Music is life

Scrubby Pete Hurcombe

Guitar and Vocals

Pete plays white-hot guitar and sings. He has played various tunings on guitars since he was a child, and is considered to be a great slide guitarist. He is the alchemist of this band and has played many festivals, and shows, including East Coast Blues at Byron, Tanawah Blues Festival, Maleny-Woodford Folk Festival, Jazz at Kingscliff Beach and more. He has played from Sydney to Cape York and across Australia, and most recently the southern states of the USA. He loves authentic roots styles of music and the chance to play to live audiences.

John Werner

Bass Guitar

Hailing from the Southern State of Victoria, with more than 40yrs experience across a wide variety of genres, big Johnny Werner brings swing, groove and rock-solid rhythm to the bottom end on his left hand bass, all wrapped into his own unique style of playing. John has played hundreds of shows mostly in the Australian and US Bluegrass scene with many great performers including US Grammy winner Mike Compton of “O Brother where Art Thou”, The Davidson Brothers, Pete Denehy, Andrew Clermont, Whitetop Mountaineers (US) and more. Over the last 10 yrs performing with the Stringbusters, John played Gippsland Country Music Fest, Mountaingrass Fest, Jamgrass Fest and Albert Hash Festival (Virginia USA). With Paul Buchanan's Voodoo Preachers he played St Kilda Blues Fest, Echuca Winter Blues Fest, Melbourne Blues Appreciation Society and numerous VIC blues clubs. He has also worked with contemporary muso's Jack Jones, Jimi Hocking & Wilbur Wilde.

Rod Ford

Drums

Rodney began his musical studies with the Trombone and Trumpet at school playing in wind ensembles at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music whilst taking lessons. After school he joined the Army band on the trumpet and continued with his Conservatorium studies. At the age of 20, in the Army Band a casual interest in drums became a serious study as he held down the drum chair in the 'Con Big Band ' and Jazz ensembles affiliated with the Jazz studies program at the Conservatorium. After leaving the Army band the drum kit became Rodney's primary instrument and his affinity with this instrument lead to engagements with theatre productions. As a drummer Rodney was in demand as both a live and recording artist and he toured or recorded with : 'The Jazz Co – Op, Crossfire, Errol Buddle, Col Nolan, Tommy Emanuel, legendary Guitarists from the USA Herb Ellis and Barney Kessel and Eberhardt Weber amongst many others. Rodney joined the highly respected Galapagos Duck in 2001 where he is still the featured drummer and vocalist.

Anne-Maree Summerfield

Guitars and Vocals

Anne-Maree Summerfield was raised in a musical family and began her education in the blues in her early 20's playing guitar with Chicago styled blues band Rockinits in the 1990’s and later played with Lil Fi among others. She has played at Byron Bay’s Blues Fest and Blues on Broadbeach festival, Jazz Conventions, Women in Blues events as well as dad's back yard. Influences range from early American folk blues and jazz artists as well as Australian songwriting storytellers and everything in between and beyond. Couple that with a voice that is soulful, strong and true, she sings songs of her own and songs that she makes her own. This is the blues – it is in there and it has got to come out.