HERRIMAN, Utah, Dec. 4, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — When Roseanne Simpson first heard her neighbor and longtime friend, Mark Krueger, was recruiting people to be in his start up band, she thought “Why not me?”
She had always been curious about being in a band, and thought she could maybe stand in the background and play a tambourine. So when she told Mark about her musical dream, he told her, “Come over… and play the tambourine.”
Fast forward three years later, and Simpson is the lead female vocalist in Rosie And The Thorns, which takes the stage at Herriman’s Redemption Bar & Grill for a show on Saturday.
The three-story bar’s intimate basement venue, which hosts live bands, comedy shows, karaoke and other entertainment, is known for selling out quickly. It’s quickly becoming a local hotspot, and has caught the eye of musicians and promoters, including up-and-coming acts like Whitney Lusk — the Spanish Fork country/rock singer who’s turning heads in Nashville — who played to a packed house at Redemption a couple of weeks ago.
While Rosie And The Thorns is a rock and roll cover band, and perhaps unlikely to fill stadiums anytime soon, their energy and genuine joy of music makes for a great night of entertainment. Its members may be a tad older than those in an average start-up band, with the exception of a whippersnapper who’s in his 20s, but their passion and enthusiasm comes shining through.
It all started with Mark Krueger, Simpson said. While helping care for a friend who had a knee replaced, Krueger decided it was time to fulfill a dream, before it was too late.
Krueger told Gephardt Daily he was talking to his friend when he mentioned he loved the bass. “I told him I watched bass videos all the time, and he freaked out and said ‘Dude, you got to learn how to play.'”
The friend recommended a music school he had gone to, and Krueger signed up for classes. While he may have been a late bloomer, he found the experience deeply rewarding.
“Listening to beginner musicians that are adults, doing what they always wanted to do, was pretty cool,” Krueger said. He continued honing his skills, and when a planned blues band with fellow students did not pan out, Krueger began recruiting people to play in his living room, and later a basement bar he built.
Building the bar and performance space required him to get rid of some furniture, which he offered free. A man named Sam Fuller was interested in a few furniture pieces, so Krueger and one of his sons offered to deliver them.
“When we were delivering it to his house, I saw a keyboard in there,” Krueger recalled. “And I go, ‘Hey, dude, do you play keyboard? I’m looking for a keyboard player.’ I said ‘Are you interested? And he goes, ‘Maybe.”
It was then and there Rosie And The Thorns found its keyboard player.
Simpson honed her “raspy rocker” style and shares vocal duties with male singer Jim Shingler, whose sound Simpson says is rooted in rock but with a blend of soul and funk.
The band began accepting gigs about a year ago. Formed by a patchwork of friends, neighbors, and a couple strangers, it’s now a family, Simpson said, one that’s nurturing, and supportive and a heckuva lot of fun.
“It’s given us opportunities to grow. It gets me out of my comfort zone and forces me to grow, and it’s addicting,” she said of performing. “You get up on stage and you start singing, you’re like, ‘Oh, this is kind of cool.'”
So, what’s in store for the personal boundary pushing, newly confident musicians?
“We just want to perform as much as we can, as much as our adult schedules will allow,” Simpson said. “We just want to have fun with it. We’re not going to be opening for any big name band on tour. We’re too busy for that. Most of us have to be at work.”
Krueger echoes Simpson’s sensibilities and encourages anyone who is able to pursue their dreams, regardless of age.
“I get to play with talented musicians, and the musical challenge for me has been fun,” he said. “lt’s been very fulfilling. It’s all about challenging yourself and having fun.”
And for their listeners:
“We’re all about creating high-energy fun, rump shakin’ and an amazing time!”
Redemption Bar & Grill is at 3517 W. Maradona Drive, Herriman. Rosie And The Thorns plays at 9 p.m. Saturday. It’s a 21-and-older event. Doors open at 8. Advance tickets are $10, and can be purchased here.
Redemption Bar & Grill is a proud sponsor of Gephardt Daily and supporter of independent local journalism in Utah.
