Rep. David Obey jams on the harmonica, NIH director plays backup guitar

House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-Wis.) jammed on the harmonica Tuesday night at Research!America’s 14th Annual Advocacy Awards. 

Obey showed off his harmonica skills with National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins on guitar and vocals. The two performed the classic blues tune “Summertime in the City,” with Obey taking a few sweet, soulful solos.

When it came time for Collins to sing, the audience loved his rewritten lyrics highlighting Obey’s powerful position as a congressional appropriator, and how the NIH and other researchers appeal to him for support.

Obey’s musical talents were a surprise to many in the audience, but not to his wife, Joan, who joined him for the evening. As she told a guest during the cocktail hour, her husband has a long set-list of rock ‘n’ roll songs he can do on the harmonica.

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