‘Lucky that I get to do it’: Fulkerson headed to Delaware rock hall
By SMYRNA — Joey Fulkerson has come a long way since his inaugural concert in the lunchroom at Dover Air Force Base.
A ninth grader at Caesar Rodney High School at the time, he performed on guitar with his sister, Patti Fulkerson, and some classmates in the late 1970s.
“The one thing I remember about it the most was someone threw a sandwich at us,” he recalled.
Dodging food no more, Mr. Fulkerson will be inducted into the Delaware Rock & Roll Society’s Hall of Fame on Sept. 8. The ceremony will take place at the new home of the hall, the Smyrna Opera House.
He will join a class that also includes Magical Mystery; The Del-Vikings; musicians and business owners Dean and Dale Teat; Paul Janocha and Ken-Del Studios; Michael “Kid” Davis & the Bullets; Gayle Dillman, founder of the Ladybug Music Festival and owner of Gable Music Ventures; and the late Gene Cook.
The event starts at 2 p.m., with a dance party celebrating Mr. Cook on Sept. 6 at 7 p.m., also at the opera house.
Mr. Fulkerson, well known to legions of downstate music fans, has been a member of many local bands, such as Hyde Park, The Cutters, The Hurricanes and, most recently, Nothin but Trouble for the last 16 years.
He also toured with and served as road manager for the legendary Chubby Checker from 2001-06.
Mr. Fulkerson can be found most weekends performing anywhere from Middletown to the beaches and has had a regular Wednesday night gig at Touchdown Restaurant & Sports Bar in Dover for well over a decade.
Plus, he’ll be playing Sunday at 1 p.m. at Harvest Ridge Winery in Marydel.
Mr. Fulkerson has recorded a number of albums, including his latest solo outing, “When the Lights Go Down.”
Aside from performing, Mr. Fulkerson runs Fulkerson Music Services out of his home in Rising Sun, repairing and building guitars and offering lessons.
While grateful for the induction, he said he likes to concentrate on the future.
“I’ve never been a backwards-thinking person. I’ve got stuff ahead of me, always working on new music, and my gig schedule is crazy. I’m just looking for the future,” he said.
However, when reflecting on his past, he does consider himself fortunate.
“It’s obviously a nice honor. I’ve worked pretty hard over the years to keep the music going, and then, to make a living at it is a whole other thing. A lot of people don’t get the chance to do that. I’m pretty lucky that I do,” Mr. Fulkerson said.
He arrived in Kent County when he was in first grade, when his father was in the Air Force. The family first lived in Smyrna and then in the same Rising Sun residence in which he now lives.
His brothers played music, and his sisters sang. But he was more of a skateboarder — until July 4, 1976.
“It was the bicentennial, and my uncle had a party up in Pennsylvania. I just got a new skateboard. I jumped out of the pool and jumped on the skateboard and went down this long hill, and it got going so fast. I just kind of started wobbling, and I had to jump off the thing. I ended up breaking my foot,” Mr. Fulkerson said.
He spent eight weeks in a cast. During that time, he picked up a guitar that his brother, Steve Fulkerson, had laying around the house.
“I started playing ‘Smoke on the Water’ and ‘Wipe Out’ and stuff like (that), and then, this neighbor next door saw me sitting on the front porch one day and comes over and gives me a songbook,” he remembered.
“‘Hey, man, use this and learn some songs,’ he said. I guess he got tired of hearing ‘Smoke on the Water’ and ‘Wipe Out.’ I never looked back.”
Membership in local bands followed, and Hyde Park was a highlight. It recorded an album in Boston, finished it in Georgetown and appeared to be on the rise.
“We were kind of in that same vein as The Black Crowes or Aerosmith. We had that bluesy rock swagger. I thought we could have done something pretty strong. And I gave our album to Gene Odom, who was friends with Ronnie Van Zant from Lynyrd Skynyrd, and he gave it to a record producer, Tom Dowd,” Mr. Fulkerson recalled.
“I talked to Brian Shouldis, and he just had no interest in doing it. He was the principal songwriter. So, it was frustrating for me because I knew Tom Dowd. Everything that guy ever touched went gold or double platinum. And I think that would have been our time.”
Mr. Fulkerson then formed The Hurricanes, and in January 2001, he officially became a part of Mr. Checker’s band after a series of auditions. That group played all 50 states and internationally, all while the performer was able to meet several of his idols, including Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley.
“I loved the touring. With Chubby, it was easy because he was famous. If I ever went out again, I’d like to be promoting my own music,” Mr. Fulkerson said, adding that he is in talks to perform more regionally in the near future.
After Mr. Checker fired his whole band, Mr. Fulkerson developed the still-rocking blues group Nothin but Trouble and started his longest association with one outfit.
“We’ve lasted longer than The Beatles,” he joked.
He is joined by co-founder Chris McAfee and Bruce Benson, while Jan Zukowski and Joe Geiger split duties. And former member Greg Haughey plays when the band performs in the Baltimore area.
“It’s been a great group. We have chemistry together. None of us are virtuosos on our instrument or anything. But, when we play together, it gels in a way that a lot of bands don’t,” he added.
Meanwhile, with an eye toward expanding his business, Mr. Fulkerson is constructing a building behind his house to store his repair gear and host lessons. He hopes to also showcase mementos from his career.
“It’s going to be a mini Joey’s Hard Rock Cafe,” he said with a laugh.
“I got a lot of cool stuff from way back in the day. Band photos, backdrops and all kind of crazy stuff. When I was with Chubby, if I would see a cool poster of that gig or whatever, I would roll it up and put it in my luggage and bring it home to me.”
With the current CD, plans for an expanded touring schedule and updated digs, Mr. Fulkerson is eyeing the future, while still gratified by the legacy for which he will be honored.
“I started doing this in 1976. I’ve had a couple of real jobs to keep things going throughout the years. But, most of the time, I’ve had a guitar in my hands in one way or another. It’s been a crazy, crazy life,” he said. “But I’m as enthusiastic, maybe more so, than I’ve ever been about it. I love it, and I’m lucky that I get to do it. I’m as busy as a man can be, and I’m not resting on my laurels.”
For information on Mr. Fulkerson and to purchase his latest album, visit fulkersonmusicservices.com.
For tickets to the Sept. 6 dance party honoring Mr. Cook, a Sept. 7 performance by The Del-Vikings or the Sept. 8 induction ceremony, visit smyrnaoperahouse.com or call 302-653-4236.
