The Roots and Blues pop-up stage at the merchandise tent featured some interesting interviews that gave a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the life of a musician.
From tales of what pushed them to pursue a career in music to humorous backstage stories, these chats were packed with interesting morsels.
Andy Donnelly interviews Martin Simpson
Martin Simpson is a U.K. folk music juggernaut with 45 years of songwriting under his belt. He sat down with Andy Donnelly of CKUA Radio Aug. 18 for an interview about the life of a folk musician.
When asked what drew him to folk music, as opposed to rock and roll which was all the rage in the UK, Simpson had quite an elegant answer.
“I just wasn’t moved by rock, but folk music moved me…, there’s a sense of melancholy,” he said. “And to be honest, I thought the music was a bit sh**.”
Though originally from the UK, Simpson spent a good portion of his career in the States and, despite initially being wary of what U.S. folk music would be like, ended up taking plenty of inspiration from it.
“I thought American folk would be rude and ridiculous,” he noted, “But I was surprised by the depth of their music. It’s all kind of the same thing but another take on music.”
Related: In Photos: Roots & Blues 2018 day one
One interesting question asked of Simpson was his opinion on what makes the perfect instrument.
“The music is in the wood,” he quipped. “It has to be beautiful, but also extremely practical. With an instrument you should get the experience, inspiration and static of the builder.”
As an aside he joked that he is like a “kid in a sweet shop” any time he is around a guitar shop, often walking around for hours examining the instruments and even sniffing the wood.
As a final note, when asked what sage advice he had for up-and-coming musicians, he firmly stated that it’s not a life made for someone without the passion to see it through for the long haul.
“Mean it, work really hard and do it with love,” he began. “Don’t do it for any other reason than you love it. I don’t know anyone who would get into this for anything besides a love of the lifestyle.”
Richard Flohil interviews Big Dave McLean, Brother Ray Lemelin and Harpdog Brown
Three blues heavyweights sat down with music publicist Richard Flohil for the Blues Road Wars and Stories session Aug. 18, swapping stories and having a few laughs in the meantime.
One of the first topics that came up was travel. All three speakers agreed that touring in Canada is tough. Harpdog Brown said it was not uncommon for him to put up to 250,000 kilometres on his touring van in a single year.
With travel comes another staple of life on the road: hotels. It was pretty much unanimous that their worst hotel experience was at the King Edward Hotel in Calgary, back in its glory days as a music hot-spot before being closed down.
“I remember when (blues bassist) Russell Jackson had the roof of his room cave in on his head,” Brother Ray Lemelin said. “He came in and told the band ‘don’t complain about me getting the best room anymore!'”
Though a bit shy to name names, Flohill asked what their worst experience with a band was.
“Sometimes you get an ace, sometimes you get a joker,” Harpdog Brown commented. “Especially back when I would play two nights a week with a different band each time.”
Related: Working it out at Roots and Blues
The group was also asked if they had ever brushed shoulders with big name celebrities in their time on the road.
Brother Ray Lemelin told the tale of when he met legendary blues singer Junior Wells, saying “we drank gin together for an hour and he didn’t say a word. Every now and then he would nod his head at me and grumble out something that sounded like ‘alright alright.’ That was one of the most entertaining times of my life.”
Big Dave McLean spoke of his meeting with Bing Crosby when he was just a boy, a run-in that didn’t end with such a happy story as Lemelin’s.
“I was five years old, at the Calgary Stampede with my family. Two rows behind us I saw Bing Crosby sitting there with someone. I went over and tried to get him to sign an autograph, and he told me to eff off! I started crying, and I guess that’s why I sing the blues.”
To close out the session Flohil asked the three musicians where they would like to see themselves in 10 years, getting a trifecta of witty comebacks.
“Above ground!” Big Dave McLean said with a raucous laugh.
“I think I see myself being 10 years older,” Brother Ray Lemelin quipped. “Maybe run a diner, flip burgers and serve beer in coffee cups.”
“I always thought I would have loved being an accountant,” Harpdog Brown joked. “Though seriously I am looking for an accountant if anybody knows one.”
