Hoodoo Kings: (l-r) Brian Fahey, Paul Thomas, Mario Moreno, and Dave Trippy

Mile-high hair, wingtip shoes with soulful blues in between, the Hoodoo Kings delighted with a raw, gritty sound and energetic zeal that could only be curbed when the music stopped to fan down overheated vintage tube amps. Listening to the band for the first time one could imagine this was what it was like walking into a club in Hamburg to discover the young lads from Liverpool. Shortly after taking this group photo, the Hoodoo Kings were named the best blues band in Phoenix, an accolade that was repeated again several years later.

Detail of Mario Moreno’s guitar

Sadly, when the 2014 Arizona Blues Hall of Fame induction celebration for the Hoodoo Kings takes place this month, two members of the band will not be in attendance. Dave Trippy passed away in 2001 and Paul Thomas died in 2011.