John 'Markiss' Marcus

Age: 51 For the record: Howlin' Wolf. Muddy Waters. Buddy Guy. Aside from being some of the best of the best in blues music, these three musicians shared something in common during their careers: guitarist John "Markiss" Marcus. Marcus has played with some legends in his time. The Chicago-born musician has shared the stage with James Cotton and Eric Clapton and toured with the likes of Koko Taylor and Son Seals. Now living in Tucson, Marcus is itching to get to his own solo career. He is testing the waters in the Old Pueblo and will perform at the Boondocks Lounge, 3306 N. First Ave., Saturday. When did you first know you wanted to be a musician? "When I played in an R&B band in my first high school talent show. That's when I really knew for sure that this was it. I just had so much fun doing it." You've performed with the "who's who" of blues music. How did you first break into the genre? "I was with (Howlin') Wolf first. I actually got to play with Wolf when I was at a club on the South Side (of Chicago) with a rock band where he was headlining. We were opening for them. Part of the repertoire in the rock band featured me on a 12-bar blues. He heard me playing and walked up to me and said, 'You have a lot of rock and roll in you son, but you are really a blues man. You need to come out and play with me.' I really wasn't aware of who he was at the time. I heard of him but did not know the magnitude of who he was. But it was more money than I was making at the time so I was like 'sure, man.' "

 

Who are your influences? "My early influences include people like Wes Montgomery, Jimi Hendrix and B.B. King. Cats like that. Not to say those cats aren't still people I admire. But I've also got a strong love now for cats who kind of mentored me like Buddy Guy, Wayne Bennett, Pete Cosey. They showed me how to work, how to be professional and how to be prepared." What's your best onstage success? "Given the chance to jam with Clapton was a big one. We met at one of Buddy Guy's birthday parties. Eric came in for the party. Initially, Buddy was going to have everyone up and playing. I got a chance to sit down and talk to Eric for like 45 minutes. When Buddy started calling cats up to play, Eric was like 'C'mon, man. You come up too.' " What's your dream gig? "If there is anybody I'd love to meet and hang out and do some playing with it would be Carlos Santana because of all the incredible things I've heard about him. Beyond being the incredible musician he is, I heard he is just a great human being and a great light. I would love to be able to meet him, hang out and do some playing with him." Tucson isn't exactly a blues mecca. How did you end up here? "I've actually lived here twice. The first time I lived here was from '84-85. My wife and kids love it down here. One of the main things for me was to come back down here to be able to focus on writing and doing a CD on my own. I'm a playaholic, so it's easy for me to be distracted by a phone call from people saying come do this or that. It's a lot easier for me to come down here so I can be focused. I would like to come more to the forefront with my music. Down here I'll be able to write, put a band together and play the material, work it and revise it. Tucson is a great place for that."

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