Tim Parsons / Tahoe Onstage
There is no cookie cutter in this tool box.
The Garage Boys are tuned up and music fans who attend Friday’s Sammy Hagar and the Circle concert at the Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harveys can expect a wild ride with unexpected turns.
The Las Vegas band will open for the Red Rocker at Tahoe for the second year in a row. The Garage Boys play a diverse sound that ranges from reggae to country and all rock ‘n’ roll points in between.
“The cool thing is we’ve always done what we’ve wanted,” said singer-guitarist Bryan Duffy. “In the ’60s, the Beatles and the Stones just wrote songs. Music is so cookie cutter these days. We just do stuff we like and if it comes out country, who cares? That’s why we’ve lasted so long because we’re just happy with what we’re doing.”
Duffy traveled from his hometown near Toronto on June 4, 2006, for a two-week gig filling in on guitar for a band. He never moved back.
After he was hired by an agency, the Garage Boys were formed. The final part was added six years ago when guitarist Mike Neufeld hopped aboard. The lineup has been the same ever since.
The musclebound Neufeld wears an autoshop shirt and a Mohawk. He gave up hockey to pursue music. Drummer Craig Small shares lead singing duties with Duffy. Aaron Harris does everything else: bass, keyboards and production.
“Not a lot of bands have the same lineup for so long,” Duffy said. “It’s like a co-op. There is no hierarchy. We all take care of each other.”
The Garage Boys have played at Harveys Cabo Wabo Cantina several times, including playing the after-party there in March for Sammy Hagar, Kris Kristofferson and Hagar’s son Andrew’s band, the Appalachian Murder Bunnies. Hagar’s other son who lives at the lake, Aaron, also performed.
The Garage Boys play 300 crazy shows a year, Duffy said. The merchandise table includes its two albums, the latest being “Sgt. Peckers,” T-shirts, women’s panties and its own line of condoms.
“One thing about our shtick, we’re pretty cocky,” Duffy said. “We like to have fun with the crowd and always know how to tease (any hecklers.)”
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