The Silver Tongued Devils
The Silver Tongue Devils are a who’s who of Northwest All-Stars!
Tim Scott – Silver-Tongued founder member Tim Scott, vocalist, bassist, songwriter, is a veteran professional of the music community. His soulful voice and funky bass have graced the stage with many of the most notable names in bluesbased music, including: Eric Clapton, Stevie Wonder, Billy
Preston, Dr. John, and John Mayall. Tim was a member of the R&B/Soul band, Jack Mack and The Heart Attack for 18 years, performing with them at
the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, as was dramatized in Clint Eastwood’s 2019 film, Richard Jewell. Working out of L.A., Tim logged in tours with Tower of Power, Dave Mason, Robben Ford, Etta James, Mavis Staples, The Grammy All Stars, Zen Blues Quartet (with drummer Steve Ferrone and organist Mike Finnigan). Tim Scott has collaborated on numerous albums and sound tracks as both instrumentalist and vocalist, as well as a composer.
Jay Thomas – The Silver Tongued Devils proudly features virtuoso Jay Thomas. His trumpet, flugelhorn, alto, tenor, soprano, and flute playing is crucial to forging the band’s stylistic synthesis of R&B and jazz. Jay grew up in Seattle’s ’60s jazz scene. While still in high school, he was the recipient of two DownBeat Magazine scholarships to Boston’s Berklee School of Music. Moving to New York in 1968, he then joined Machito’s Latin Band and recorded for James Moody. Jay is on over 100 CDs, including 21 as leader or co-leader. He has also recorded with many heavy-weight players, most notably Cedar Walton, Billy Higgins, Ray Brown, and Elvin Jones. Jay, in his own words: . . . “lyrical without losing touch with the blues,” yeah, I wrote that about myself… hell yes… I play pretty sometimes and am not ashamed to admit it… and do I love the blues feeling? Yes, a thousand times,
yes.” Leonard Feather said: “Jay Thomas, a Walton protégé from Seattle, is a protean performer. A fluent soloist on trumpet and flugelhorn, he
switches to flute and, to top it off, the amazing Thomas plays tenor sax. . .” — Leonard Feather, five stars, Los Angeles Times
Mike Jaap (“Dr. Jop”) – Keyboardist, vocalist, composer, and educator, W. Michael Jaap has played preeminent venues all around the globe. “Dr. Jop” has worked on stage and in the studio with Blues, R ’n’ B, and jazz royalty, including Robert Cray, Elvin Bishop, B. B. King, James Brown, Ernie Watts, Eddie Harris, Stanley Turrentine, and Larry Coryell. In addition to performing, Mike Jaap also composes film and television soundtracks, including his notable creations for the PBS series “Over Washington” and “Over New England.”
Ben Smith – Few Seattleites can claim having played London’s Royal Albert Hall. Such a one is Ben Smith. Ben gained notoriety initially as a first-call session percussionist for dates in Seattle recording studios. After graduating from Seattle’s Garfield High School, Ben moved to NYC to gig with Phoebe Snow. In 1996, he began working with the Wilson Sisters, Ann and Nancy, subsequently joining Heart for live and studio-produced
CD releases. Additionally, Ben Smith has performed and/or recorded with Taj Mahal, Leroy Bell & His Only Friends, Peter Frampton, Sugar Pie de Santos, Cornelius Bumpus, Danny O’Keefe, Ernestine Anderson, among other first tier artists. Smith also has contributed drum tracks and production
ideas for motion picture productions, including several by director/writer Cameron Crowe.
John Hanford – Prior to founding The Silver Tongued Devils with Tim Scott, guitarist John Hanford was a member of Tacoma’s Fabulous Wailers. Prior to “The Wailers,” John worked for singers Kathi McDonald, and Washington Blues Society Lifetime Awardee, Patti Allen. While playing Seattle clubs through the ‘90s and into “Century 21,” John also taught music history at his alma mater, U.W. School of Music. Asked about his “main influences,” the radioactive Hanford responded: “The Silver Tongued Devils!”
