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Thursday, Aug 21, 2008
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Jason Ricci: out, proud and blue |
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| Jason Ricci: out, proud and blue | |
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by Tony Engelhart -
Special to the SGN JASON RICCI DECEMBER 15, 8:00 P.M. HIGHWAY 99 BLUES CLUB 1414 ALASKAN WAY SEATTLE 206-382-2171 Blues is alive and well in the 21st century, and while there might not be any bluesmen left from the cotton fields of the Mississippi, thanks to a batch of young musicians who are dedicated to keeping the genre alive, the sound of the delta can still be heard like a distant train whistle on a dark night. An out and proud Gay man, Jason Ricci is one such artist who plays with respect for those who rose out of the oppressive South and changed music forever, but his surprisingly fresh take on the blues opens a new chapter for the time-honored music. Jason Ricci and New Blood will bleed onstage at the Highway 99 Blues Club at 8:00 p.m. Ricci is definitely not your grandfather's bluesman - or, for that matter, your father's. Sure, he found inspiration by way of Paul Butterfield and Canned Heat, but was initially influenced as a teen by punk rockers the Sex Pistols, the Ramomes and the Dead Kennedys. "Punk was the most exciting to me at that stage in my life and seemed to be the most sincere lyrically, emotionally and politically at the time," explained Ricci. But his musical explorations didn't stop there and he found further inspiration with the psychedelic '60s and '80s alternative with bands such as the Pixies, Fugazi and the Replacements. His first band, Farm Dog, drew from melodic punk scene and such as the Dead Milkmen but didn't follow the movement's fashions or mantras. "Most of the lyrics to my songs were about how people follow trends, fashions, and entertainment blindly and dogmatically even if the trends and fashions they're following were founded as rebellion to that same dogma," Ricci said. It was by the urging of his bandmates that Ricci started blowing the harmonica in between his campy lyrics. The harp was Ricci's introduction to the blues and he studied recordings of some of the greats to develop his technique, "I started out only liking the music just for the harmonica but after my mom took me to see a few good blues shows, namely James Cotton, I started to actually fall in love with the music itself," said Ricci. "I realized I was witnessing some of that same sincerity I heard in punk music in the music and performances of some of the blues artists I was hearing and seeing." After the band broke up, Ricci would find out what the blues were as he was kicked out of house, kicked out of school and found himself with a crowd of street kids. The Portland, Maine teen would later find refuge with a group of deadhead hippie kids playing harp in a blues style with an acoustic guitarist at parties. "We put together like a little Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee type acoustic duo where we played a bunch of old folk and blues tunes as well as some Dead covers and a few originals," said Ricci. "That was the real beginning I guess." Ricci, who was now consumed with the blues more than ever, started a blues band with another Portland blues enthusiast by the name of Nick Curran - now on Blind Pig Records - and blew his way into playing along side the great RL Burnside while in a band led by David Malone Kimbrough - son of Junior Kimbrough - after relocating to Memphis, Tennessee in 1995. He has been the recipient of countless awards and has toured with many of today's top blues acts, including Susan Tedeschi and Billy Gibson. The 33-year-old vocalist and harmonica whiz kid's latest venture, New Blood, was formed in late 2002 and has made a name for itself by way of its high-octane shows. "I do really enjoy live shows," said Ricci. "I love playing loud and changing the tunes up, as well and just making up new things on the spot." That same year, Ricci came out. "I came out when I was 28 years old, I'm 33 now, so kinda late in the game," explains Ricci. "There were a lot of reasons for waiting that long that I could talk about all day. Mostly it was just me being confused and scared to admit to myself that I was Gay. I didn't have any Gay friends and didn't feel a real connection to the Gay community via house music, fashion, Cher, Madonna, drag queens, etc. & I am a big Judy Garland fan though so I guess I have a connection there. So not having a lot of those stereotypes and the fact that I had been dating and even living with a few different women helped me stay in denial for a long time. Things are better now." Despite the many accolades, Ricci has experienced some intolerance being a Gay man in the blues world, "It has kind of sucked, yes," said Ricci. "Our band has suffered a little that I know of by way of certain clubs refusing to book us, some hate mail, nasty posts on blues-related internet message boards, an actual boycott by a blues society, a few death threats, etc. ... I'm sure the real discrimination, though, is the crap I don't ever hear about." But it hasn't been all bad, and Ricci has found some kindred spirits. "I have made some very true friends who have embraced me and we have become close almost just because of that fact at least initially. I have also met two other out Gay performers besides myself: Larry Van Loon is a Hammond B3 player and singer songwriter guy in my home town of Nashville, and a young guy named Earl Thomas from northern California." What he thought would be a career stumbling block hasn't been nearly as devastating as he imagined, but he hasn't seen much backing from Gay audiences. "A lot of people still don't know, so I guess after I do a ton more articles like this one, we'll see. I was counting on a little more support from the Gay community, but so far my experience has told me otherwise. We have played a few Gay pride events but sandwiching a rock/blues band between 40 drag queens hasn't been the best recipe for mass Gay acceptance so far," said Ricci. Still he remains hopeful. "I'm trying to put together a tour of Queer artists to play at Gay pride events so there's more than just our band up there. In the past, at Gay pride when everyone sees the drum set and guitars they head for the hills. But I think if we had a bunch of bands at least three male and female out Gay performers with their bands playing American folk, rock, and blues we could open a lot of minds in the Gay world and outside. So that's a goal." The band has released two discs. Their debut, 2005's Blood on the Road, combined all of Ricci's influences and explored new ground as New Blood flirted with some jazz and funk grooves. The band's latest CD, 2007's Rocket Number 9, crisscrosses many genres as they take the listener on a sonic journey which melds a punk rock attitude with a blues foundation. "What sets us apart from traditional blues bands is we're not in the practice of practicing tradition," explains Ricci. "We observe, study and incorporate tradition from various forms of music as well as blues, but were not in the business of 'recreating' a form of music as it was done 50 years ago or more." Jason Ricci can play the blues because he's lived the blues. As he and his main collaborator, guitarist Shawn Starski, continue grow they are rewriting the rules of what blues music can be. "We have an affinity for all types of music and we can't help but need to incorporate those influences into our music, thus inadvertently changing it," said Ricci. "Of course, blues is the main canvas in which we paint outside the lines of. As I get older I will probably find new canvases to stray from maybe we already did?" |
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