Gene Butler Band: Bio
GENE BUTLER
Born and raised in Macon, Georgia, Butler began singing publicly at the age of nine with the Cotton Street Gospel Choir (an all Afro-American choir in which he was the only Caucasian). Originally starting out as a high tenor without pitch or tone, he was regulated to being the one member of the choir asked to whistle and hum all the songs rather than attempt to sing along with the others. However, he stuck with it and by the age of thirteen he had developed into a middle baritone and was actually allowed to sing with everybody else.
Butler wrote his first song in collaboration with his best friend, Larry Crawford, after they spent a night in jail for violating Macon's "under eighteen" ten o'clock curfew law. They were both te years old at the time and the song is titled "Momma, Wished I'd Listen To You". Butler still sometimes sings the acapella song during his show and always makes a point of performing it before ten o'clock.
At the age of sixteen, Butler and his family left Georgia for Seattle, Washington. There he began to play the guitar, and with two of his five brothers, formed a group called the Mudville Flats. They were a local hit and toured the Northwest for several years. It was in Seattle that Butler sold his first song to a recording group, The Jerry Rowen Trio. "What Moment of the Day" was written as a kick-butt country song, but wound up as a tame bosa nova tune on the Rowen album. After listening to the album once, Butler never played the song again.
Butler struck out on his own at the age of twenty-one and headed for the Big Apple. It was there that the acting bug bit him. He put down his guitar and picked up Stanavaski's Method. After doing a ton of theater in New York, he became a "quad-costal-ite" by moving to Los Angeles.
Since relocating to Los Angeles, Butler has been able to scratch out a decent living by acting and writing in film, television and stage. But during that time his first love, music, would not let him go, and in the year 2000 he picked up his guitar again and hasn't stopped playing, singing and songwriting since.
With over seventy original songs to date, and more pouring out, Butler has placed a song in the television series, "Sirens" and in the soon to be released movie, "Armadillo Texas".
In the past five years Butler and his band has played in almost every known music venue known to man and woman – and in a few that probably shouldn't be known to anybody. They recently headlined a show at the Marlyn Monroe Theater in Hollywood and have played to sold out audiences at Theater East, Luna Park, Café Largo, Theater East and The Masquers Club. They are now hard at work putting together their second CD of original songs for Vavv Records.
Brantley Kearns - fiddle
Brantley was born and raised in North Carolina. He began playing violin at the age of four and continued to trained as a classical violinist through grammar school, high school and up until his first two years of college. By the age of ten Brantley was also starting to play traditional fiddle tunes of the Southeast – learning "first hand" from veteran fiddle players at local square dances and gatherings where his father was a frequent caller and promoter.
After a year at the University of North Carolina Brantley traveled west where he attended Merritt College and the University of San Francisco. It was in the Bay Area that he eagerly became a part of the bluegrass music scene in the 1970's. Brantley moved to Los Angeles in 1973 and was there just a few months when a call came from the David Bromberg to come out to New York and join his band. Brantley worked with Bromberg until 1976 and then returned to Los Angeles.
Brantley worked with numerous country bands during the heyday of the "Urban Cowboy" period in the late 70's and early 80's. It was during the time that he toured with Bobbie Gentry and Tin Star.
In 1984 I began working with Dwight Yoakum, playing on his albums and touring with him for the next four years.
I have recorded and toured with Heather Myles, Rick Shea, Billy Joe Shaver, Dave Alvin and now…the Gene Butler Band.
Billy DaMota - Guitar
Billy DaMota was born and raised in San Francisco. He was nine years old, and on his way to grade school when it happened. Standing at the schoolbus stop, on a typical foggy San Francisco morning, he listened to his transistor radio as a new song blasted out over the airwaves, on KYA Radio AM 1260. It was September 16th, 1963 when “She Loves You” by the Beatles shook him all the way down to his lunch box. On September 17, he made his mother promise to buy him a guitar...and she did. Billy instantly became an “artist”. He formed his first band shortly thereafter and called it the “Imitations”. There wasn’t a Ventures, Chuck Berry, Beachboys or Beatles song that Billy couldn’t play.
San Francisco was the place to play Rock and Roll and the 60’s was the time. So play Billy did, writing songs and performing in a number of original bands that rocked the Bay Area. And just when success seemed to be around the proverbial corner, the ‘70s came...and with the ‘70s came disco. And with disco came all the disappointment and disillusionment that Billy could handle. Uninspired and unfulfilled playing in cover bands and interpreting such ‘70s icons like K.C. and The Sunshine Band and Wild Cherry, Billy ultimately made the decision to stop performing.
For Billy, the 1970s were a “wasteland of bad relationships, dead-end retail jobs and disco. I almost lost my art”, he says.
The ‘80s brought Billy to Los Angeles, where he found himself with a brand new career in the film business, working in casting on major studio films such as Predator and The Three Amigos. Billy went on to cast the feature films Colors, Miracle Mile, and Steven Seagal's first film, Above the Law. He also cast and co-produced the award-winning Reflections in the Dark, starring Mimi Rogers and Billy Zane and even wrote a screenplay with the late Dr. Timothy Leary!
The ‘90s marked Billy’s return to music, through songwriting, performing and recording. He played guitar and co-wrote tunes on the first CD for his group, "The Big Way", and released the CD on his own independent label, Cattivo Records. He has recorded with Hellecaster Will Ray, ex-Mike Bloomfield sideman, Gashouse Dave Shorey, and composes soundtracks for film and theatre. His song, “Comes On Too Strong” is featured in the film Changing Habits.
Billy lives in Glendale, California with his seven evil cats.
Jesse T - Drums
For over 12 years Jesse has been dividing her time between music and acting. Originally from San Francisco, she finds inspiration in a wide variety of musical styles and brings a fresh approach and subtly to her art. Jesse is currently the drummer for The Gene Butler Band in Los Angeles and is happy to be playing with a great group of musicians who make it fun to play American Roots Music. She has also performed locally with Gilli Moon, Kelly’s Lot, Sean Wiggins, Henry Inglesias, and Amy Kuney. From country-western at L.A.’s Cowboy Palace, to alternative rock at The Gig, Jesse draws inspiration from jazz, world music and funk. Her other Los Angeles venues include Universal Studios, Pershing Square, Highland Grounds and the Conga Room. On a hiatus from the city in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Jesse had the opportunity to play with John McDowell (Rusted Root) and Jai Utal. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Theater Arts from Sonoma State University. Check out her website (www.hjt3.com) for her acting resume and other photos.
MATTHEW MCFADDEN - Bass
Born in New York, raised in New Jersey, Florida and Massachusetts, Matt moved to L.A. and quickly became involved in the SoCal music scene. Over a three decade career, Matt has played innumerable performances in so many bands and in so many styles that he’s “lost track”! Whether it be Rock, Blues, R&B, Jazz, Latin or Country Matt has played them all. An early career leaning towards Jazz led to him playing and/or recording with Guitarist Dave Becker and L.A Fusion mainstay The Fents before spreading out into more diverse roles as a sideman with Singers and Songwriters such as Shelly O’Neill, the 11-piece Latin/Jazz/Funk band Iguana, and with the Blues-Rock “house” band Cheap Suit at The Mint.
His 16-year association with Gene Butler however is his main focus now. “I’ve found that I like to play any style of music, as long as it’s ‘authentic’”, says Matt, “and you’re not gonna find anything more ‘authentic’ than Gene! It also helps to play with good players, whom you like, and I’m lucky to be able to enjoy all those ingredients playing with Gene and this band.”