PHOTOS OF FRANK BANG'S SECRET STASH BY KURT SWANSON
PHOTOS OF THE BUZZ BY KURT SWANSON
E-MAIL: kurtswanson@juno.com

WEBSITE http://www.frankbang.com
ALWAYS UNDER CONSTRUCTION
**NEW** 7/20/07 FRANK BANG FROM THE HARLEM AVE. LOUNGE
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Frank Bang & the Secret Stash returns with the long awaited studio CD...And They Named It Rock and Roll. The new album was recorded, mixed, and produced by Jason Latshaw at the famed Ardent Studios in Memphis during the summer of 2006. Showcasing eight new originals from the hard driving Ready For The Ride to the rollicking Jezebel or the simply beauty of It’s You… And They Named It Rock and Roll features the band tearing through the new songs with the same wild abandon that has electrified audiences everywhere.

The Chicago Sun-Times raved, “Frank Bang & The Secret Stash are comparable to hard-driving, rock-jam bands like Gov’t Mule and the Black Crowes.”
Chicago Innerview Magazine proclaims, “With rockin’ tunes and sincere passion, Frank Bang’s Secret Stash ranks right up there with North Mississippi All-Stars and Drive-By Truckers.”

Scorching guitar sensation Frank Bang and his powerhouse band, The Secret Stash, are the real deal. Frank’s that rare musician, who learned their craft through perseverance and dedication, paying their dues and perfecting their skills while performing with and learning from Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members. Featuring Frank Bang (guitar & lead vocals), Ryan Fitzgerald (bass guitar, & vocals), and Bob Spelbring (drums & vocals), the group’s strong lyrics, blistering guitar workouts and gritty, heartfelt vocals are grounded in blue collared Rock and Roll. Songs steeped in healthy doses of Southern soul. Their live shows showcase innovative fret-work and extended rhythmic jams in the spirit of past heroes and contemporaries alike, such as the Allman Brothers, Led Zeppelin, Warren Haynes, Jimi Hendrix, and SRV.

Frank began playing guitar as a teenager, but didn’t consider playing professionally full-time until 1992, when he was in his 20s. It was then that he began managing the famed Chicago blues club, Buddy Guy’s Legends, and sitting in from time to time with the house band. While there, he soaked up all of the sounds and ragged wisdom of blues icons like Junior Wells, Otis Rush, Magic Slim and The Teardrops, and a host of other greats who passed through night after night. “It was like my own private university,” Bang recalls. He received an advanced education in guitar mastery and showmanship in 1999 when Grammy winner and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, legendary bluesman Buddy Guy, hand-picked Frank to join his band. The experience not only earned Frank respect and a following among rock and blues fans, but also allowed him to share the stage with many of music’s biggest legends and rising stars, including Carlos Santana, Robert Plant, John Hiatt, Jimmie Vaughan, Richie Sambora, Eric Clapton, and John Mayer. Prior to stepping out on his own, Frank was featured on numerous other records, including releases with his previous funky, rock-blues project, The Buzz, and also on Budd Guy’s Can’t Quit the Blues Silvertone/2006 and Live at Buddy Guy’s Legends. While in Buddy’s band, Frank appeared live on The Tonight Show, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, and numerous European and American television specials, including Jules Holland Live for the BBC. His dozens of live radio broadcasts include shows on Mancow’s Morning Madhouse, E-Town, WXRT, KFOG (S.F., CA), KBCO (Boulder), and countless others.

Frank left Guy’s band in 2004 in order to pursue his own music and formed Frank Bang’s Secret Stash shortly afterwards. The band tours regularly since the release of their debut CD play prestigious clubs and festivals all over the country, both as headliners and as support for acts like Big Head Todd & The Monsters, Galactic, Derek Trucks,Umphrey’s McGee, Dickey Betts, and Johnny Winter. They recorded eight songs live, in-studio at XM Satellite Radio (for national broadcast) and continue to receive glowing responses from media outlets and radio stations across the country.
Official Site: http://www.frankbang.com
Management and Booking -F.B. Inc.- 773.343.5958–frankbang.com-frankbang@hotmail


Frank Bang & The Secret Stash Quick Facts


◦ Buddy Guy hand picked Frank to play guitar on national and world tours 2000-2004.

◦ Frank Has played on stage with: Carlos Santana, Robert Plant, Dave Matthews, John Hiatt, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Vaughan, John Mayer, Richie Sambori and Zakk Wylde, to name a few.

◦ Frank Bang’s Secret Stash is:

Frank "Bang" Blinkal guitar, vocals
Ryan Fitzgerald bass, vocals
Bob Spelbring drums, vocals

Discography:
◦ Frank Bang & The Secret Stash,” And They Named It Rock and Roll” Sacred Lily Records 2007 only available at www.CDBABY.com
◦ Buddy Guy : “Can’t Quit The Blues” Silvertone Records November 2006
◦ Frank Bang's Secret Stash,” Home Grown” Live from Martyr’s Sacred Lily Records June 2006
◦ Frank Bang's Secret Stash, self-titled record released Sacred Lily Records March 2005
◦ Buddy Guy: Live at Buddy Guy's Legends -11 Separate recording Pirate Entertainment
◦ Frank Bang-Alive One 2002-Sacred Lily Records-2002
◦ The Buzz-Live at Buddy Guy's Legends-Sacred Lily Records-2000
◦ The Buzz-The Buzz-Sacred Lily Records-1997

Television: Tonight Show, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, and numerous European and American television specials, including a documentary on BRAVO and Jules Holland “Live”, for the BBC Montreux Jazz Festival 2003 Mountain Stage 2002.

Live radio broadcasts: XM RADIO LIVE Broadcast Mancow, KFOG, KBCO and E Town.


In The Press:
“The talented Chicago Group ranks up their with more well Known National (and chiefly Southern) contempororaries such as North Mississippi All-stars and Drive-By-Truckers”
- Chicago Innerview Magazine

“Frank Bang’s Secret Stash is comparable to hard-driving, rock-jam bands like Gov’t Mule and The Black Crowes.” – Chicago Sun Times

“…Frank Bang’s Secret Stash works their magic with driving grooves and serious rock-n-roll licks.”
- Asheville Citizen Times

Official Site: http://www.frankbang.com
Management and Booking -F.B. Inc.- 773.343.5958–frankbang.com-frankbang@hotmail