools this year in Boston and New York City, respectively, while their band mates finish up high school. This new school year presents an obvious problem for the band, but the guys are confident that they’ll make it work.

One thing that these musicians know is that they had a cooler gig throughout high school than their peers did. While their friends were working summer jobs, the band was out playing shows and rubbing elbows with musicians such as, David Bromberg and BB King.

“I was actually a stone mason for part of the summer, as well as being a musician,” Lippincott said. “Let me tell you something, after a hot, exhausting week working in the sun, you will have to get out some of that blues.

“David Bromberg is a good friend of mine, and I wouldn’t feel star struck while on stage with him because I would simply be up there having a good time with a great musician. I might have felt differently the first time I ever played with him. As far as playing with B.B., that was a once in a lifetime chance that I barely came out of. I snuck backstage with my guitar and was able to sit in. It’s hard not to get distracted by the presence of the King of the Blues.”

“It’s hard to call what we do a ‘job’ because we have so much fun doing it,” Tyler said. “The only part of what we do that is ‘work’ is moving equipment and being professional, the rest is just a good time.”

The band recognizes the discord between their music and their peers, but they make it work.

“Our fans come in many shapes and sizes,” Tyler said. “From your young high-school girlie-girls, to your occasional Hell’s Angel, our fans are all over the place. Blues is an uncommon style for highschoolers to enjoy, but I think we have definitely opened up some people’s eyes to it. We like to take our older blues influences and throw a little youthful spunkyness and energy on top of it, so anyone can enjoy our music.”

Lippincott cites B.B. King, Albert King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robben Ford, Chris Cain, Bonnie Raitt and Lightning Hopkins as influences, while Tyler’s tastes range between jazz, funk, and gospel groups such as, Tower of Power and Steely Dan.

Listening to these guys, it’s easy to forget that they’re still adolescents, but then they make a comment and you remember how new this experience is for them. The band members have been living a pretty exciting summer, playing dates around the tri-state area, releasing an independent album and shooting a music video in Los Angeles for their first single, which Tyler points out was extra special because they “got out of school too.”

As far as future plans for The Aces, they’re just taking it one step at a time.

“Nothing definite yet,” Tyler said. “There’s no hurry for us. We have the title track of our new album Taillights going on a radio promo compilation disk called The New Music Weekly: Future Hits Compilation that will be sent to 5,000 radio stations and promo companies around the country. Our first disk can be downloaded off of iTunes, and our newest release will be available on iTunes in the next couple of weeks.”

For more information about Johnny Duke and the Aces visit their website www.johnnydukeandtheaces.com or their MySpace page www.myspace.com/johnnydukeandtheaces. - PLAYPhilly.com, Writer: Clayton Cameron


"New Music Spotlight: Johnny Duke and the Aces"

For some teenagers, starting a garage band and writing original songs is an impressive feat. Even rarer is the opportunity to play those songs at a high school talent show or an open-mike night. But for the young Hockessin blues band Johnny Duke and the Aces, that’s all child’s play—they’ve now released their second album.

The album, Taillights, is a 12-track surge of jazz, rock, and southern blues. The band, which includes Johnny Duke Lippincott (vocals/lead guitar), Cam Tyler (percussion), Ian Walsh (bass), and Parrish Warrington (guitar), released Taillights in June. Lippincott says the LP was a natural progression from the band’s previous self-titled debut, especially since the addition of Warrington on second guitar.

"Since Parrish came in, we added more harmonies," Lippincott says. "The first album was a lot of raw, simple stuff. It was good and had potential, but we really expanded where the songs start, where they go, and where they end."

The band’s new dynamics are evident from the opening of Taillights. On songs such as "Don’t Feel Too Good" and the album’s title track, Walsh’s intricate bass lines complement and play off the hearty guitar licks and smooth drum fills. With Lippincott’s natural delivery exchanging phrases with Warrington and Walsh’s background vocals, the songs have a mature, complete sound. Lippincott attributes this to a collaborative effort among the band’s members.

