IBMA Member Central Vol. 35 No. 09 TTexasexas BluegrassBluegrass September 1, 2013 The Parkbench Growing up just north of the Red River in southern Oklahoma (some would call it yankee land) in the ‘50s and ‘60s meant you had to be fairly creative in coming up with entertainment options. My hometown of about 20-some thousand folks had a Kiddie Land park with two small carnival-style rides and a miniature train. Those rides were, as you can imagine, pure excitement, until about the time you turned 13. Any parent will tell you that this is the gateway age into, what can be, a troubling time often referred to as being “a teenager”. Believe me, I know all about it from both sides of the fence. No need to go into a lot of specifi cs. We’ve all been there to some degree. Some of us, however, are a bit more degreed in that area than others. The recent loss of our bluegrass friend Lyndal Cannon got me to thinking about who my mentors were through the years: those (mostly) men who steered me down the right path, encouraged me to make right decisions, and instilled a sense of discipline in me, and I realized they all had one thing in common: music. My band instructor in Junior High and High School was a gruff , demanding, unsmiling dictator. I couldn’t have asked for a better role model. While I gener- ally disliked the man during those years, I eventually came to realize that a lot of how I conduct myself now, a lot of what I demand from myself and others, is a direct result of the values he drilled into me while I wasn’t paying attention. He was good man because he knew I needed an adult leader not an adult friend. My fi rst guitar teacher lived across the alley from our house. I used to grab my electric guitar and cord and walk over to his house once a week for a 30-minute Photo by & © Diana Ost introduction to making music with strings, albeit electric ones. He was an old- time jazz guitarist who loved to tell stories about his adventures in the jazz scene over the years. I was never sure how he wound up in our little town, about the farthest thing from jazz appreciation as you could get, but I decided it was best not to ask. I wasn’t that impressed with most of his stories because I wanted to learn to play guitar, not hear his jazz history. But, he told those stories all the while not letting me get by with sloppy habits or sloppy practice methods. Little did I know that all those stories eventually came together to give me a better understanding of music theory, the infl uence of jazz even on the music that I liked at the time, and the skill of reading music that would last a lifetime. He was a good man because he knew I needed a foundation not a free ride. Over the years, there were more good men who were signifi cant contribu- tors to who I would become, some of them intentional infl uencers and Photo by & © Ann deGraff enried some accidental. We would go to festivals, oprys, numerous dinners on the grounds and in nearly every activity, there was someone who took the time to talk, to play, to show, to teach. In the amateur radio world they have a name for people who spe- cifi cally do that kind of thing, that teaching the youngsters or newbies who are new to the hobby. They’re called Elmers. Nobody really knows why that name stuck but it’s come to identify someone with experience who’s willing to teach someone who wants to learn. They are good men and women. To borrow a phrase, the country could use a few good men and women to help the next generation learn © 2013 CENTRAL TEXAS BLUEGRASS ASSOCIATION FREE Friday & Saturday October 18-19, 2013 Farmers Branch Texas Historical Park Suzy Bogguss Travelin’ McCourys Sierra Hull The Boxcars Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out Rambling Rooks The Spinney Brothers Gold Heart The Herrins Free Admission, no ticket required Two days of great music, chili, and Only 15 minutes from D/FW Airport! beautiful flowers under the Texas sky! Bring your blankets and lawn chairs! Discounted Festival Room Rates! RV parking available. Festival hours Friday 4:30p - 10p Saturday 10:30a - 10p. Check our website at: BluegrassHeritage.org for more details Farmers Branch Historical Park about special deals on hotel rooms. 