Jonas Friddle grew up listening to basic rock, Creedence Clearwater Revival, for instance. He additionally heard a number of folks musicians, together with John Prine and Doc Watson, whereas rising up within the North Carolina mountains, particularly when the household was heading someplace of their station wagon.
Friddle’s coronary heart settled on old-time music and right this moment he’s an award-winning claw-hammer-style banjo participant and songwriter. Friddle, together with two different folks musicians, Anna Jacobson and Andrew Wilkins, will carry out at 7 p.m. Nov. 20 at Grayslake Village Corridor, a Lake County Folks Membership venue.
They’ll current songs from Friddle’s newest album, “The Final Place to Go.” It’s the primary album he’s launched that options all of his personal songs. Friddle moved to Chicago in 2007 and started educating on the Outdated City College of Folks Music in addition to performing. Since then he has launched a number of studio albums underneath his personal identify and with the folks group The Majority.
Although he’s recognized for his banjo selecting expertise and old-time type, Friddle realized music on a guitar his dad purchased him at a yard sale when he was 12 years previous.
He didn’t begin enjoying banjo till he was in faculty. “I purchased my first banjo whereas I used to be residing in Toronto and I had met an amazing banjo participant there named Chris Coole,” Friddle mentioned. “I had plenty of time for playing around so I made a decision to get one and provides it a go. I want I had began earlier. It’s my favourite instrument now,” he mentioned.
Friddle performs clawhammer banjo. He describes the type as utilizing “the again of the finger in a strumming movement with the thumb following behind to catch one other string off the beat. It produces a extremely nice rhythmic impact with a number of prospects for syncopation and groove.
“That type of play usually finds its dwelling in what of us name old-time music. The clawhammer type of enjoying the banjo positively has its explicit grooves and that impacts how the music finally ends up musically.”
Friddle is as a lot a songwriter as he’s a banjo participant.
“I’ve an previous cassette tape someplace of a chunk of music I wrote with my piano instructor earlier than I give up classes,” he mentioned. “However 18 is once I wrote the primary music I can nonetheless keep in mind and nonetheless play generally. It was a waltz. I simply actually like good songs and actually take pleasure in attempting to write down songs.
“Sadly, a lot of the songs you write beginning out are fairly dangerous,” Friddle mentioned. “Mine had been anyway. I do know that John Prine’s first batch of songs ended up being a few of the greatest ever written. However Carole King mentioned one thing about having to write down lots of of songs earlier than getting a great one so I’ll consolation myself with that I feel.”
Friddle and his folks group The Majority gained a John Lennon Songwriting Award for the music, “Belle De Louisville.”
“That was the primary time I felt like I had put my finger on how you can put a music collectively, thought I can’t say for positive why it gained,” he mentioned. “I do know on the coronary heart of the music is a eager for dwelling and that’s a reasonably robust feeling that a number of of us know.
“I’m positive if I picked by means of my stuff all of it will owe one thing to somebody. I spend a lot time with mates enjoying fiddle tunes, Carter Household songs, Memphis Jug Band songs. All of that social music actually makes its manner into what I write. A shocking variety of chickens present up in my songs. However, I don’t consider my music as throwback or old-timey.
“I actually like songs with fascinating writing, good tales, robust photographs, possibly somewhat summary and humorous … I at all times love how Prine can inform a tragic story that’s in some way somewhat humorous on the similar time. ‘The Final Place to Go’ has a few of that in, it I feel,” he mentioned referring to his latest album.
“‘The Final Place to Go’ is the primary file I’ve performed the place I wrote the entire songs. Earlier than that I might combine in conventional tunes. Most every part on ‘The Final Place to Go’ was written about reminiscences of youthful days. It was a extra private form of writing and didn’t appear to combine with the standard stuff as effectively,” he mentioned.
The album contains what he calls sung tales with drum, fiddle, dobro, electrical guitar, bass, organ and trumpet accompaniment.
Among the many songs on that album is “Consuming in a Dry City.”
“I used to be again on totally different of us I knew once I was youthful coping with the challenges of popping out to their mates. I feel and hope that course of is less complicated now … however trying again as an grownup and understanding higher how laborious that was for these of us at the moment … that’s the place ‘Consuming in a Dry City’ got here from,” he mentioned.
“I actually attempt to write lyrics price singing. Hopefully they grasp round with any person after they hear the music. The phrases are vital to me.”
Friddle mentioned folks and rock music have related hard-driving power however with totally different instrumentation. He had entry to old-time jam exhibits far more than rock golf equipment, in order that’s what he adopted, he mentioned.
He added “Enjoying folks music makes it somewhat simpler to satisfy individuals and play collectively. That mentioned, I haven’t given up on my rock ’n’ roll profession but.”
Jonas Friddle
When: 7 p.m. Nov. 20
The place: Grayslake Village Corridor, 10 Seymour Ave.
Tickets: $13-$18
Data: 847-602-8882, thelakecountyfolkclub.org
Sheryl DeVore is a contract reporter for the Information-Solar.
