Songwriters Showcase

Every Wednesday Night... Join Chuck Seaton and Billy Russell's Songwriters' Showcase at Prime Cut for some real Bakersfield music.

Got a Song, Bring It On.

Special Guests announced here first. Please check back for the latest news.

Chuck Seaton & Billy Russell's Bio

Chuck Seaton was born in Bakersfield CA. He moved around the country a few times but something kept bringing him back home. Both of his parents played and sang, so he was raised around family jam sessions. When he saw The Beatles on TV, he was hooked. He got his first guitar at ten years old and has been playing ever since.

Chuck has played in many local bands through the years including: Axis, Teaser, The Buddy’s, Lil’ Elvis, Wayne Seaton Band, Hot Taco, and probably the most familiar, Big House, which was signed to MCA Nashville Records in 1996.

Big House took Chuck out on the road for a few years. During that period they opened for an impressive list of country stars from that era, and sold out many shows as the headliner at several venues, including Bakersfield’s own Crystal Palace.

Billy Russell was also born in Bakersfield, CA. He can’t remember a day that he wasn’t around music growing up. It was inbeded within the famly tree. Everyone was self-taught musician’s. Even his grandmother, when she was a child, couldn’t wait to get her chores done so she could go out on the porch and play guitar. Billy learned how to play guitar at the age of six. His older brother, Danny, taught him his first song, Noreigen Wood by the Beatles and he has been hooked ever since.

Billy was influenced by many different types of music. His mother liked motown, while his father liked country and his siblings enjoyed good old rock-n-roll. One day you would hear Billy jammin’ to Jimmy Hendrix and ZZ Top and the next, the Beatles and The Allman Brother’s.

Although Billy played on and off with a number of bands in the begining, his first professional band was Southbound 89’ which played classic rock. He also played for the Wayne Seaton Band. During the early 90’s he formed a gig that brought together the founding members of Big House, which he was a member of. Besides being a lead guitarist for the band, he also co-wrote a number of their songs.

Billy remember’s the first time he played with Chuck for the Wayne Seaton Band. There was a magical thing that they had together, he just felt it and Chuck did too. Not long after that they wrote their first song together within a few hours time, “That’s Alright." Chuck and Billy continued to write songs together. They formed a band and wanted to come up with a catchy name for it. One night after eating taco’s and drinking beer, they decided to call themselves ”Hot Taco." They released their 17 song debut album in 2003.

The duo was captivated years ago by a hole in the wall place called the The Blue Bird Cafe' in Nashville Tennessee. This legendary place is known for songwriter showcases. Together, they wanted to bring something similar to Bakersfield. They played a number of different venues throughout town, but it wasn't until Chuck came into The Prime Cut for lunch one day that he thought to himself this might just work. Billy loved the layout of the place and felt it was perfect.

Still writing, for the past year the duo has hosted their weekly, highly successful Songwriter Showcase at Bakersfield’s Prime Cut, every Wednesday from 7:00-10:00pm. During this time they have featured such guests as Mayf Nutter, Lisa Bowman, Rudy Parris, Brant Cotton, Ed Berghoff, and many more. They are proud of our local talent and are honored to have the opportunity to participate in the development and growth of the up and coming, and to showcase the seasoned songwriter. Since the inception of Chuck & Billy's Songwriter's Showcase, other venues have incorporated something similar. They have inspired a whole city to get on the songwriter band wagon.