FWJB features it's very own music!
For nearly ten years Joe Bucher's popular fishing tv show, Fishing With Joe Bucher, opened with its own signature tune "Fishing With Joe" written and produced by Frankie Sullivan of the famous rock group, Survivor. Although this catchy blues tune was a favorite of many, Joe decided it was time for a change.
"I've had this kick-ass rock tune sitting in the archives now for a few years that I personally wrote and played with my friends from the TopRaiders. We debuted it on our fall hunting series this past autumn and it went over big. Reluctantly, we decided to retire the old favorite 'Fishing With Joe' in favor of this new tune. Once my fans hear this new one, I think they'll know why I wanted the change".
One of the other big reasons Joe wanted to change the open tune is so that all of the music inside his shows was totally 100% his own. "While I can't thank Frankie enough for writing and providing me with this tune to use for all those years, I really wanted to create my entire show around my own music. Now, all of the music our fans hear inside each and every episode of FWJB is mine. It's all written, produced and played by myself and my buddies".
His buddies being The TopRaiders. A top-notch group of blues/jazz/rock fusion musicians that Joe has played with for years. While the TopRaiders becomes a much larger group for live performances with a complete brass section, the core of the TopRaiders consists of only four musicians --- Bill Truebenbach on drums, Wayne Hicks on bass, and Joe Fittantte on keys; and of course, Joe Bucher playing all the guitars.
It's important to note that ALL of the music you hear inside each and every episode of Fishing With Joe Bucher is in fact --- Joe Bucher --- playing the guitars. "We went into the studio this fall and kicked out 13 brand new tunes for the 2006 show. Some of them are quite different than what we've featured in the past. In fact, we've kicked up the tempo quite a bit and have also returned to a harder edge with some rock pieces. The new open which is called 'Kickin' Bass' is one such tune. There's no blues to this tune at all. It is a hard edged rock piece."
Bucher still features some great bluesy cuts on his new show, as well including a personal favorite new tune that ends most shows every week. "Most of the blues tunes we do are totally ad-lib stuff that occurs when we just take off in one direction. I think you'll like them". For more information on Joe's music visit the Music section of this website.
About The Show
Entering its 18th year of production, “Fishing With Joe Bucher” has become a household favorite with anglers across the country. Hosted by National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame Angler Joe Bucher, the show continues to produce award-winning, state-of-the-art outdoor TV programming featuring multi-camera shoots on every episode. In fact, Joe Bucher TV Productions is a perennial award-winner in the outdoor videography and video production category, continually pushing the innovative limits from never-before-seen authentic underwater footage to unique reverse camera angles – all in an effort to produce the highest quality fishing programming available anywhere.
Joe Bucher and his crew have been true pioneers in authentic underwater camera videography. "What I have tried to portray on our episodes is to actually give the TV viewer the advantage. In other words, my viewers see more of the fish, more often, than I actually do from above the water. Well before I actually get to see the fish, the viewer is already seeing it from the underwater camera angle. When the fish finally surfaces, the viewer also gets to see the fish up close – real tight – well before I get my hands on it. In my opinion, this makes watching my show so much more exciting for the person watching. In a sense, my viewers are truly going fishing with Joe Bucher."
Check out a profile on a crucial member of Joe's crew, Brach Pulver.
Fishing on public waters is another authentic part of each and every one of Joe’s fishing shows. While many of today’s national fishing celebrities film the majority of their episodes on private ponds, Joe Bucher films on the same waters that public anglers are faced with on any given outing. This adds a realism and reality to his entire program. "I feel that my viewers appreciate this fact (that I film on public waters), and they relate better to the spots fished and the tactics used since they can actually go out and fish these same exact spots with the same lures and techniques. Since the vast majority of my viewers are never going to fish far away locations and exotic species, I don’t waste time featuring them on our show.”
The television market philosophy has continually evolved due to the ever changing environment in television programming in general. When “Fishing With Joe Bucher” first hit the airways 15 years ago, it was a regional Great Lakes Area show, airing on broadcast networks throughout Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan and Minnesota. Of course, 15 years ago, there wasn’t much cable penetration outside the city market places. Joe began to shift more to larger regional cable channels that featured two to four hours of outdoor programming such as Fox Spots Net throughout the 1990’s. However, once national satellite/cable programming began to really dominate households at the turn of the century, many things began to change much more rapidly, and with that the audience that watched “Fishing With Joe Bucher” grew as well.
As a total package, “Fishing With Joe Bucher” is simply a can’t miss investment for any potential advertiser. Twenty-six weeks of award-winning fishing programming hosted by one of the most reputable anglers in the country – a hall of famer, in fact! That’s what you get with Joe Bucher.
2008 TV Guide
Show #1 - Air date: January 5/6
Segment One: "Rock Hump Walleyes". Good sized walleyes move onto rocky humps after the first burst of warm weather in early summer on many lakes. Joe goes after ‘em with a jig & leech.
Segment Two: "Jig & Leech Musky Surprise". While chasing these early summer rock hump walleyes, Joe stumbles onto something a bit larger.
Segment Three: "Crawdad Credentials". Crawdads are the favorite food of smallmouth bass. Joe shows you how to fish a Texas Rigged finesse craw in and around likely smallmouth cover.
Show #2 - Air Date: January 12/13
Segment One: "Off-Shore SB Smallies". Spinnerbaits are often associated with cover and shorelines, yet Joe shows some tricks to fishing these bass killers in open water.
Segment Two: "Stationary Retrieve SMB". When fishing is tough, the best retrieve can be no retrieve at all. Joe discusses the right lures for this deadly technique, and how to really make it score big.
