Country music the heart and soul of pool cleaner

Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2005 | 8:58 a.m.

When J.R. Davenport isn't immersed in country music, he's busy with swimming pools.

"I got into the pool-cleaning business 14 or 15 years ago," Davenport said. "It started with answering an ad in the newspaper. I was just looking for something extra to do.

"At the time I was an entertainment director at Caesars Palace, and I was disheartened with the casino lifestyle -- I just got into pool service and repair to get a suntan and get my health back in shape."

He did so well that he quit Caesars and within a year was making more money with his pool-cleaning business than he had been at the casino.

But his first love isn't pools (or real estate, another sideline) -- it's country music.

He heads a popular band called Wolf Creek, which will be one of the main attractions on Sunday at "Scotty Emerick and Friends All-Star Jam: Toys for Tickets."

The local children's benefit takes place at the Green Valley Ranch Station's Grand Events Center.

The price of a ticket is a $10 toy, one ticket per person. The toys may be dropped off at any Star Nursery.

The show will benefit the Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy, the Secret Santa program at Child Haven and the Children's Advocacy Alliance.

Davenport and his Wolf Creek Band will open the event and perform backup for major country performers who are expected to drop by -- among them Toby Keith and Charley Pride.

"I personally was very flattered when Station Casinos asked me to perform at this event and back up these famous artists," lead singer and guitarist Davenport says. "It gives me a chance to do two things that are very important to me -- share my music and help children."

The 43-year-old musician has been performing since he was a child, growing up in San Antonio.

"My dad had a small country band, something he did for fun," Davenport said. "When I was 12 or 13 he put a guitar in my hand and we would go out on Saturday nights and perform in local clubs."

Eventually, his whole family became part of the band. His parents sang and played guitar. His sister played steel guitar. His brother played drums and violin.

"We became the Davenport Family Band and played all over the country," he said. "When I turned 21 we started recording, putting out a few records."

From time to time they played Las Vegas, opening for such artists as Ronnie Milsap and Dottie West at the Sahara, Riviera and other venues.

In addition to performing, Davenport was an oil and gas broker.

"I was deep in the middle of it," he said.

But in the early '80s the oil business went bust.

"I lost everything," Davenport said. "The only thing we had to lean on was our music."

He said the family had always had good luck in Las Vegas so they moved here.

"A lot of clubs played country music back then," Davenport said. "At one time, eight to 10 years ago, four major hotels had full-blown country show productions.

"Before the old Aladdin was imploded, it had something called 'Country Tonight.' We were in that show for six years -- my brother was the musical director."

When the show ended with the implosion, he and his brother formed the Wolf Creek Band, a group that does mostly country but also may do some rock 'n' roll and bluegrass if the occasion calls for it.

"We're very versatile," said Davenport, whose brother has since left the group.

At about the same time, country music began to fall out of favor, and Davenport found a day job with Caesars Palace. He managed the Roman characters that worked at the casino.

When he dropped out of the casino business and got into the pool-cleaning trade, he said customers were eager for his services.

"Vegas was suffering from not having good service people -- they wouldn't show up, wouldn't return phone calls," he said. "I come from a part of Texas where people take a lot of pride in their work."

His first customer was Pete Willcox, a local entertainer who is an Elvis tribute artist and also appears as Dean Martin in "The Tribute to Frank, Sammy, Joey and Dean" production at the Greek Isles.

"I still have him as a customer," Davenport said. "That was 14 years ago -- he led to two customers, then 20 and now I have upward of 250."

He says he doesn't spend as much time in pools as he used to.

"The business afforded me the chance to do some real estate," he said. "That's what I do 90 percent of the time now."

All of his business interests has given him the opportunity to focus on his first love, country music.

"The past couple of years I've been able to start playing a lot more," he said. "I've always played 50 to 100 nights a year, but now we have become one of the most well-known country bands in town."

Their next major engagement (besides the upcoming charitable event) will be Friday through Dec. 11 at the Aladdin's Sinbad's Lounge as part of the National Finals Rodeo lineup of entertainment.

"Last year we also played at the Aladdin during the rodeo and I donated all my funds to two families that I adopted for Christmas -- they were not going to have a Christmas at all," Davenport said. "I look forward to doing that again this year."

Sacca Christmas

Tony Sacca's 20th annual "Merry Christmas Las Vegas" will be at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Stratosphere's Theatre of the Stars Showroom.

Admission is $25, with all proceeds benefiting The Youth Foundation for the Performing Arts, a nonprofit organization that awards grants and scholarships to students and teachers in the performing arts.

The lineup of performers include Sacca, Helen Joy's Young Entertainers, Clint Holmes, singing impressionist Bill Acosta, magician Curtis Adams, rhythm and blues singer Laurence T, vocalist Kelly Clinton, 13-year-old harmonica player L.D. Miller and more.

Seating is limited. Reservations are required. For information, call 889-3587.

Helen Joy's Young Entertainers will be performing with Sacca on Dec. 19 at Disneyland.

Sacca said money raised by this year's Christmas show will help pay for the children's trip.

Musical benefit

Musicians will be helping musicians at a benefit scheduled for 7 p.m. until 9 p.m. Dec. 15 at the Celebrity Club at North Third Street and Ogden Avenue, across from the Lady Luck.

Money raised by the event will be used to aid two families displaced by recent hurricanes in the Gulf Coast.

The beneficiaries include teenage blues sensation Sarah Todora and her father, Phil, and the Ernie Cosse Family. Cosse is a vocalist and bass player.

Sarah and Ernie will be among the performers.

Others scheduled to perform are The Newport Pacific All-Star Band; David Loeb (head of the UNLV Jazz Department); David Perrico; David Van Such; Frank Fabio; Larry White; Debra Mumford; Joe Mumford; Shelley Fisher; The Cunninghams and Malia Civitz.

Tickets are $30 and are available online at newportpacificrecords.com or by calling 285-3562.

Jerry Fink can be reached at 259-4058 or at jerry@lasvegassun.com.