Take a musical swig

One of the only Dave Matthews cover bands will perform at the Laguna Beach White House on Wednesday.

The band Big Whiskey is named from the Dave Matthews Band’s newest album, “Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King.” The five-man group from Mission Viejo was started by a huge fan of the Dave Matthews Band, Dave Birdno.

“I’ve wanted to start a Dave Matthews band,” Birdno said. “You know, wanted to play their stuff for a long time and nothing ever came of it. And then August of last year, I put a listing on Craigslist. I’ve done it before with no results.”

Birdno then received calls from Scott Smith, Eric Letta, Scott McLaughlin and Christopher Potts. The group immediately clicked from the get-go, playing their first concert after only a month of practice.

Birdno, who has seen the Dave Matthews Band 30 times, said he formed this cover band because he loves the energy of a Dave Matthews concert.

“They’re phenomenal live,” Birdno said. “I love the musicianship. I love not only the energy they get, but the crowd and the interaction they get between the two. They’re all just top-notch musicians.”

Big Whiskey keeps the crowd moving with a unique blend of jazz, rock and R&B; music. At their previous concert at Muldoon’s in Newport Beach, the crowd of 30 was dancing to the rhythm of the music. Their concerts were just as lively as a Dave Matthews Band concert, complete with solos and interaction from the crowd.

Singer McLaughlin said that at their first concert, people kept saying that they sound just like the Dave Matthews Band.

“We had, like, 40 to 50 people come over to watch us play,” McLaughlin said. “We set up and played a real show and people were coming up to us and saying, ‘Damn dude, you sound just like them.’ And ever since, we’ve been picking up live gigs and stuff like that. The whole thing is moving so fast.”

The group also plays their own original songs along with the Dave Matthews songs. According to bass player Smith, the band has become a vehicle through which they could play the Dave Matthews Band songs they love, as well as their own music.

“As musicians we can go wherever we want and we can play and have original tunes and it just goes,” Smith said. “I’ve been in a lot of cover bands and they just play the same songs. With this type of music, we have people that love Dave Matthews and we have people that love good musicianship. And when you have that, it’s like working up the audience and you can see which people are doing it and like it. It’s like a love vibe on stage.”

The Big Whiskey performers have also become more acquainted with the solo improvisations of the Dave Matthews Band members. Lead guitarist Potts uses his electric guitar to play the violin stylings of Dave Matthew’s violinist, Boyd Tinsley.

“It’s very challenging,” Potts said. “For my part, I’ve got to try and do the lead guitar parts and work up a lot of violin parts. But it’s very jamming, so it’s a lot of work.”

Other members, such as saxophone player Letta, grew a greater appreciation for the band’s former saxophonist who passed away, Leroi Moore.

“Now I can sort of appreciate how the sound is something that you can’t replace,” Letta said. “Even though the new saxophonist, Jeff Coughlin, is amazing, and he’s a jazz guy, he does amazing things, there’s some spots where Moore could play just one long note. And it was because of his voice that made it perfect.”

Big Whiskey will play a free concert at 9 p.m. Wednesday at the White House, 340 S. Coast Hwy.