Soul revival
Tired of retro '80s fare, local clubs are dusting off vintage roots tracks. Fans can't get enough
On a recent Wednesday night, P.J. Eastman walked from the crowded floor of River Gods, in Cambridge, to a small alcove that overlooks the bar. A projector was spooling out a grainy clip of bluesman Willie Dixon on the opposite wall, and Eastman paused for a moment, watching Dixon pluck happily at an upright bass. Then Eastman pulled his headphones over his head, and set the pin of the turntable down on ''Let's Go Out Tonight," a track recorded by Mississippi native John Lee Hooker in the 1960s.
There was a subtle irony to the situation: Hooker's coarse, Southern shuffle played for a crowd of 20- and 30-something Cambridge scenesters. A young DJ; a vintage sound. But Eastman seemed to thrive on the contradiction. In a four-hour set, he and guest DJ Doug Gesler swung from gravelly '50s soul to the cutting swagger of ''Miss Maybelle" by blues artist R.L. Burnside, without missing a beat.
''[These] rhythms just have a way of getting under your skin," says Eastman, whose Primitive Sounds night at River Gods is part of the recent local explosion of soul, R&B, and roots-oriented events. Eschewing modern electronica and '80s tracks for the soundtrack to a bygone era, DJs like Eastman say they are finding inspiration -- and committed audiences -- by playing artists such as Junior Parker and the Tams.
Partly, this is a nod to the state of modern music. At a time when rock is infused with a retro-garage sound, it makes sense to examine the influences of early garage greats such as the Kinks, whose first single, ''Long Tall Sally," was a Little Richard cover. But partly it's a nod to roots music itself, which can evoke a deeper response than traditional DJ fare.
''[It's] just what moves me. It's hard to put into words," Eastman said, half jokingly. ''I think [people] dig it because it's so great to drink to. No really, Howlin' Wolf and whiskey. What is better than that?"
Primitive Sounds was born from a roots music radio program called ''American Primitive" that Eastman and Jason Beek, another Boston DJ, created for WMBR in 2002. As the program grew and attracted a regular fan base, Eastman and Beek found themselves courted by promoters for venues such as River Gods, who wanted the two DJs to translate the old-school sound for their patrons.
''Obviously this is not what you're expecting to hear at a bar," says River Gods promoter Jeff MacIsaac of events such as Primitive Sounds. The event is now in its third, and most popular, year. ''[These] nights has proved that DJ events don't have to be heavy on the electronic stuff. These guys have built a little scene around them."
MORE ROOTS MUSIC Check out a photogallery and audio clips at www.boston.com/clips.
Within that scene, the current heavyweight is Soul-le-lu-jah, a regular Saturday fixture at ZuZu in Cambridge. Soul-le-lu-jah, which favors loud blasts of Northern and Southern soul to the rootsy twang of Primitive Sounds, regularly fills ZuZu to capacity.
''It's a matter of people wanting to come and dance to something different," says Eli ''Paperboy" Reed, who spins regularly at Soul-le-lu-jah. ''It's not about pretension, which I really dig."
On a recent Saturday night, Reed, who is also an accomplished blues musician, was zeroed in on the vinyl, piping through ''Think" by Jimmy McCracklin and ''Lover to Friend" by Junior Parker. Reed is all nervous energy behind the turntable -- he shouts along to his favorite tracks, and shuffles repeatedly and frenetically through his records. On the cramped floor of ZuZu, the payoff was a sweaty, frenzied crowd.
''My whole deal is that I try to play stuff that is good enough to have been a hit but that people don't know by name," Reed says. ''My records aren't necessarily the rarest stuff, but I try to play quality over rarity -- people play rare records all the time at these sorts of things and the effect is not so good."
But within the small circle of local R&B and soul events, DJs say they have to learn to balance the recognizable tunes -- which can instantly energize a fading crowd -- with the forgotten greats that defined the genres. Mostly, this is an issue of respect.
''I remember hearing 'Tighten Up,' by Archie Bell and the Drells at a bar a couple of years ago, and I lost my [expletive]," remembers Chris McQueen, who cohosts an event called Bullitts and Gravy, at River Gods, and POW!, an increasingly popular roots-oriented night at The Independent, in Somerville's Union Square. ''It was great. So I went again -- and they played the same song. And then again. They never went into anything else."
McQueen was annoyed: Archie Bell and the Drells were only one small part of the '60s soul scene. And yet the DJ seemed unwilling -- or unable -- to expand into the pool of equally talented artists. McQueen, who has roots in North Carolina, has a deep affection for soul and R&B -- particularly Carolina Beach Music, a subgenre made popular by Southern beachgoers 50 years ago. He wears the affection on his sleeve; McQueen may be the only person in Boston who can speak to the symbiotic relationship between Clyde McPhatter and Willie ''Stick" McGhee.
In July of last year, McQueen, who spins under the name djBullitt, and Stefan ''djSelecter70" Scott were approached by the River Gods staff to create a regular event for the bar. It was perfect timing.
''Chris had all this old Southern soul, and no one listens to it," said Scott, who spins a mix of early ska and reggae, R&B, and soul. ''You ask someone what it is, and they'll have no idea."
The crowd at Bullitts and Gravy on a Friday earlier this month was for the most part young and well-dressed -- bar-hoppers moving on to nearby concerts, but also fans who were returning to hear Scott and McQueen spin again. Scott played an early-ska set, a genre on which he also draws for his Independent sessions. McQueen followed with Carolina Beach Music favorites Bruce Channel and the Tams. The effect was a nostalgic, sentimental energy: the horns blared, the records popped and crackled, the vocals swelled and fell imperfectly.
''Music is always on a pendulum of style, and it's always swinging back," said Fernando Ruiz of Arlington, who was at River Gods for the first time. ''This crowd, I bet, is made up of a lot of students, who grew up on '80s music, which in turn owed a lot to the soul that's playing now. It's just a natural part of how influence works in music."
Ford E. Buxworth, another popular roots DJ, agreed. ''When these genres of music were new, white youth listened to it [and played] it, they just didn't tell their parents," said Buxworth, who recently moved his Get Smart! event from Allston venues such as the Common Ground and Great Scott to The Milky Way in Jamaica Plain. Get Smart! is a throwback to England's urban music scene of the '60s and '70s, which was heavy on Jamaican ska, but also rocksteady and soul.
He added: ''[The music's] vibrations are both positive and powerful." 