Wayne "The Train" Hancock

“What else ya got?" an alcohol-filled man hollers from his seat.
"I got so much stuff, man, we’re gonna be here all night," responds Wayne "The Train" Hancock, front man for the anti-country, country band. "The Train" stayed true to his word.

Slowly but surely The Brick Works began to fill up with older country lovers, young swing dancers and everyone in between. The band was made up of different looking people as well, probably because Hancock switches up his band, playing with many different musicians. The stand-up bass player could almost pass for a Hawaiian shirted frat boy, complete with goatee. Lead guitarist Tony Rock was a young greaser character with slicked back hair and an ever-present smile. The man who really gave the music its distinctive twang was steel guitarist, Lee Jeffries, by far the oldest member of the band, his face stiff with concentration as his fingers glided and trembled over the strings.

The bass was slapping and swaying slightly, and people emerged from the crowd and onto the dance floor. It was a nice change from the usual pelvis grinding found at most Chico dance sessions. Grown women transformed into hyper children, twirling around in circles, holding hands with their friends, happy to be transported by the music of their youth.

"The Train" played a combination of old school country, fast-paced swing, ‘50s rock ‘n’ roll, rippled with some Hawaiian-sounding hullabaloo. During "Wino Boogie," the man even yodels. His voice jumps up and down, like a Mexican jumping bean, hitting high and low notes in a single breath. A half an hour into the show, Hancock broke a guitar string, so the rest of the band took the opportunity to show off their skills, including a boot stompin’ bass solo that attracted whistles and howls from the lively crowd. The bass and gee-tar boys seemed extremely comfortable performing and casually chit-chatted while in the midst of a rocking song.

Songs came across a mix of good and evil, with sweet, old-fashioned lyrics, sung by a gruff, foul-mouthed man. "Sitting in the kitchen, lookin’ at the wall / I’m waiting for my baby, but my baby didn’t call / Suddenly a stranger came a knockin’ at my door / Said there’d been a wreck out on Highway 54 / Highway 54 took my love away from me..."

Hancock’s gush of rockabilly has often been compared to Hank Williams Sr. The band has two new recordings out, A-Town Blues, the fourth CD, and South Austin Sessions, a six song EP exploring "The Train’s" jazzier side. "Session" was on sale for only $5 at the show.

I highly recommend you check out this rare gem of a fun, rocking hillbilly yodeler, but you don’t have to take my word for it. "If you like music that moves, and the trash on the radio can’t satisfy your wanderlust, then try this CD and burn a thousand miles." – Wayne "The Train" Hancock

– Rachel Krampfner – photos by Alyssa Starkey

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