By Michael Swanger michael@dmcityview.com

Jimbo Mathus reinvents the Delta with genius, soul

Mississippi's greatest export is its music. The birthplace of the blues and, arguably, country music (its founding father Jimmie Rodgers hailed from Meridian), it has played a significant role in shaping gospel, jazz, rock and hip-hop. In a nutshell, it is ground zero for popular music in America, perhaps the world.

And though the state's legacy will forever be linked to its dark past of slavery and racial divide, what most historians and music writers fail to notice is that beneath the ethnic tension, poor blacks and poor whites defied segregation by sharing tales of heartache to create some of the greatest music the world has ever known. Whites and blacks may have worked at opposite ends of the field (though they often labored side-by-side, too), but they chewed the same dirt - figuratively speaking. And if you dig deep enough, you'll find interviews with bluesmen who were reared on country music radio and country artists whose sound was steeped in the blues.

No other form of music, obviously, better fuses those elements than does rock 'n' roll. From Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry, to the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin, to the White Stripes and Wilco, the hybrid of blues and country is the very essence of our popular culture - even though it seems increasingly removed from its roots these days.

Therein lies the problem, though, as pundits, large record companies and radio stations cite waning popularity and declining album and concert ticket sales as arguments against the relevancy and future of rock and blues in a world dominated by hip-hop. Someday, someone might make a chart-topping connection between hip-hop and roots music (we're seeing that happen to a degree already) that goes beyond mere sampling and everything will come full circle for the blind masses. Until then, we have Jimbo Mathus to remind us that Mississippi music doesn't belong on a shelf.

"It's not something you go look at in a museum," he says. "I'm trying to re-invent Mississippi music. I'm using the traditions of the music and trying to put my own spin on it."
To do so, Mathus incorporates a variety of Delta styles by way of Memphis, Atlanta, Detroit and London to create an intoxicating blend of greasy, yet surprisingly sophisticated songs on his latest album, "Knockdown South." The record is a smooth blend of R.L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough ("Crazy Bout You"), danceable '70s soul ("Hypmotized"), Allman Brothers-like Southern rock ("Boogie Music," "Rolling Like A Log"), late '60s Stones ("Let Me Be Your Rocker," "Skateland Baby") and unadulterated honky-tonk ("Loving Arms," "Asked My Captain").

"It's hard for me to differentiate styles when I hear Carl Perkins or Johnny Cash or Charley Patton," says Mathus, who describes his music as "beer drinkin' gospel" and "cotton field disco." "It just seems all the same to me."

Blame Mathus' musical alchemist mindset on his roots. Born and raised in Clarksdale, Miss., the home of the blues, Mathus grew up around country music and has been diggin' the blues for a long time. His nanny was Rosetta Patton, Charley Patton's daughter, and he started playing harmonica at the age of 6, learning from his father and musicians from the hill country. In 1989, he moved to North Carolina to form the popular hyper-hybrid ragtime group Squirrel Nut Zippers with his wife Katherine Whalen. Together, they went on to sell more than two million albums. Shortly after the Zippers disbanded, Mathus returned to his hometown in 2003 to reconnect with his roots.

"There's so much music down here it's hard to keep your hands off any one style," he says. "I wanted to be a part of what's going on and record some of this stuff."

Mathus' hands, it would seem, are everywhere these days. When he isn't playing and recording his own material, he's producing other Delta musicians at his Clarksdale studio for his record label, Knockdown South, including Duwayne Burnside, the Jelly Roll All-Stars and the Afrosippi All-Stars. He's played on albums by the Mississippi All-Stars and Jim Dickinson and served as the rhythm guitarist and studio influence behind Buddy Guy's raw, acclaimed recordings "Sweet Tea" and "Blues Singer" which landed him a spot in Guy's touring band in 2004 alongside Double Trouble.

"Me and others are diggin' in the roots and comin' up with new variations," the 38-year-old Mathus says. "Lots of young cats down here aren't afraid to do their own thing."

