Jim Suhler & Monkey Beat Archives

Jim Suhler

Jim Suhler and his band Monkey Beat have been on the music scene since 1992 and have built a loyal fanbase worldwide. The Dallas, Texas-based group is known for its no holds barred approach to blues-inspired rock ‘n roll and roots music.

Their four Lucky Seven releases, two releases on Underworld Records, and Jim’s solo acoustic CD ‘Dirt Road’ on Topcat Records have shown an amazing depth of songwriting and playing, and their constant touring both in North America and Europe has garnered many admirers and accolades. Their album Tijuana Bible was nominated for a Blues Music Award for Best Rock/Blues Album in the 2010 Blues Music Awards by The Blues Foundation in Memphis.

The band has worked in the past with noted producers Terry Manning (ZZ Top, Led Zeppelin, Stax Records, etc.), and Jim Gaines (Santana, Stevie Ray Vaughan), and Grammy Award-winning producer/songwriter Tom Hambridge (Buddy Guy, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Johnny Winter etc.).

Jim is also well known as lead guitarist and songwriter with George Thorogood & the Destroyers since 1999, appearing on all albums and video releases during that time.

He has had his songs used in feature films (Spun, Wallace & Grommit) and is a multiple nominee in the prestigious Dallas Observer Music Awards. He is a member of BUDDY, Texas’ oldest music magazine Texas Tornado Hall of Fame.

Jake Quillin

“Baptized in the sound” is how Tennessee-native Jake Quillin describes his approach to making music. As a Southern Soul R&B artist, he infuses a sense of melancholy and joy into every note he sings and squeezes from his guitar. Finding inspiration in the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Quillin exploded onto the East Tennessee music scene with his take on electric blues in his self-released Psychedelic Soul EP. He spent the following period rediscovering his roots as a songwriter and independently dropped the album titled “Stormy Weather” —reminiscent of early Sam Cooke.

With greats like Anthony Hamilton and the late Mac Miller also in his roster of influences, Quillin sought new horizons to help pull out more of this inspiration to shine through his music. This led to his connection with Dallas producer/songwriter, Electrophunck AKA Jason Burt (Leon Bridges, John Mayer, Paul Cauthen, RC & The Gritz, David Ramirez and The Band Perry). In 2019, Quillin flew to Dallas for a recording session with Burt at Modern Electric Sound Recorders which solidified his decision to leave Tennessee for Texas later that year.

After settling in with the Dallas music community, he earned media buzz, radio play and big-ticket shows by blending his roots with modern influences in the release of his latest singles and undeniable talent/showmanship on stage —being dubbed as “New Texas R&B” by the Dallas Observer. Quillin can currently be seen playing regularly across Texas with more touring and music to come this year including his forthcoming full-length album “Texas Medicine” —expected to drop this winter.

Jake Quillin has shared bills with Robert Cray, Toadies, American Authors, Neon Trees, 49 Winchester, Jonathan Tyler & The Northern Lights, Quaker City Night Hawks, Cam Cole (UK), Liam St. John, Ottoman Turks and Sam Morrow.

MIKE ZITO

Mike Zito is one of the most lauded artists in the contemporary blues arena today and rightfully so, but for him, the thing that counts the most is maintaining his honesty, authenticity and integrity. Those are the qualities that have steered Zito’s career since the beginning and continue to define every effort he’s offered since.

“I have nothing to hide; it seems my honesty is what people relate to most,” he once told Vintage Guitar magazine. “Anders (Osborne) told me early on, ‘If you don’t believe what you’re singing, you’ll never be a good singer.’ I try not to write fluff; I try to make every word count.”

Naturally, patience and perseverance have been Zito’s stock and trade since the beginning. He began playing guitar at the age of five, and by the time he reached his late teens, he was already a fixture on the local St. Louis music scene. He initially released his music independently and then signed with Eclecto Groove Records in 2008. “Pearl River,” the title track of his 2009 album for the label, won Song of the Year at the Blues Music Awards and marked his first collaboration with Cyril Neville, with whom he’d later work in the Royal Southern Brotherhood. A steady succession of critically acclaimed albums followed, culminating in 2011’s Greyhound, which was nominated for Best Rock Blues Album at that year’s Blue Music Awards ceremony in Memphis. Two years later, he signed with Ruf Records and released Gone to Texas, the story of how he gained his sobriety, offered an emotional homage to the state that left an indelible imprint on his entire life. It also marked the debut of his band, The Wheel.

