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Fargo Brothers perform at the Village Pub tonight

By Jennifer Gruenke, jgruenke@record-bee.com, @rbjgruenke on Twitter

POSTED: 03/28/15, 2:43 PM PDT | 0 COMMENTS

Cobb >> In 1979, the Fargo Brothers came together for the first time and they’ve been performing ever since. “As far as us staying together, that’s a miracle,” said songwriter and guitarist, Michael Adams. “Either something like that happens for a group, or it doesn’t.”

 

The band performs at the Village Pubb in Cobb tonight, March 28, at 8 p.m.

 

In the beginning the group went by a shorter name, but after a while they felt that their title was missing something important. “For us, we became brothers,” said Adams. “We actually were named ‘Fargo’ up until the point we played about 1,000 gigs and then we realized it was more than that, so we added the ‘Brothers.’ It’s a family at this point.”

 

Adams began the Fargo Brothers, or rather, Fargo, after his previous band came to an end. “It was a practically seamless evolution from a band called the Jodi West Band that I was a member of then several members disbanded,” he said. “So in order to keep the group going I started auditions and it’s something that stuck.”

 

The band members are Adams and bassist Russ Whitehead, who are original members of the group. Joost Vonk, drums, and Mojo Larry Platz, guitar, joined up with the Fargo Brothers after 1979, when Adams and Whitehead lost a few musicians. “I’m the songwriter, but each of the group, like the Beatles ... they all have their part in the creation of the finished songs,” Adams said. “They’re a very creative bunch of guys.”

 

With only two of the four musicians living in Lake County — Adams is from Gernville and Whitehead lives down in Oakland — it may seem like rehearsal time is hard to come by, but Adams said they make it work. “We’re professionals and we all want it done, so we just make time,” he said. “It is a challenge but we manage to do it.”

 

Performing a combination of covers and originals, the Fargo Brothers don’t lack variety. “Be

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Fargo Brothers perform at the Village Pu

 

http://www.lakecomagazine.com/2440/78737/a/fargo-brothers-charm-fans-at-boathouse-bar-grill

 

The Fargo Brothers, regulars in the Lake County music scene, played their brand of blues and roots rock to an appreciative crowd at Nice's Boathouse Bar & Grill on Sunday, June 15, with rocking music including covers of hits by Rodney Crowell, The Beatles and Sawyer Brown.

From Guerneville, The Fargo Brothers are Michael Lester Adams (songwriter, guitar, vocals), Russ Whitehead (bass, vocals), Joost Vonk (drums, vocals) and Mojo Larry Platz (guitar, vocals).  They often add a bit of humor to their gigs, such as temporarily sporting long beards when playing a ZZ Top cover, or, as they did on Sunday, leaving the stage and hopping up on a picnic table while performing.

Playing in the back courtyard of the Boathouse, Fargo Brothers' fans enjoyed a view of the lake and a cool breeze while dancing, eating and drinking from the Boathouse's full bar.  The food offerings ranged from ribs, French dip sandwiches, and burgers, to higher-end dinner items such as linguine and clams in a garlic wine sauce, and a 3-cheese tortellini with grilled chicken breast and artichoke hearts in a pesto cream sauce.  Not vegetarian friendly, the Boathouse offers just two vegetarian entrees (Caesar salad and Fettuccini Alfredo) out of 40 selections on the menu, and nothing for vegans.

The Fargo Brothers will be playing at the Lake County Spring Fair in Lakeport at noon on Saturday, June 21, and will also perform again this summer at the Boathouse and at the Blue Wing Saloon in Upper Lake.

