Adam Coolong

I am originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and moved to Minnesota when I was a kid (my dad got transferred for work). As far back as I can remember, I have always wanted to play the guitar. I think it first came from seeing the intro sequence for the old TV show “The Dukes of Hazzard” and seeing Waylon Jennings picking that Telecaster—it just looked and sounded so COOL. I knew then (I think I was seven or eight) that music was the thing for me!

I started playing on an old Yamaha classical model that my dad had taken lessons on when I was eight. My hands were too small for the fat neck, so I quit after about a week. I tried again when I was ten and my hands were a little bigger, and I’ve been playing ever since. I had my first live performances in church, playing for Mass when I wasn’t being an altar boy. I bought my first electric (Kramer Striker, woohoo!!) when I was twelve, with money I saved from my paper route. I never really learned to add 2 and 2 (5, maybe?), but I received quite the musical education while reading guitar magazines in math classes, etc.

I studied a little music theory in college, but majored in Political Science. I have had a ton of different jobs (paper boy, pizza shop employee, library shelving clerk, actor, voice over artist, lighting designer, grocery store kick-around, laborer, sound engineer, customer service rep, insurance policy analyst, and probably a dozen other things I don’t even remember), but I’ve always come back to playing music. I have always been in bands; some good, some bad, some worse, but they’ve always been a good time.

My roots are in blues, rock and metal, but since I come from good Irish stock (Up Galway!) the Irish music was always there in some form or another. I never really paid much attention to it growing up, but now that I’m a little older, I guess I have come full circle. I know I am in the right place, anyway. I have never harbored dreams of being the lead singer, so I think it’s kind of funny that that’s where I’ve ended up. I do enjoy it a lot now so I guess all’s well there!

I formed WCB with Geno in 2005, and we’ve been playing hard ever since. I love playing live, and I love the feeling you get from playing to a crowd that’s really into it. Hopefully bigger and better things are on our horizon, so we’ll keep working hard!

When not playing music, I enjoy time with family and friends, supporting my Pittsburgh sports teams, playing hurling with our local club the Twin Cities Robert Emmets, and sleeping.

To reach Adam, contact him at adam@wildcolonialbhoys.com.