Nobody knew it at the time, but The Salty Suites began in early June 2009 when Chelsea Williams, Chuck Hailes, & Scott Gates played together for the first time on a magical night at Castoro Cellars in San Luis Obispo, CA. John McEuen was headlining that night, and Chelsea was the opening act. Chuck and Scott were there to support John’s son, Nathan. Chelsea, Chuck, and Scott met before the show and decided to rehearse and perform a cover of Hank William’s “Lovesick Blues”. The rest is sordid history.
The Salty Suites played their first show together in a high security prison for the criminally insane. Thirteen years, four independently released albums, & a global pandemic later, we are happy to report that we have managed to remain a close-knit dysfunctional family of misfits. We have had the pleasure of performing countless shows at many incredible venues up and down the California coast, and we have built a loyal following of adoring fans that we are proud to call friends.
Speaking of friends, our mamas always told us to make new friends and keep the old. We are pleased to report that Scott has been on tour with AJ Lee and Blue Summit. In his stead we have appointed a longtime friend of the band, Mark Cassidy, to gift us with his great talent on the banjo. Mark comes with a long list of accolades, including his leading role in the Hillbenders, whose recent engagements include opening for Keller Williams and touring the US performing their original act “Who Grass”, a chronological journal of The Who’s legendary catalog, highlighted by bluegrass instrumentation. We are very stoked to introduce you to Mark at our upcoming shows!
