Great Midwestern Gentlemen: Charlie Parr

A little while back we brought you The Music of Duluth in our series Tuesday Tracks and in that playlist were the musical happenings of Charlie Parr. Some may say he is a blues man, some say folk, some bluegrass, we at MWG only see him as a Midwesterner… who plays damn good music. Today we welcome Charlie Parr into the MWG community and being the gentleman that he is, found time in his busy schedule to chat with us about his music and more importantly, life in the Midwest.

For us, the entire lifestyle can be traced back to childhood and growing up in the Midwest Charlie Parr had a similar experience, when appreciation for growing up in the Heartland comes in later years. “I don’t have any reference point for growing up anywhere else” said Charlie, “now when I go home to Austin (Minn) to visit Mom I really feel “home” and when I was growing up I thought it was all just flat. Now I look at the fields and think how beautiful they are and I’m upset every time they pave a gravel road because it feels like they’re wrecking something of mine, from my past.” It is small reflections like this that really pinpoint the man in us all. He went on to say “I wouldn’t be anything like me if I hadn’t grown up [here]. This part of the world means everything to me; it’s my home and I can’t imagine living anywhere else. But I bet it’s like that for someone who grew up anywhere else…”

More than just a home, the Midwest is where Charlie was able to enjoy life experiences for the first time and what would be a pinnacle event in his life turned out to be something we have all come to enjoy. As a musician, the first instrument is always a big event. “I was intimidated” Charlie says about receiving his first guitar “It looked like something I’d never seen and I was afraid to even touch it. It was old, a Gibson 12-string, it hurt my fingers to play it, and when I tried to play it sounded nothing like Mance Lipscomb. I think I put it in a closet for another month before I decided I had to try again. I’m still trying, and it still sounds nothing like Mance, but at least my fingers don’t hurt anymore.” As he continued to master his craft, he found himself deep in the Minnesota music scene, starting in Austin, MN and eventually finding his way to Duluth. “I’d say it’s just about the most vibrant music scene there is” he mentions about the Minnesota scene, “I don’t know where else you’ll find so many folks playing music and so many different kinds of music. I’m proud to be a part of it.”

His music is inspired by the blues and he has helped take a traditionally southern sound move into the realm of a north woods jam. “I love guitar players from the acoustic blues tradition – Charlie Patton, Lemon Jefferson, Bukka White, Robert Pete Williams, Mance Lipscomb, Mississippi John Hurt, and such. Players I’ve met have had a bigger impact, I think, since I’ve gotten to feel their live shows and it’s always an inspiration to see someone play up close – Spider John Koerner, Dave Ray, Jack Rose, Peter Lang, Dakota Dave Hull, Glenn Jones, Greg Brown, Pete Rykhus are just a few. There’s a kind of honesty with these folks – a raw thing.”

From our friends at MPLSTV

Midwestern music is hard to pinpoint as there is no real genre that is tied to it like country music is in the South. Midwestern musicians often turn to lyrics as a reflection of their roots which is why many of musics greatest songwriters turn to the Midwest for inspiration, including Charlie Parr. “I don’t think the scene itself is really reflected much in my stuff, but the midwest itself creeps in all over the place. It’s just part of who I am I think and so it’s natural that it’ll show up in what I write whether I want it there or not. I accept that and don’t try to fight it.” To us there is no reason to fight it, especially when you are able to play in front of passionate crowds in every city. When it comes to getting on stage Charlie says “I’m a fan of smaller towns, although I love St. Paul and Minneapolis both, I really like playing in towns like Winona, Mankato, Northfield, Ely, Duluth, I could go on and on. People make the venues, though, and Ed’s in Winona is one of my favorites along with the Brewhouse in Duluth. There’s a comfortable vibe and I feel more at home than at a “show”.”

His music has taken him to the corners of the world but to him the Midwest is always home. “I’ve never felt home anywhere else. My family is here, my history, roots or whatever you like to call them are all here. As I’m getting older that kind of thing gets more important to me and as grateful as I am for the traveling I’m even happier when I get home.”

If you have had the opportunity to see a show or listen to an album straight through, you know that Charlie Parr’s music can capture a crowd but there is more to it than the picking of the string, his lyrics tell a story and we wondered just where it comes from. “I don’t know, honestly” he chuckles, “I think of stories I’d like to tell, and at some point some music comes along and then the two become joined but I really don’t know how that all happens or why. I write while driving, usually, and since I can’t physically write stuff down it helps me memorize new songs because I drive along singing stuff until it feels right.” To us we assume that every song takes a few miles because every song is perfect.

As you know from past Great MWG who have talked with us, we always ask the age old question, “When you hear the term “Midwestern Gentleman,” what comes to mind?

“My Dad used to blow the snow from our driveway with this beat up old Gravely snowblower, then he’d motor across the street and do the neighbors’ and on and on until we’d have to go up to Peterson’s where he’d be sitting in the garage near the barrel stove drinking beer with his best friend.”
- Charlie Parr

For those of you who want to get your hands on some of his music, aside from his current collection, he has a gospel record coming out in December via House of Mercy  and then come spring another full length album of original songs. Until then he says he will be “working on the winter beard and modifying an old mountain bike to use for my winter bike. Just keeping on, I suppose.” We wouldn’t expect anything less… or anything more.

Cheers…

This entry was posted on September 28, 2011 at 9:29 pm and is filed under Great Midwestern Gentlemen, Lifestyle, Media, Music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.