"I would usually come up with an idea and bring it to the table," he says. "And, for example, my drummer might come up with a cool beat for it. I would usually have an idea for where a song will go and each member of the band capitalizes on it."

The band’s melting pot of influences adds an element to Tailights’ songs that other acts might not even consider. Lippincott cites the "two kings," B.B. and Albert, as the "gods" who inspired him, but would not consider Taillights a strictly blues-styled offering.

"There are so many songs that are completely different, genre-wise," Lippincott says. "It’s all blues-based, but we got into some R&B and even jazz stuff."

The R&B and jazz influences become clear on tracks like "Heartbreaker’s Blues" and "Shootin’ the Breeze." With the band’s wide variety of musical influences cited and defined, the only question left is, where do Lippincott’s lyrical inspirations arise?

"I don’t know," he says after a moment of thought. "The lyrics usually just come to me in the shower." - Out & About Magazine, Author: Wesley Case


"Hockessin four-piece opens for B.B. King at the Grand"

WILMINGTON -- At the beginning of the night, the Hockessin-based group Johnny Duke & the Aces seemed a bit nervous about the prospect of opening for the King of the Blues, B.B. King.

But, by the end of it all, the teenage four-piece was chilling on King's bus with the living legend.

Not a bad Monday night, huh?

The show at the Grand Opera House in Wilmington was the first of three gigs for Duke and his Aces opening for King.

For John Lippincott (guitar), Ian Walsh (bass), Cam Tyler (drums) and Noah Schy (keyboard), it all happened with little help from some fans in high places.

Tyler says musician David Bromberg and Bromberg's manager, Stephen Bailey, who is also executive director of the Grand Opera House, helped them get the coveted spots. (They open for King Feb. 25 at the Palace Theater in Stamford, Conn. and at the Keswick Theater in Glenside, Pa. Feb. 28.)

"David's Johnny's mentor and I guess he wanted to do something nice; something that could really help us," Tyler said. "It's definitely some awesome exposure."

The nod by King to allow a young, local blues band open the show wasn't lost on the crowd, which was behind the band from the beginning.

Well, almost.

The announcer mistakenly introduced King just before the four skinny teens walked on stage.

But Lippincott broke the awkward moment, saying, "We're not B.B. King yet."

After their performance, there was little doubt in the audience that the hometown band deserved to be on the stage as much as any other group.

They played two new songs -- "Pick Me Up" and "Waiting For You" -- in their 40-minute set that included several covers including "Kansas City" and "That's All Right."

On stage, Lippincott gushed over the experience, saying, "I'm not exaggerating. This is the greatest day of my life."

Bromberg was in the crowd, watching them on their big night. After the show, he praised the young, up-and-coming band.

"I thought they sounded wonderful," said Bromberg, known for his guitar work. "John is an extraordinary guitar player. It kills me."

By 11:30 p.m., King had finished his show and invited Lippincott & Co. onto his tour bus, where they got some words of wisdom from the 81-year-old legend.

"It was like out of a dream or something," Tyler said of the experience.

The guys forgot to get a picture with King, but Lippincott got something better: King signed his Gibson ES-335 guitar.

As for King's performance, he and his eight-piece band gingerly worked through a 15-song, two-hour set with King taking almost as much time to talk to the crowd as he did playing for them.

He received an enthusiastic standing ovation when he appeared on stage, slowly walking to his chair where he sat throughout the night with his trusty guitar, Lucille.

At one point he even said, correctly, "I can see just it in the newspapers: 'Oh B.B. was pretty good, but he talked too much.' "

Among the songs he played: "Why I Sing the Blues," "When Love Came to Town," "Key to the Highway," "Ain't That Just Like a Woman" and "Nobody Loves Me But My Mother." He closed with his biggest hit, "The Thrill Is Gone." It was one of only a handful of songs in which he sang the full version. Most were abbreviated.

Even though the show had too much filler, sometimes feeling like more like a comedy show than a concert, the charming King wowed the crowd with his still-strong voice and signature guitar work, making the slower parts of the night melt away instantly.

