1992 The Channel Cats won Best New Act
1996 The Lucky Devils won Best New Act
CBA Music Review: Rush To Hell
Article Reprint from the January 2000 BluesNotes
Article by: Joey Scruggs
"Jim Wallace is one of the only guys around that plays real Blues, whether it's Chicago style or jump Blues. He's a great harp player, a great singer, and great guitar player. I look forward to every chance I get to play with him." -- Bill Rhoades
If there ever was a champion of the Blues, that champion is Jim Wallace. If he were to cut himself, I know for a fact he'd bleed blue. No lie. I believe he's Jake and Elwood's long lost third Blues Brother. Wallace doesn't have any patience for anyone "pretending" to be a Blues player (which there are a lot of). But, if you've got soul and you like to swing, Wallace might just give you a listen.
Jim took time to talk to BluesNotes on a soggy Sunday morning in December about the music he loves: the Blues. And, get this straight - we're talking about "real Blues", not the watered-down Stevie Ray Vaughn wannabe stuff.
Originally, I met Jim at a Generation X coffee shop in the hippyfied Hawthorne district. That lasted about 30 seconds. "Let's get outta here," he says "and go someplace more comfortable."
That's how we ended up at Holman's, a smoky dive that's open till 4 am, making it a favorite spot for musicians to go for a drink and some grub after a gig. The dark shadowy interior, lined with wood panels, was appropriately Oregon. By God, we could do a show here!
Wallace had been out the night before, jamming with friends, Lynn Ann Hyde and Stu Kinzel. Lynn Ann is a huge Jim Wallace fan, and when I tell him she's been elected as the new secretary for the CBA, he grins and comments "Glad to see some new blood in there." With The Chipmunks singing Christmas tunes, we started our interview.
BN: (BluesNotes) You grew up in Eugene. How old were you when you first heard the Blues?
JW. (Jim Wallace) Well, my dad had some Leadbelly 78's and some stuff like that. He'd gotten those back in the 30's, I believe. One of his favorite things to do was to put on a 78 and listen to it.
My dad grew up in Arkansas and West Texas, so he grew up in the country. He was out in the fields, picking cotton like everybody else. They sang field hollers and such as they worked.
After moving to Oakland, California, my dad walked by a record store one day that was playing music that sounded a lot like the field hollers he used to hear. He walked in the store and found out the guy singing was Leadbelly.
Listening to Leadbelly 78s was my first exposure to the Blues. I guess, my older brother was a big influence as well. He played guitar in a Rock 'N' Roll band in junior high, playing Beatles and Stones tunes. He brought home records by Big Brother & The Holding Company, Cream, and Jimi Hendrix. Stuff by Canned Heat ... Blues based stuff like that.
BN: Most of the music of that time was guitar driven. How'd you discover the harmonica?
JW: If you wanna go back that far, I wasn't playing anything. I was just a listener. I didn't get a harmonica until I was 19. After I got one, I became very involved in listening to harmonica. I knew there was a Paul Butterfield, I knew there was a Sonny Terry, because those guys were part of the "folk Blues scene." I went searching for more music that featured the harmonica.
There was a famous record store in Eugene, The Crystal Ship. It was sort of a hippy-dippy 70's kind of store - black light posters, incense burnin'. It had that smell... Eugene is such a "cosmic" place, you know.
They had a little Blues bin there, and I picked up a couple of volumes of Sonny Boy Williamson's records, on Arhoolie, which I still love. I had a copy of an early Blues sampler with Paul Butterfield, called "What's Shakin'?". I was really impressed with his version of Little Walter's "Off the Wall", which seems a little tame to me now. But, at the time, I thought it was incredibly hip.
BN: What kind of influence did Blues radio in Eugene have on you?
JW: A tremendous influence! I'd been trying to learn as much as I could about Blues on my own, and then I discovered there was a budding Blues scene in Eugene. I remember going to the W.OW. Hall for a record release party with Curtis Salgado's band, The Nighthawks. Curtis was very young at the time. I was blown away at just how good the band was. They had Dave Stewart on keyboards, and Frank Speaker and Jim Cochran on guitars. Everybody in attendance was given an EP of their record.
