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Terry Quinn and the weazels


LA scrapper and gritty hard rocker, Terry Quinn and the weazels, has been keeping road house rock n' roll, with a heaping helping of blues, alive in SoCal since 2012. But Terry Quinn is no stranger to the scene, bringing his dreams and ambition with him from Mississippi many years ago. With a gritty and soulful singing style reminiscent of Lou Reed, Tom Waits and Joe Cocker fused into one voice box, Terry Quinn belts out his original tunes with all the ferocity of a whiskey soaked howlin' wolf.

I understand you were born and raised in Mississippi but later moved to Los Angeles. How old were you when you made the move and how big of a culture shock was that transition? I was 20 when I got here. It was a huge culture shock…but for me it was in a good way. Very exciting.

Now a fixture in the local L.A. music scene, has your life turned out like you imagined when you first set eyes on California from Mississippi? I should be opening for the Rolling Stones...lol…Sure I would have liked to be more successful. But, also, I was very blessed: songs featured on radio and in a movie. And me, in movies and radio. Tours and CDs and lots of fun can be added to that mix. But I don't think I would be satisfied no matter how successful I was. Your social media accounts describes Terry Quinn and the weazels as a "dynamic, fast and furious 3 piece". Can you elaborate? How would describe your sound? All of that, we like to play hard and fast but we also like to play it pretty sometimes . Your YouTube channel is filled with hard driving, explosive, distortion fueled rock n' roll videos. Who is responsible for creating, producing and filming? That would be Michel Hansen of rf2 studios. He is also the weazels' bass player and from Mississippi. With tunes like, "Black As Romance", "Dirty", "Highway 49" and "Shake It Down Cold", where do you draw inspiration for your songs? "Highway 49" ls an old Howlin' Wolf song that we were doing at some of our shows. Everyone liked it, including us, so we laid it down. We draw inspiration from anything we can. But the best ones seem to be the most personal ones. What is the creative process from idea to lyrics and music to finished product? Well, it's an ongoing process, you know you are always on; always thinking, writing in your head. And when we get a spark, we run with it. What other bands/musicians are you currently into? I am in to everything. I have found that if I don't like some form of music, it's because I don't understand it.

When the National Archives calls for a song to include in their library that is the best representation of Terry Quinn and the weazels, what song would you submit? Why? "Mississippi", cause it really needs a new state song! What one piece of advice would you give to your younger self living in Mississippi? Quit school, dye my hair jet black and move to Los Angeles.

Just how weasley ARE the weazels? Pretty darn weasley...Everyone kept calling us that, so it just stuck. You're a rock n' roll professor giving out a homework assignment to young, aspiring musicians. What 3 albums would you send them home with to study? Why? 1. Johnny Winter. Cause it's so down and dirty . 2. Led Zeppelin 4, Cause Bonham 3. Sticky Fingers …Cause it's my favorite 4. Jimi Hendrix greatest hits…Cause it has Jimi Hendrix on it What do you remember about your very first paid gig? It was a girl named Becky's house party. I made $15 dollars. I was 12. Paramount Pictures calls wanting to do a movie about your life. What actor would play the part of Terry Quinn? Me of course …lol

When you go to that great gig in the sky, what singer/musician would you want to deliver your eulogy and what song would they perform? Hendrix: Machine Gun Where can we go to see more of Terry Quinn and the weazels? We are currently in the studio, but we will be doing a tour up the west coast.

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