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Rootin'
Out the Sounds of Reggae
During the '80s, as the rugged urban style of dancehall reggae cropped up around Jamaica, the Itals continued to champion the roots reggae sound they had helped to create decades earlier. The band got their start in the late 1960s when friends Alvin "Keith" Porter and Ronnie Davis, then known as the Westmorelites (named after Jamaica's Westmoreland parish), recorded the hit single "Hitey Titey" for Clement "Coxsone" Dodds' esteemed Studio One label. Porter and Davis crossed paths again around 1975 and recorded their classic "Ina Dis Ya Time" as the Itals, taking their name from the Jamaican patois word meaning pure and unprocessed. Recognized as one of reggae's premier "harmony groups," the Itals line-up has fluctuated through the years, with several different harmony singers backing Keith Porter. The diverse seaside community of Westmoreland, where Porter grew up, greatly influenced his laid-back singing style and the righteous outlook on life often described in the Itals' music. In contrast to the current of violence and sexism that runs through some of dancehall's most popular tunes, the Itals' roots reggae sound remains to this day focused on positivity and harmony. Before a recent sound check in New York, I had the chance to catch up with Porter by phone and pick his brain on the value of roots reggae today. What kind of place does roots reggae have in today's popular Jamaican music scene? Do you think that there is more of a demand for roots elsewhere in the world? I tell you, with roots music people get confused. Without the roots there would never have been any dancehall. What's going on in Jamaica, people try to take it and change it into something. Reggae music is being played all over the world, every corner of the world. Is there any way for dancehall to undergo a roots Renaissance? Like a return to roots and positivity in the music? It will always be the people. The media in the scene is being bought out by a lot of big organizations and competing firms and they don't want to promote reggae music because they're afraid of what reggae music can do: turn the people into one goodness. It's the way they shape it and sell it. Itals music will always be the kind of music you can take home to your family or take home to your friends. 'Cause it's consciousness. Can you tell me a little bit about Rastafarianism and what kind of role Rastas, through the medium of reggae music, can play in certain political climates? There's one time Rastas couldn't even walk the street. The role that Rasta can do now is be true to yourself and be true to the people. Tell me about your affinity for Eugene. Eugene is one of the places I love. I love Eugene. I love the respect we get from people. People turn out for reggae music: feel the vibes, share the love. Tell me about life in Westmoreland and coming up in a rural area like that away from the city. What kind of culture surrounded the people in their working class way of life and in your own words, how did that nurture the roots sound? Where I come from there's a whole lot of mixture, it was one of the biggest seaport towns. So we have a lot of mixture of a lot of different cultures. We have Chinese, Germans, Africans, Indians, French, Cuban. Where I come from we sure loved everybody no matter where they come from.
Prêt
à Porter Time's passage often flattens historical figures and events into misleading stereotypes. Today, Cole Porter's reputation rests on the relentlessly witty, upbeat songs he wrote that cheered Depression-burdened America, like "Let's Do It," and "I Get a Kick Out of You."