I soon discovered that Bill Rhoades also had a band he was playing with. Shortly thereafter, Robert Cray and Richard Cousins showed up and started doing their thing. I remember seeing Cray at the Office 290, on River Road, which was a tiny dive. They took the pool table out of the corner so Cray could set up. That was his first gig in Eugene, I think.
Shortly thereafter, I got hooked on listening to "Blues Power" every Saturday on KLCC radio. Everybody I knew would listen to this same show. They talked about local Blues news on the program, about what was going on in town, Blues-wise.
BN: You talk about it with the reverence some folks have towards going to church...
JW: I miss it. I still miss it! I still want to turn on the radio on Saturdays and hear Blues Power. The show Gavin Fox, "The Roosterman" was on. He brought on Ray Varner and Bill Rhoades as alternate DJ's. The three of them hosted the show, at various times over the years. In recent times, Rooster was the exclusive DJ until he passed away just recently.
Through that show, they exposed the whole scene to a real education of the Blues. They'd get involved with local Blues events and that helped create a Blues scene. Pretty soon, we started hosting events like the Oregon Blues Festival, that was started by the Oregon Blues Society (OBS), and it was quite a success.
After a few years, the OBS fell apart, like things do when you rely on the same volunteers over and over again. But, it lasted three or four years. We'd all get together and figure out how to put on the next chili feed so we could raise money for the next show.
BN: Why and when did you move to Portland?
JW: I moved here 10 years ago. Eugene never recovered from the Reaganomics era depression of the late '70's and early '80's. It was time to leave for greener pastures.
I found out about KBOO and KMHD. I listen to those two stations all the time. I listen to Tom Wendt. If I remember, in between pokin' around with various projects, the Bill Rhoades' show is on Monday, I'll listen to that.
It's a good time to be listening to Blues right now. A lot of old stuff is being reissued on CD, stuff you used to not be able to find.
BN: I remember working at Dave Clingan's Rockport Records store and guys would drive up in old station wagons and bring in crates of old, old LP's by obscure Delta Blues artists. And that's all they did - drove around the country hawkin' those records, like a preacher passin' out bibles.
JW: Somehow... Everybody I knew had a bootleg copy of the Hollywood Fats Blues Band. I remember Chris Miller (now playing guitar with Marcia Ball) calling me up to tell me he had found copies of the record at Crocodile Music. Of course, he already had two copies. But, hey, that was a big deal!
BN: Who are some of your favorite Harmonica players?
JW: People here in Portland should realize we have two of the best right here in Curtis Salgado and Paul deLay. They are incredible talents! It's a shame Curtis doesn't play more harp. There's NOBODY that can top those two guys.
Of the modern players, William Clarke was one of my favorites. I used to live in San Diego and I hung out with Bill and got to know him and became his friend. I used to see him a lot at The Starboard Attitude, in Redondo Beach. That was George "Harmonica" Smith's old gig, and Bill had taken it over.
Of course, Little Walter was the super heavyweight that started the whole style I like. I bought his "Boss Blues Harmonica", a double LP, and was blown away by it. Here he was, playing like a genius saxophone player, and that was a major deal!
I also love Blues guitar, and I've been studying and playing guitar for a long time. I really dig swingin' Blues guitar. Guys like Tiny Grimes and Charlie Christian... Bill Jennings and Pee Wee Crayton. T-Bone Walker. That's what really turns me on a lot.
In the last few years, I've gotten into building hollow body Jazz guitars. I'm a trained machinist, so it's challenging for me. I've built eight of them so far, several of them for clients. If you see me playing guitar at a gig, it's one of mine. It's an artistic endeavor for me that's real cool. I learned a lot from fixing old guitars, taking them apart to see how they're built. I read books on it, but I still have a lot to learn.
BN: One great recent experience I had listening to you was at the It's A Beautiful Pizza Tuesday night Blues jam. Dover Weinberg (the usual host) was out on the road with Duffy Bishop and you were filling in. You had Marco Savo and Jack Cook on guitars, Andy Strange on bass and Jimmy Bott on drums.
