“New songs with classic values” is the motto for Shady Cats, a rock band from North Carolina’s Triangle area (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill).  Fans of ‘70s era rock and pop will find plenty to love on the band’s first two albums, Love Callin’ and Whatever Happened.  Based on the core duo of songwriter/guitarist/singer Grady Crumpler and drummer Bill Eagen, Shady Cats serve up catchy chord progressions, trademark harmonies, and a rock edge in their own, unique way.

HISTORY

Grady Crumpler and Bill Eagen grew up listening to the music of the Classic Rock era.  Guitarist/singer/songwriter Grady had been entrusted with a treasure trove of vinyl from the ‘60s and ‘70s when his uncle left it behind for a job in England.  Bill started performing professionally at an early age, and developed his chops to accommodate everything from Broadway to punk.  The two played in cover band Grady Crumpler & Last Call, booking whatever gigs they could get:  backyard barbecues, biker bars, restaurants, and the occasional wedding.  Tired of simply covering classic songs, the duo began pulling from their huge base of influences to forge their own sound.

 INFLUENCES

Thin Lizzy, The Raspberries, Matthew Sweet, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Beatles, King’s X, Fleetwood Mac, Badfinger, Queen, Santana, The Zombies, Supergrass…

 DISCOGRAPHY

On CD and all major streaming services:

Whatever Happened, 10-19-10

Love Callin’, 11-10-06

Online:

Grady posts new music on SoundCloud and ReverbNation, and acknowledges that we are WAY overdue for a new Shady Cats album!

THE BAND

BILL EAGEN, Drums:  Bill was raised in upstate New York.  His father and grandfather were professional musicians who recruited Bill to play with them at the age of 14.  There were days when Bill might perform with a marching band in the morning, do an afternoon wedding with his father and grandfather, then play a late night rock gig.  Eventually, he moved to L. A. with his band, Shattered Truth.  Unable to secure a date with rock stardom, and tired of subsisting on ketchup and lettuce sandwiches, he came back east and played with Goodnight My Love until that band broke up.  It was about this time that Bill began holding down the rhythm section in Last Call.  Over a period of years, he picked up a number of sideline gigs as a session drummer and live performer with Mother Soul, Richard Bacchus & The Luckiest Girls, The Nickel Slots, Laura Tsaggaris, and more.

GRADY CRUMPLER, Guitar, Vocals:  Grady was born on a U.S. military base in Germany, lived in NYC and Chicago for short spells, but has spent most of his life in the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area.  His first instrument was violin, followed by an ill-fated dalliance with the clarinet.  As a teenager, he finally connected with the guitar and the energy of playing in a rock band.  His first band was called Middle Earth, and featured Woody Weatherman, later of C.O.C.  In college at UNC – Chapel Hill, he played covers and originals in the popular band, SPECS.  Three subsequent bands could not match the popularity of SPECS, leading Grady to take a two year break from music and focus on kickboxing.  During this time, as well as during the Last Call years, Grady composed originals on the side and began recording demos at home.  Starting with a cassette 4-track, then a Roland VS-880, and transitioning to the early (painfully unreliable) days of computer recording, he now has a solid, Pro Tools based home studio (happydungeon.net), where some of Shady Cats’ final cuts have been recorded.