Barbecued Goat and Blues at the Turner Family Picnic

Barbecued Goat and Blues at the The Turner Family Picnic

Article and Photos by Ray Proetto of Blues Power Photo

December 6, 2015

 

Anticipation

My anticipation was building as I drove through the endlessly flat cotton and soy bean fields northeast of Clarksdale Mississippi. I’m familiar with large pastures where I live in Central Florida but they are nothing compared to the vastness of these farms. It was late in the afternoon of Friday August 27, 2010. The fields sped on by as I headed toward Como Mississippi for the Turner Family Picnic. This unique family backyard event is held every year on a Friday and Saturday in late August.

I was staying in Clarksdale because it had quickly become my home base for frequent trips to Mississippi. Just before heading out of town, I stopped on Delta Avenue at Roger Stolle’s Cathead Delta Folk Art and Blues Store. Sean “Bad” Apple was behind the counter. We talked about the Turner Picnic and who might be there. Sean spoke of Joe Ayers, R.L. Boyce, and Robert Belfour. Sean said he learned the Hill Country Blues from these artists. He called them the last three old school Hill Country players. Then Sean picked up a guitar and proceeded to show me their styles and those of many others all in the span of a few minutes. Thanking him, I left the store and headed out of town for the picnic.

 

I knew I was headed to a very special party. Otha Turner led the Rising Star Fife and Drum Band at picnics on his farm until his passing at the age of 94 in 2003. The band consisted of a changing mix of family members, friends and neighbors. His family is the last link to the once common North Mississippi fife and drum tradition. Sharde Thomas, Otha’s granddaughter and other relatives are keeping the tradition alive. Sharde (Age 20 in 2010) plays the fife as they honor Otha Turner during this picnic and other events. What is a fife? It’s a hollow, flute-like instrument typically made from bamboo cane. Sharde plays fife with at least three types of drums. These are the kettle snare and bass drums. Together they create a sound that is equal parts Revolutionary army, African rhythms and Hill Country Blues. No matter what you call it, the result is an infectious, repetitive beat that makes-you-wanna-move.

Soon the Delta flatlands began to give way to the hills and woods of North Mississippi. The road began to roll as if the land was made of big waves. Susan Tedeschi was belting out her blues through my car speakers. “I’m gonna show you how to rock me right!”

Traveling straight through Senetobia on Route 4, I continued under Interstate 55 for a few miles. A right turn on Gravel Springs Road took me south in the direction of Como. It was a pretty straight country road lined by homes, small farms and woods. Suddenly I felt out of place and lost in the country. Five or ten minutes later I turned left onto O.B. McClinton Road. The Turner Home is not far on the right. The right side of the street is lined with average sized homes. If you did not know the address it would be easy to miss. It’s an unremarkable square home with a large back yard area. Arriving with the sun bright and low around 6:00pm; I parked 40 yards down the street. The street was already filling up with cars.

 

A simple home in the country

You enter the backyard picnic through the driveway on the right side of the house. A small table was set up to collect two dollars per person. This earned you an orange wrist band. On the right side of the back yard property was a covered area which I’m told were hog pens at one time. This is where Sharde and other family and friends were selling barbecued goat sandwiches, drinks, and t-shirts. Further back was a small building that looked like a barn.

Directly behind the house about 30 yards down a very slight slope was the “stage.” The stage was a flatbed trailer covered with a black apron which also hung in the air behind the trailer creating a stage effect. Up front on the right side of the stage was a small sound board or rather stand up sound box with assorted wires and various junk piled up around it. With the ground gradually sloping down from the house, it was easy to see the stage from just about anywhere in the backyard.

 

Let the music begin

I began the evening meeting Sharde Thomas at the concession, eating a goat sandwich, and watching the first performance of the Rising Star Fife and Drum Band. At first Sharde, her brother Aubrey, cousin Andre, and another drummer moved in front of the stage. She took advantage of a microphone and placed it on the ground to project the fife’s sound. After a couple of instrumental songs, she left the microphone and led her drummers in a short march over to the barbecue area. There they completed their first performance of the evening. By this time there were approximately 80 people in the backyard and at least half of them gathered around the band swaying to the beat and cheering them on. A few more instrumental songs and the band finished  – until later.

