432Vince Esq432uire4 Band

This year's parade of guests kicked off with the return of Bernard Purdie and Jerry Jemmott for a Wednesday night run through Derek & The Dominos "Anyday." Last year's appearance of the King Curtis alumni provoked unrestrained glee from the band, especially bassist Oteill Burbridge, and their 2007 sit-in was just the first of many. Thursday's show featured a cavalcade of guest guitarists, including Vince Esquire, who more than held his own with Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks on "One Way Out" and "Statesboro Blues" and Luther Dickinson for "Done Somebody Wrong." Dave Mason, formerly of Traffic and presently looking a bit like Sergeant Slaughter, appeared during the first set for covers of "All Along The Watchtower" and "Feelin' Alright" with Leslie West joining in later to belt out "The Sky Is Crying" and "Crossroads" with a soulful bluesy howl. Over the weekend, the ABB's guests ran the gamut from old friends (Johnny Winter, Jimmy Vivino) to classic rock dinosaurs (Peter Frampton, Vanilla Fudge's Carmen Appice) to the sublime and bizarre (former New York Yankee outfielder Bernie Williams and American Idol champion Taylor Hicks).
- David Schultz

Maui's own Vince Esquire shines with The Allman Brothers - Has 3 NYC Shows, April 7, 9, and 10.


One 21 year old talent, 2 exciting bands.

/24-7PressRelease/ - April 06, 2007 - 21 year old guitar and ukulele phenom Vince Esquire is known in Hawaii, Northern California, San Diego, and Texas, and has a National reputation as he has opened up for, amongst others, Willie Nelson, Los Lonley Boys, and a few months ago, The Gregg Allman Band. Gregg happened to check out Vince's show right at the time Vince was getting a standing ovation from 3000 people, as the opening act! Gregg was totally impressed and asked to meet Vince after his set, and they exchanged numbers.

Last night, Vince playied with the Allman Brothers at the Beacon Theatre, the crowd loved him...

Vince will play:
The Bitter End, Saturday, April 7, 12 midnight
The Baggot Inn, Monday, April 9, 7:30pm
The Cutting Room, Tuesday, April 10, 10:45pm

Vince's other band, Kanekoa, is also quite special and unique and has been compared to the Dave Mathews Band, Ben Harper, and Jack Johnson, Vince plays lead electric ukulele through his wah wah pedal like Stevie Ray Vaughn. Peter Farrelly, (Director/Producer of "Something About Mary", "Dumb and Dumber", "Kingpin", "Shallow Hal", "Fever Pitch", etc.) saw them in LA, and is now one of their biggest fans. His comment, "Kanekoa is the best band I have seen live in 15 years." Peter has since casted, and filmed the band, and they, and their original music will be featured in the Farrelly Brothers next feature, "The Heartbreak Kid", starring Ben Stiller, coming out October 4th, on Dreamworks/Paramount.

Check out Vince Esquire and Kanekoa on YouTube. - 24-7 Press Releases

Sept 6, 2007
VINCE ESQUIRE BAND, A NEW BAG OF TRICKS
By Christina Currie

“Ya know, for some of us, it’s all about the band…we’re here for the band, man.” “Almost Famous”

For the second Sunday in a row I perched on my bar stool holding on white-knuckled while “Vince Esquire Band” raucously tore up Moose McGillycuddy’s, Front Street, Lahaina. The crowd base there will continue growing until the end of September. Then front row seating to see “Vince Esquire Band” will be a thing of the past.

I arrived at Moose’s during the first break, so I asked Scotty, the drummer, how the band came about. He shrugged humbly and said, “I just wanted to have the tightest, hardest rock ‘n blues band on the island. So I right away thought of Vince and talked to him and Sean and we’ve been working together ever since. It all came about just since February.” And their mantra has obviously been, “Practice, practice, practice.” This solid trio is now standing at ready for an invitation to open for the Legend, AEROSMITH, at the MACC on Sept. 26th. (Hey, I’m writing as fast as I can, trying to get the good word out!)

And this is it… I was totally blown away to hear discernible lyrics, a driving back beat, and evenly matched guitarists whose repertoire of Hard Core Blues echoed down Front Street and on past midnight.

Yes, I did say past midnight! Esquire is finally old enough to enjoy a beer between sets and pay long after curfew. His maturity as a performer and musician was evident by his newest songs and style, no longer just covering works by his iconic musical heroes of the past. Now he improvises and uniquely interprets Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” and Jimi’s “Voodoo Child”. He surprised all of us hard rock veterans with some tricky trills reminiscent of Jazz syncopation. At one point that sweet guitar actually sounded like a huge swarm of cicadas converging on us.

But Vince’s demeanor was stoic and military complete with Oakland’s team colors and operating an ancient wah-wah pedal with sparity. All this and “This chil hadn’t even breaved yet!” as the old-school folks from Detroit would put it. (just as an aside: Nods to Rudy and Isela who watched proudly in the background.)

It was like watching a chaotic kite flying high above the steamy bar anchored By Shawn, the bass guitar player, with his multi-knotted tail of rumbling hums. Balancing Vince’s tricks with his own boyish joy,
Shawn (The Muse) Michael was antitypical in his approach to what could be boring bass line notes, too often done by rote and handled tritely by even the best. Yet, by the end of each flight, Scotty, the seasoned drummer, reeled everyone back in, including the small but enthusiastic audience. It was impressive to see a drummer not just thrashing about undisciplined. He’s a strict taskmaster pounding his baton to a universal heartbeat. Changing up the usual blues endings to suit the song and mood. Very refreshing.

So….. If you don’t have a designated driver on Sept. 16th, then walk! Hitch a ride! Or sell your soul. But definitely do it! Show up! Get to Moose’s for an awesome opportunity to see this Triple Threat of Hard Rockin’ Blues! You know it won’t last – not after Sept. 23rd. Then you will be paying buku bucks to see them at the MACC making history.

Now don’t say I didn’t warn ya! - christina currie

Vince Esquire, 21, is a guitar and ukulele phenom who has amassed an impressive career and National attention, playing to audiences throughout the Hawaiian Islands, The West Coast, and Mid West, for the past 7 years with his own, Vince Esquire Band. Esquire has openned up for Willie Nelson, Los Lonely Boys, and most recently has been jamming with Mick
Fleetwood on Maui. His electric guitar playing skills cause people to compare him to some of the greatest guitar heroes in history, everytime he performs. “The comparrisons are an honor to me, basically I have my own style, but I’m influenced by a lot of great players who I studied during my childhood.” Esquire and his band will be hittin the road soon! - Crunch Notes