Doc Holliday

Doc's authentic and enthusiastic style of drumming has been a big part of the Butch Wax sound since he joined the group in 2001. Doc has shared the stage with many big names during his career including Stevie Ray Vaughn, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, and The Kinks. Doc says prior to joining Butch Wax, the highlight of his professional career was playing drums for Bo Diddly. "Playing a Bo Diddly beat for Bo Diddly...well, it just doesn't get any better than that." Since joining Butch Wax, Doc's highlights have included playing with Rock n Roll Hall of Fame member Johnnie Johnson and ex-Rod Stewart guitarist Billy Peek.

Earl Palmer, one of the most prolific studio drummers in the history of rock 'n' roll, and Charlie Watts, the drummer for The Rolling Stones, are the drummers who have had the most influence over Doc's style. Doc has been playing drums for over 40 years and his musical resume includes rock 'n' roll, glam rock, rockabilly, and his biggest musical passion...the blues. "I dearly love the blues," he says. "It's where it all started. I never get tired of listening to Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Junior Wells, and Big Joe Turner. The world will never see musicians like them again." As for playing with Butch Wax, Doc says, "It's like completing the circle. My earliest musical memories are of listening to Elvis, Buddy Holly, Eddie Cochran, Little Richard, and Chuck Berry. I was just a kid but I already had rock 'n' roll in my blood. Then along came groups like The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Dave Clark Five, and The Animals. By then I was learning how to play the drums and my friends and I were able to copy those bands, though not very well. Now, with Butch Wax, we play many of the songs I was playing back then. There is a timeless quality to those songs and people of all ages seem to enjoy listening and dancing to them. My goal every night is to put the wiggle in your butt. When I see people smiling and dancing, then I feel like I've done my job."

Doc can be emailed at:

Professional Equipment:

5-Piece DW Set-Broken Glass Finish including:
18"x22" Bass
10" Rack Tom
12" Rack Tom
14" Floor Tom
6"x14" Snare
Zildjian 14" Hi-Hat Cymbals
Zildjian (2) 16" Thin Crash Cymbals
Paiste 20" Medium Dark Ride Cymbal
Sabian 18" China Type Cymbal
Gibralter Rack System
Yamaha DTXP3 Drum Trigger Module
Pintech Trigger Pads (3)

Doc's Top 10 Favorites:

Any Song by Robert Johnson
Any Song by Chuck Berry
"All Down the Line" - Rolling Stones
"Ramrod" - Bruce Springsteen
"Look at That...Look at That" - Fabulous Thunderbirds
"You Know I Love You" - Big Joe Turner
"'Bout the Break of Day" - Junior Wells
"It’s Only Rock n Roll (But I Like It)" – Rolling Stones
"The Night Time Is The Right Time" – Ray Charles
"Kashmir" – Led Zeppelin

Biggest Musical Highlight with Butch Wax
"Every single time we played the opening notes to "When You Got a Good Woman" and Johnnie Johnson walked on stage. I mean it. Johnnie Johnson was responsible for inventing Rock 'n' Roll music, and to play drums behind him will always remain my most special musical memory with this band. In fact, it's my most special musical memory ever. I really miss him, God rest his soul."

My Favorite Butch Wax Story
"My favorite story is how ice cream led to me becoming a Hollywood. I was the sales manager for KLOU radio. It was July of 2001 and St. Louis was in the middle of a brutal heat wave. Temperatures were over 100 degrees for like three straight weeks. My sales staff and I decided it would be fun to deliver ice cream to our advertising clients. I asked my sales people if they had any contacts for ice cream and one of them told me she worked with the local sales contact for Blue Bunny Ice Cream. Her contact turned out to be Gene Ackmann, our illustrious bandleader and master of the keyboards. Gene agreed to supply us with the ice cream novelties we needed if we would meet him at his freezer warehouse. We set the date and met him early one morning a few days later. While we were loading ice cream, my sales person told me that Gene was in the band that had recorded "Gotta Go To Work" which was the Rams' theme song the year they won the Super Bowl. I mentioned that I played drums and told him that if they ever needed a drummer I was available. I'll never forget how excited I was when the next words out of Gene's mouth were 'As a matter of fact...' The rest, as they say, is history. Isn't that a cool story? (pun intended)"