Someone shared this link today on Facebook: Des Moines Photos
It showcases my town beautifully. It also inspired me to begin sharing some of my favorite Iowan artists with you all. More will unfold with 2014, but I wanted to start with my Rosetta stone for understanding folk music.
I (abashedly) finally discovered Greg Brown in my 30s. And me an Iowan… Where have I been? Musical backstory commencing now.
Remember how I told you I wanted to be cosmopolitan? The white beret? The highly cultured addiction to Duran Duran? (January 9 post) There were whole genres that were kicked to the curb when limited exposure met sounds that didn't please my ear.
Factors?
- Country had a lot of twang in my formative years. It did not sound cultured to my discerning ear. There was a whole lot of note scooping going on. Broken pick-up trucks. Cheating women. That kind of fodder. Then in the 90s, Shania Twain. Need I say more?
- I grew up in a home that was not musically inclined. Meaning we didn't have a common radio in the house that was ever turned on.
- We had a piano we practiced on, and my mom played piano in church so I could sing every hymn ever written, but didn't know a single Beatles song.
- In school we’d do Cole Porter musicals and other classics, so I had those bases covered also. I am a musical waiting to happen. Chorus? Check. Show choir? Yes, please. I speak those musical languages.
- My sister and I shared a record player with an 8 track and a radio feature on it. We couldn't really pick up any radio stations in the house, and we had limited vinyl / 8 tracks.
- In the car, my parents refused to turn on the radio generally. On occasion we’d get to listen to NPR (SO popular with the youth set) or if we were incredibly lucky, an old John Denver or Kenny Rogers cassette tape.
My access to popular music in any genre was dangerously low in my youth. My limited exposure to country music which I didn't like led me to reject it heartily with few exceptions. Country bled into folk. You get the idea. I have whole areas of music in which I’m not versed at all.
Which brings us back around to Greg Brown. Greg is the consummate folk musician. Warm. Humorous. A born storyteller. With a deep dark chocolate soul. And for me, he was a gateway drug. Because of him, there are so many musical doors that have opened to me. He made folk accessible. He made me want to explore not only his contemporary counterparts, but his musical roots - those artists who inspired him. This was a revelation in sound for me.
Tonight I celebrate Greg Brown who provides the perfect taste of my state's folk offerings.
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