Interview BUBBA KEITH

Hi Bubba! Thank you for answering this interview for Road to Jacksonville, the French
webzine dedicated to southern rock.

RTJ - Where and when were you born?

BK - Fort Worth, Texas, June 2, 1950

RTJ - Do you come from a musical family?

BK - I was the first member of my family to pursue a musical career

RTJ - Did you start directly with singing or learning an instrument? What were your musical
influences?

BK - I taught myself to sing and play guitar at 14. My influences were the Beatles, Roy Orbison
and John Lee Hooker

RTJ - I guess you started playing in bands in high school. What were their names? When did
you decide to make music your profession? Professionally speaking, what was your first serious
band?

BK - I started a band in High School when I was 14 called “The G’s” aka “The Guys”. I knew I
was going to be a professional musician at that time.

RTJ - Apparently you joined the James Gang in 1975. Is that correct? Was it through your
friend drummer Jimmy Fox?

BK - I joined the James Gang in 1974 and played with them for two years. We recorded an
album called “Newborn”. Richard Shack, who was playing in a band with me called Uncle
Tom, was good friends with Dale Peters and Jimmy Fox.

RTJ - How long did you stay with the James Gang?

BK - 2 years

RTJ - Did you play in any other bands before joining Point Blank? Apparently, you collaborated
with the duo England Dan and John Ford Coley. When was it ?

BK - Before Point Blank I played with bands like Uncle Tom, Shadowjack, and of course,
England Dan and John Ford Coley from 1976 to 1979.

RTJ - England Dan was none other than the famous Dan Seals who would later become a
country music star. What kind of man was he? Do you have any stories about him? Did you
keep in touch with him?

BK - Danny Seals was a great guy and I loved playing with him. He loved fly fishing and
would practice casting on the hotel parking lots where we stayed. When Danny moved to
Nashville we were both pretty busy in our separate careers.

RTJ - How were you recruited by Point Blank?

BK - They got in touch with me through my friend Wild Bill Randolph (Point Blank's second
bassist, who took over from Phillip Petty after the band's first two albums, editor’s note) while
he was their bass player. I went to Memphis and met with Bill Hamm and the guys in the band.
It was a great fit.

RTJ - You started with the album "American Excess" and you are credited on all tracks. Did
you just write the lyrics or did you participate in the composition of the music? Was the
composition process within Point Blank a collective work?

BK - I wrote music and lyrics on some songs, lyrics only on others and we collaborated as a
band on the rest.

RTJ - Is "American Excess" Point Blank's best selling album? What is your opinion on this
album? Did the song "Nicole" rank well on the charts?

BK - I’m not sure if American Excess was their best selling album, but I know a lot of folks
really liked it. I thought American Excess had great energy and good songs. Our song Nicole
(named for my first born daughter) climbed to number 38 on Billboard.

RTJ - Do you play harmonica on "Cadillac Dragon"? Did you play it live on "Mean to your
queenie"?

BK - I played harmonica on Cadillac Dragon and Mean to Your Queenie when we played it
live.

RTJ - Your voice fit perfectly with the band's new songs. For the old titles, did you have any
difficulty performing them? Listening to bootlegs from that era feels like you've been singing
them all your life. Do you agree ?

BK - I loved singing our new songs, and I really enjoyed singing the songs from their previous
albums. We always had a great time performing.

RTJ - "On a roll" headed firmly towards FM. Was it the wish of the band or the record company
or your manager?

BK - The album On A Roll was an obvious progression to the next step of our musical journey.
Everyone agreed it was the right thing to do.

RTJ - Point Blank opened for ZZ Top on its US tour but did not follow them to Europe. Why ?
Did you have a good relationship with the guys from ZZ Top? What other bands has Point
Blank toured with?

BK - I was not in the band when ZZ Top went to Europe. We always had a good relationship
with ZZ Top. Point Blank toured with Journey, 38 Special, Molly Hatchet, Loverboy, and other
great bands as well.

RTJ - In your opinion, was Bill Ham a good manager for Point Blank? Was ZZ Top his only
concern? Wasn't he worried that Point Blank would outshine ZZ Top?

BK - Bill Ham was Point Blank’s manager and I did not agree with all of his decisions. We
always had a good relationship with ZZ Top and I don’t think he was worried about Point Blank
outshining ZZ Top. We were two bands with two separate roads to travel. I do not know all the
inner workings of what went on but I have my opinions.

RTJ - Besides being a fabulous guitarist, what kind of man was Rusty Burns?

BK - Rusty Burns was the kind of guy you could rely on to have your back in any situation.

RTJ - In 1982, Rusty had a serious accident. Was it a skiing or motorcycle accident? Is this
accident related to the cessation of the group's activity?

BK - In 1982 Rusty had a serious skydiving accident that kept him from playing for a long
time. But, I don’t think this had anything to do with the band thinking we needed to split up.

