WHEELERSBURG- A Wizard reunion concert 40 years in the making will enchant Wheelersburg this Friday on the Living With a Cause stage. The band reunion is the first since they parted ways in 1984 and went on to perform in bands for Alabama, Lady A, Taylor Swift, and more, prior to their four-year stint together as teenagers.

Wizard is mostly composed of Wheelersburg graduates, but also have ties to Minford and Clay. The band includes Dwayne Jones, Jody Harris, John Hall, Gabe Moritz, and Doug Huffman.

Jones started his musical career as a member of the Wheelersburg High School Marching Band and now plays with Alabama and Geneva Band.

Harris was most recently with Lady A, but has also played with Taylor Swift, Brad Paisley, Kenny Chesney, and John Michael Montgomery.

The entire band has an impressive musical background, according to Jones.

Wizard is a 1970’s and 1980’s rock band that performed all over the tri-state in clubs and venues between 1981 and 1984. Two of the local clubs Jones said the band was known to play at were Michael’s and The Brother’s Four.

“We’re doing a reunion for our rock band, Wizard. We were really young, like teenagers, and popular and playing all the night clubs and venues,” Jones said. “This is the first time together to perform for the public since 1984. We were always well-known, and we always said we would have a reunion.”

According to Jones, Wizard had planned a reunion concert in Portsmouth a few years back, but they were rained out during their Memorial Day outdoor concert.

“We’ve stayed in touch the whole time. Our previously planned reunion, which was about five years ago, was a disappointment, because of the weather,” Jones recalled. “It was nice, though, because we spent time organizing in my Nashville studio. Everyone came down and we spent three or four days together to prepare and it was a good time.”

Jones said that scheduling around the members’ schedules has always been the problem with organizing a reunion, but he is excited that everything is aligned for the band to reunite in Wheelersburg.

“It’s cool because many of us graduated there and still have family. Jody is already there with his mother, who lives out on Germany Hollow. My family still has a house up on Hillsdale Drive, so we have lots of friends and family still home,” Jones said. “We are hoping it will be a 250-person sold out show, because we hear there is a lot of interest.”

Jones explained that this is likely the last reunion concert that the band will have. The only other way he could see the band coming together again would be a potential River Days appearance, but it would be dependent on their schedules aligning to the weekend concert event.

Wizard’s 40-year reunion is presented by the Wheelersburg Cinema at 8805 Ohio River Road at the Living With a Cause Venue. They will kick off the music on Friday, February 23 at 7 p.m. General admission is $10 and VIP access is $15. Seating is limited and presales are available.

Reach Joseph Pratt at (740) 353-3101, by email at [email protected], © 2024 Portsmouth Daily Times, all rights reserved.