There couldn’t have been more than a dozen people gathered on the patio at The Talking Pint in Riverview that evening. No stage lights. No backstage security. No road crew. Just a man with a guitar, an amplifier, a couple of speakers and a handful of people enjoying an intimate acoustic performance.
As a longtime Porcupine Tree fan, I knew exactly who I was watching. Looking around, I couldn’t help but wonder if anyone else did.
For more than three decades, Brandon native John Wesley Dearth III, better known simply as Wes to friends and family, has built a career taking him around the world, performing alongside internationally respected musicians on stages across North America, Europe and Asia.
What stayed with me wasn’t just the music. It was the man behind it. Between songs, Wesley thanked people for coming, talked with anyone who wanted to say hello and carried himself with the humility of someone playing his first local show.
It reminded me that many people in Brandon and the surrounding communities have no idea that one of rock’s most respected touring guitarists quietly calls Tampa Bay home.
That story comes full circle on Friday, July 24, when Wesley returns to the Tampa Bay area with Vertical Horizon for a concert at Jannus Live, located at 200 First Ave. N., Ste. 206, in downtown St. Petersburg. Fans can expect to hear Vertical Horizon favorites, including “Everything You Want,” “You’re a God” and “Best I Ever Had (Grey Sky Morning),” along with Tonic’s signature hit, “If You Could Only See.”
For most concertgoers, it’s a chance to relive the soundtrack of a generation. For Wesley, it’s a chance to share that music with the people who knew him long before the rest of the world did.
A 1980 graduate of Brandon High School and former student at Nativity Catholic School, Wesley built his career one opportunity at a time. He released several critically acclaimed solo albums and spent years touring internationally with Porcupine Tree, logging more than 450 performances before joining Vertical Horizon.
Along the way, Wesley developed friendships with many of rock’s most respected artists, including legendary Rush drummer Neil Peart. Vertical Horizon founder Matt Scannell also worked with Peart, collaborating with him on the band’s 2009 album, Burning the Days. Although Wesley and Scannell followed different musical paths, they had long been part of many of the same professional circles.
When I first met Wesley, he was playing local acoustic shows while hoping another opportunity with Porcupine Tree might someday arise. That reunion eventually happened, but without him. Rather than looking backward, Wesley embraced the next chapter of his career.
Around that same time, Scannell was searching for a lead guitarist. Wesley’s reputation as both an exceptional musician and consummate professional had already reached him. When Scannell called, the fit was immediate.
Today, Wesley tours with Vertical Horizon, the multiplatinum band whose music helped define late-’90s rock. More than 25 years after the release of Everything You Want, the band continues to perform throughout the United States and internationally, introducing their music to new audiences while longtime fans continue to fill venues.
Despite a career that has taken him across the globe, Wesley never lost sight of his Tampa Bay roots. He and his wife, Becka, a Ruskin native, chose to make the area their home rather than relocate to one of the music industry’s traditional hubs.
“I’m thrilled to be doing a hometown gig and excited to see a ton of friends and family,” Wesley said.
For Brandon, it’s a chance to applaud one of its own.