Thunder Canyon

A select few bands can say they’ve made it to the hall of fame, but this summer local favorites Matt Chase and Thunder Canyon have made it to two halls of fame. No, they haven’t ascended to the rarified air of Nashville’s Country Music Hall. But they did land a prestigious gig at the Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, as part of a concert series, on July 5, and this summer returned to Cooperstown to entertain baseball elite on July 20 during their annual Baseball Hall of Fame induction festivities. 

In between, the Vernon-based quintet hit the big stage for Bouckville’s inaugural New York Country Fest, opening the July 14 show starring Tracy Lawrence and Big and Rich. All in all, it’s turned into a hot summer for Chase and his mates as they approach the band’s 20th anniversary together, coming up in December. 

“I have two original members still with me: Jeff D’Aprix, my bass player and Gary Burns, my steel player,” Chase points out. “They’ve been with me since day one.” Lead guitarist Mike Bullock and drummer Eric Cappotto round out the fivesome. 

After 33 years of playing locally, Chase, who sings leads and plays guitar and keyboards, credits thorough preparation and a devotion to pleasing fans for his band’s longevity. “We took 10 months working in a basement before we took our first gig,” he recalls. “I’ve had professional players, good players. We all get along very well. We are a cover band, there’s no question about that, but we play what’s on the radio as current as we can. Of the modern country, some of it I don’t care for now because it has changed so much. But to stay competitive, you’ve still got to work it in.”

Chase also still performs with his mother Thelma, who, along with a famous musician from his childhood, served as his inspiration. “I’ve always been a big fan of the classics and I got it from my mom,” he says. “We still perform together. My mom’s been performing close to 40 years. I got started at 6 or 7. At that time—I’m going to age myself—Glen Campbell had his television show. {The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour ran on CBS from 1969 to 1972}. I was really fascinated by that. My dad got me a guitar and I’ve been doing it ever since.”   

Both hall of fame shows are now annual gigs for Thunder Canyon, with the Cooperstown show—this year’s was their seventh—providing lasting memories of encounters with both baseball and country music royalty. “You get to see all the players and over the years we’ve gotten to be friends with (former Red Sox and Yankees star) Wade Boggs,” Chase marvels. “He’d get up there every year and do some Toby Keith with us.” 

Boggs also served as photographer of a photo cherished by Chase, showing him with pro baseball player-turned legendary singer Charley Pride. “That was probably 2005 or 2006 when we played with Charley Pride,” Chase says. “He’s always been a big baseball fan and they brought him in to do the national anthem on Saturday. He came over that night and did a few songs with us. “He said, ‘Can you boys do ‘Crystal Chandeliers,’ and I said, ‘Boy can we ever!’ Sunday night he came back. He was up with us an hour-and-a-half and it was the thrill of my life.”

This year the band played a tent party for hundreds of invited guests in the birthplace of baseball to celebrate the inductions of infielders Barry Larkin and Ron Santo. 

Syracuse-area fans can catch Chase and his mates at Marcellus Park, Platt Road, Marcellus, on Thursday, July 26, 6:30 p.m.; at Chittenango Falls State Park, 2300 Rathbun Road, south of Chittenango, Aug. 9, 6:30 p.m.; and at the New York State Fairgrounds’ Empire Room, Aug. 16, 6 p.m.. The complete band schedule,
bios and photos are on their website, thundercanyonband.net.