RTJ - Some rumors claim that in the end there was a falling out between Rusty Burns and Kim
Davis. Is it true ? If so, what was the cause?

BK - It wasn’t about a difference between Rusty and Kim Davis. We were having serious issues
about money with Bill Ham.

RTJ - What do you think are the reasons for Point Blank's discontinuation?

BK - Because of the ongoing issue with Bill Ham. Rusty and Buzzy continued to work with
Bill Hamm, the rest of us continued on recording and playing as Point Blank with a new
drummer.

RTJ - How were the Point Blank musicians dispossessed of the band's name? Can you walk us
through the details of the legal battle with Bill Ham?

BK - We continued in the lawsuit against Bill Ham for quite a while. The trial ended with Bill
retaining the rights to the Point Blank name and a monetary settlement in our favor.

RTJ - What are your worst and best memories with Point Blank? Do you have any memorable
stories from that time?

BK - My worst memory is when Kim Davis punched me in the face over who was going to
drive the car. My best memory is when we returned to Dallas to play a show with April Wine
and Nicole had just become number one in Dallas. Everybody sang along and gave us a rousing
ovation for Nicole. It was my Mother’s birthday and I dedicated the song to her as a present.

RTJ - What did you do after Point Blank? What bands have you played in? Have you kept in
touch with former Point Blank members?

BK - After Point Blank I stepped away from professional music. After a period of time, I puta
band together with my friend Ovid Stevens who played with Seals and Croft as well as England
Dan and John Ford Coley, called Seven. I then started a duo with a great guitar player and
singer named Mike Sauce who I am still working with. I stayed in touch with the guys in Point
Blank until sadly they have all passed away.

RTJ - You participated in the mythical Point Blank reunion in 2005. Why didn't you continue
with the band when it resumed its career? Would you have done it if John O' Daniel hadn't
continued?

BK - When Point Blank reunited with John O’Daniel as the singer, I thought that was the best
thing for the band at that time. He was the original singer and he was great. I just felt like it was
time to do something different.

RTJ - Do you know how Point Blank and Bill Ham agreed to reuse the band's name?

BK - I am not sure how they agreed to reuse the name again.

RTJ - Did you keep in touch with Kim Davis? Regarding his death, is it a suicide? If yes, do
you know the reasons?

BK - I tried to stay in touch with Kim after Point Blank and we would occasionally talk. It was
very sad when he died. I don’t know for certain if it was suicide but I do know that it was a very
tragic death.

RTJ - Have you stayed in touch with Rusty Burns? Rusty passed away in 2016 but the
circumstances of his funeral are rather odd. Do you know where he was finally buried?

BK - I stayed in touch with Rusty until he became very ill. He and his girlfriend moved to
Colorado and no one knew how to get in touch with them. I don’t think anyone knows if or
where he is buried.

RTJ - During your career, you must have crossed paths with many artists. Which ones stood out
to you the most and why?

BK - I had fun with the James Gang on the Alice Cooper tour. He was funny as hell, very
professional and totally unpredictable. I enjoyed touring with Journey and watching Steve Perry
sing every night because it blew me away every time.

RTJ - Have you always managed to make a living from music or have you had to resort to a day
job?

BK - I loved playing music, but the reality is, sometimes most musicians, at one point, had to
get a job to survive.

RTJ - What was your last musical project? Do you have one in preparation?

BK - My latest musical project is a duo called Bubba With Sauce. Featuring myself and Mike
Sauce. We’ve almost completed our CD called The Winds of Time featuring songs that we have
written together and individually. I love it.

RTJ - How do you see the future for the southern rock?

BK - Actually, Southern Rock is still alive and well. Not only are the original bands playing in
some form, but there are literally hundreds of tribute bands as well.

RTJ - What advice would you give to a young singer who wants to get into the business?

BK - The most important piece of advice I can give to any young singer or musician is, no
matter what, don’t quit. If it is your dream, don’t quit. And don’t sign any contract without
reading and understanding what you are signing.

RTJ - What is your most memorable memory of your entire career?

BK - My favorite memory of my career was at the ninth grade talent show in Denton, Texas. It
was the first time that I knew, from the audience’s reaction, that they really liked my singing.
Nothing else comes close to that feeling.

RTJ - Finally, a traditional Road To Jacksonville question. If you were to end your life on a
desert island, what five albums would you take with you?

BK - The five albums I would take are :

Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band (The Beatles, editor’s note),
Aretha Franklin’s~Amazing Grace,
Miles Davis~In A Silent Way,
John Lee Hooker~Serve You Right to Suffer, and Steely Dan~Aja

RTJ - Bubba, thank you for answering this interview. We wish you the best.
Olivier Aubry

Translation of the questions : Y. Philippot-Degand