Behind the name Black Creek stood three musicians from the Muotathal/Illgau area who served up musical treats from right across 50 years of music history, with charm, wit and passion.
The Story
The story of Black Creek began at Christmas 2008 in Canada, on Edith-Mary Manseau's farm. By a roundabout route, Bernhard Betschart, Andreas Betschart and Remy Bürgler had „washed up“ there to celebrate Christmas together – with guitars in their luggage, of course. After a few nights spent jamming it became clear that three musicians had found one another here.
Three years and countless jam sessions later, in the autumn of 2011, they founded the acoustic band Black Creek together, named after the magical place where it had all begun.
Two guitars, a bass, mandolin, blues harp, kazoo – Black Creek had everything they needed to win over any stage. The sheer joy of playing, wit and energy pulsed through every song, and their countless appearances all across Switzerland made the three of them an unforgettable, one-of-a-kind combo. Alongside their musical range, Black Creek stood out for a particular delight in playing that was unmistakable live.
One special hallmark of the band was their closing song: Wagon Wheel. From the very beginning the three ended every concert with the same number. Bernhard Betschart had come across the song in 2009, when a journey took him to Windsor in Canada. There the Scotsman Willard Wood passed on to him the piece, originally written by Bob Dylan and released by Old Crow Medicine Show. From 2011 Black Creek made the song known in Switzerland too, and in the autumn of 2013 they went into the studio to record their version of Wagon Wheel – not for commercial reasons, but for the sake of the song and of their friendship, and in memory of Edith Manseau, who died in 2012.
For 11 years Black Creek could be heard on the most varied of stages. In the autumn of 2022 the three musicians disbanded Black Creek – just as they had begun, over good wine and easy company. There were no more concerts, but their music, the memories, the unforgettable experiences shared with their audiences and above all their friendship live on.
(Gaswerk Eventbar, Seewen, from left: Andreas Betschart, Bernhard Betschart, Remy Bürgler)
The Boys
Bernhard Betschart
- Vocals
- Acoustic guitar
- 12-string guitar
- Blues harp
Remy Bürgler
- Vocals
- Acoustic guitar
- Mandolin
- Kazoo
Andreas Betschart
- Vocals
- Acoustic bass (fretless)
- Blues harp
- Kazoo
The single "Wagon Wheel" is available on CD in the shop