VETERAN CANADIAN BLUESMAN AL LERMAN IS COOKING UP COUNTRY-FRIED BLUES
Al Lerman is a veteran bluesman with a highly personal musical style. Possessing a great knowledge of the blues tradition on both harmonica and guitar, he brings that sensibility to songs that he’s written about his own contemporary life and times. For two days, he and an amiable group of A-list musicians hunkered down in an 1830s farmhouse, which had recently been converted into a studio known as the Ganaraska Recording Company. They hung out, laughed, played, and carried on into the wee hours. That joyful mood made its way onto this recording. The songs were recorded live-off-the-floor, with minimal overdubs added in one final session.
Acoustic instruments prevail here – a nod to the early rural blues styles, while a rock-steady rhythm section keeps things moving with modern vitality. Multi-instrumentalist Jimmy Bowskill shines throughout, colouring the mix with mandolin, fiddle, and guitar. Al’s guitar is sometimes plugged into a tremolo effected amp, conjuring up swampy, aural imagery. It may surprise listeners to learn his fluid harp work was played on a rack while simultaneously playing guitar. Over the years, Lerman’s masterful prowess on the harp has earned him several prestigious Maple Blues Award nominations for Harmonica Player of the Year.
Produced by Alec Fraser, Country-Fried Blues features nine greasy-good original songs peppered with a handful of covers bearing Lerman’s unmistakable stamp.
First off care to introduce yourself to our readers?
Singer/songwriter/harp player/guitarist Al Lerman was the founder of the much-loved band FATHEAD (1992-2016), garnering two JUNO AWARDS, and he is a long-time member of the renowned Maple Blues Band. A solid fixture in the blues & roots scene for over fifty years, Lerman has amassed an impressive legacy of songs along with a deserving list of industry awards & nominations.Â
Tell us a bit about your recent release.
It’s an acoustic driven album and offers up a lively set of original blues & roots. It’s called “Country-Fried Blues” and it features producer Alec Fraser on upright bass; Jimmy Bowskill on mandolin, fiddle and guitar; Chuck Keeping on drums; and Steve O’Connor on keys. Blues, with some country-fried instrumentation!
How do you typically go about the songwriting process? Do you have a specific method or creative routine that you follow?
I’m always noodling around on guitar and some of those ideas eventually develop into songs. Occasionally, somebody will say something, or I’ll read something that triggers an idea. I’m not a disciplined writer… I mean I can’t sit down and churn out a song about a particular subject on demand, but somehow I’ve managed to write enough material that I’ve been able to come up with a new album every two or three years. That has been going on since the early nineties when I first put FATHEAD together.
Looking ahead, what are your plans for supporting this new release? Are there any upcoming tours, music videos, or additional content that fans can look forward to in connection with this project?
I’m playing all over Ontario right now and later in the summer, I’ll be at the Calgary Blues Fest in Alberta. Expansive touring is getting harder to do these days. Airfares, car rentals, gas, and hotels all cost much more. I’m seventy now, and as much as I hate to admit it, that is slowing me down a little too. Nevertheless, I love to play live and I perform often. Â
Looking back on your musical career, is there a particular moment or accomplishment that you consider a turning point or a highlight?
Early on, getting to sit in or just talk with great blues artists like Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Buddy Guy, James Cotton, Carey Bell, and so many more gave me some validation into what I was doing. I figured if Muddy Waters said he liked the way I played, then I must have been doing something right! That just made me want to get better. So many years later, I am still learning new things every time I pick up an instrument.
Last but not least, it’s time to pay it forward, what upcoming band or artist would you recommend your fans check out?
There’s a Nashville songwriter by the name of Sam Lewis that I recently became aware of. He has an album called “Loversity” that really knocked me out.Â