2540 Farmers Branch Ln Farmers Branch, Texas 75234 Artists and schedule subject to change without notice. BloominBluegrass.com [email protected] This event is brought to you by the City of Farmers Branch, Texas and the Bluegrass Heritage Foundation. BluegrassHeritage.org 2 Central Texas Bluegrass Association the ropes, develop a skill, nurture a talent, and carry what they learn forward to those who will follow them. I am what I am today in part because of a few good men who took the time to talk with me, who showed at least a passing interest in helping me improve, who encouraged me to keep on keeping on, to not give up. I like to think that those of us in the bluegrass community are genuinely concerned about and support- ive of each other because we are all we’ve got and we are all they’ve got. Who knows? Maybe some day someone will mention your name and somebody will say, “Yeah, I knew him. He was a good man.” Let me know what you think. In the meantime, do your best to stay cool in what’s left of the summer and keep on pickin’. - Bob Vestal, Editor Meet an Artist - Devin Jake As is o en the case, every now and then you stumble upon an ar st you haven’t heard before and fi nd out you’ve been miss- ing something really good. Devin Jake, a local Aus n ar st, is a case in point. Here is some of an e-mail conversa on we had recently. Tell us a li le bit about you, where were you born and reared, family, etc. I was born and raised in Nebraska. In my early childhood my me was split between my mom’s in North Pla e and my dad’s in Stamford. In fi h grade I moved in with my dad and step-mom permanently, so I like to say “I grew up three miles south of a town of 188 people.” My mom had seven children of her own. Five boys and two girls. In order we are: Debbi, Dean, Dawna, Dus n, Devin, Photo © Birdsong Imaging Jeremy, Jessup. As long as I can remember, I had both of my step-parents. My Step-mom had two daughters and my step-dad had two daughters and a son. Because of this I have always thought of myself as having six sisters and fi ve brothers which makes 12 total -- just like Dolly Parton. ;) How/when did you get to Aus n? I moved to Aus n four and a half years ago because of the music scene. I had been previously living in Chicago playing with my band Devin & The Straights. I moved to Aus n because I wanted to live somewhere country music was prevalent and Nashville seemed too in mida ng. I am very thank- ful I made the decision to come here because I have truly met and played with some of the most talented musicians. The people here are invi ng and willing to help newcomers fi nd their way. I am especially thankful for Jim Stringer’s Country Jam. That is where I met Jenn Miori of the Carper 7.6+g &7%#6+10#. 41557.674#. 465551%+#6+10 0(&&$LVDF QRQSURÀWHGXFDWLRQDORUJDQL]DWLRQWKDWWHDFKHVPXVLF GDQFHWRDGXOWVDQGFKLOGUHQ:HSURYLGHHWKQLFFXOWXUDOSDWULRWLFPXVLFDQG GDQFHJURXSVIRUFLYLFVFKRROVFKXUFKHVDQGFOXESURJUDPVHYHQWV 3KRQH HPDLOGINRWW#DROFRP 7HDFKLQJWKH&KLOGUHQRIWKH:RUOGWR'DQFH <RX7XEHFKDQQHOPHFDW[ 6LQJDQG3OD\0XVLFDO,QVWUXPHQWV Central Texas Bluegrass Association 3 Family. She opened the doors and introduced me to a lot of the great musicians I now call friends. Also, early on I met Stephen Doster, Bill Carter, and Will Sexton. They were playing together at Z Tejas on Wednesdays and a friend of mine convinced them to let me sing a few tunes with them. When I found out Stephen had a recording studio, I told him I’d always wanted to record a gospel record. I wasn’t sure it would really happen, but a few years down the road and a few more original gospel tunes under my belt, I contacted him to see if he was s ll interested in recording that gospel record. I met with him a few mes, set up the studio me, gathered up my favorite musicians in Aus n, and we recorded my new album Jesus & Mama. How did you get started as a performing ar st? I really only play rhythm guitar. I got my start as a performing ar st fi rst as a modern dancer. I went to college for dance at the University of Nebraska, then moved on to Columbia College in Chicago. I started dance school shortly a er I had my mom teach me how to play guitar. I learned how to play gui- tar to carry on my mom’s family tradi on of being a musician. None of her seven children had learned to play an instrument and I felt at least one of us should. She and all her siblings and my grandpa and his family all played music.