As we planned out Summer of Soul program I knew we needed to give our patrons a “religious experience.” So of course, I had to call Rev. Billy C. Wirtz. He’s the Master of The 88 Key Disaster, King of the Atomic Boogie, the paino man who can make you howl until you’re healed.
You can spend next Sunday evening, Aug. 12, worshiping at the alter of Rev. Billy and I guarantee, you’ll be happy you did. His show is in the Side Door, with our beautiful Yamaha grand piano, and the prayer meeting starts at 6 p.m. For tickets and information, call our box office at 727-822-3590 or follow this link for on-line tickets and info.
Billy, a humorist, a musical historian, a fine pianist, and a fun guy to have around, has played our Boogie Woogie Stomp and did a double bill with Ronny Elliot two years ago, but Rev. Billy is best when he’s at the grand piano in a solo show with a crowd that is paying attention.
I spoke to the Reverend by phone from his home in Ocala. And maybe Ocala is a good place for a performer who revels in the world of Elvis sightings , trailer parks and championship wrestling. Getting out of the craziness of Cocoa Beach – “The land of broken toys” – has been good for his music and his health.
“Moving (to Ocala) has worked out real good,” he told me. “I can live nicely here and there’s quite a good little music community.”
He’s produced two musical plays at an Ocala theater. One is Dust My Broom – A Musical Journey Down the Blues Highway. The other he calls Shake, Rattle and Roll – A Night on the Chitlin’ Circuit. And he’s bringing his encyclopedic knowledge of early rock, soul and r & b music to history centers and other venues these days.
And being in Ocala has him close enough to host a regular radio show on Friday afternoons on WMNF Radio (88.5 FM) filled with roots music of all kinds and great Rev. Billy stories.
For this Sunday’s show, you’ll get the best of Rev. Billy. The sanctifying. The wresting intros and maybe a flying drop kick. “Roberta,” his always-requested big hit. Maybe a visit from Elvis, plus his current hit “What I Used To Do All Night, Now Takes Me All Night To Do.” And lots of great boogie woogie, R&B, soul, country, and rock ‘n roll history lessons.
Rev. Billy C. Wirtz
“It all kind of ties in no matter what I do,” The Reverend told me. “I’m taking these classic blues structures and putting my own spin on them.”
And even if you’ve seen Billy recently, this show will be a one-of-a-kind.
“You’ll never see me do the same show twice, that just doesn’t happen,” he said.
And you can count on Rev. Billy getting a reaction from everybody in the audience.
“With the right music I may not be able to get you to Yes, or I may not be able to get you to NO, but I know I can get you to – huh?!!!”
Leave a Reply