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nc* again, road warriors North Mississippi
lAUstars are tour-bound. This time the band
is chronicling its bluesy journey with a video
camera alternately mounted on the grill of the van
or in the hands of longtime friend Shelby Batdock.
These vuteos, known collectively as'the road series*
(streaming on www.nmsUstars.com), offer candid
snapshots of the band on and off the stage, chatting
about an impending tornado in Tennessee or playing
quick samples of guitar that wiU leave you thirsty for
a full-length jam. #
The brothers Dickinson, Luther and Cody, banded
back in 1996, along with Chris Chew on bass. If
you're wondering, yes, the/re from Mississippi, just
over tire line from tire home of Memphis' greatest
blues legends—one being their father, producer Jim
Dickinson, a man they pay proud tribute to on their
album Keys to the Kingdom.
In transit to their next gig, Luther gradousty
pauses from making music to talk about his creative
process. The mobile connection on the highway fades
in and out and the sound quality is nothing like a
cigar-box guitar hooked up to two Fuchs amps. In
between the interruption of road noise, there's a
quote or two we can attach to the guy Rolling Stone
magazine labeled a "guitar god."
"Music is so home-based—the style and tradition
that we draw upon. The music is about our home. We
were so fortunate to have a great relationship with
our dad and play music with him for so long," says Luther.
The record was written, recorded and released in early 2011,
after Jim Dickinson passed, and every word of every song
speaks of love, peace and blues. The songs are the stories,
bom naturally from what came naturally; which may be what
makes the melodies so universally relatable.
Luther sings and plays lead guitar like it's his mission to
carry on the tradition, like his blood won't pump if he's not
playin' Memphis blues. When asked how many guitars he has,
the guitar enthusiast laughs it off, naming only his favorite, a
Gibson 335 that was given to him by his Black Crowes band-
mate Chris Robinson.
Luther's guitar rig is meticulously set up yet also constantly
changing, as he is searching perpetually for the perfect tone—
a journey that has no destination. But amid his mountain of
amps and pedal board toys, he follows the advice of his father:
'Just trust the sound and play it." NMA fans and
peers appreciate this honest, organic approach and
the quick-fingered, mind-numbing slide skills that
Luther displays onstage.
Receiving both Blues awards and Grammy nomina
tions, NMA draw the Southern rock/jam band crowds
to small. Southern-fried towns and big, rocking dries
alike. Drawing from the gospel he heard as a child
and lessons learned from blues legends, Luther has
taken his unique sound across the globe with rarely
a pause—touring the U.S. and Europe with the
Black Crowes for the last four years and touring with
North Mississippi AUstars in between. And, this May
Ire's also set to debut a new acoustic project called
The Wandering, which features musicians Shannon
McNally, Amy Lavere, Valerie June and Sharde Thomas.
The progression of Luther's career, as well as the
way he describes his creative process, might visually
resemble the peaceful rolling hills that he and Cody
drive on their way to and from their bam-tumed-
studio, Zebra Ranch, in Coldwater, MS. Just check out
the band's new video for an old classic, "Rollin' and
Tumblin'," for a window onto the group's Mississippi
origins. You'll get the itch to go bonfire dancing and
guitar pickin' near the swamp, but if you can't make
it to Coldwater, try the Georgia Theatre at the end of
the month.
Theresa L. Picciotti
77
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