ADVANCE: $15
DAY OF SHOW: $20
DAY OF SHOW: $20
Audio / Video
Gallery
About This Event
Minimum Age:
18+Doors Open:
7:00 PMShow Time:
7:30 PMDescription:
This is a first come seated event. Seating is limited and not guaranteed; please arrive early.
Artists
South Memphis String Band
When Luther Dickinson, Alvin Youngblood Hart and Jimbo Mathus got together to make music, it certainly wasn’t out of commercial consideration. This troika of roots-imbued musical pros coalesced through a shared vision and consuming passion for the music of their forebears, most notably the Mississippi Sheiks, Memphis Jug Band, Gus Cannon’s Jug Stompers and other practitioners of pre-blues era roots sounds
Home Sweet Home, their first album, out on Memphis International January 19th, showcases their passion for the old timey tradition that is underscored by the group’s name: South Memphis String Band. South Memphis, of course, is that rough and tumble area of the Bluff City extending from downtown to the Mississippi border, and beyond. It’s where Stax Records as well as, literally, hundreds of churches thrived. The sacred and profane, holy rolling and dice rolling, were cheek by jowl in old South Memphis and its modern day namesake reflects that ecumenicism quite brilliantly. For Luther, Alvin and Jimbo, South Memphis is more of a musical state of mind than a specific geographical location.
They’ve been called a “regional roots music supergroup” but the alliance of Dickinson (from the North Mississippi Allstars and, of late, the Black Crowes), Hart (the Grammy winner who is as equally adept at thrash rock as he is at country blues) and Mathus (of the Squirrel Nut Zippers) is more like three good friends just putting it down in a very traditional way. Mathus explained, “Luther, Youngblood Hart and myself have been musical co-conspirators for over a decade. It is only fitting that we should come together with acoustic instruments and perform Mississippi music.”
Michael Hoinski, writing in the Austin American-Statesman witnessed what’s so special about SMSB at a recent performance noting, “The American experience is the main unifier of this slap happy yet sureshot trio… Each player is principally a bluesman but also well-schooled in country, folk and gospel.”
When asked about the subject matter of SMSB’s repertoire, Alvin responds without hesitation, "Natural disasters, bushwackers, train songs…” Home Sweet Home’s tune stack with songs identified with Gus Cannon, Blind Willie Johnson, The Mississippi Sheiks, Carter Family underscores that thought with titles like “Jesse James,” “Bootlegger's Blues,” and “Bloody Bill.” The latter song, along with “Worry 'bout Your Own Backyard” is an original but is reflective of the old timey ethos that, thanks to the Luther, Alvin and Jimbo, continues. Whether you hold a degree in ethnomusicologist or are just a person who is moved by authentic acoustic American music, Home Sweet Home speaks your language, in beautifully measured tones. As Jimbo notes, “We decided the South Memphis String Band will never be in a hurry.”
***
Spring thaw. The voice of the turtle is heard in the land. Nature's miracle of rebirth fills the breeze with the sweet smell of Easter blossoms. It's a good time to listen to the blues. As the free world teeters once again on the terrifying brink of depression, return with us now to those bygone days of yesteryear and lose your troubles in the timeless songs of the South Memphis String. Band. Three young contemporary blues artists, each in how own right a rising star. Three modern Mississippi musicians on a knight's quest to retrieve, preserve and, carry into the future America's most unique and meaningful musical statement. String band music from the Mississippi Sheik's and Cannon's Jug Stompers vaudeville humor yet with a dark core of philosophic irony that gives modern relevance and meaning to an antique form.
These three musicians are each different and yet the same. Luther Dickinson's good natured side has spread North Mississippi Hill Country Boogie to the world. Jimbo Mathus is the singing voice of Huckleberry Finn. The mighty Alvin Youngblood Hart is a force of nature and perhaps the best modern purveyor of the early Delta blues alive today.
So pull up a chair and pour some gin in your glass. If you don't dig this there is seriously something wrong with you.
World Boogie is coming,
Jim Dickinson
Independence, Mississippi
Home Sweet Home, their first album, out on Memphis International January 19th, showcases their passion for the old timey tradition that is underscored by the group’s name: South Memphis String Band. South Memphis, of course, is that rough and tumble area of the Bluff City extending from downtown to the Mississippi border, and beyond. It’s where Stax Records as well as, literally, hundreds of churches thrived. The sacred and profane, holy rolling and dice rolling, were cheek by jowl in old South Memphis and its modern day namesake reflects that ecumenicism quite brilliantly. For Luther, Alvin and Jimbo, South Memphis is more of a musical state of mind than a specific geographical location.
