Butch Trucks & Freight Train’s Heather Gillis Rocks ‘Southern-Style’

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Joseph Timmons in Artist / Band Directory, Artist / Musician, Bands, Bands to Explore, featured, Featured Artists / Bands, Featured Content, Featured Labels, Live Performance, news, Performance Locations, Performances, Performers, Touring, Touring Now // 0 Comments

HEATHER GILLIS BAND ROCKS IT ‘SOUTHERN STYLE’ ON FIRST TOUR BEGINNING AUGUST 5 IN ATLANTA

Former Vocalist-Guitarist w/ Butch Trucks & the Freight Train Performs at Roots Rock Revival in NY “In Honor of Butch Trucks’, Blues N Brew Festival, Trois-Rivieres En Blues in Quebec, Canada

Heather Gillis, guitarist-vocalist with Butch Trucks and the Freight Train featuring late Allman Brothers drummer Butch Trucks, rocks it ‘Southern Style’ on her first Tour as the Heather Gillis Band, with the first show at Darwin’s Burgers and Blues, 234 Hilderbrand Dr., Saturday, August 5. Showtime: 9:30pm. Tickets $10. Info: (470) 399-5060 or http://darwinsburgers.com/.

The youthful Gillis is the complete Rock/Soul/Roots (and Blues) package as a guitar player, lap steel player, songwriter, singer and arranger. At only twenty years of age, she was discovered by Trucks in Florida in 2015 and personally recruited by him to play in the Freight Train, the latter who performed to packed houses all over the U.S. until Trucks’ sudden passing in January 2017. “(Gillis) proves to be the perfect touch to the band with her stage presence, energy, and tremendous talent,” writes American Blues Scene in a recent interview. The Tallahassee Democrat opines, “anytime Heather Gillis plugs in an electric guitar and starts to play, you know immediately it’s her. She has a distinct tone and muscular sound that usually takes other, older guitarists many more years to develop. You should hear her belt out ‘Whipping Post.’

Formerly from Florida and now residing in Atlanta, Gillis recently performed at the Tall City Blues Festival and plays some high-profile events during the upcoming tour: a five-day Roots Rock Revival tribute to Butch Trucks and Col. Bruce Hampton in Big Indian, New York, August 13 through August 18; and the Blues & Brews Festival in Westford, Mass on August 20 (complete Tour Itinerary below).

In addition to Butch Trucks, Gillis has performed with members of the Allman Brothers Band; the aforementioned Col. Bruce Hampton; The Lee Boys; North Mississippi All-Stars; Matt Schofield; and more. Heather’s live shows are high-energy and consist of her originals as well as some choice cover tunes.