Reprinted by permission Bluegrass Unlimited
Magazine,
1-800-BLU-GRAS, copyright October 2002. |
By Stephanie P. Ledgin
Most people recognize Grammy award winner David Holt for the exceptional
entertainer he is – a multi-instrumentalist, songster, storyteller,
radio and television host. But he's a whole lot more than that.
Released March 3, 2002, to coincide with Doc Watson's 79th birthday,
Legacy: Doc Watson and David Holt illustrates Holt's expertise
as a documentarian. And it is perhaps this aspect of his many talents
that is one key to his success and appeal to audiences around the
globe.
As a conservator of roots music, Holt seems to have a knack for finding novel ways to pass along
tradition via oral, aural and visual methods. In concert his telling photographs of people with whom he
has interacted often grace the stage alongside him, visual props providing a unique backdrop and
sideshow all in one and producing an atmosphere unlike any other bluegrass or old-time performer on
the scene today. He brings those subjects to life in song and story.
"The old songs and tunes are filled with the spirits of the folks we learned them from… and the
folks they learned from," Holt explains. "You see, I honestly feel that the great traditional songs and
tunes are bits of wisdom put to music. If they could simply be spoken, they would have been. But music
adds a soulfulness that cannot be put into words. That is why we have music. So the best songs and
tunes are passing down an unspoken wisdom about being alive in this world."
This "soulfulness" Holt talks about that, as he puts it in the
liner notes from Legacy, he "found in Doc and other traditional
musicians inspired me to get closer to the source." And it was a
somewhat chance encounter with Ralph Stanley that perhaps set the
stage for Holt pursuing traditional music to the extent and in all
the capacities that he has for more than thirty-five years. Originally
from Texas, transplanted to the West Coast, Holt holds degrees in
art and biology – and received those magna cum laude. When
asked if he chose this music to pursue or if it "chose" him, Holt
gave this account, actually a mini-story behind a chain of events.
"When I was 21 years old I was attacked by three men in a totally
random act of violence, beaten up and left for dead," Holt recalls.
"I had the near-death experience and everything. Before this time
I had been a drummer in a rock and roll band; I even had a minor
hit with a group called the Sun Rays. After getting out of the hospital
and having my broken jaw wired shut, superficial music didn't mean
diddly to me.
"A friend had an old 78 rpm recording of Carl Sprague (the first recorded
singing cowboy) singing and playing his guitar," he continues. "It
was so real and rough and raw… just the way I felt. I became completely
fascinated with cowboy music, found all the old 78s I could and
started playing the guitar and singing these songs and gave up drums.
This was 1966 or 67. Then I heard Carl Sprague was still alive in
Bryan, Texas. I didn't know anything about folklorists or field
collecting, but I knew I had to go meet the man. He was wonderful
to me, taught me very precisely how to play straight style harmonica,
showed me the authentic 'cowboy guitar lick' and made me realize
that if you chose kind, accessible mentors, you could go visit them,
become friends with them. It was a life-changing revelation."
Putting the cap on this mini-story, Holt continues. "In 1969, meeting Ralph Stanley and hearing
his driving clawhammer-style banjo playing was what sent me to the southern mountains a few years
later. I saw Ralph at a concert at University of California at Santa Barbara and talked to him after the
show. He said, 'If you really want to learn the old style, you need to go back to Clinch Mountain or
somewhere like that; lots of people play back there. ' I left the very next summer and traveled all over the
mountains with my buddy Steve Keith who was already a good old-time player and who showed me the
basic lick. I knew I had to move there. I moved to Asheville, North Carolina, where I have lived ever
since."
Holt started out learning the old-time banjo all those years ago
and says "it will always be near and dear to me; I love it." He's
added to the mix about a dozen other instruments, from harmonica
to washboard to jaw harp to bones. And he hambones and clog dances.
Bones, however, are a family tradition.
"I have two pairs of walnut and oak bones carved and played by
my great, great-grandfather during the Civil War," Holt relates.
"He rode with General Hood, I think. This fellow was moved from
Alamance County, North Carolina, in 1858 to Texas. They have been
passed down through the Holt side of the family and each male has
learned how to play from the preceding generation. I don't carry
them to shows. I would hate to lose them. I normally play rib bones
from a cow or, currently, buffalo ribs."
A more recent addition and the focus of his next recording in the works, slide guitar provided a
special solace for Holt when he took it up after his ten-year old daughter, Sara Jane, was killed in a car
accident in 1989. "I needed an instrument that could really express the pain I was feeling," he says
quietly. "It helped a lot, and still does. I really love that instrument too.
"Slide guitar is such a personal instrument," he continues. "No two people play it the same way
and there is no standard repertoire. This is great, since you are not bound by some standardized
tradition. Everybody figures it out in their own unique way. That is the tradition! It is a very mysterious
instrument. You have to coax sound out of it, finesse it, caress it. Sorry, I got carried away," he smiles.
"Most of the new album will be with just a bass player, perhaps piano. I am doing a few traditional
pieces, things by Tampa Red, Big Joe Williams, but I am also writing a good part of it. The tentative title
is The Buck Nekked Bottleneck Blues. I hope to have it out in the spring of 2003. I am also working on a
separate old-time banjo CD due out around the same time."
But let's rewind about thirty years, back to when Holt first met Doc Watson at a bluegrass
festival in Lavonia, Georgia. From then on the two would cross paths occasionally, but they didn't have
the opportunity to work together until 1984 when Doc and (the late) Merle Watson appeared on Fire On
The Mountain, a traditional music show Holt was hosting for The Nashville Network. Several
collaborations resulted including Holt's album, Reel and Rock, one of the last recordings Merle worked on
before his death in 1985.
