Great White Featuring Jack Russell Hits Roxy April 6
by Tim Wenger
You may have heard of Great White. But what you may not have heard of is Great White Featuring Jack Russell. The original band split up in the early 2000’s, made official in November of 2001 when front man Jack Russell announced the end of the group. Since then, controversy has ensued, and the former members are currently in dispute with Russell over the name. Colorado Music Buzz spoke with Russell to find out what the long time rocker had to say about the situation as well as their upcoming show at the Roxy Theatre in Denver.
“I fired those guys, but they decided not to be fired,” says Russell. “They’re still using the name Great White, so I’m using the name Great White Featuring Jack Russell as so there’s no confusion.” Russell is suing his former band mates for the name, with a court date set for July.
On a more positive note, Russell is excited to get his current lineup on stage in the Mile High City. “What you can expect is a bombastic rock and roll show!” says Russell. “I’ve got some amazing players in my band.” Two of them, Derrick Pontier and Matthew Johnson, were former Great White Members. “These guys are full of energy, they are all over the place. We have two lead players, instead of having one rhythm guy, so we are able to do a lot of things I wasn’t able to do in the past incarnation of Great White.”
This show is a special one for The Roxy Theatre and Denver in general. The group will be flying into our fair city for this show and one other in Carbondale. “We don’t do too many bus tours,” says Russell. “It’s mostly fly-ins where we do the weekend and fly home.” The band has a full five week tour coming up this summer. “It’s a lot of fun to go back on the bus and hit the road that way. It’s harder, I’m 52 years old, but I’m still in great shape so it’s great.”
In addition to touring this summer, the band plans to get into the studio and recording a new album after the name situation is figured out. “We’ve got some incredible stuff written,” says Russell. “I’m really excited to get in the studio and start recording.”
“I love Denver man,” says Russell. “Plus I’ve got family (here). It’s beautiful, and I live on a boat on the water so it takes a lot to impress me. Everytime we play Denver we have a great turnout.” Russell promises some new songs and a great show at the Roxy Theatre on Saturday, April 6.
Online: theroxydenver.com
Category: What's Up?
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