welcome to rio bisbee.band

On the sixth day 1980, from out of The Void, by the banks of the mighty Bisbee River of Camden, Maine was formed a band. It was called Rio Bisbee for the river. It was good. Originally configured as a contradance orchestra, Rio Bisbee.Band began as a safe sextet featuring fiddle, guitar, banjo, concertina, trumpet, bass, playing polkas, schottisches, waltzes, hornpipes, reels, jigs at thirteen gigs around Mid-Coast Maine that year. Later, things got wierd when a dominant chord was heard, and fiddle, banjo and squeeze box split. Rob, peripatetic lead guitarist returned from south of the border after studying with Manuel Labor, Argentine guitar master, and Rio Bisbee degenerated to Rock ‘n Roll - roots music of our childhood.

Annual family get-togethers became weekly rehearsals and recording sessions that eventually led to gigs at wild house parties, stinking underground clubs, mass outdoor events, hideous sectarian rituals, and live on-air performances with WERU and WMPG Community Radio. Rio Bisbee.Band is the original school of rock - graduating dozens of talented players over the years, many of whom went on to play in other great bands.

The essential kernel of Rio Bisbee music is Power Trio: guitar, bass and drums - guitarists on vocals. The greatest bulk of Rio Bisbee numbers are in this economical format. However, with the addition of any singer, percussionist or horn blower who might wish to join in, the sound may be expanded in any direction. Rio Bisbee.Band is a go-anywhere, try-anything band and has adapted a variety of styles from around the world as a basis for new Bisbee material: African, blues, cajun, country, flamenco, funk, jazz, klezmer, manouche, Middle-East, polka, pop, punk, reggae, rock-a-billy, rhythm & blues, ska, soca, southern, space, swamp, techno, thrash, western, zydeco. Though challenging to venue owners & show promoters needing a pigeonhole, the diversity of Rio Bisbee music has always intrigued and delighted audiences, and kept players enthusiastic with tempo and tenor change-ups, withal an underlying emphasis on music for dancing.

Most bands are dictatorships, as is most of the world around us. Democracy patently failed to eliminate dictators. Rio Bisbee.Band is anarcho-syndicalist in operation. There is no “band leader” calling all the shots. Instead, players take on departmental responsibility for various band needs and projects. In addition to punctual attendance at rehearsal and performance, practicing partitions at home, composing new music, and keeping notes, each Bisbee is expected to select an auxiliary function to support and promote the band.

An important post is that of music director. The most musically experienced and adept Bisbee will rise to this function: guiding rehearsal, arranging the music, creating set lists and conducting performances; though it’s fine if others help out.  Every player’s creative input is always desired. Other positions include: minister of propaganda, hi/lo tech wizard, stage gear gorilla, green room geisha, business shark, arty smarty - or create your own! Be a band aide! Any creative support effort on anyone’s part is always welcome, and hands on training is always available.

Not a professional organization, Rio Bisbee.Band is more an orgiastic confluence of talent and madness. Nevertheless, professional conduct is expected of players at all Bisbee times. Naturally we like to be well paid for the hard work involved in producing a rock ‘n roll show, and sometimes that happens. When there is money, every player receives an equal share, plus a share for the bus. However, the intent of Rio Bisbee.Band is never to remake commercially approved sounds for marketing purposes. The intent of Rio Bisbee.Band, its players, is to be technically innovative, musically co-operative, and provocatively creative in presenting the coolest original rock ‘n roll music.

If that is you, then you’re a Bisbee too!