LOOKING FORWARD, LOOKING BACK PT. III - THE WOGGLES

Athens, Georgia - 1987. In the midst of a void left by the pioneers of the Athens Sound, bands like R.E.M., and The B52's, The Woggles were born. Sounding like a 60's frat band on steroids, The Woggles live shows became (and are) legendary. Like their Rock and Soul heroes, the boys never stop. The songs run seamlessly together and the band and the audience slowly become one, sweating, rocking, shakin' and eventually becoming downright euphoric as everyone bathes in the Gospel of Southern Rhythm and Blues ..... You can call it a Rock and Roll Baptism, Rhythm and Blues Revival, or Soul Sermon, but there's one thing you can never call it. And that is ordinary. Taking their cue from Chitlin' Circuit showmen of the 50's and 60's, their no - nonsense over the top showmanship has made The Woggles an International underground smash. Veterans of many European and Asian tours (there's even an upcoming 7th tour of Japan in December), their fans can shake it in any language or country, and shake it hard! Their sets are filled with a sprinkling of covers from bands like The Sonics, the Shadows of Knight and The Jaguars. And their originals rock just as hard, culled from any one of their eight albums or dozen singles. Songs like "It's Not About What I Want", "Ragged But Right", "Ramadan Romance", "Do Just What I Say", "I Got Your Number","My Baby Likes To Boogaloo", and "Mad Dog 20/20" are just a sampling of Woggles material that could make anyone shake a tail feather or two! Just check out any of their videos for further proof!

The current line up of The Woggles is; Buzz Hagstrom on bass and vocals, Dan Electro on drums and vocals, The Flesh Hammer on guitar and vocals, and The Professor (aka Mighty Manfred) on lead vocals and rock and soul riot inciting. The Flesh Hammer stepped in after the tragic death of George "Montague" Holton, and does George's memory proud (no doubt, George approves)! This line up may be the longest Woggles line up going, the revolving door that saw many local musicians "learn the ropes", has settled into a strong veteran cast. The chemistry is nuclear too, as evidenced by last years "Rock and Roll Backlash" lp, a release that was played heavily on the radio show Little Steven's Underground Garage. The Professor even has his own radio show over at www.sirius.com/undergroundgarage. There you'll hear what The Woggles and any other band worth their salt are weaned on, namely 50's and 60's Rock, Soul and R and B. And so we leave The Woggles as the torchbearers for the original Athens innovators. Not only do they carry the torch proud, they have improved it mightily, taking it down to the roots (where it belongs). They continue to tour the country and the world, and have a few offshoot programs to boot(more on that later). They are truly ragged, but RIGHT! Check them out some more at http://www.thewoggles.com/html/news.html and http://www.myspace.com/thewoggles .... and by all means see them live. It will be a rockin, rollin', soul stirrin' affair that you'll never forget.