With the exception of a short time in the early 2000’s, Flashback has been a constant on the local music scene for 17 years. Fish on drums and Jammin’ Jeff Maximum on lead guitar have been mainstays for many years and bass guitar player and vocalist Jody Mendez joined Flashback two years ago. Flashback was nominated for “The Cover Band of the Year” in 1996 at The Houston Press awards, won the “Fast Track to Fame” competition in Nashville in 1998 and won the KLOL Stephens and Pruett Battle of the Bands in 1999. They have appeared on television and have played several festivals. I caught up with the trio at Texas Music Emporium recently and also got some help for this month’s cover story from Dave Miller. 

     “Danny Van Driver was the founder of Flashback in 1993,” Fish says. “I soon joined as the drummer and shortly after that I got to know Jammin’ Jeff and we soon downsized to a trio. We have been rocking ever since. We are a party band with a lot of energy. We can get a little goofy and have plenty of fun.”

     “It was the fun part that attracted me to Flashback,” Jeff says. “I love to be an active guitar player like Angus Young or Pete Townsend. Fish will stand up sometimes when he plays the drums. We are a perfect match.”

    “I love the blues, especially those from Texas,” Jody says. “I like doing covers in Flashback from people like Stevie Ray, Johnny Winter and ZZ Top. This allows me to do Texas Blues and you will hear that style in the original music I write.” Jody played with Monica Marie and the Bluescruisers and played in all of the Blues Festivals that Fish produced and promoted.

     A Flashback show is an interesting mix of music Fish says. “We mix some of our own songs with classic covers like Golden Earring’s ‘Radar Love’, some Eagles songs and even a more current ‘Kryptonite’ from 3 Doors Down. We even cover ‘Eleanor Rigby’ and Sonny and Cher’s, ‘The Beat Goes On’. But we use or own arrangements on all these songs, so don’t expect to hear a copy of a radio hit.”

     Jeff says he looks forward to the future of Flashback. “All three of us write music and it is time to get some recorded product out there. Plus, I think it would be fun to write as a group. I have written some stuff with Fish and Jody is a very talented musician. It could be neat to see what we could come up with together.” 

     Dave Miller is a long-time fan of the band. He says,  “I first met Fish in 1994 when he helped me with the Southern Exposure music paper we were doing. Peggy and I followed Flashback in those days all over the place, when they were a five-piece band with a girl lead singer named Mary Korioth, mostly doing oldies and classic rock covers. When they downsized to the current three-piece they did more really cool covers and a few originals. Their original, “Where Did He Go” was featured on our online web site, The Music Files, in 2000 and remains one of my favorite songs to this day, and should have been an alternative rock hit. We knew Jody from Monica Marie & the Blues Cruisers for about the same amount of time and got to know him for many years, and followed his band, Reckless Southerners when they were playing. Their shows are always a lot of fun and full of energy. Jeff is all over the place playing his guitar and the audience participation really adds to the excitement. All of the guys lend some vocals and that makes for much more versatility. They truly define the term “party band”. They play in our area frequently so look for a future show and go out and see what I mean. You won’t be disappointed.