Fast forward to the fall of 1998. Holt and Watson were asked to
do a concert for North Carolina Public Television. That led to a
handful of similar concert bookings pairing the two performers since
that time.
"To me, Doc is one of the greatest traditional musicians America
has produced," Holt states emphatically. "He is an incredible singer,
one of the best guitarists ever and a musician with an amazing ability
to play just the right thing. He is steeped in old-time music, loves
early bluegrass and is good enough technically to play anything
he wants. He doesn't confine himself to any style. My experience
is that the best of the old-timers rarely confined themselves to
a strict music category and played all kinds of different things.
Doc has that sensibility, too.
"In doing our concert shows," Holt continues, "I just naturally started interviewing Doc on stage
about his life and career." Holt and Watson decided to do a live concert CD and to go into the studio to
talk about Watson's early life, his music and other stories revolving around his career. "I had asked him
many times before about writing his autobiography, but he never wanted to do it. But with these
recordings he could speak his life story rather than have someone else write it."
The result was Legacy. And while this project is as much a Doc Watson audio-biographical essay
in words and music, it also speaks volumes for Holt's capacity as a folklorist-documentarian. Two of the
three CDs in the set focus on the "up close and personal" interview with the celebrated guitarist, much
the same as any journalist might conduct in depth, Watson often responding more fully to a question by
pulling a song from the deep well of his memory.
The third CD is an Asheville, North Carolina, concert of Holt
and Watson, who complement each other's playing and singing while
they travel the rich tapestry of music that has touched both musicians.
Watson's grandson Richard also takes part in the performance. The
extensive liner notes – actually a 72- page booklet --expand on
the dialogue as well as on the songs. Holt also tapped more than
two dozen "people important in his life… from his family to Joan
Baez"; insightful comments from them are included, along with historical
photographs.
Another recent milestone for Holt was his participation in the
"O Brother, Where Art Thou?" film. Billed in the credits as the
"Village Idiot," Holt is seen briefly at the end playing a mandolin
alongside Ed Snodderly on fiddle, dancing down the street, acting
lively and "kicking up their heels."
"( Winning the Grammies) shows that at this time there is real
public interest in roots music," Holt says enthusiastically. "Who
would have thought they would ever see Ralph Stanley as Male Country
Vocalist of the Year? Amazing! I really like the 'roots' music label.
It pulls us together into a loose category that anyone can understand.
"In this culture, the media needs to name everything," he continues. "For the general public,
bluegrass or old-time or blues is too specific. Roots music doesn't denote any kind of clique – just good,
soulful music based on older traditions."
How does Holt see the success of the music from the movie affecting
other roots music projects?
"I think it will help in the mass culture for awhile," he ponders.
"I am curious to see how Legacy does in the current environment.
Doc's life story and music is about as roots as it gets. Will the
popularity of roots music help sales? We'll see. The main thing
to remember is that this is not music with a mass appeal. For that
to happen it must be very watered down. I don't think any of us
who really love the music want to see that occur. America has a
short attention span. So I think the interest for the general public
will be short lived, but there will be new die-hard recruits that
will become fans. And some will become great musicians because of
being exposed to the music in 'O Brother,' just like they did with
'Bonnie and Clyde.' "
The pride David Holt takes in his work and diversified musical endeavors is evident and he is
equally proud of the success he has found in bluegrass and old-time music. He is eager to share advice
with others wanting to pursue the music full-time.
"You have to have passion for what you are doing," he states.
"That is what will keep you going through up and down times. You
have to know going in that it will be a career that will build slowly.
Nobody jumps right into making a good living. Since traditional
musicians have very little access to media, most of our notoriety
comes through word of mouth, and that takes a long time to get around.
Look at somebody like Doc Watson. Even with his astounding talent,
it took years before folks knew who he was and paid him what he
was worth. Know that you will have to start locally and build regionally
and then nationally, if possible. Generally, I think it takes ten
years to see your effort pay off.
"I am a great believer in doing what you love to do," he continues
in his heartfelt manner. "My motto has always been 'Be good and
get better.' You need to be easy to work. Word of mouth will get
around that you are an honest, good person. That goes a long way."
On a practical note, Holt recommends, "Keep the same contact information year after year, so
that you are easy to find. Make sure your website and promo materials are better than anyone else in
your market. Be professional in your approach. You need to return calls and letters quickly and
consistently. Be reliable and sponsors will love you for it.
"But the most important thing," he concludes, "is to be good musically
AND to be entertaining. To make a good living, you have to be able
to do great shows for all kinds of audiences, not just the loyal
following. So, with humor, with interesting song introductions,
with a variety of rhythms and dynamics and different combinations
of sounds, you really hold the audience's attention. You have to
give audiences a reason to care about you and your group, to identify
with what you are doing. You need to let them see your passion and
who you are. Once they care about what you are doing, then you can
do a great show."
As for his own legacy, how does Holt wish to be remembered?
"I would like to be remembered as a good musician and an honest
performer who can entertain people with traditional music," he states
forthrightly. "As someone who always encouraged others and really
loved the old-timers."
Stephanie P. Ledgin is a music journalist and photographer whose
work has appeared in music publications and recordings around the
globe. A former editor of Pickin' magazine, she has been
Director of the New Jersey Folk Festival at Rutgers University,
New Brunswick, since 1994. She was recently recognized for her many
accomplishments in bluegrass and folk music with an entry in Marquis'
Who'sWho in America 2002. She is completing work on her photo
narrative book, Somewhere Along the Road: Images of America's
Music.
Read more about her at www.fiddlingwithwords.com.
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