But Porter's glibness shouldn't obscure the melancholy and even anguish lurking just beneath the whimsical surface of some of his most poignant numbers; songs such as "Love for Sale" (banned in some quarters because of its subject matter, prostitution), "Ev'ry Time We Say Goodbye" and "What is this Thing Called Love?" have endured long beyond the shows that spawned them because they acknowledge the confusion, vulnerability and even danger that "True Love" (another perennial) inspires. Add classics like "In the Still of the Night," "Night and Day," "Anything Goes," "So in Love" and so many more, along with lesser-known gems such as "Dream Dancing," and you have one of the real giants of 20th century music, up there with the Gershwins, Rodgers, Harold Arlen and very few others. Porter's durable songs wouldn't have lasted this long if he had been as shallow as his foppish image, and this summer's Oregon Festival of American Music's series of Cole Porter concerts (Aug. 4-12) entertainingly reveals Porter's true dimension. As last year's film De-Lovely showed, Porter — a hard-working, well-trained musician — earned his complex lessons in love, as he pursued affairs with many men while married to a woman whom he truly loved, "in his fashion," to quote another of his songs. (Many of those jaunty numbers were also written in a vise of intense, decades-long pain caused by a riding accident.) And while that movie had a scene in which Porter (played by Kevin Kline) tells a singer not to worry so much about the melody and to focus on the words and feelings, anyone who doubts the musical worth of Porter's songs need only turn to the thousands of versions purveyed by America's greatest jazzers, such as Sonny Rollins and Miles Davis, who found immense possibilities in those gorgeous harmonic progressions. Even some moderns like Elvis Costello and Alanis Morisette sounded pretty convincing on the movie soundtrack. So while listening to some of the admittedly bright, frothy hits played by the OFAM musicians next week, look a little deeper and you might glimpse the darkness beneath. To demonstrate that Porter's words and music boast enough depth and breadth to sustain a half dozen concerts, OFAM has enlisted a strong lineup of nationally known musicians, from impressive festival vets like clarinetist Ken Peplowski and trumpeter Randy Standke, to newcomers Tony Award nominee Ann Hampton Callaway and the luminous singer Sylvia McNair, who's branched out beyond her acclaimed classical repertoire to popular styles. The festival also includes free showings of films featuring Porter songs, talks by experts on his music, and a fully staged restoration of his 1934 musical, Anything Goes. I'll tell you more about that and the fine classical/orchestral concerts next week; for now, here's a quick overview of the first-week concerts (all but one at The Shedd) that should especially interest jazz and pop fans. • All of You Thursday, Aug. 4, at 7:30 pm, Silva Concert Hall, Hult Center. This big band concert features Callaway and provides a good overview of the whole series. • Now You Has Jazz Friday, Aug. 5, at 2:30 pm. • Cole Jazz (with Callaway) Friday, Aug. 5, at 7:30 pm. These small-group shows, led by OFAM jazz adviser/pianist Dick Hyman, are a good choice for jazz fans who want to hear how vocal and instrumental jazz giants transformed Porter's songs into vehicles for melodic and harmonic improvisation. • Kiss Me, Kate Saturday, Aug. 6, at 2:30 pm. Songs from the other great Porter musical, featuring a jazz sextet and vocal quartet. A must for show tunes fans.
River
Blew Up
What's the best way to pay off outrageous medical bills? Rob a bank? Nah. Sell the other kidney? No! Have your boss throw a benefit concert in your honor, perhaps? Yes! On July 29, that's precisely what's on the schedule at John Henry's: the River Blew Up Show. River Hawkins, an employee of the bar, didn't exactly blow up, but his appendix did need to be removed — a procedure that, without medical insurance to help foot the bill, put a little bit of a damper on Hawkins' bank account. Keith Martin, who co-owns John Henry's with his brother Mark, says that instead of simply having some type of regular fund-raiser or benefit, he wanted to do something that would be fun for everyone — including those donating money. "River spent five days in the hospital and missed two weeks of work," Martin says in an e-mail. "He has some extensive medical bills, so we (the owners and Hawkins' co-workers at John Henry's) put together a show in order to help defray some of his medical costs." Hawkins says he feels honored to be the object of such attention. "The guys are really going above and beyond what I thought," he says. "I think it's awesome what they're doing." A minimum donation of three bucks gets you in the door Friday night, but there are definite perks for donating more: "For an extra five dollars I'll let you touch the scar," Hawkins says. "For an extra ten, I'll let you lick it. How's that?" Amid the revelry and money-giving, local bands Burt Reynolds Overdrive (a Turbonegro cover band), Knuckledragger and On the First Day … They Were Kittens are slated to play. There will also be a burlesque performance by the ladies of John Henry's Broadway Revue. So if you're into partying hard, and into partying hard for a good cause, get your ass down to John Henry's on Friday for one of the most out-of-the-ordinary benefits you might ever attend. Who knows? You might even get to lick a scar.
