Whistle Pigs

WHEN WAS THE BAND STARTED? Early 2007

HOW WAS IT STARTED? Banjo Joe saw Randy at PK’s. Randy asked Joe if he wanted to play together sometime. They got together at Joe’s cabin a couple of times and played. Randy was introduced to Joe by Blayne, from Mountain Sprout. Randy stood in on bass with Joe’s previous band a few times. Joe’s previous band was the Broke Strang Band that had Adma and Blayne, before the joined Mountain Sprout.

WHERE WAS IT STARTED? Randy and Joe first started talking about playing together at PK’s while they were drinkin’ beer. They started playing there for tips and beer.

WHO WERE THE FOUNDING MEMBERS? Randy and Joe

WHAT WAS THE FIRST TRACKS/CD? Live at Hanger 9. It was called "Live in 2012" …it sucked.

WHERE AND WHEN WAS THE BANDS FIRST BIG GIG OR EVENT? In early 2008 Whistle Pigs became a PAID house band every Tuesday at PK’s, and still play there every Tuesday night.

MEMORABLE MOMENTS IN WHISTLE PIGS HISTORY:

• When Alex switched from guitar to the accordion
• Recording and producing our first professional album, long Term Plan, the winter of 2008 and spring of 2009. 1000 copies sold by the Spring of 2010.
• Performing with Split Lip Rayfiled
• Playing major cities for the first time…K.C., Dallas, Memphis, Nashville.
• Buying our first van for $700

WHAT IS IT LIKE TO BE ON THE ROAD WITH THE BAND? Fun, little sleep, cheap motels, no motels, meetin’ new people, all night dinners. We work well together on the road. Things get easier when we’re on the road so we play our best when touring.

WHAT DO YOU GUYS DO FOR FUN AS A GROUP? Play a lot of shows, stop for fireworks and porno, frog giggin’, huntin’, shoot fireworks, get drunk, watch westerns, invent ridiculous gadgets and brainstorm for our adult cartoon/sketch comedy show, work on new songs, cook sometimes, order pizza and wings, shoot guns, get drunk at PK’s

Joe McCamish

INSTRUMENT: Banjo, Lead Vocals

BIRTHDAY: October 20, 1978

HOMETOWN & CURRENT RESIDENCE: Carterville, Illinois

YEARS WITH THE BAND: 3 and a half

MUSIC CAREER HISTORY: Played in the Broke Strang Band with Adam Wagner and Blayne Theibaud
From Mountain Sprout.

MUSIC INFLUENCES: Hank Williams, Grandpa Jones, all the old timers that helped make history.

FAVORITE BANDS/GENERE: Country & Western, Waylon, George Jones, John Herdford

HOBBIES/FAVORITE PAST-TIMES: hunting and fishing, shooting guns, drinkin’ and raisin’ hell

FAVORITE EVENT/GIG LOCATION: all the dive bars and honkytonks

FAVORITE BAND STORY: We played in Dallas after a bunch of hardcore Rock bands and stole the show…just being on the road with the band is a good time.

FAVORITE FAN STORY: Some of our fans dressed up like us and came to our Halloween Show. They
Were girls and they made fake beards and cardboard instruments.

SOMETHING SPECIAL FOR THE FANS TO KNOW: I love each and every
One of our fans. My music is a byproduct of that love. I live in a solar powered cabin. I’m looking
for a beautiful woman who can cook and has a good hunting dog and truck.

Randy Hill

INSTRUMENT: Upright Bass

BIRTHDAY: September 27, 1982

HOMETOWN: West Frankfort, Illinois

CURRENT RESIDENCE: Marion, Illinois

YEARS WITH THE BAND: 4

MUSIC CAREER HISTORY: Hanger High, Gypsy Rose, Skinny Time & the #9 Blacktops

FAVORITE BANDS: Stray Cats, Swinging Utters, Rev. Horton Heat, Bouncing Souls,
Uncle Dave, Grandpa Jones, String Bean ….Anything good!

HOBBIES/FAVORITE PASTIMES: fishing, old cars and bikes, barbering

FAVORTIE EVENT/GIG LOCATION: Winfield

FAVORITE BAND STORY: When Whistle Pigs played in Dallas, Texas with 10metal bands and
they loved us! ….I was surprised.

FAVORITE FAN STORY: A kid in Kansas City told me I was his favorite bass player and that
I got him into playing music.

SOMETHING SPECIAL FOR THE FANS TO KNOW: I play Englehardt Basses made in USA.

Alexander (Delicious Aloysius) Pape

INSTRUMENT: Accordion

BIRTHDAY: August 1, 1985

HOMETOWN: Makanda, Illinois

CURRENT RESIDENCE: Raccoon Valley

YEARS WITH THE BAND: 3

MUSIC CAREER HISTORY: Piano, trumpet, baritone, electric bass, guitar, accordion. …in that order, starting around the age of 4.

MUSIC INFLUENCES: All the people I’ve ever played with, Al and Frank Yankovich, Tom Waits, Django Reinhardt, Doc Watson, Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite Movement 4 "In the hall of the mountain king", Cab Calloway, Pee-Wee King, the Bourbon Knights, Edith Piaff, Hoyt Ming and his Pop Steppers, Al Hauser, Spade Cooley, Dick Dale and his Del-tones

FAVORTIE BANDS/MUSIC GENRE: Country & Western, Western Swing, Ragtime, Piedmont Blues, Delta Blues, Jug-band music, early 20th Century, Pop, Wild-eyed Gospel, Polka, Traditional Yiddish music, Surf, Rock n Roll….pretty much any type of music.

HOBBIES/FAVORITE PAST-TIMES: Music, fishing, drinking, gardening, rambling, laying around

FAVORITE EVENT/GIG LOCATION: CD Release Party in April 2009 at PKS

FAVORITE BAND STORY: The one that is about to happen.

FAVORITE FAN STORY: We played at the famous Poplar Lounge in Memphis, and the owner was a wacked out character with some interesting stories that would be inappropriate to retell here. A few weeks after our gig, we got the newspaper report about how he had robbed a bank and then had a standoff with the police while help up in his house for a few hours. No lives were lost…I think.