St. Louisans grew up listening to such bands as the Urge, Stir, Gravity Kills and Sinister Dane. Now that those bands have moved on to the national scene, new up-and-coming bands are taking their places.

These bands are The Getaway Car, Nosey Parker and The Jenny Kavanaugh Band.

The Getaway Car

You know you are breaking out when your band can play an unannounced show and have 130 people show up to see you play, The Getaway Car a band that veered into the fast lane, and is passing the competition with its smooth mix of soul, blues, R&B and even a little rock.

Collectively, the members of The Getaway Car have performed in some of the most notable bands to emerge from St. Louis.

Donald Williams and Jay Summers both led Sinister Dane to success in the late `80s and early `90s, gaining major record-label status with Columbia Records, as well as garnering numerous local music awards.

Williams and Summers later collaborated for three years in Sugardaddy, releasing two impressive albums, Special Request and Faster.

When Sugardaddy disbanded and The Getaway Car began to form, a void was left in the rhythm section. To round out the band, the young, spunky and fast-paced drummer Dan Gleason was added to the lineup with a combined for more than 20 years in the music industry, the soulful, suave sound of The Getaway Car can only be expected.

Joining the band is DJ Eric Fritz. Fritz is an up-and-coming DJ in St. Louis who adds an awesome extra to an already great sound.

Sept. 14 marks The Getaway Cars’ next show and vocalist Jessica Butler’s last. Be sure to catch another excellent performance from St. Louis’ best quintet at the Galaxy when The Getaway Car opens for The Specials.

Nosey Parker

The best rock band in St. Louis is Nosey Parker, by far. The energy and talent that these guys bring to the stage is incredible and well worth the $5 people pay to see them play.

The trio from all parts of St. Louis has gone from playing open mic nights to playing crowds of 75-100. Over the summer Nosey Parker opened for the Kansas Shiner, The Poster Children, UPO and local favorites, Orange Tree.

Nosey Parker combines the amiable influences of Sinister Dane, The Urge, 311, Shiner and Bad Brains with their own unique aspects to form the group’s basic elements. Nosey Parker is Rick Nenninger on drums, Tom Karlskint on guitar/vocals and Kurt Jackson on bass.

Karlskint’s guitar playing, new to the St. Louis music scene, might surprise you. He puts all competition to shame. Karlskints ability to play guitar and sing vocals is uncanny.

Kurt Jackson switched from lead guitar to bass after Eric Fritz departed from the band earlier this year, but you wouldn’t know it. Jackson is a natural at bass and makes each entity of the band a separate focal point.

Nenninger’s drum skills are polished, and you can tell that he has been playing since grade school. He has rhythm, style and knowledge of what it takes to be the best drummer in St. Louis.

Nosey Parker possesses a musical maturity that takes most up-and-coming bands years to obtain.

Dedication and respect for each other as a band and for music is what makes Nosey Parker St. Louis’ breakout band in 2000.

Nosey Parker plays Sept. 14 at Elsher’s on the Landing at 11 p.m. $5 gets you in the door and after the show, move on upstairs to the dance floor.

The Jenny Kavanaugh Band

The Kavanaughs have done it all. Kavanaugh is a local household name, from Fr. Kavanaugh here at Saint Louis University to the yearly Irish concerts at the college church (R.I.P. 1999).

John Kavanaugh, oldest son of the Kavanaugh family, was the front man in the early years of the local ska band MU330; now the family’s only daughter has come into the limelight.

Since the Kavanaughs have retired, the recently engaged Jennifer Kavanaugh is finally blessing local clubs and music-goers with her band of local greats.

The band is made up of Chris Grabau on guitar, accordion and mandolin, and John O’Brien on bass of Stillwater, John Kavanaugh on acoustic guitar) and Patrick Turek on drums.

John Kavanaugh, Grabau and O’Brien are also Saint Louis University graduates. Rounding out the band is Jennifer Riley on fiddle.

The Jenny Kavanaugh Band played its first show to a jam-packed Tegeler Hall last August. Since that first show, Jenny Kavanaugh has played various shows at the Side Door and former KSLU D.J. Steve Smith’s basement.

Jenny Kavanaugh has hit the St. Louis music scene quickly, with a brand of alternative country that contains a diverse pool of influences, including classic country, rock, folk, rockabilly, bluegrass and gospel.

The blend might well be best compared to the country-rock band The Mavericks. The success of Jenny Kavanaugh is no surprise, as she comes from a long line of talented and successful musicians; the big surprise is the time it has taken her to obtain her success.

In a city crowded by rock bands and ska bands, it’s time to make way for a little country.

Jenny Kavanaugh’s debut CD I’ve Done My Time was mixed in Nashville, where country music star Travis Tritt’s guitarist, Steve Sturm, mixed the album.

Making the move from Nashville, Jenny Kavanugh has taken some time off, but you can expect the band to back in full gear later this fall.

Other Hometown Originals

Also keep and eye open for Five Block Shot, a five piece hip hop ban another St. Louis original along with The Outsiders, a funk-soul group that were recently featured on The Disney Channel.

Bob Reuter a folk rock musician who is currently on tour with his latest album, Down On America.

While big name bands and their summer tours are fun and all, give the small guys a chance too.

Their shows are always more personal, and the big bands were once small too. They also tend to be much more affordable and rarely a an evening of disappointment.

Now that you have the skinny on the bands to see in St. Louis, do it.