This
Sermon Gets Down & Dirty
Volume, the debut album from San Francisco band The Sermon, is a party in your record player. The kind of party that happens in a dirty, crowded room that looks like an industrial warehouse. The kind where everybody, band included, is too busy flailing about to notice that some guy is puking in the corner. Using a recipe of one part garage punk, one part blues and a healthy dash of hellfire and brimstone, The Sermon comes at you hard and fast even if the rhythm is slow. "Some of us come from kinda punk backgrounds, but all of us are into old dirty blues, jazz and soul music, too," bassist Greg Daniels says. The band's name is actually taken from Jimmy Smith's organ jazz album, and "Detroit '60s rock" — like MC5, The Velvet Underground and The Stooges — is also a stylistic influence for The Sermon. But what makes The Sermon stand out from other straight-up blues or punk bands is the skillful addition of quirky, obscure instruments like the theremin and the echoplex (played by vocalist Mike Gabriel), which both make ominous sci-fi sound effects that add a futuristic, '70s sci-fi quality to The Sermon's unclassifiable sound. After many months of rehearsing and working on fresh material, guitarist Matt Gabriel, Mike Gabriel and recent additions Daniels and drummer Dave Leonard are prepared to bring out the big guns they've been polishing in the practice room. It's a live show that promises not to disappoint. And if you don't believe me, ask Jello Biafra, who signed the band to his Alternative Tentacles label. According to Daniels, "he really loves the band." What more proof do you need?
Thriftin' For a Melody Home of Buddy Holly and Waylon Jennings. Stompin' ground for Thrift Store Cowboys. Yep, it's Lubbock. Lubbock, Texas. Say "Lubbock" a few times and it starts to sound exciting. The Thrift Store Cowboys grew up in the West Texas panhandle around Lubbock and Fluvanna (another small town name that's fun to say) and soaked up the area's rich musical history. All but one of the band's six members were under 21 when their 2001 CD Nowhere With You was released, so these younguns have a lot of growing up ahead of them. Still, the songs they showcase on www.myspace.com reveal similarities to Old 97's, but with more sweetness and tenderness than I've heard from that band in a long time. "Days We Remember" sways with a Mexican flavor thanks to snappy accordion, and would go great with hot salsa and cold Corona with lime. "Trails of Light" starts out like a tear-jerking ballad, with weepy violin and somber notes, but soon finds its legs and end up punchy. "Sleepy Engine" is anything but sleepy, with a kicky train-on-the-tracks rhythm that's enhanced by sparkling violin. Speaking of which, Amanda Shires is billed as "fiddle and vocals" but at least on the tunes I heard, she ain't playing fiddle-style. Her lovely way with the instrument, however it's played, adds a delicacy I love. The group released a second CD, The Great American Desert, in November of 2003. It's more of the same energetic, slightly dusty tunes that can only originate from the great open spaces of Texas. In addition to packing about 50 originals into a full-on, high-energy, three-hour set, the group honors their influences by playing covers of Jimmie Rodgers, Buck Owens, Bob Wills, Old 97's, Elvis and more. Yeah, Lubbock is in the middle of nowhere, but as the band says on its website, www.thriftstorecowboys.com,"anywhere's walking distance if you've got the time." The Thrift Store Cowboys play at 9 pm, Thursday, August 4 at Luckey's. $3-$5. —Vanessa Salvia
Family Reunion The day Jerry Garcia passed away was a rough one in Eugene. In the 10 years since his death, much has changed in the world. One constant remains: the draw of the man's music, not just with the Dead, but in his solo work as well. In that spirit comes the Cozmic Garcia Birthday Bash, held at Cozmic Pizza on the 63rd anniversary of Jerry's birth. Jerry profoundly affected many people in this community. Many folks moved here because of the rich Dead history in the area. While those who never tasted the Dead magic at its best may not quite understand it, Jerry was father, friend and family to many. Immediately following his passing, many events took place to bring the community together. Lately it seems these "family reunions" are becoming more scarce. Enter Cozmic Pizza! If you do enter Cozmic Pizza on Monday, here's what you'll find. At 7:30 pm there will be a screening of a Grateful Dead concert film from June 26, 1987. This begins (and concludes) the all ages portion of the evening. After the kiddies have gone off to bed, the real fun begins (don't it always?) as former Dead collaborator Martin Fierro brings his outfit Elijah to the stage. Fierro began his work with the boys in the 1970s, blowing his horn onstage with the band on a number of occasions. Drawing on some serious Dead ties, his lineup includes the always entertaining Melvin Seals, former keyboardist of the Jerry Garcia Band, as well as former members of Merl Saunders Rain Forest Band. This band was "born the day Jerry died," so they should be the perfect fit. In addition to making music and Father's Day gifts (ties), Jerry also made some serious art. He was an accomplished watercolorist and local Fenario Gallery is putting on a display of original J. Garcia artwork. While it has been ten years since Jerry's death, this is a birthday celebration. Cozmic provides the pizza and beer, Elijah provides the music, Fenario Gallery the art. In the Deadhead world, though, it's always been the crowd who has provided the "x" factor. Bring it! The Cozmic Garcia Birthday Bash takes place Monday, August 1. Film starts at 7:30 pm, music at 9 pm. —Jeff Winicour
A Return to the Power of Three Some people have mused that the age of the power trio is over, relegated now to jazz combos and fond, fading memories of Cream and the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Then along comes the Eric McFadden Trio to remind those naysayers what made the ass-kicking, prog-rock three-pieces of the '60s and '70s so cool to begin with — but McFadden's band does it all acoustic.
