About Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (June 22, 2011)
- .V - ■>' : The Chickasaw Mudd Puppies Return After a Two-Decade Hiatus T wenty years ago, Ben Reynolds and Brant Slay were delightful, bluesy stand-outs in the crowded Athens music scene. As the Chickasaw Mudd Puppies, they strummed, stomped, hollered and carried on like a couple of tipsy hillbilly rockers. The twosome called it quits in 1992. But this year, on the heels of an unexpected reunion in the studio, the Mudd Puppies are back in action. "It's hard for me to look back at it and say what we were or what we are now," says Reynolds, who handled electric guitar and shared vocal duties. "We certainly didn't plan on being a kind of novelty act, although it did sort of turn into that at one point. For us, it was all about the music. We had a great time doing it, and there was some sort of weird chemistry § between us." * Formed in 1988, the duo | played around town and took % their act on the road behind a 33 small pile of recordings. Fans loved their onstage enthusi asm and backwoods image. Critics raved about their Southern personality, bluesy style and Slay's stompbox, harmonica, washboard and battery of homemade per- . cussion instruments. Fellow musicians admired their raw- but-effective technique. "Neither one of us had any plans on being professional musicians," says Reynolds. "Although, that would be my dream job. In some ways, it still is my dream job, but it's nothing I ever thought I'd be doing. We just simply got together and started playing." Their show wasn't a silly novelty act. On their kiosk flyers and promo photos, the longhaired, overall-clad Mudd Puppies looked a little crazy and weird, but onstage, the music stood up. Their punkish blend of swamp blues, rocka billy, country and Appalachian folk styles was mighty power ful. Slay's boot-stomping performance style and rowdy harp work complemented Reynolds' twangy guitar tones and riffs. It rocked and grooved in a unique way. "I can't tell you how talented I think Brant is," says Reynolds. "He somehow makes me sound good, which is dif ficult," he laughs. "It's not like we're virtuosos at what we do, but Brant's a natural talent. For me, I'm just a basic guitar player who can beat the hell out of a guitar." In 1989, the Mudd Puppies issued their debut on the small California indie label Texas Hotel Records. "When we were dealing with Texas Hotel, we were really excited because they had some great artists, like Vic Chesnutt, Poi Oog Pondering and the Rollins Band. They had a hard time, though. They'd make promises that they weren't in the position to follow through with." After a frustrating period of delays and complications with Texas Hotel, the duo signed to Wing Records, a subsidiary of Mercury/PolyGram, in 1990. The album White Dirt came out that year, followed by 8 Track Stomp (co-produced by Willie Dixon and Michael Stipe) in '91. "I liked the idea of being on an indie label, but I liked the idea of getting out there and playing music," Reynolds says. "That just wasn't happening with Texas Hotel, for one reason or another. When we went with a major label, we were able to record and get out and tour all around the States, Canada and England." From 1990 to '92, the Mudd Puppies warmed up for the likes of The Rave-Ups, Violent Femmes, The Waterboys, The Feelies, Jane's Addiction and The Bad Livers. They toured regularly with Beggar Weeds. In the U.K., they opened for Bingo Hand Job, R.E.M.'s collaborated with Billy Bragg, Peter Holsapple (of The dB's), and Robyn Hitchcock and the Egyptians. "By that time, it was the era of record labels signing indie bands and then spitting them back out," remembers Reynolds. "They realized that everybody wasn't going to be R.E.M. PolyGram decided to keep Ugly Kid Joe and dump us. "I think we handled some of the business side of things poorly because we took the advice of experts," he adds. "One thing I've learned about it is to always follow your ’ conscience." After an amicable split in '92, Reynolds and Slay went back to school, worked day jobs and started families. Reynolds currently works as a photography professor at the University of Georgia. Slay is now a land protection manger for the Georgia Nature Conservancy. "Brant and I kept in touch, but we hadn't been in close contact until a couple of years ago when someone got in touch with us about music for an indie film," Reynolds says. Director Simon West's 2011 film The Mechanic used the scratchy romper "Chickenbone" in the original soundtrack. The song was originally released under the title "Ponky Knot" on White Dirt. Over a raw blues riff from Reynolds, Slay's high- toned whoops, washboard rhythms and rapid-fire hick- rap skills are on full display on the track. "We decided to re-record it under a new title with John Keane," says Reynolds. "It was the first time we got together like that in a long time. We decided to do a few shows to see how it went, and it was a lot of fun." That experience in Keane's studio sparked a casual reunion. They played a handful of shows around the Southeast, includ ing a stint at South by Southwest in Austin. The Mudd Puppies shared the stage with old cronies Beggar Weeds (from Jacksonville) at the Melting Point during a local reunion gig in April. Drummer Alan Cowart kept time with Reynolds and Slay onstage; it looks like he's been enlisted as the official drummer. "Alan's a great drummer, and we're all like family," says Reynolds. "We're all like one big band and one big family, like always, so it made some sense to play with him when we got back together. It's fun to revisit this stuff with new ears and old ears. If we can write some new songs and play them out, instead of just playing old stuff, I think we'll stick around for a while." T. Ballard Lesemann 233 E. CLAYTON ST. 706.353.0000 AMICI. CAFE. COM EBMflnsn Anniversary Week! Celebrating 7 years of serving YOU. Come enjoy ^ Wing Night ^ Specials and $ 10 Large / \ One-Topping ' Pizzas ALL WEEK LONG! ■ mmat > - LiVE MUSiC Thursday BORDERHOP FIVE $2 Pint Night. Free Amici Pints Tonight Friday WORLDWIDE ZOO Friday is joke day. Teil your server a joke and get 10% off your meal. EP) COVER! BABY BABY Saturday is funny hat day. Entertain us by wearing your freakiest, funniest and weirdest hat. Athens Sound & Vision A new option in town for Audio/Video technical solutions Thirty years experience in Residential & Commercial systems • Design • Installation • Maintenance Member (305)942-9392 HSCA brentkws@bellsouth.net All work guaranteed Call for a FREE estimate JUNE 22, 2011 FLAGPOLE.COM 17
