ROD PIAZZA "FOR THE CHOSEN WHO" Source: Southland Blues Date: 09/2005 Writer: Pat Kramer

Record producer Randy Chorkoff, of Delta Groove Productions, describes the title of the release this way: “Have you ever heard a blues album or song that really moved you and you wanted to share that discovery? And you played it for someone who wasn’t a ‘blues junkie’ and they couldn’t even hear it, let alone feel it? Well that’s why you are ‘one of the chosen who.’ One of the chosen who, for whatever reason, is touched by the blues somewhere in that place that exists deep down in that emotional realm called ‘the soul.’”

“Chosen Who,” represents an exciting new style of recording for the Southland-based blues harmonica player who has been playing the blues to audiences, worldwide, for the past 38-years. During the last five, his band has received three W.C. Handy awards for “Blues Band of the Year,” and Rod and his wife/pianist Honey Piazza, have received another two for: “Blues Harmonica Player of the Year” and “Blues Pianist of the Year.”

While he’s been recording music since 1967, it’s always been a bare-bones kind of presentation featuring his band along with an additional horn player or singer now and then. However, for “Chosen Who,” Chorkoff brought in special guest artists and four female back up singers giving the recording a larger, fuller sound or as Rod puts it, “I felt like I was on stage with a 32-piece band behind me. It was so full and wonderful to be at the center of that; it just felt great!”

The featured artists include Finis Tasby (bass and back up vocals), James Gadson (drums), Johnny Dyer (vocals), Kid Ramos (guitar), Phil Guy (guitar) brother to Buddy, and Chorkoff (harmonica).

To capture the live feel in the recording studio, Chorkoff brought in a camera crew to document the making of “Chosen Who” on DVD. Included as part of the release, the DVD provides audiences with live performances of several songs interspersed with behind the scenes footage and interviews with band members and guest artists.

“The DVD was Randy’s idea as an extra bonus for the fans,” explains Rod. “With Randy’s success in the film industry, he wanted to give back to the blues and make a traditional CD with me to keep the real blues alive. It was his idea to video it and includes the DVD as a great addition to the packaging. We are the first blues band to have a DVD included with a CD release.”

For the selections, Rod, Honey, and Randy each contributed a song. In addition, they chose to honor some of their favorite blues artists: Jimmy Reed, Little Walter, and Sonny Boy Williamson, with traditional and gospel influenced presentations of the tunes.

So far, Chorkoff’s inventiveness has proven itself to be what blues lovers want: “Chosen Who” made it to #1 on the Blues radio charts in its first month and continues to ride high. The DVD captures the high energy and explosive joy of the artists and brings the listener into the show making them feel like they are at a live concert.

To promote “Chosen Who,” Rod and The Flyers launch their new tour in September, then again in November, with stops all across the country. With a new booking agency scheduling their tours, their performances will include larger venues. There are also plans in the works for major motion picture soundtracks and potentially, guest appearances by Rod and Honey on TV and film.

This is an exciting time for the longtime blues artist who has stayed humble despite years of acclaim and numerous award nominations. To build his reputation, Rod and his band have worked year in and year out touring behind releases. He note, “I think the music has to come from inside you; you have to have the constitution to cope with that type of life. It’s a pretty rough routine with lots of hours in that tin box [driving to gigs] to make it work and to bring the music you love to as many people as you can.”

And what is it like, being a national blues act? Says Rod, “You usually are getting up early from one state and leaving to drive between five and ten hours, depending on how far it is, arriving at the hotel where you change your clothes and get ready. You’ve probably eaten at a fast food place on the way. You go over to the club, get your gear set up, perform that night, then go back to the hotel and are back in the car the next morning.”

As tiring as that sounds, Rod says his band has it better than most with their two drivers hired to transport the band from location to location. To ease their traveling schedule, the band members fly to the starting point of each tour (usually on the east coast) and fly home from the ending point, saving two days of traveling on each end of the tour.

The Mighty Flyers generally tour four or five times a year for 17 days at a time: That includes three weekends and the two weeks in between. Having established fan bases across the country allows them to book dates and fill rooms on weekdays, while other bands have to tour three to six weeks at a stretch to reach their fans.

In addition to the CD/DVD “Chosen Who,” producer Chorkoff is working on a TV/PBS special of the same name that will feature the Flyers as well as Chorkoff’s own involvement with the Blues as an artist and producer.

Also, in the near future, Blind Pig Records will release a DVD featuring Rod Piazza and the Mighty Flyers from a performance last spring with Tommy Castro’s band at the Sierra Nevada Tap Room. Recorded and filmed on high definition television (HD Net), Rod says that show will also be featured on PBS, soon.

At this point in his career, gracing the cover of Southland Blues is still an honor for Rod as he reflects on the many years he’s been making music. “I feel really rewarded at this point because things are going so great. It’s been a long, hard journey. To have this reward this late in my career, the acceptance [by the music industry] and prosperity that we’re starting to realize – it really makes me feel good especially because I’ve stayed true to save an art form that I love. It’s what I began playing and what I’m still playing.”