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We're not talking about just any guy here. Most anybody who's ever met Wally loves him. That's what happens when you meet Wally. He just has a way of making everyone around him happier. Wally's got an infectious spirit.
-Eric McFadden on the outpouring of support for Wally |
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Photo by Kayceman :: European Stockholm Syndrome Tour - 2004
According to Schools, it was Ingram's ability to bring the rock that ultimately cemented his job as the band's drummer.
Ingram & Schools :: Stockholm Syndrome
Germany 2004 By Kayceman |
"When Jerry Joseph and I put the Stockholm Syndrome together a few years back, we knew we wanted Wally on drums but we were a little worried about his ability to really, really ROCK," Schools explains. "Wally had been doing the duet thing with David Lindley for so long, which was a showcase for his percussive talent but a far cry from the arena rock drumming style we had in mind for the Syndrome. So the big question became, 'Can Wally rock?'"
It didn't take long for Joseph and Schools to get an answer.
"Literally 16 bars into the first full-band version of 'Counter Clock World,' Jerry and I made eye contact and with huge grins caught ourselves both mouthing the same words - 'Wally CAN rock!,'" Schools says. "Without Wally's drumming expertise, the band might not have been as powerful as it was... and without Wally's one-of-a-kind personality, life on the tour bus would have been far less enjoyable."
Butch Vig, Jackson Browne, Keb' Mo, Sheryl Crow, Bonnie Raitt, George Clinton, Wally Ingram
Eric McFadden, Paula O'Rourke, Tad Wadhams and more :: 01.31.07 Benefit Concert by Schwank |
This weekend's festivities (2/9 & 2/10) in San Francisco have a steep challenge ahead to top the benefit concert held at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, California less than two weeks ago featuring performances from Raitt, Browne, Crow, McFadden, Garbage and the Section Quartet, The Martinis with Joey Santiago and David Lovering of The Pixies, Keb' Mo', Freedy Johnston and the Know-It-All Boyfriends, Victoria Williams, Tom Freund and Kevin O'Neal and the Radiant Voices.
Wally, Sheryl Crow, George Clinton
01.31.07 Benefit Concert |
"It was a mind-blowing dream night," Ingram recalls. "When I started hearing the names of people who had agreed to be there, I was just overwhelmed. It was absolutely beyond my wildest dreams. I have to thank all the musicians who contributed their time and energy to the show. I need to thank Butch Vig from Garbage, who is a friend of mine from back in Madison, Wisconsin; he really organized the whole night. I also need to thank Tad Wadhams, who played bass with me in Sheryl's band and brought Joey Santiago and David Lovering from the Pixies, set up the string quartet and handled the backline. Tom Campbell at Guacamole Fund needs special thanks as well. When it got so big that it was out of control, Tom and his folks stepped in and helped out a lot. It wouldn't have happened without all these great people and all the fans that showed up that night."
In a night filled with spur-of-the-moment collaborations and special guests, perhaps the biggest surprise of the night came when Australian pop rockers Crowded House emerged to play their first set together in more than 10 years.
"The fact that Crowded House hadn't played a show in 10 years and played at my benefit, that really meant a lot to me," Ingram says. "When I was touring with Sheryl Crow in the '90s, we opened for Crowded House for about three months one year. About a month into the tour, Paul Hester quit after a show at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta. The band came to me and asked if I'd help them out and play their set the next few nights while they looked for another drummer. So I stayed up all night in the back lounge of the bus listening to CDs and writing notes all the way to Nashville getting ready for the gig. I ended up playing like 15 or so shows on the tour before they finally found a new drummer. So when Butch called and said that they were going to be in L.A. and wanted to come down to the show, it just blew me away!"
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