Local Brian Tingle’s book inspires return to music

By Hunter Hine Staff Writer

(May 12, 2023) Just over a year ago, Brian Tingle, a Baltimore native, blues guitarist and now Ocean City resident, self-published the book, “Bluesman: Tragedy Turbulence Triumph,” an autobiography about overcoming childhood abuse, alcoholism and life struggles.

“People told me to write this book 15 years ago. I was being pushed. ‘You have a story to tell, you should tell your story,’ and eventually, I did,” Tingle said.

The book covers Tingle’s life, unfolding in memoirs that eventually take the reader on a trip through his blues career and all the way to his present life.

“I played with famous people, I’ve traveled, I played theaters 250 nights a year, I can make anybody laugh at the drop of a hat, and I’ve created a character,” Tingle said. “I wrote a book, and doctors and psychiatrists when I was a kid said that I really wouldn’t be able to do much with my hands.”

Tingle weaves stories of his time in psychiatric institutions, the abuse he faced from his mother, the sexual abuse he faced from his father’s friend, memories of his life as an alcoholic and his recovery from it all.

One of his main inspirations for finally writing “Bluesman” was the hope that he could reach others facing similar struggles and to show them that people can make it past trauma, Tingle said.

“The book ends open-ended. This man (Tingle) is a pretty happy guy, 57, 58 years old at the time, working, pretty happy, in Ocean City. Nice little life compared to what could have been, compared to, he didn’t kill himself,” Tingle said. “He didn’t fall off the wagon. He didn’t. He actually made it through to tell his story.”

As of now, “Bluesman” is order, but Tingle’s manager, Carey Kelley, is looking at publishing houses in an effort to get a bigger book deal, Tingle said.

At the same time, Tingle has plans to jump back into the music scene, though he hasn’t played live music in many years and hasn’t released an album since his debut record in 2004, “Tryin’ to Make a Livin’,” by Brian Tingle and Blue Thunder.

“I’m looking to go out and do some festivals, maybe some private parties, do some opening acts, maybe in some arenas and bigger places like that,” Tingle said.

Tingle said he isn’t sure how he might tackle his return, but plans on playing live either as the Bluesman, or maybe returning to his roots as Brian Tingle and Blue Thunder.

His jump back onto the stage could happen as soon as later this year, he said.

“I’ve written some music for a few people over the last 10 years and the book is bringing me back into it. I will be getting back into it,” he said.

In 2017, Tingle noticed his album was available on platforms he didn’t even know about like Amazon. Tingle realized that the album might serve as an avenue to help spread awareness about a book, if he wrote one.

Tingle had been playing with the idea of writing some form of a biography related to his life.

He considered writing a screenplay about a family in Baltimore based on his life, or maybe hiring a biographer, but Kelley pushed Tingle to write a book himself.

Tingle wrote the book in a conversational voice, and hopes that people who know him can imagine the sound of him reading the words.

“I wrote 1,000 pages by hand,” Tingle said.

See TINGLE Page 33

Crossword

Ocean City local and blues guitarist Brian Tingle’s self-published his autobiography, “Bluesman: Tragedy Turbulence Triumph,” about a year ago. Though he hasn’t played live music in years, he said the book is bringing him back into the music scene.