Interview with Denim and Leather Bassist and Founder Jeff Baker

July 01, 2024

Interview with Denim and Leather Bassist and Founder Jeff Baker

By Mad T

Cosmick View: Welcome Jeff! Thanks for taking some time out of your day to speak with us. It's greatly appreciated. Tell us about Denim and Leather and how it got started.

Jeff Baker: Well, it’s is kind of a long story but I will try to make it short. I was living in Las Vegas, Nevada and I was a promoter for a couple music venues out there. By doing that I ended up becoming really good friends with both Leatherwolf and Metal Church among other bands as well. Both Ronny Munroe (lead singer of Metal Church at the time) and Geoff Gayer (guitarist for Leatherwolf) and I (on bass) always use to talk about making a tribute/cover band and jam out to our favorite bands’ songs together. Not only did we think it would be a lot fun but what better place to start this type of band then in Las Vegas which loves Hard Rock & Metal but also really embraces tribute/cover bands as well as original music. So, in 2006 we recruited our friend Ira Black (Lizzy Borden) who at the time was filling in for Kurdt Vanderhoof of Metal Church to be the second guitarist and we got local musician Rob Daley on drums. We performed our first show at Tailspin in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2006. Denim and Leather moved to the east coast in 2012 when I moved back east.

CV: Who were some of the notable members that passed through Denim and Leather? What was it like working with them?
JB: Well, like I said the band started with vocalist Ronny Munroe (Metal Church & Trans-Siberian Orchestra), guitarist Geoff Gayer (Leatherwolf) and Ira Black (Lizzy Borden, Heathen & Vicious Rumors). Ronny has come back a couple times and done shows with us over the years. Vocalist James Rivera (Helstar, Seven Witches & Vicious Rumors) had a long period of years with us. He sang for Denim and Leather in both the Las Vegas version and the east coast versions. Guitarist Mark Simpson (Flotsam and Jetsam, Bang Tango & Beautiful Creatures) and Jay Reynolds (Malice & Metal Church) also played guitars for Denim and Leather. We have had vocalist Ski (Deadly Blessing, Altered State & Faith Factor) and currently we have Bobby “Leatherlungs” Lucas (Attacker, Seven Witches & Overlord) on vocals who has been with us for many years now. It’s been a lot of fun playing with such talented musicians over the years and today we still keep in touch and from time to time some of the musicians make guest appearances with us.

CV: You have also worked with Metal Church and Leatherwolf. What were those experiences like?
JB: Amazing. It’s hard to believe that I became friends with two bands that I grew up loving so much. It’s created a long & loyal friendship that I am very thankful for.

CV: You've previously played in original bands. What would you consider the difference between playing original and cover music?
JB: I personally love doing both. Well believe it or not, doing covers aren’t for everyone and there is a difference. I have found over the years that some people think because it’s a cover song that it will be easier to be in a cover band than an original. That’s not the case. For example… numerous times we have had musicians that wanted to try out for Denim and Leather that were in original bands and once they started to try to learn our set list they come back to us and say, Wow this isn’t as easy as I thought and then decide they don’t want to do it. Interesting huh?

CV: Besides the financial benefits venues get with booking a tribute or cover band to perform, why do you feel audiences themselves seem to prefer these bands over original local acts? Why are they so popular?
JB: I am not so sure they prefer them over original acts. I would never say anyone loves a tribute or cover band over like say an original band like Judas Priest. I will say I do think people react to songs that they know already and/or haven’t heard in a while by bands they know they already love. With Denim and Leather people love to relive the songs, genre and era of music which is classic 70’s (late) & 80’s Hard Rock & Heavy Metal. This is why I chose to call the band “Denim and Leather” the song from Saxon that is about an era and genre of music that we are all about.

CV: Is there still a market for original bands to participate and to thrive in? If so, where does that market exist?
JB: Yes, but this is a complicated question. Do I think original music is nearly as popular as it was in the past? No, unfortunately. But I think original music is still out there but the reason it’s smaller IMO is people aren’t buying CD’s and radio stations mostly play older music. MTV isn’t what it used to be anymore but at least we have things like the internet and social media that can help the awareness of it. The days of MTV, etc pushing new music are mostly gone. Old songs now represent 70 percent of the U.S. music market, according to the latest numbers from MRC Data, a music-analytics firm.

CV: Tribute acts have now swept the regional and national markets, with several well-known artists, like Joey Belladonna and Zack Wylde, forming their own tribute bands and booking nationwide tours. How do you see this affecting the long-term original music scene? Where does this leave up and coming original acts when the big names are seemingly abandoning new, original music?
JB: Hmmm. I don’t think it affects any of their original music. It never affected say Bobby “Leatherlungs” Lucas from doing Denim and Leather and then Attacker or James Rivera from doing Denim and Leather and then doing Helstar for example. Besides Bobby currently doing Denim and Leather he has always loved to do Iron Maiden Tribute bands, James still does other tribute bands and his original as well. Both love to do both. It doesn’t affect either in a negative way. It’s just fun and another way to get out there and play for people and do what you love. Yeah this is what Denim and Leather started to do back in 2006 with well known artists performing tribute/cover songs. I personally think the reason they are doing this is the same reason we did it, was to have fun and pay tribute to the past and to songs we all grew up loving. We all like to relive this music we grew up loving.

CV: In your experience, what do you feel the ultimate goal is for cover and tribute bands?
JB: A main goal is to pay tribute to the bands and/or songs! For people (including the cover or tribute band playing the music) to have fun reliving it all! Music is a passion and part of our lives. Hearing a favorite song or band that you have loved can be such a fulfilling and uplifting experience when a cover or tribute band does it well. It’s also a great way to pay homage to the bands we all love.

CV: What can fans expect next from Denim and Leather in the future?
JB: Well, we have a number of shows coming up for the remainder of the year and a few new places we will be playing. We also have new songs we will be preforming.

Check out Denim and Leather at:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/denimandleathertribute

About Mad T

Drummer to the traditional Heavy Metal band Corners of Sanctuary, Mad T has always had a knack for finding out what the word on the street is. With recently joining the Cosmick Krew, Mad T is refining his knack into a skill.