King cracked jokes about his age and other topics throughout the night. Here are a few of the lines that got the biggest reaction:

On sitting throughout the performance: "You're probably thinking, 'B.B. got so old he can't play standing up.' You're just about right."

On plowing the fields behind a mule nicknamed Big Ben growing up: "Sometimes, Big Ben felt sorry for me when the wind wasn't blowing too much." (Yes, King told a fart joke.)

On dancing in his chair, which he did throughout the night: "It's good exercise for an 81-year-old."

On being recognizable: "I can put a hat on and no one knows the difference. They say we all look alike anyway." After a few groans, he added, "I like to have fun and if you don't, you might as well go to sleep."

On his health: "I have good medical attention. I've got Dr. Viagra, nurse Levitra and my chief doctor is Dr. Cialis."
Contact Ryan Cormier at 324-2863 or rcormier@delawareonline.com. Read his pop culture blog at www.delawareonline.com/pulpculture. - By RYAN CORMIER, The News Journal


Discography

1. "Taillights" (sophomore album, release date: June 16th, 2006 @ World Cafe Live)
-featuring David Bromberg and Johnny Neel on various tracks
-WSTW 93.7 FM "Hometown Heroes", Band hosting the show and give preview of the album on June 4th, 2006
-WSTW 93.7 FM world premier of the song "Taillights". Played various times in May 2006.

2. "Johnny Duke and the Aces" Self-titled debut CD. Released: June 2005.
-featuring David Bromberg on "Something's Wrong Here"
-many tracks played on WSTW 93.7 FM
-many tracks played on ElectricBluesRadio.com

3. Music Video for the original tune "Don't Feel Too Good". Filmed: April 2006.

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

Johnny Duke and the Aces is a soulful group of fine-tuned players, adding new flavors to Blues Music. While having many original tunes to fill their sets,
they also enjoy covering original versions of legendary tunes. From the Funky Meters to Ray Charles, these boys cover a lot of inspirational ground. JDA
finished the album "Taillights" in the summer of 2006. This album features Johnny Neel, the former keyboard player for the Allman Brothers, and David Bromberg, an internationally recognized musician of many styles. In February '07, they where invited to open for B.B. King on three tour dates. Johnny is
now completely joined by a group of Berklee's finest musicians. Look forward to a performance that will keep you on the edge of your seat!

"Johnny Duke" Lippincott is an inspiration to guitarists all around the Delaware area. Having Mississippi roots, the Delta-blues style of music is frequently evident in his guitar playing. David Bromberg, Johnny's mentor, said in the international magazine Dirty Linen (2004), "If you stick around tonight, there's a 16-year old guitar player who is as good a blues guitar player as any I've ever played with, and I've played with some really good guitar players. That's John Lippincott… He's a killer!" Just recently, Bromberg said in an article of the Philadelphia Inquirer that Johnny is "the best electric blues player in town". With Johnny Duke and the Aces, John continues to impress people with his showmanship, his talent for songwriting, and his guitar skills that are graceful, moving, and "professional", as recently stated by the King of the Blues himself, B.B. King (after sitting in with him at a clinic in the summer of 2005 in Mississippi). Johnny has also had experience playing with other well-known musicians as Willie King and The Liberators, Southside Johnny, Jorma Kaukonen, Laurie Lewis, Duke Robillard, Larry Cambell, and John Payne, . He is currently studying music at Berklee College of Music in Boson, MA.

The line up of the “Aces” often changes, however, Johnny always seems to find the right players that successfully support his style and original material. The band has wow'ed crowds all around Northern Delaware, the Delaware Beaches, Philadelphia, New York City, and even in Beverly Hills, California! The band has opened for the King of the Blues himself, B.B. King, Wind-Up recording artist Omnisoul, and blues legend Johnny Winter. They have also been nominated for the 2006 New Music Weekly Awards under the category “AC/Hot AC Breakthrough Artist of the Year”. Johnny Duke and the Aces is truly a sight to see and hear because of their professional-caliber sound and feel.