Thursday, February 04, 1999
Cammy winner rocks 'bluesical'
Carero's career takes to new stage
BY LARRY NAGER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
After years of grinding it out on the 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. club circuit, Chris Carero thought he'd landed a pretty cushy gig playing for a two-act musical at Playhouse in the Park.
But in musician/playwright Keith Glover's “bluesical,” Thunder Knocking on the Door,guitars aren't just props, they're stars. Mr. Carero, 44, wound up with more pressure than he'd figured on.
“Rehearsals were really tough,” he says. “We had some really tough days, 11 (in the morning) to 11 at night. I thought I'd be making good money for playing my guitar a little. But I was really working.”
It paid off, as anyone who has attended the play can attest. Mr. Carero's screaming blues and rocking Chuck Berry licks keep the play's express-train energy on track.
@subhed:Cammy winner
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A native of upstate New York, Mr. Carero has lived in Cincinnati for 20 years. For much of that time, he honed his guitar skills playing four sets a night with Blue Lou & the Accusations. Named after a favorite guitar of Mr. Carero's, the group was one of the Tristate's top acts, winning the 1997 Cammy for best blues band. Mr. Carero took best blues instrumentalist honors.
The band parted ways later that year. Mr. Carero has since played with Len's Lounge, Ricky Nye & the Red Hots and in the trio Carero.
“I've been doing some writing at home, looking to put together something,” he says.
All those years in the bars took their toll, he says. “I still love playing music, but drunks really rub me the wrong way.”
Mr. Carero jumped at the chance when Ted Karas, another local guitarist, suggested he audition for Thunder.
He wasn't sure he could play in a theater band. Like most blues musicians, he plays by “ear,” not written score. Luckily, that's what the producers were looking for.
“They said, "We don't want people who can read charts, we want people who can play,' ” he says.
Guitar-centric
It's a demanding role for any guitarist. The play's 14 songs cover a wide array of sounds, from Muddy Waters' Delta blues to sophisticated T-Bone Walker to frenzied, Little Richard rock to Southern gospel.
The two guitarists switch off, with Mr. Karas playing a Gibson 335, which has a fuller, mellower tone than Mr. Carero's Stratocaster. Generally, if it's jazzy, it's Mr. Karas; if the guitar screams or plays the “Johnny B. Goode” riff, it's Mr. Carero.
Thunder is the most guitar-centric production imaginable. The two guitars that are the play's central symbols hang above the stage before the play begins, and the stage is designed like a guitar, with two ramps as stylized fret boards. Even the woods used in the stage — mahogany and ash — are also used in guitars. Mr. Carero feels right at home.
“I'm still watching it every night and the actors are just phenomenal,” he says. “Like Keith Glover told us, "It's fun with focus. As long as you guys do the same thing all the time, have as much fun as you want.' It's been great.”
All local musicians
Despite his considerable skill, Mr. Carero navigated a stiff learning curve from bar band to pit band (the musicians play behind a black screen at the rear of the stage).
“The main thing is just learning control, being consistent,” he says. “It's like being a session player.”
He quickly learned to keep his equipment in top shape.
“One big thing was I broke a string on my first premiere night. My first big number, my first big solo, I hit my first note and blam!” he says with a grim chuckle. “I change my strings every day now.”
Mr. Carero adds that he and the other locals — Mr. Karas, keyboardist O'Deen Mays and drummer Mike Hodges — wouldn't have the job if not for Playhouse artistic director Ed Stern.
“He was really pushing for local musicians to do the play,” he says. The producers wanted seasoned musicians from the Washington production to play in Cincinnati. “And Ed Stern went there and saw the play and he said, "Hey, I've got musicians here who can do at least as good.' ”
Playwright, mayor surprised
A tough sell for Mr. Stern at first, now even the playwright agrees.
“Keith said he had no problem with us getting a bass player and gigging around town as the Thunder Knocking on the Door Band,” Mr. Carero says.
The band has surprised a lot of people, including Cincinnati Mayor Roxanne Qualls.
“On opening night, they always have that party afterwards,” Mr. Carero recalls. “And the mayor was talking to Ed Stern and she was telling him, "The musicians are great. Did you bring them in from out of town?' And he told her, "No, these are all local jazz and blues guys.' And she said, "You're kidding!' ”
IF YOU GO
Thunder Knocking on the Door
• When: 8 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 5 and 9 p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday, through Feb. 19.
• Where: Marx Theatre, Playhouse in the Park, Eden Park.
• Tickets: $28-$40; unreserved tickets half-price day of show at Playhouse box office or PNC Bank Tower Tix booth, Tower Place Mall (11 a.m.-5 p.m.).
IF YOU GO
Cammy Awards
Featuring the Raisins reunion, Mary Ellen Tanner & the Blue Wisp Big Band, Stagger Lee & Friends, Shades of Blue, Mood, Tigerlilies, Katie Reider and the William Menefield Trio with Mike Wade, Gary Winters and Brad Goode.
• When: 4 p.m. March 14.
• Where: Sycamore Gardens, 1133 Sycamore St., Over-the-Rhine.
• Tickets: $10, on sale Monday at Ticketmaster outlets or call 562-4949.
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