From 2010 to 2014, Zito also played an integral role in the super group of sorts, Royal Southern Brotherhood. The group released two albums and a DVD, Songs from the Road – Live in Germany, winner of the year’s Blues Music Award for Best DVD. He also made his mark behind the boards by producing albums for Samantha Fish, Albert Castiglia, Ally Venable, Jeremiah Johnson, Jimmy Carpenter, and many others.

Meanwhile, the accolades kept coming. His album, Make Blues Not War, debuted on the Billboard Blues Album Chart at number one and garnered him recognition as the 2018 Rock Blues Artist of the Year at the Blues Music Awards. First Class Life followed suit, also entering the charts at number one. Alternate Root magazine insisted that “The First Class Life that Mike Zito titles his upcoming album can be heard in the sweet sound of Blue Soul rising like heat waves from his guitar and his vocal.” American Blues Scene said, “Mike Zito’s return to the blues is, in a word, triumphant!” No Depression declared, “Once again, Zito has delivered the goods, a first class package with no postage due.”

Mike Zito’s last CD, Quarantine Blues, was recorded during the heart of the coronavirus pandemic and served as a healing love letter to his fans around the world that heralded better days ahead if we’d all just stick together. His album prior to that was a tribute to fellow St. Louis native and rock ‘n’ roll legend, Chuck Berry, and featured an array of guest guitarists ranging from Joe Bonamassa, Walter Trout and Eric Gales, to Robben Ford, Luther Dickinson and Sonny Landreth, as well as Berry’s own grandson.

Andy Timmons Band

As guitarist for pop-metal band Danger Danger, he toured the world opening for Kiss and Alice Cooper, sold over a million records worldwide, and had two #1 videos on MTV, plus amassing a discography that includes 7 solo releases that range from blazing guitar instrumentals, to blues, and even a Beatles/Elvis Costello-inspired collection of pop tunes.

As a session player, he’s been highly featured on CDs by drumming legend Simon Phillips, a live CD with Olivia Newton-John (Andy has been her music director/guitarist for several U.S. tours), two internationally acclaimed CDs by Kip Winger, recording sessions for Paula Abdul, Paul Stanley, and countless radio and television jingles. He has also played alongside many of his heroes such as Steve Vai and Joe Satriani (as a regular guest on their G3 tours in Dallas), Eric Johnson, Steve Morse, Mike Stern, Ace Frehley, Ted Nugent, and Pierre Bensusan, as well as some of his fave ’60’s singing stars such as the Beach Boys, Lesley Gore, and Gordon Waller (of Peter and Gordon fame!)

Andy’s musical career began in his hometown of Evansville, Indiana at the age of 13 with his first band, Taylor Bay. “Early on, I realized that making it in a rock band was such a long-shot, that I better figure out other ways of making a living playing guitar. I began reading about players like Steve Lukather and Larry Carlton who made their living as session musicians. This really appealed to me, since I really loved a wide variety of musical styles.”

The decision to pursue the studio scene led him to more serious music studies. He studied classical guitar for two years before moving to Miami to study jazz guitar at the University of Miami (largely because the Dixie Dregs, Pat Metheny, and Jaco Pastorius had all gone there). He eventually ended up in Dallas where he was very fortunate to get a foot in the door of a very good studio scene. In 1988, the Andy Timmons band was formed and he quickly gained a following in Texas. Around that time, Epic recording artists Danger Danger recruited him to finish their debut record, film several videos, and begin touring.

After 4 years in New York with Danger Danger, Andy returned to Dallas in 1993 to resume his studio career and the Andy Timmons Band. His first solo release, ear X-tacy, was released in 1994 to critical acclaim followed 1997’s ear X-tacy 2. He then released Pawn Kings (1997), Orange Swirl (1998), The Spoken and the Unspoken (1999), and And-thology 1 & 2 (2000). In 2001 Andy signed with Favored Nations and released his first international record, That Was Then, This is Now, a compilation of the first two ear X-tacy records and and five new tracks. Resolution (2006) marks Andy’s first full-length new release for Favored Nations.

Andy has been consistently voted a “Top 20 Favorite Guitarist” in most of Japan’s rock music magazine’s reader polls, as well as being voted “Musician of the Year” four years in a row in the acclaimed Dallas Observer Music Awards. He also has become one of the most respected and sought after clinicians representing Ibanez Guitars, touring the world on their behalf.

Jim Suhler & Monkey Beat

Jim is also well known as lead guitarist and songwriter with George Thorogood & the Destroyers since 1999, appearing on all albums and video releases during that time.