The Jack Grace Band will be in town Saturday for the 4th Annual Honesdale Roots and Rhythm Music and Arts Festival. Look for them at the Fred Miller pavilion stage on Main Street, 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and on the 9th Street stage prior to headliner Junior Brown.
[Editor’s note: One of numerous bands on tap for the festival, the whole line-up may be scanned at www.honesdalerootsandrhythm.com. The music in Central Park runs from 2 to 10 p.m.]
If you’re wondering what they sound like, here’s how Jack describes them on his myspace: “An Italian with a banjo in a tree...or we could just say it sounds like occasionally traditional, sometimes bizarre...country music.”
We caught up Jack AKA “Martini Cowboy” between gigs via e-mail. He’d just gotten back from a show in Beacon, New York when he answered our list of questions.
Q-How did you get started? Who inspires you, both personally and musically? I understand you listened to Sinatra in the back of your dad's car. What was that sound in your ears and how did that and your dad encourage you?
A-Music to me, at a very early age, was as exciting as getting to ride a roller coaster. I remember asking my dad if we could play the "Let It Be" album the same way some kid might ask to go the zoo. He said, "yeah no problem" with a slight look saying, what's wrong with this kid? My first band was called Steak. We got big very fast out of the Boulder Co. area in 1993. I haven't stopped since.
Q-Where's your favorite place to play and why?
A-Outdoors at a festival with a beautiful sunset and the crowd having fun or a rowdy dive bar with a great energy flowing it's not as much the place, more the circumstance. I do consider the Rodeo Bar in NYC as home, it is where this happens most often for me (well not the sunset).
Q-I understand you're a songwriter as well. How do you figure out the lyrics, do you draw on personal experiences? Is there a message behind every song you sing?
A- I believe a good songwriter uses it all and writes songs experimenting with a variety of techniques. Sometimes it's a title, or a dream. Or a bad day, a fight, wanting to write a song like say, Tom Waits, or sometimes just from fiddling about on my guitar, piano or banjo. Once you have a system and you count on it, you dig yourself a rut. It is the nature of the beast. So I'm always looking for new ways to write songs. Maybe I'll write one under water this summer.
Q- Did the music industry open easily to you or did you have to brush off rejection and keep going. If you were to encourage those trying to break into what you do, what would you have them know?
A-The music industry embraces no one. It uses people until it needs them no more. It is a business and just as ugly as any competitive market. You can step away from that by creating a respect between you and the people who enjoy your music. That is where the love is.
Here are some pointers:
1) If you are touring for say six weeks in a van, throw out your socks and buy bags of new ones as you go, keeps you and the van fresher. 2) Don't hire a manager, learn how to do yourself, then when you know what you are doing, you can pass the work on to a manager. This be the way of music in the 21st century. 3) Don't ever get mad at a crowd you are playing to even if they deserve it, it will ALWAYS backfire on you. 4) A safe vehicle for touring is the most important tool you will ever have. A faulty amp won't kill you but a bad axle...5) Pick your first round of band members very carefully and then try to keep the same unit forever if you can.
Q-Do you enjoy other styles of music and why?
A-Well the Jack Grace Band plays bossa, jazz, rock, country sometimes in one song.
The only kind of music I don't like is contrived music. I hate commercials, I don't care how funny you think the ad is. A lot of roots music folk hate rap, there is some beautiful rap. Every style of music has the potential to be fantastic. I just happen to be obsessed with Neil Young on vinyl, Thelonius Monk, Bill Evans, Merle Haggard, Wayne Hancock this week. Next week will be another story.
Q-Are there sacrifices you or your family make to be in music? Time away from home and missing important moments? How do you find a balance? Are you married with children?
A-My wife is the bass player, she is tired of living out of suitcases and leaving her garden. We plan to have kids soon, but we can't get a babysitter for what we do, so we have waited on family for career for sure.
Q-What are the names of your band members? Where are they from? How long have you been playing together? And if you had to tell me a little something about each one, what would you say?
A-Below is the lineup for the Honesdale Festival, although we have many other fine band members.
Russ "The Fuss" Meissner- drums, born in Canada, raised in the Toronto area. Russ is a founding member. He is an awesome jazz drummer and for any other style, the real deal and a great friend. We will be playing together 10 years in the fall.
Mike Neer- Lap Steel. Mike is from the swamps of New Jersey. Mike is quite sought after and extremely knowledgeable in his field; he is the definition of lap steel for me. Anyone better than Mike is just showing off. He is a loving husband and a father three lovely children. Been in the band three years.
Daria Grace- Bass, vocals. Daria was born in Bethlehem PA. Well, she's my wife. I love her and she is also a very accomplished jazz singer/ukulele player as well as the most tasteful pocket bass player I have ever played with and not to boast, but I've played with my share of NYC hotshots in my day. Five years in the band.
Q-What happens when you're singing ...Do you get lost in the song, the telling of the story? Do you watch the crowd for reaction. What is their reaction? What experiences stand out for you over the years, as far as music or the everyday people you've met? And how has that helped form who you are?
A-I have experienced all of that. I like to get inside a song and really tell it, when I feel like I am the character of the song, telling all of the stories, I know I am on that night. Crowd reaction is definitely a big part of the deal. Ireland has really been a thrill for us. The crowd really gets worked up in a frenzy at our shows over there in a way I have never experienced. Lots of songs about drinking, Ireland, frenzy...hmmm.
I am very proud of the Jack Grace Band. It can play a retirement home, a kids party, a dive bar, a stadium and always deliver and show folks a good time from about every demographic. That is a rare form of entertainment in my humble opinion.
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Don’t forget, tonight marks the pre-festival kick-off party at JJ Macks, just up from the Wayne County fairgrounds, 8 p.m. till midnight. There’s no cover charge to see The Slam Allen Band perform.
