Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

■■■ ^ rnoMmbtr 30, 1994 G Love and Special Sauce Are Talkin' 'Bout The Blues Let 5 see: Elmore James, Robert Johnson, Howlin ’ Wolf, John Lee Hooker, G Love and Spe cial Sauce... What? Yes, you heard me. With a self- titled debut on the revamped classic OKeh blues label, G Love and Special Sauce are reinventing the blues and paving the crossroads with their sound. Rag mop, Front Porch Rhyming, call it what you will. Their laid-back rhyming backed with dobro, harmonica, upright bass ana calfskin drums is a hybrid of the blues, and G Love (aka Garrett Dutton) and Special Sauce (Jeffrey Clemens and Jimmy Prescott) have created a groove to move the masses off their asses. In a very casual Flagpole interview, here f s what the G man had to say: Flagpole: You guys just returned from a European tour. How was the response from the European audiences? C Love: Yeah, we’ve been keeping real busy. We did two European tours and two 11. S. tours. We’ve been on official tour non-stop since July. Those crowds in Europe were cool. We sold out shows in Amsterdam, France, Belgium, Ger many. Everywhere we go, it has been pretty cool. FP Each of you seems to have a different approach to the music; how did you get together as a band? G: I moved from Philadelphia to Boston, where I was play ing in the streets with occasional solo gigs at coffee houses and stuff like that While opening a gig for some other band, I hooked up with my drummer. He saw me playing solo, and we formed a band of just guitar and drums. Then we got Jimmy on the bass. Jeff knew Jim cause Jeff ran a jazz jam. Jim has been playing upright for only a few years, so he was bringing it to the jazz jam to sit in with some of the older cats. FP: So how long were you together before you cut the tracks for the album? G: Well, we cut “Blues Music," “Shooting Hoops," “Baby’s Got Sauce," “Town to Town" and “I Love You" after about seven months, and we cut the record after about nine months. FP: What do you think about other groups that are work ing in roughly the same arena as you — for example: Digable Planets, A Tribe Called Quest, Guru? G: That shit is really hard core hip hop. We’re not really a hip hop band. That shit is great music, but we do more blues. Actually, we just do our songs. Some of them are really bluesy, some are almost like rockabilly, and some are really funky. FP: You do have something in common with those groups, though, and that is the fact that you have stirred the curi osity of listeners into listening to some of the older jazz and blues that are fundamental to your music. G: I think it’s really important I mean, how I play the music that I do is because through playing guitar, I was able to open a world of roots music. People like Bob Dylan, John Hammond, Robert Johnson, Mississippi John Hurt and John Lee Hooker have been big influences on my music, even though my music is my own. Yeah, I’d be re ally happy that if through checking out my music, some one would be interested in checking out the masters. FP Does a certain style on the record dominates the others? G: Our record is more of a funk album than anything else, but it’s our own blend of the funk. I come from the blues, Jeff comes from the funk, and Jimmy comes from the jazz tradition. Hopefully, people will pick up on that and check out where the shit really came from. Then, everything else will make sense, from every sample you hear to how James Brown got started in funk anyway. We have to live for to day, but we also want to pay homage to some of the people who move us. FP: How do you get that sound? I mean, the overall album sounds rough on the edges, but it is also done freshly. G: My drummer plays old tubs, old wooden drums, like an old jazz kit. You can’t get an old sound out of a new kit. Check this out: What’s your favorite record ever? TTie one you can always go back and listen to over and over? FP: John Coltrane’s Sun Ship. G: Right, see. If you ask anybody that question, they usu ally say some old record from the ’60s, not some band that came out last year. TTiat shit is overproduced. We’re trying to strip our music down. All of my favorite music wasn’t recorded on digital equipment with all these effects. I have two points: First, the most important thing about someone’s music is the performance. 1 think raw music is the best, because if you sweeten it too much, you lose the feel. Also, I don’t want to spend money on some super duper guitar cause it has more wires and shit I paid $ 125 for my guitar, $200 for my amp, and $50 for the microphone that I used to record the whole album. To me, that’s the real shit FP What’s happening after the tour? A new record? G: I’m planning on doing a solo album soon. I went to a studio, but I did not have much luck. We’ll record another album in the spring, too. FP Are you ready for the Athens crowd? G: Oh, yeah. We just want the audience to have a good time; that's all we ever want We just want to give to them... peace. Joshua Jackson G Love and Special Sauce play Wednesday, Nov. 30, at the 40 WatL HAVING PROBLEMS? NEED A LAWYER? James M. Green Attorney at Law 769-7394 Criminal/DUI Defense Worker’s Compensation Divorce & Wills FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION aiON \aiON S HAiRCARE MASSAGE & FACIALS GIFT CERTIFICATES —10Z 2 Baxter SL 354-1072 l« Cat*" CXic.\4\ 92 93 94 mmxUi) Now Serving Athens • Ample seating & parking • Multiple T.V.’s • Live Entertainment (Wed.-Sunday) • Outdoor Patio • Children’s Menu And what made us the best is our food and margorifas, mode fresh doily. 2455 W. Broad St. • 548-5663 ( Next to Howard Johnsonis) 200-6104 494 Baxter St. Est and Prink on Sundayel Open till midnight IS’* MED. PIZZA 2 TOpplngs Anvtime >4.95aii the time Eat In or Pick-up FRIDAYS ■■, trivia &-.30 sign-up ♦so House tab - lat prize •25 House tab - 2nd prize Ducket o' Dud product* - 3rd prize Bud Product Clvuways Budwelser $1.25 During the game PIG’S EYE - Always a Buckl Wed., Nov..30 Pool Tourney S3 per person • S$ Cosh Prizes $$ Thurs., Dec. 1 $200 Pitchers VISA. MC, AMEX. & DISCOVER accepted (and checks If ^ here's money In tr»e bank) <n> 1