Johnny Dilks

• Active: '90s
• Genres: Country
• Instrument: Vocals

Biography

Born and raised in San Mateo, CA, rockabilly and Western swing was hardly the choice of music for Johnny Dilks until he was a young teenager. It was then that his aunt gave him her record collection, which contained albums by Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, and other artists. It was Dilks intention to sell the records and make some money, but instead, the proprietor of the store where he had taken them turned him on to Western swing and honky tonk country. Although he continued to play in local punk bands during his high school years, Dilks joined a rockabilly band when he was 18, and a year later formed the Rhythm Wranglers, a Western swing act that managed to garner a following in the Bay Area. He was concurrently playing in the original version of the Visitacion Valley Boys, named after an area south of San Francisco that had been a hotbed for the country music of the '40s that had inspired Dilks. In 1998, the Visitacion Valley Boys, whose lineup included Dilks as lead singer and guitarist Paul Wooton, fiddle player Brian Godchaux, steel guitarist Billy Wilson, stand-up bassist Brendan Ryan, and drummer Pat Campbell, were invited to back hero Charlie Louvin on a string of West Coast dates. The following year, now signed to Hightone, Dilks released his debut, Acres of Heartache, to enthusiastic reviews praising the manner in which he had captured the spirit of the music he had embraced. In 2002, Dilks' band consisted of bass player Marc Bernasconi, guitarist Hank Maninger, steel player Les Jeffriess, and drummer Leor Beary. ~ Tom Demalon, All Music Guide

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