Mathus says he learned how to be artistically bold from some of Mississippi's most famous music rebels - many of which can be found on Fat Possum Records.
"We had the opportunity to learn from total anarchists like R.L., Junior, T-Model Ford and Robert Belfour," he says. "It's a lucky break being born at a time when they were around.

"Plus I have the advantage of knowing how to record in the old-school style and having the gear to do it, which is primitive, but it's all we need. I don't use Pro Tools to fix shit. It's straight to tape. I let the old equipment and musicians do the work."

Mathus applies the same philosophy to his own sessions, too. He just wrapped up recording his third solo album, "Jimmy the Kid," and signed a deal with Tone Cool-Records to release it in May. The singer-songwriter-guitarist says it leans more toward Southern rock and New Orleans styles, but includes his signature Mississippi sound.

"In an ideal world, if you're driving through the countryside at night and dialing through the radio and every station you hit was different but playing something cool, it would be like that," he says.

Mathus says he hopes the album will draw more attention to the Clarksdale scene and invigorate artists to cultivate its fertile musical heritage.

"It could be a good thing for everyone down here," he says. "If we can get some help to get our music out to the people it would be cool. It might restore the faith." CV

CITY SOUNDS 2

Bending strings, stereotypes

Ask most anyone who they think are the greatest guitarists of all time and chances are they'll rattle off a list of men faster than you can say "Johnny B. Goode." Then ask them to name some of the greatest female guitarists and watch them stumble after mentioning Bonnie Raitt.

Guitar legends typically make up an all-male club. Pick up any music or guitar magazine when they compile their list of 100 greatest guitarists and you might find mention of a handful of women like Joni Mitchell, Joan Jett or Raitt, if any. Few people dispute the fact that men like Robert Johnson, Jimi Hendrix and Eddie Van Halen deserve the god-like status they achieved for their groundbreaking work. But what's interesting in the 21st century, is that there aren't more debates and discussions about women's contributions to the guitar. That is, until now, thanks to an acclaimed international guitarist-singer-songwriter born in Des Moines whose latest album she hopes will shine some light on the prowess of guitar heroines.

"I would do interviews and people would say, 'Why are there no great women guitarists?' and I would say, 'They're out there, you just don't hear about them every day,'" says Patty Larkin. "I don't think the awareness has caught up with the fact it has shifted. I get 12-year-old girls who come up to me and say, 'I was the only female guitarist in my conservatory, thank you for doing this.'"

Last year, Larkin produced a collection of previously released songs by 14 female guitarists, mostly instrumentals, under the name La Guitara, entitled "Gender Bending Strings." It includes cuts by Memphis Minnie, Kaki King, Rory Block and Badi Assad. Larkin even contributed "Bound Brook," a contemporary instrumental featuring her playing electric, national steel, nylon acoustic and baritone guitars.

The Iowa native, who has spent most of her adult life living outside Massachusetts and has 10 solo albums under her belt, says for years she has wanted to create an album that not only demonstrated the contributions women have made to the guitar but also one that would span a variety of musical styles and reflect the instrument's changing demographics. It's an idea she batted around for about 10 years. But when she started compiling a list of artists who she wanted to use for the project, it was more daunting than even she realized.

"Once we started the research we wanted to make it a double-disc set, but we didn't have the funds," she says. "So we had to make some tough choices."

Larkin says if the album is a success, she hopes it will convince her record company, Vanguard Records, to allow her to release additional albums of new and archival recordings by female guitarists. To help promote "Gender Bending Strings," Larkin and others who contributed to the album occasionally tour together. Last week, they played a sold-out show to thousands of fans at the National Association of Music Manufacturers in Los Angeles. The concert was filmed for release on DVD.

"People walked out astounded by what players they are," Larkin says. "They're comparable to many of the men who are well known."

A portion of the proceeds from the album's sales benefit a music education program Guitars in the Classroom.

In the meantime, Larkin continues to reach out to young guitarists, particularly female, one record and one concert at a time, often doling out advice.

"I tell them to learn the repertoire, which I am still doing," she says. "I tell them to go ahead and play loudly and badly. If you want to play rock 'n' roll guitar get the acoustic to get something under your belt. Be as bold and brave as you can and learn from other people," male or female. CV

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