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Robert Andrew Wagner - The Little Wretches - Original Music & Storytelling

Episode Summary

Robert Andrew Wagner - The Little Wretches - Original Music & Storytelling Robert Andrew Wagner of The Little Wretches will be here to discuss his latest collection and his longevity in the music world. The Little Wretches was co-founded by brothers Robert Andrew and Charles John Wagner. Bob wrote original songs and adapted traditional folk songs, tried to sing and accompanied himself on guitar while Chuckie worked out counterpoint melodies on violin. Chuckie and Bob were joined by former members of No Shelter, Ed Heidel on bass guitar and John Creighton on flute, percussion and background vocals. Religious missionary Chris Bruckhoff was attracted to the group because a lot of the songs seemed to have spiritual content, and he apparently believed he could recruit the members of The Little Wretches into his church by infiltrating the band. Like John Creighton, Chris sang background vocals and played various percussion and wind instruments. Bob Goetz played electric guitar and did some singing. Deena Alansky took pictures, tried to book gigs, and pasted posters all over town. The original line-up of The Little Wretches debuted at The New Group Theater (founded by Martin Giles in the spirit of the legendary progressive theater company, The Group Theater) along with the godfathers of the Pittsburgh hard-core scene, The Five. The earliest version of The Little Wretches came to an end with the sudden death of John Creighton. John never considered himself an actual member of The Little Wretches (he was just helping out), but he was so much a part of the group's sound and persona that his loss was devastating.

Episode Notes

https://littlewretches.com/home

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