Marshall Tucker Band Celebrates a Major Milestone at the Paramount

Southern Rock may find its roots buried somewhere below the Mason Dixon line, but nowhere did the genre grow stronger than on Long Island; a fact not lost on lead singer and founding member of the legendary Marshall Tucker Band, Doug Gray who brings the band back here to The Paramount in Huntington on March 15th.

“I love my hometown of Spartanburg, South Carolina, but I’ll be honest. I don’t know if we would still be here today if it weren’t for Long Island.” He states humbly.

For more than four decades now, the singer has been blessed with the opportunity to continue a dream that began in the early 1970’s with five boyhood friends, and while he makes it a point at each and every performance to publicly thank fans for that honor, his gratitude runs far deeper. Recently the group mounted a major relief effort to aid many of the victims of Super Storm Sandy. Collecting clothing, supplies and more than 1500 blankets, several of their equipment trucks were dispatched directly to our area.

            “Long Island was right there with us in the beginning when we were just driving around in a van eating cheese and crackers ‘cos that’s all we had,” he says laughing. “Had this been the original band we would have done exactly the same thing. I mean think about it. How many times in our lives are we ever gonna be able to appreciate and give something back?”

The Marshall Tucker Band has seen several changes over the expanse of their four decade career, yet today the group continues to tour relentlessly, playing to standing ovations and sold-out shows not just around the country, but in many places around the world. On several occasions they have journeyed to Iraq and Kuwait to show their support and play for the troops. Things seem to be coming back around full circle for Gray and fans as well. In 1976 the original members toured Europe for the first time. Several shows were recorded and plans had been set in motion to release a live album shortly afterwards. Their contract with Capricorn Records was due to expire however, causing a 27 year delay in getting those tracks released. Stompin’ Room Only finally saw the light of day in 2003, allowing fans of yesterday and today a true glimpse into the peak of their career. This month the current incarnation traveled to Switzerland to play the International Country Music Festival in Zurich where tape rolled yet again. Plans are already in motion to release a new live recording in the far nearer future.

“It was always about the music, always about the songs and always about the fans. Right now things are really meshing again. I’ve got some of the greatest musicians in the world in this band and I know the original guys; some of whom are no longer on this earth would be extremely happy that all of it is still going on. Our personality as a group continues to touch people now as it did when we first started out. Every night I go out there and know the audience still feels the music as much as I do because they’ve shared so much with us. What a tribute that is to the writing and career that we put together.”

Celebrate 40 years with the Marshall Tucker Band at the Paramount in Huntington on March 15th. For further information visit www.paramountny.com or call (613) 673-7300.