Blind Willie, info & bios

Blind Willie is: Carl Peters - guitar, vocals; Rob Robertson - bass, vocals; Allen Townsend - drums, vocals.

Blind Willie's name is a tribute to early 20th century bluesman Blind Willie McTell, probably most widely known as the composer of Statesboro Blues, popularized by the Allman Brothers. Blind Willie's repertoire consists of "classic" rock cover tunes from Aerosmith to ZZ Top and everything in between, from the '50s to the '90s. While Blind Willie does keep it danceable and familiar, they also like to mix it up and keep you guessing and saying, "man, I haven't heard that one in a while!".

In the name of keeping things simple, Blind Willie is a trio, guitar, bass, drums, with all members handling lead & backing vocals. You'll find that while they are a cover band, they have their own sound and that they do everything with originality, energy, and style while never losing the essence of the music they are covering.

The three members of Blind Willie have been active on the Delaware music scene for almost 30 years each.

Carl & Rob first played together in the early '80s when Carl joined Hyde Park. Prior to that, Carl had been a member of Seaford's Nasty Habits. After leaving Hyde Park in 1986 Carl went with Drawbridge from Cambridge. Just prior to Blind Willie, he's played with the Mari Rhodes Band and Straight Shooter.

Rob was an original member of Hyde Park, going back to 1976 or so. More recently, Rob has played guitar with Hyde Park, Cathy Martin & the Hot Rods, Black Bottom, the Waterbillies, East Roc, and most notably, Chubby Checker & the Wildcats.

Allen's music career had seen him in local bands such as Avery McTooth, Bounty Hunter, High Tide, and DoubleTake. Allen also has international experience, playing in Italy (he was stationed in the military there) with Prism & the John Turner Blues Band. Allen & Carl first played together in 1991 in a rockin' southern gospel group called 11th Hour and recently again in the rock trio, Straight Shooter.

If you're out for a good time with good old rock & roll and good people, chances are, on any given weekend here on Delmarva, you can find Blind Willie playing somewhere. They keep an active schedule and have played everywhere from Smyrna to Chincoteague and all points in between. You can find the most current schedule and other info at www.blindwillie.net.