They’ve been called a “regional roots music supergroup” but the alliance of Dickinson (from the North Mississippi Allstars and, of late, the Black Crowes), Hart (the Grammy winner who is as equally adept at thrash rock as he is at country blues) and Mathus (of the Squirrel Nut Zippers) is more like three good friends just putting it down in a very traditional way. Mathus explained, “Luther, Youngblood Hart and myself have been musical co-conspirators for over a decade. It is only fitting that we should come together with acoustic instruments and perform Mississippi music.”
Michael Hoinski, writing in the Austin American-Statesman witnessed what’s so special about SMSB at a recent performance noting, “The American experience is the main unifier of this slap happy yet sureshot trio… Each player is principally a bluesman but also well-schooled in country, folk and gospel.”
When asked about the subject matter of SMSB’s repertoire, Alvin responds without hesitation, "Natural disasters, bushwackers, train songs…” Home Sweet Home’s tune stack with songs identified with Gus Cannon, Blind Willie Johnson, The Mississippi Sheiks, Carter Family underscores that thought with titles like “Jesse James,” “Bootlegger's Blues,” and “Bloody Bill.” The latter song, along with “Worry 'bout Your Own Backyard” is an original but is reflective of the old timey ethos that, thanks to the Luther, Alvin and Jimbo, continues. Whether you hold a degree in ethnomusicologist or are just a person who is moved by authentic acoustic American music, Home Sweet Home speaks your language, in beautifully measured tones. As Jimbo notes, “We decided the South Memphis String Band will never be in a hurry.”
***
Spring thaw. The voice of the turtle is heard in the land. Nature's miracle of rebirth fills the breeze with the sweet smell of Easter blossoms. It's a good time to listen to the blues. As the free world teeters once again on the terrifying brink of depression, return with us now to those bygone days of yesteryear and lose your troubles in the timeless songs of the South Memphis String. Band. Three young contemporary blues artists, each in how own right a rising star. Three modern Mississippi musicians on a knight's quest to retrieve, preserve and, carry into the future America's most unique and meaningful musical statement. String band music from the Mississippi Sheik's and Cannon's Jug Stompers vaudeville humor yet with a dark core of philosophic irony that gives modern relevance and meaning to an antique form.
These three musicians are each different and yet the same. Luther Dickinson's good natured side has spread North Mississippi Hill Country Boogie to the world. Jimbo Mathus is the singing voice of Huckleberry Finn. The mighty Alvin Youngblood Hart is a force of nature and perhaps the best modern purveyor of the early Delta blues alive today.
So pull up a chair and pour some gin in your glass. If you don't dig this there is seriously something wrong with you.
World Boogie is coming,
Jim Dickinson
Independence, Mississippi
The Five Deadly Venoms
The Five Deadly Venoms have earned a reputation at the top of New York City’s vibrant bluegrass scene. The band is built on the virtuosity of award winning pickers and singer/songwriters who have come together to carve a fresh and exciting new vision for bluegrass and new acoustic music.
The Venoms are a national touring act, featuring "standout musicians with two distinctive front men" (Durango Herald). After making the finals in the 2009 Telluride Bluegrass Band Competition the band took to the road for a tour of the southwest. Later in the summer fiddler Rob Hecht took home one of the biggest honors in bluegrass by winning the 2009 Rockygrass Fiddle Competition. NYCbluegrass.com calls the Five Deadly Venoms "Awesome!"
To capture the immediacy of their live sound, the band called on three-time Grammy winner Dave Sinko. Their self-titled debut album showcases the talent that surges through this young unit. The ballads of lonesome heartache delicately framed by this master string ensemble reach deep into the history of American Soul and classical chamber repertoire to find sublime new soundscapes for restless fans of traditional music.
The Venoms are a national touring act, featuring "standout musicians with two distinctive front men" (Durango Herald). After making the finals in the 2009 Telluride Bluegrass Band Competition the band took to the road for a tour of the southwest. Later in the summer fiddler Rob Hecht took home one of the biggest honors in bluegrass by winning the 2009 Rockygrass Fiddle Competition. NYCbluegrass.com calls the Five Deadly Venoms "Awesome!"
To capture the immediacy of their live sound, the band called on three-time Grammy winner Dave Sinko. Their self-titled debut album showcases the talent that surges through this young unit. The ballads of lonesome heartache delicately framed by this master string ensemble reach deep into the history of American Soul and classical chamber repertoire to find sublime new soundscapes for restless fans of traditional music.