Greg and the Gringos, also known as Sucha Ruckus, are a Prescott-based band scheduled to perform for Acker Night. Their performance will include a mix of Folk, Rock, Americana and plenty of Christmas songs. To see their show, stop by Better Homes & Gardens Bloom Tree Reality, 102 W. Gurley St. #102, Prescott, at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 9, following the opening ceremony.

The band’s members are lead singer Coleen Tretton, guitarist and singer Greg Arriola, Jim Frett on bass, Doug Keller on keyboard and vocals, Paul Spradlin on lead guitar, and Don Adams on drums. Arriola spoke with Across the Street staff ahead of the Acker Night performance. The following interview was edited for length and clarity.

What do you enjoy most about performing for Acker Night?

That it’s a Christmas deal. Back in ‘93 – that was the fifth or sixth Acker, and it was a much smaller scale – I started out just going up, playing by myself, doing Christmas tunes. Over the years, as I had added more friends and stuff like that, we actually stayed playing mainly Christmas tunes up until maybe seven, eight years ago. As the personnel changed, we started to do other tunes. So, kind of the Christmas aspect of it, that’s why we still do a good chunk of Christmas tunes for this. I started solo and as I added more people, the tastes started changing and we just started adding other tunes.

What do audiences respond to the most when they see your performance?

I guess the musicality. To me, some of the secret weapons we have are Doug Keller is in the Las Vegas Music Hall of Fame and Paul Spradlin is in the Arizona Music Hall of Fame. They both made careers out of what they did. So they are very good and I think a lot of that musicality comes through. They’re excellent musicians.

What inspires you as a musician?

I think you see other musicians locally and get inspiration from them. I don’t know that I ever really steal stuff from them, but, they’ll play a certain artist and I go, “you know, there are other songs that that person plays,” and you check out some of the other songs and stuff. But seeing other musicians play and getting different ideas. I think everybody borrows from everybody, you know, whether it’s off the radio or seeing people live and stuff, there’s always a sense, I think with that. It’s one thing if you steal something, record it and make money off it, but that’s not something we do. So it’s not like it’s there’s any monetary loss or gain. It’s getting inspired by the musicians.

For more information about Greg and the Gringos, visit www.facebook.com/people/Greg-and-the-Gringos/100063582065487.

Jesse Bertel is a reporter/videographer for the Prescott News Network. Follow him on Twitter @ JesseBertel, email him at jbertel@prescottaz.com, or call 928-445-3333, ext. 2043.