JW: (His eyes light up and a big smile appears) That's the reason you keep playing! Playing with Jimmy Bott was fantastic! He used to play with Rod Piazza for years, and then The Fabulous Thunderbirds. He's moved to Portland and plays in a rock band now with Luther Russell called Federale. They're supposed to be making a big-time record, but the label's changed hands two or three times and they're getting lost in the shuffle. He's the best drummer I've ever heard! He inspired everybody... They all jumped up a few notches that night. He's got such an understanding of the music, everything starts to work. For once, you don't find yourself struggling.
BN: How do you "set up" your crowd? Is there a set list? Do you feel the crowd out and play certain tunes for certain audiences?
JW: I think, probably, the first thing I think about is who I'm playing with and what they're going to be able to play. What's going to gel? You can't call five swing tunes out if you don't have a swing drummer!
BN: Lots of times, you have different personnel in your band. Why's that?
JW: There's are real lack of good rhythm sections in Portland. Bass players and drummers are just not attracted to Blues. I guess they have' more fun showin' off in funk bands. They are especially not attracted to harmonica Blues. That's made it extremely difficult for me to function and have reliable material to perform. It's not a good feeling, knowing the guys you're playing the gig with don't know the material. That's why it was such a treat to play with Jimmy Bott!
I have a regular income from real estate investments, so I don't have to play five nights a week to make a living. That's a struggle, and I think guys take some of the excitement out of their act when they play too much around town.
Blues is not music for the masses. You're not going to get rich playing the Blues. You're going to play Blues because that's what you like.
BN: What gets you excited these days?
JW: I have a new CD coming out called "Rush To Hell". It was recorded in Amsterdam with The Boyd Small Blues Band. It wouldn't have been hard to record the record over here, but the concept of keeping a band together here is out of the question.
The Dutch guys are really into the Blues thing - these particular songs - so it's natural to record with them. When I get there, they're excited about it! We can tour and they know all the tunes from the CD already.
We recorded the CD in January of 1999. We had great crowds over there whenever we played. The whole tour last time was extremely well thought out. Boyd Small works with a group over there called The Blues Factory, and they've been together 10 years or so. They have a nice touring van we use, and that's nice. It'd be so hard for someone to just pick up from here and go there to tour.
BN: Do you have creative control?
JW: No. It's their record, done their way. I have creative input, but I go over there and lay down the tracks, and then I leave and they shape it. It's not the same record I'd make in L.A., or here in Portland. It's got that "European" feel to it. But, it's ALL Blues! (Big laugh) They don't have the same idea we do about how to make a record. I've listened to some advance takes and I'm pretty happy with it.
BN: What kind of places do you play over there?
JW: We play small clubs, but we also did some big shows. We played at the Club Paradiso in Amsterdam, the most prestigious hall in town. The Stones made a live record there. We did a radio broadcast in Brussels, Belgium. It was live, and before the show, we did a question and answer session; and then played. It was really cool. We didn't do a string of dives. It was really cool!
Boyd Small is attempting to create sort of an exchange program, in the sense that if you go over there, he can take care of a lot of problems you'd have. The flip side is that he's looking for folks to do the same thing for them when they come over here.
BN: Is there a favorite memory from playing over there?
JW: (Laugh) Yeah! Everybody seems to think this is pretty funny ... a lot of the time, we rode bicycles around. Here we are, playing the biggest place in town, the Paradiso, and the band shows up for the gig riding bicycles. Nobody has a car in Amsterdam, they all ride bikes! I hope to go back over there in January.
BN: Let's wrap things up by asking who some of your favorite current day Blues artists are.
JW: I like what most people call West Coast Jump Swing Blues. Guys like Junior Watson, Rusty Zinn, Kim Wilson, James Harman. I think Harman is the poet of the scene, actually. I love his stuff. Johnny Dyer's a great harp player, and I really like the CD Dave Meyers made. He's nearly 80 years old, you know? Kid Ramos is another guy that's made a couple of good records.
And, let's not forget The Boyd Small Blues Band. I enjoyed that one very much.
© 2000 Cascade Blues Association