the hum / By Bob Doran

Solid Foundation

Pokey LaFarge’s country blues, plus Hellbound Glory, Quick and Easy Boys

(July 1, 2010) Pokey LaFarge is a 20-something year old, but to look at him, or to hear him sing, you’d think he’s a country blues star from the ’40s or ’50s, maybe even earlier. He called his new album with The South City Three Riverboat Soul — you can imagine him with garters on his sleeves entertaining gamblers on an old Mississippi riverboat, strumming tunes and blowing his kazoo, playing the blues. Guess you could say he’s a retro kind of guy.

He comes from the Midwest, home of old time blues and jug band music. That’s where he began his musical archeology. “I started digging my way back — I heard some modern blues and then worked my way back to the older blues. Like most people, the gateway could be Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf — that’s what it was for me.

Pokey LaFarge PHOTO BY BILL STREETER

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“Then I was getting into bluegrass at the same time. I went to a couple of bluegrass festivals as a kid. There’s one down in Hillsboro, Ill. I went to that and it got me into bluegrass, and I went to Bill Monroe’s festival — getting into the blues and bluegrass. I started educating myself with liner notes and things like that. Once I graduated high school I started meeting more people who played that stuff.”

I wondered, how does he take these various streams of American music and make something that’s his own? “I don’t know if I can say I’m doing that or not,” he replied. “I guess at times it’s been my intention. That’s the whole idea for any artist or musician — to leave a stamp, your own personal touch on the whole thing. But a lot is just learning to speak the language, having a foundation. A certain amount is learned, a certain amount is inherent.”

So the plan is to build on the foundation? “That’s right. You progress, add other ideas, all the while trying to stay true to what you feel is real music. You can’t try to make the music too new, just to make it — for lack of a better word, timeless. I don’t try to square it too much, just leave it natural as can be. You know what I mean?”

I know exactly what he means. And for my money, he’s the real deal — he’s succeeding, as are a bunch of young musicians, putting their stamp on old time music. You can hear some shining examples Saturday at the Jefferson State Old Time Revue, an all-day “musical/foodical/cryptozoological extravaganza” at the Arcata Playhouse assembled by the Missing Link Records crew (with help from Lush Newton). You’ll hear locals — The Vintner’s Daughters and Striped Pig String Band — and some imports: The Blackberry Bushes from Olympia, Hellbound Glory from Reno, The Blair St. Mugwumps from Glenwood, Ore. and, closing the show, Pokey LaFarge and The South City Three. (My plan is to stop by after the Journal‘s anniversary bash.)

Catch a little Jefferson State preview at the Farmers’ Market on the Arcata Plaza that day — TheBlackberry Bushes play starting around 10 a.m. They’re also part of a double bill Friday night at Mosgo’s with folksinger Josephine Johnson. Josephine, you may recall, is among the stellar cast at the North Coast Journal‘s massive 20th anniversary bash Saturday on the Eureka Boardwalk, also featuring Samba na Chuva, The Delta Nationals and Magnum.

Reno’s top “scumbag country” band Hellbound Glory has a busy Humboldt Indie-day weekend plan: Friday night they play at the Alibi; Saturday, after the Jefferson State show at the Playhouse, they hit the Wave out in Blue Lake. (Across town it’s the last night of Dell’Arte’s awesome *Blue Lake: The Opera.*) Sunday, the 4th, the Hellbound boys are back at the Alibi for another round of whiskey and whatever.

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