To those in the know, Eric McFadden has long been a guitar demi-god, sent to resurrect honest rock from its stale tomb. After crossing chords with some musical giants, including Les Claypool, Bo Diddley, Joe Strummer, Keb' Mo' and the Reverend Horton Heat, McFadden set out on tour with the immortal P-Funk Allstars, where he surely learned everything he didn't already know about pure musical energy. Because of the stripped-down approach, the key to any trio has always been finding three talented musicians who don't just play well together, but seem to play on a single, telepathic plane. EMT has apparently hit on this magic formula. James Whiton's mastery of the amplified, stand-up double bass must be seen to be believed. A classically trained bassist, Whiton has blended symphonic discipline with powerful, inventive chops, creating new dimensions of unexpected texture. Frequent EMT drummer Paulo Baldi is currently off working with his other band, the widely beloved Cake, but his replacement for this tour is Jeff "The Commander" Anthony, who helped launch the band back in 2002. EMT's hard-hitting, experimental rock-fusion harkens back to a purer time in music, to something less packaged and closer to a real expression of an artist's angst-driven forays into the great unknown. If you missed McFadden's stops in Eugene with any of his other projects, don't miss EMT this time for a chance to see a real rock hero in a stripped to the bone setting — and to witness the mighty power trio's return to glory. The Eric McFadden Trio plays as the musical guest at John Henry's Broadway Revue 10 pm Sunday, July 31. $3-$5. —Dave Constantin
BADA BING'S BLUE LUNA CLUB BREWED AWAKENING All
Ages CHARLIE MAC'S CLUB TSUNAMI CORNUCOPIA All Ages COUNTRY SIDE BAR & GRILL COUNTRYSIDE PiZZA & GRILL COZMIC PIZZA@THE STRAND•All
Ages DIABLO'S
DOWNTOWN LOUNGE EMBERS SUPPER CLUB GOOD TIMES JAXX THE JAZZ STATION JO FEDERIGO'S JOE'S BAR & GRILLE JOGGER'S BAR & GRILL JOHN HENRY'S LAVELLE'S WINE BAR & BISTRO
LUNA MAC'S AT THE VET'S MCSHANE'S BAR & GRILL MONROE STREET CAFE All Ages MULLIGAN'S PUB O'DONNELL'S IRISH PUB OVERTIME GRILL PEABODY'S PERUGINO QUACKER'S RED LION INN SAM BOND'S GARAGE SAM'S PLACE SAMURAI DUCK STACY'S COVERED BRIDGE THE STAGE@HOSANNA CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP•All
Ages TAP 'N' KEG TAYLOR'S BAR AND GRILL
TINY TAVERN WETLANDS
WOW HALL All Ages YUKON JACK'S CORVALLIS IOVINO'S RISTORANTE MURPHY'S PLATINUM CLUB TOMMY'S PEACOCK karaoke TH: The Cooler, Countryside Pizza (River Rd.),
Da Houze, Duck Inn
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