Fernando Pinto now booking Resurrection of Screamin' Jay Hawkins

Fernando Pinto he might not be your everyday name but the next time you visit a concert or music show he may be the very one who brought that great band to your town that you enjoyed.

Interview by Robert Pinancle

What got you first interested in music?

As far as I remember I must have been 11 yrs old. I grew up in the north of Portugal, very religious area, my parents use to make me go to church at night, and the fun for me was on the way home, a group of us, maybe 20 plus kids about my age would try to change the lyrics of religious songs and sing a cappella style and I loved the sound of all our voices harmonizing together. My older sister also influenced me, she was good at singing a style of music called, Desgarrada and she would get me to rhyme songs with her and we would sing at fairs and neighborhood parties and people would throw money at us, which was awesome, and better than getting hit on head with an empty can of beer. Moving forward, maybe 1981, I went to the Festival of Vilar De Mouros, to see U2, Echo & The Bunnymen and The Stranglers, my first time being exposed to alternative music and punk, when we arrived the Stranglers were about to hit the stage, —The Stranglers came on stage with such a raucous energy that hooked me instantly.

How did you decide you wanted to be a booking agent and how many years have you been doing this?

I’ve been involved with bringing music to Connecticut since 1982, I owned and booked three legendary venues, the Nightshift Cafe' in Naugatuck, from 1982/ 89, there I brought legendary Rockn’Roll, Blues, Soul and Alternative Artists, Bo Diddley, Hubert Sumlin, Pinetop Perkins, Alex Chilton, Sonic Youth, Flaming Lips, all played there. Got tired of running a live music venue in the valley where Van Halen and Ozzy was all the music they wanted to hear, sold the business in 89 and moved to New Haven and got involved with the Moon, that’s where I presented Nirvana in August of 91, three days before Nevermind got released. This performance is the only time Nirvana ever played in Connecticut and voted by Connecticut magazine as one of the top 10 live concerts that happened in Connecticut the last fifty years. There’s many videos of Nirvana live at the Moon in New Haven on YouTube for the curious. Many other greats performed at the Moon, in 1991, I decided to get a bigger venue, out of a bad comment that Kurt Cobain made, — “Fernando you seem like a nice guy, but this isn’t cool, booking us in a closet”.

I open the Tune Inn in 91 and ran it for 10 years till the rent became so high that I couldn’t continue. Tune Inn Cafe' was known as the CBGB’s of Connecticut. The Tune Inn was 500 capacity, with a record store inside, and I created a record label “ Elevator Music” which I ran out of there, managed to put out 36 releases of Punk, Ska, and Hardcore, with Artists from USA, Portugal, Australia and South America. So becoming an agent was not something I planned, I always helped booking the US tours for the Artists I release on my label, than a few years ago, my friend musician Eddie Seville, asked me if I was interested in booking a tour of the East Coast for Augie Meyers (Texas Tornados and Sir Douglas Quintet) and I said absolutely. I booked Augie Meyers and the Bandoleros 2 weeks of dates around the East Coast in 2017, than Augie asked me if I wanted to book a tour in America for Billy Bremner ( Rockpile Guitarist, the Pretenders) and from working with Billy Bremner, the word got to Linda Gail Lewis (Jerry Lee Lewis younger sister) and from Linda Gail, she suggested me to JC Cole and Folsom 68’ a Johnny Cash tribute, Robert Gordon came out of a suggestion of Guitarist Quentin Jones, and Marty Willson Piper ( Guitarist for the Church), which I represent in Portugal, was a suggestion of another friend, and I just started working with Resurrection of Screamin’ Hawkins Band, a tribute to great voodoo priest, shock rock therapist, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. I am busy man with a great roster of Musicians. I also run a music series: East Rock Concert Series in New Haven CT, where I present most upcoming singer songwriters, roots and world music.

What are some of the acts you represent?

All the ones I listed above.

What are some of the newer acts you have and took an interest in and represent them?

The most recent Artists I am booking it’s JC Cole and Folsom 68’ the Johnny Cash tribute and Resurrection of Screamin’ Hawkins Band. Both are great at honoring and represent the original Artists, Cash and Screamin’ Jay, two artists I always liked.

What made you want to represent the Resurrection of Screamin' Jay Hawkins Band, and how are they different than other musical acts?

Yes, it’s true, I heard of Resurrection of Screamin' Jay Hawkins Band, a few years ago, and I reached out to them, to book them in New Haven and than COVID stopped everything, so a few months ago I saw they were starting to play out again, I reach out to them for a show and we ended up talking about representing them as their agent. They fit perfectly in my roster of Artists and are going to put a spell on everyone. Watch out. I enjoy diversity in music, my taste in music goes from A to Z,

Where is your place of business located and what website can they go to in case they want to book one of your acts.

I am in New Haven CT during the warm weather and in Portugal during the winter months, leaving to Portugal next week till March. My website - Fernando Pinto Presents

Thanks for the interview.

Fernando