Charles Atkins Blues Band

Adam Gaffney - Bass: Adam is also a graduate of the Florida School for the Blind in St. Augustine. His first instrument was the trumpet. He picked up the bass guitar in 2000 and has not stopped since. His current love is a Ibanez 5-string and has been known to play around on a fretless bass in practice. His since of rhythm is phenomenal, as many have experienced in local "kirtans" or hindi chanting groups. Some may remember him from the group "Tasso" and the "Downhome Blues Band" with Lois Hinners. He also plays bass with the James Butler Band, and djembe with Tallahassee's only chanting group "Om Sweet Om".

What's Up With Our Former Players

Go Perry! Our former guitar player, Perry Osborn, has joined the Colonel Bruce Hampton's Band, "Quark Alliance". We are very proud of Perry and will miss him. Check out the Colonel's schedule. You will not want to miss seeing this act.

Perry Osborn Picture

Arkansas native Perry Osborn has played with Col. Bruce on many occasions. He has also played with Gary Gazaway in the El Bujo Band, Jeff Sipe, Mike Gordon, Oteil Burbridge, and has toured with Grant Green, Jr. Perry was the assistant conductor in Wellington, New Zealand. He recently moved back to the U.S. and holds a faculty position at Florida State University.

Go Will!! Will "Sweet Willy" Veader leaves CABB for Swingin Harpoon Blues Band. Sweet Willy’s outlook on playing guitar riffs likens to the art of cooking: good technique, real emotion, and articulation are his spices of choice. Sweet Willy is the kind of Guitarist who lives breathes smells feels tastes and thinks guitar. Most of his riffs and fills and solos are his own.

Under the direction of David Gibble: Associate Professor of Instrumental Music, and Jazz, and a phenomenal player [trumpet]; Willy had a 3 year stint in jazz. ''The thing that stuck with me the most from Dave was pick as scale and noodle with it [another cooking analogy].

Other bands Willy was a member of....ROCK BAND HERO, MOST WANTED, CALVERY CHAPEL WORSHIP LEADER, BAD HABIT, and THE NAKED TRUTH.

Lois Hinners - Guitar, Song Writer, Vocals played with Charles Atkins Blues Band duing 2010, she has since moved on to play solo gigs and form her own band. Lois Hinners is from Naples, Florida and studied Classical and Jazz guitar for four years at the University of Miami. This versatile musician has performed with many groups through the years - playing lead guitar and singing lead vocals. Her most successful groups to date are: "Take Five", "Hot Date", "Mistress", "Delta Crossing", and "Down Home Blues Band".

"Take Five" was a rock band. They played the Naples circuit in the 80's. Later, Hinners joined the all female rock band, "Hot Date", as lead guitar player and lead singer. The band performed two scenes in the movie, "Spring Break" and was well received at the popular nightclubs, "J.W. West House of Rock" and the "Rock Palace" in Ft. Lauderdale and at "Art Stock's Playpen" in Miami.

After, "Hot Date", She went on the road with the all female rock band, "Mistress". They played at "Big Daddy's in Naples and "The Apple" in Winterhaven, FL, before heading west -performing mostly in the northwest U.S., Canada, Alaska and even the Yukon.

Another notable band was "Delta Crossing", which she joined in 1997. “The blues have come to Naples. They've come in the guise of a new rhythm and blues band called Delta Crossing...” - this was quoted in a February 7, 1997, "Night Scene" article in the Naples Daily News, titled, "Delta Crossing Sings the Blues at Ridgeport Pub.” The article goes on to say that they “produce a kind of trashcan blues worthy of any smokey bar in Chicago.” Hinners, the only female in this very professional 4-member band, was described this way, “...it's the bottom-of-a-whiskey-barrel vocals of Hinners which sets the group apart from other R&B bands. Eerily reminiscent of a young Janis Joplin, Hinners belts out songs so full of passion and pain, she made the whole crowd at Ridgeport Pub remember when their own hearts were broken.

Since moving to a small laid-back southern Georgia town several years ago, Hinners has spent much of her time songwriting. In the last couple of years, she has made a few rare solo appearances in Tallahassee, performing a variety of music - from Blues, R&B and Rock to Jazz, Latin and Originals. Even in this setting, her powerful vocals and skilled guitar playing will knock your socks off!

In early 2006, Hinners began playing tunes with two Tallahassee musicians, Adam Gaffney (who plays bass) and Deborah Berlinger (on percussion) and formed the "Down Home Blues Band.” Hinners plays lead guitar and sings all of the lead vocals. The band plays Blues, Jazz, R&B and just a little Rock-n-Roll (Covers and Originals).

Deborah "Sweetgroove" Osborne-Berlinger - Percussion: "I don't wanna work, I wanna bang on de drum all day!!!"

Young Deb, reaaaallllllly young Deb, was constantly in the kitchen cupboards, pulling out canned vegetables, removing the labels to have matching cans and then proceeded to set them up like drums and bang on them. Out of desperation to know what vegetable they were having for dinner, Deb's parents bought her a toy drum set at the age of four. And, it’s been nothing but noise and rhythm since. Sweetgroove 2000 and 2004

Deb grew up in Ft. Myers, Florida where her introduction to music was throughout her school years playing percussion in concert, jazz and matching bands, and rock bands. She also attended music programs at Edison Community College and the University of Southern Mississippi. Most of her playing involved special productions where drum solos where featured. Realizing those two bass drums, hundreds of tom-toms, and a zillion cymbals were too much baggage; she scaled down to a simple drum kit. Later, through the 70’s and 80’s, she played in various local groups, outside of Tampa and in the Panama City areas. In mid to the late 80’s she quit playing and sold everything.

Around 10 years ago, the music bug bit again and she picked up playing congas and djembe, and various Latin percussion instruments with friends. But, once again, those cans in the cupboard started looking too good. So, in 2004, she invested in another drum kit and has been honing her skills, waiting for the opportunity to find the right venue.

Deb also played percussion with Tallahassee's only Hindi chanting group, "Om Sweet Om", "Blue Chameleon, "The Dead Keys", "Trial by Stone". Her current bands include Sharla June and The Mayhaws, Cheap and Easy and The Crawlers. Check out Deb's website.