 

“– This Oct. 21 at 7 p.m. the Soper Reese Community Theatre presents veterans of the stage, Michael Barrish and the Fargo Brothers. Third Friday Night Live continues to bring live music to the community. So bring your dancing shoes and make your way to the Soper Reese Community Theatre. The Fargo Brothers have been burning up stages since 1979. Veterans of well over 4,000 live shows from California to the Canadian border, these four seasoned professionals deliver a brand of roots Rock and Roll with a fire and intensity that only three decades together can bring. Known for their vocal harmonies and tight ensemble playing, The Fargo Brothers always put on a show that is not to be missed. Michael Lester Adams rocks the vocals and guitar while Russ Whitehaed provides vocals and plays the Bass. Joost Vonks keeps the beat with drums and back up vocals while “Mojo” Larry Platz tickles guitar strings and sings along. The group says they have fun performing and the audience can see”

— LAKE COUNTY NEWS

 

 

“'Kickin' in the Country' street dance takes place July 19 SUNDAY, 15 JULY 2012 00:23 EDITOR KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Kelseyville Business Association (KBA) presents the third “Kickin’ in the Country” street dance of the season on Thursday, July 19, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Main Street. The featured band will be the Fargo Brothers, who have been performing since 1979. The group will perform rock’n’roll, vocal harmonies and dance music. This is a family event, so bring folding chairs and dancing shoes. Come join friends, new and old, on the streets of downtown Kelseyville for some summer fun.”

— LAKE COUNTY NEWS

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Fargo Brothers perform at the Village Pub tonight

By Jennifer Gruenke, jgruenke@record-bee.com, @rbjgruenke on Twitter

POSTED: 03/28/15, 2:43 PM

 

In 1979, the Fargo Brothers came together for the first time and they’ve been performing ever since. “As far as us staying together, that’s a miracle,” said songwriter and guitarist, Michael Adams. “Either something like that happens for a group, or it doesn’t.”

 

The band performs at the Village Pubb in Cobb tonight, March 28, at 8 p.m.

 

In the beginning the group went by a shorter name, but after a while they felt that their title was missing something important. “For us, we became brothers,” said Adams. “We actually were named ‘Fargo’ up until the point we played about 1,000 gigs and then we realized it was more than that, so we added the ‘Brothers.’ It’s a family at this point.”

 

Adams began the Fargo Brothers, or rather, Fargo, after his previous band came to an end. “It was a practically seamless evolution from a band called the Jodi West Band that I was a member of then several members disbanded,” he said. “So in order to keep the group going I started auditions and it’s something that stuck.”

 

The band members are Adams and bassist Russ Whitehead, who are original members of the group. Joost Vonk, drums, and Mojo Larry Platz, guitar, joined up with the Fargo Brothers after 1979, when Adams and Whitehead lost a few musicians. “I’m the songwriter, but each of the group, like the Beatles ... they all have their part in the creation of the finished songs,” Adams said. “They’re a very creative bunch of guys.”

 

With only two of the four musicians living in Lake County — Adams is from Gernville and Whitehead lives down in Oakland — it may seem like rehearsal time is hard to come by, but Adams said they make it work. “We’re professionals and we all want it done, so we just make time,” he said. “It is a challenge but we manage to do it.”

 

Performing a combination of covers and originals, the Fargo Brothers don’t lack variety. “Being together this long we have a huge repertoire,” Adams said. “We can pull from a lot of different genres. The covers that we do a lot of time will fit the venue … If we have four hours we’ll rock them with a Beatles medley, a Tom Petty medley, it just goes on and on really.”

 

Whatever songs they choose, the band always plays with conviction. “What we try to do is – this is just a natural thing – we try to be the song, not just sing it,” Adams said. “Unless you own what you’re performing, it’s not authentic. And that helps us choose our material because you can’t really choose what you can’t own.”

 

Adams said the group is “heartfelt, high energy, Americana and rock with a bluesy edge.” Though he added that the best way to get a sense of the band is to make it to one of their shows. “The only way to describe us is to come out and see us, then you’ll see what the fuss is about,” he said.Pros at their trade, Adams said the Fargo Brothers possess a great deal of versatility. “There’s bands that are club bands, that when you put them on a stage they still appear to be club bands,” he said. “When they put us on a concert stage, they’ll see a concert band. The guys definitely rise to occasions.”

