The Willie Painter Band
Willie Painter, Bill Newton, Craig Dittmar & John Hanks
Saturday March 15, 8pm $8
Playing a mix of danceable blues with a nod towards swinging jazz and an eclectic selection of rock and pop
tunes, the Willie Painter Band consists of four veterans of the Triangle music scene.
Willie Painter (guitar) and Craig Dittmar (bass) were members of the Boomers, who played for over 20 years
in the Triangle and eastern North Carolina. They have performed in the past with Lightnin’ Wells and the Real Gone
Cats. Currently they also play with the Pigz Brothers, Mike Hamer and the Rhinoceroses, and the Tommy G Experience. Painter
wrote a monthly music column for the Urban Hiker from 1999 to 2004.
Bill
Newton (saxophone, harmonica) is a founding member of two Triangle musical institutions: Rebecca and the Hi-Tones and Bill
Newton’s Big Blues Quartet. He has recorded with the Indigo Girls and Big Mama E and the Cool, among others.
John Hanks (drums) is the music director for Duke University dance program.
he also freelances with lots of folks, including the North Carolina Theater, Playmaker’s Theater, DPAC, and Duke University
Chapel Choir. He has performed with Mose Allison, Mary Lou Williams, John Brown and many other jazz artists. He is also
a longtime music faculty for the American Dance Festival (ADF), traveling with them to Henan, China in 2012.
