By ALEXANDREA BAILEY
Walking the streets of South Padre Island’s Entertainment District, over the sounds of thrill seekers being
launched toward the sky at Gravity Park and honking drivers vying for a parking space on a crowded Saturday night, you may be lucky enough to hear the sweet sounds of Rock Island.
Rock Island is a local cover band consisting of three Islanders just trying to keep the good music going. Bassist Chris Woods, drummer Tom Johnson and frontman Chuck Comeaux are undoubtedly dedicated to their craft.
Last August, I sat down with Woods and Johnson to hear all about their passion project: Rock Island.
Taking it way back, Johnson says he’s been drumming from an early age.
“I just always liked to hit on things as I was growing up,” he laughed.
His parents supported and invested in his interest in music by purchasing Johnson his first drum set as a child and putting him through drum lessons in his teenage years. Culminating to a lifetime of practicing and perfecting his craft, he’s been playing ever since.
Woods, a multi-faceted musician, plays the bass in this trio, but he started with the guitar in the late 1980s. He moved to Texas in 2006 and started hanging out with some local musicians. The bass found him around that time; he says because back then there was a bit of a bass-player drought. All kinds of groups were in need, and lucky for them, Woods answered the call.
“It seemed like everyone needed a bass player, so I started playing, and I found that I like it a lot,” said Woods.
“You got a lot of freedom to add expression and a lot of creativity. You can kinda go where you want as long as you stay in key.”
Woods has been playing music with Johnson and Comeaux for the last decade. Their paths intertwined many
times before they established Rock Island, filling in for each other at gigs here and there.
As destiny would have it, the band came together several years ago and rocked the Island’s music scene.
However, their trio almost fell apart.
Rock Island took a hiatus when Woods moved to Indianapolis for a period of time. But, in their never-ending
pursuit of improving their music, Comeaux and Johnson kept the tunes flowing as a duo, and occasionally still perform as a duo to this day.
Ultimately, Rock Island endured this hiatus and near break-up. The band made a full comeback when Woods
returned to the Gulf of Mexico, in May of 2023.\
“Long story short, Chris [Woods] had moved back, and as soon as he did, we all got together and said ‘Let’s get the band back together,’” explained Johnson.
Johnson recalled how thrilled he and Comeaux were that Woods wanted to make music with them again,
solidifying the three’s intertwined musical fates. According to Johnson, they picked up right where they left off.
Ever since then, things have been great, they say, and getting better and better. Woods takes pride in their
continuous learning of new songs, always adding to their roster.
“We are all trying to get better at our instruments, even after playing, 20, 30, some of us 40 years,” said Woods.
“We are always learning. We are always expanding the edge of our craft,” said Woods.
The devotion the three has for their music is what keeps them together and, in turn, elevates their sound to new heights.
“We get along well. And we work hard. We are not just winging it out there,” said Johnson.
Johnson can see the passion in his fellow bandmates, and he gives them so much credit for the way they take pride in their sound. It’s obvious he possesses that same fiery passion, as music has always called to him.
“It’s a passion for all of us, I believe. It’s something I always want as a part of my life. I always want to play
music. I’ll keep doing it until it tells me not to,” said Johnson.
A night with Rock Island is as memorable as can be and full of classics from their favorite artists like Pink Floyd, The Who, Steve Miller, Creedance and Tom Petty. The three men honestly give every performance their all, and the love they have for the music they play is infectious.
“We never hold back,” said Woods.
And the three sure have been busy. Rock Island has really taken off, regularly playing at three of the Island’s most popular bayside bars five nights a week. They start their weeks at Louie’s Backyard every Tuesday night, 7-10 p.m. They hit Laguna Bobs the next night, Wednesdays, 8-11 p.m., then back at Louie’s every Thursday, 7-10 p.m. Rock Island rounds off the week on Saturday and Sunday nights at Tequila Sunset, 6- 9 p.m.
Johnson expressed his happiness with Rock Island, feeling content and proud of what they have accomplished and how far they have come.
“I pinch myself sometimes,” he joked.