 

The group’s shows flourish due to their love of performing. “For that moment in time, everything else fades away and I’m there in the moment really being alive,” Adams said. “It’s hard to describe, but I’m definitely a performer type of musician as opposed to a practice. I like to play for people ... It’s exhilarating.”

 

Those who attend the Fargo Brothers show tonight should, “expect to be surprised,” Adams said. “It’s our harmonies that set us apart from other groups. We have very tightly arranged vocal harmonies ... The thing to come and enjoy are vocal harmonies. They’ll hear things by the Beatles, by the Stones, ZZ Top, Tom Petty. We’ll be doing songs off my own album and other original tunes.”

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he Fargo Brothers perform at Library Park tonight. Jennifer Gruenke — Lake County Publishing

By Jennifer Gruenke, jgruenke@record-bee.com, @rbjgruenke on Twitter

POSTED: 07/21/16, 10:58 PM PDT | UPDATED: 3 DAYS AGO

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Lakeport >> The Fargo Brothers haven’t just had a busy year — they’ve had a busy 37 years.

The musicians — songwriter and guitarist Michael Adams, Russ Whitehead on bass, Joost Vonk on drums, and guitarist Larry Platz — were originally going by a simpler name: Fargo. They put the precursor in because they’re not just a band, they’re family. “We love each other, we added the name ‘Bothers’ for that reason. It was decades ago,” Adams said. “We’re our worst critics and our greatest admirers of each other. I really am with a remarkable group of musicians and almost everyone agrees with that.”

 

 

The group, who perform Americana and rock with a bluesy edge, perform at Library Park tonight for the Summer Concert series. The last time they stepped up on the gazebo was about five years ago. They always jump at the chance to come back. The park shows are family-friendly, and the Fargo Brothers enjoy the opportunity to perform for a wide range of ages, while also roping in some new fans. “We have the type of show that will amaze and astound people that haven’t seen us before,” Adams said.

Of course, the show will also be a treat for long time fans of the band. Over the last year they recorded and produced a new album of all original material written by Adams. They’ll also be performing covers by artists like Tom Petty, John Hiatt and Delbert McClinton, musicians who have either been major inspirations or who have a similar sound.

 

 

Even though everyone in the band has multiple projects going on, and they don’t all live in the same place, they keep busy through their wide-spread net of contacts. They have strong relationships with a fair promoter and a harvest festival promoter, who regularly call them to fill slots. A few days ago, the band received calls from three different clubs wanting to book them.

The Fargo Brothers’ stage presence is also something that keeps them in high demand. They regularly pull out long, gray, Dumbledore-style beards for a ZZ Top medley. They’re always running around venues, jumping on tables and causing a riot. Sometimes, if the King is speaking to him, Adams dons an Elvis wig and sunglasses. “We really place entertainment at a big premium,” Adams said. “We aren’t afraid to wax comical at certain points but we also have a very serious pride in our music. There’s a balance there.”

 

 

The members of the band are each in their 60s, but you wouldn’t know it based on their performances. They may sometimes become physically tired, but creatively, the juices are still flowing. As a lyricist, Adams has thousands of song lyrics in his head. And the other members of the bands, as experienced musicians, have their own repertoires. It makes creating new music and performing new numbers a breeze.

“As far as us getting on tables, we can’t help ourselves. The ground can’t hold us,” Adams added. “We’re old chronologically but once that rhythm happens and we’re in the music all that goes out the window. It’s our fountain of youth.”

 

 

Although they’ve been together for nearly 40 years, they don’t plan to quit any time soon. Like wine, their music only gets better with age, especially since they’re not constantly rotating players in and out. They’ll play until the day they die, Adams said, unless music is inexplicably outlawed. “You can hear it,” said Adams. “You can hear a sound like that that’s been molded over time.”

The Fargo Brothers perform at Library Park, 225 Park St. Lakeport, tonight from 6:30-8 p.m. They’ll also be at Riviera Hills Restaurant and Lounge in Kelseyville Saturday night and at the Boathouse Bar and Grill in Nice on Sunday afternoon.

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