Segment Three: "Sudden Impact". Muskies nearly always hit when you least expect them and this one is no exception.
Show #3 - Air Date: January 19/20
Segment One: "Pinpoint Bassin'". Points are among the most consistent places to find active bass, and Joe exploits this pattern inside this segment with crankbaits.
Segment Two: "Tube Hoppin'". Tubes can surely be fished a variety of ways, and this is yet another very productive presentation for this deadly lure on smallmouths.
Segment Three: "Missile Musky!" Topwater fishing for muskies is always explosive, but this segment takes it to yet another level.
Show #4 - Air Date: January 26/27
Segment One: "Windy Topwater Tricks". Most people associate topwater fishing with calm surface conditions, but a good chop can make them even more effective for all species of game fish.
Segment Two: "Dock Smallies". Docks, piers, boat houses and the many other man-made structures around a typical public lake shoreline can attract lots of bass at certain times of the year.
Segment Three: "Rock Reef Crankin'". Muskies are more often associated with weeds than any other cover, yet rocks can outproduce weeds in certain conditions. Joe demonstrates such an example.
Show #5 - Air Date: February 2/3
Segment One: "Big Blow Bronzebacks on Reefs". When the wind really howls, some of the most exciting smallmouth bass action takes place on wave pounded mid lake reefs.
Segment Two: "Crawdad Credentials II". Joe continues to expound on the deadliness of finesse crawdad fishing and the tricks to making it really productive.
Segment Three: Early Muskies & Rocks". The passing of an early summer cold front turns off muskies in weeds, but Joe finds the answer while casting shallow wind swept rock reefs.
Show #6 - Air Date: February 9/10
Segment One: "Good Wind Bassin'". There are good winds and bad winds when it comes to productivity with bass. Joe discusses what makes a good wind good, and a bad wind bad.
Segment Two: "Deep Log Lunkers". When bass go deep, Joe shows you how to catch ‘em with a Texas Rigged 4" worm.
Segment Three: "Weed Clump Musky Jiggin'". When muskies bury inside weed clumps during a cold front with bright bluebird conditions, they become very hard to trigger. A weedless jig fished bass style does the trick.
Show #7 - Air Date: February 16/17
Segment One: "On Top In A Chop". Joe reveals more tricks to catching bass on topwater lures in choppy waves.
Segment Two: "Stand-Up Secrets". The stand-up style jig is incredibly versatile, and Joe demonstrates it in a big bass way.
Segment Three: "Small Windows = Big Opportunities". Lots of casting with no action is typical of many musky outings, yet small windows of opportunity are usually there on any given day.
Show #8 - Air Date: February 23/24
Segment One: "Cold Water Point Smallies". Main lake points are some of the first places to seek out early season bronzebacks.
Segment Two: "Super Line Secrets". While many anglers are fishing super braid lines in dark water, few try them in clear lakes. Joe devulges some secrets to successfully fishing super line in gin bottles.
Segment Three: "Fall Slop Tigers". Joe can't seem to get on to an active musky until he moves really shallow in the early fall period.
Show #9 - Air Date: March 1/2
Segment One: "Big Waves - Big Bass!". Smallmouths really turn on when the wind blows and the waves chop. Joe shows how to take advantage of this big time.
Segment Two: "Rainy Fall Topwater ‘Lunge". Many musky hounds put their topwater lures away after Labor Day. Joe shows they can still be caught on top as the water temp drops.
Segment Three: "Man-Made Structure Bass". Man-made structures, from docks to cribs can really hold bass in certain waters.
Show #10 - Air Date: March 8/9
Segment One: "Windy Topwater Tricks II". It's easier to fool big bronzebacks on clear lakes when it is windy. Even with topwater lures.
Segment Two: "Cameraman Musky Catch". Cameraman Brach Pulver once again sneaks in a back-of-the-boat musky on a Slopmaster.
Segment Three: "ReCon Cover Bass". When there's a lot of cover, being able to decipher the best producing stuff isn't always easy. Joe makes some sense of it all.
Show #11 - Air Date: march 15/16
Segment One: "Black Spot - Black Bass". Joe reveals a unique technique of spotting dark patches with polaroid glasses and casting to them with amazing success on a large coverless flat.
Segment Two: "Ultra Shallow Heat Musky". Joe & cameraman Brach Pulver discover a crazy pattern during the heat of mid summer on a clear lake trout style lake. Muskies really, really shallow.
Segment Three: "Toothy Critter Jiggin'". Joe displays the technique of fishing with a large weedless bass jig for pike and muskies.
Show #12 - Air Date: March 22/23
Segment One: "Dead Reed Bass". Shortly after ice out, shallow flats containing last year's dead reeds can be magnets for crappies, bass and other gamefish. Joe discovers lots of largemouths on this outing.
Segment Two: "Cold Front SB Pike". When severe cold front conditions push thru, fish bury tight to cover and can be difficult to catch. Joe reveals a cover-tight spinnerbait trick that nearly always triggers a big pike or two.
Segment Three: "Northwoods Smallies". Joe answers questions the frequently asked question as to where he is catching all those big smallmouth bass each and every week on the show.
Show #13 - Air Date: March 29/30
Segment One: "Stand-up Jig & Craw". The jig & craw is a deadly bass killer almost anytime. Joe employs a different version utilizing a small stand-up jig with a finesse craw.
Segment Two: "Twitch Bait Tricks". Cover-tight muskies suddenly come alive when Joe twitches a 5" minnow bait tight to weed clumps.
Segment Three: "Is It Alive?". Joe reveals Berkley's new Gulp leech on this special segment.