Expecting to hear the country blues Sean Apple had spoken of, I was surprised when Johnny Lowebow was the first stage performer. He sang and played homemade box guitar with a slide while his feet played drums. With his wild “Kramer” hair, weathered face, and jeans, he reminded me of a Texas farm hand. His sound was loud and his singing rough…  sort of punk rock country blues.

A number of people began putting folding chairs down in disorganized rows and circles near the house and leading toward the stage. As the yard filled with people, no one put a chair near the stage. A large area in front of the stage was naturally left open for dancing. Milling around from group to group I was thrilled to meet many of the musicians and quite a few fans. I also ran into some of the new friends I made that summer at other Mississippi events.

I was fortunate to meet two of the three old school legends Sean Apple mentioned. Joe Ayers was relaxed and easygoing. He spoke a great deal about his son Trenton Ayers who is also a musician. Joe and most of the artists I met didn’t seem to take themselves too seriously. The vibe was more of a neighborhood party than that of a blues festival. I met R.L. Boyce who appeared to be the life of the party. When he wasn’t talking and laughing, he was playing guitar on stage or marching and playing a drum with Sharde and her brothers. I also spoke briefly with Ricky and Micol Davis of the band Blue Mother Tupelo. Ricky Davis produced and performed many of the instruments on Sharde Thomas’ first CD release, “What Do I Do?” It was also interesting meeting Aubrey Turner, one of Sharde’s brothers and a drummer in the Rising Star band. He wanted me to take his picture. I assumed he wanted a picture with the band or one of him singing on stage. No, he wanted one with his Pitt Bull!

Mary Ann “Action” Jackson, acted as the MC for most of the evening. She sang a few songs and introduced new players as they came up on the stage. Mary Ann was a pleasure to watch. Her stage presence is part performer/singer and part bawdy comedienne. Soon after Johnny Lowebow, R.L. Boyce sat down onstage and played electric guitar with a group of talented musicians. The band changed as the night wore on with players joining and leaving the stage throughout the evening. Guitarists on stage included Johnny Lowebow, R.L. Boyce, Ricky Davis, Kenny Brown, and Travis Hullette.  Steve Toney handled drums for much of the night.

 

It’s all about the Party

Although this event is open to the public, it is first and foremost a family and community celebration. At its most crowded there might have been 150 to 200 people in the Turner back yard with hundreds of local residents partying up and down the street. They were friends, family, local musicians and fans. Complete foreigners like me were rare. The picnic was so casual I was quickly caught up in the party. I wrote very few notes and never documented the complete lineup of musicians. In between dancing, drinking, and making new friends, I could be found taking pictures in front of the stage.

The defining activity at the Turner Family Picnic was crowd participation! People grabbed instruments off the stage and played them while dancing. Mary Ann Jackson had full length conversations with members of the crowd in between songs. Jokes were flying back and forth between her and the audience throughout the party. Late in the evening Sharde Thomas returned to the grass in front of the stage and led her drummers in a series of songs to close out the night. She played fife much of the time but also sang. One of the songs she sang was “Sittin on Top of the World.” As the crowd gathered close around them, I remember seeing only smiles as everyone seemed to be moving and dancing to the infectious beat.

 

Let’s do it again – Saturday Night

Saturday evening the Turner Family Picnic began where it left off the night before. The only noticeable difference was that the crowd was thicker and I met people from as far away as Memphis and Louisiana.

Just as it was on Friday, the stage was a constantly evolving group of musicians. Calvin Jackson played drums much of the night with Garry Burnside, Joseph Burnside, R.L. Boyce, Travis Hullette, and Ricky Davis sharing guitar duties. Steve Kolbus sang a few songs and played harmonica. Martin Grant played harmonica on and off throughout the evening and there were many other musicians whose names I did not record. With so many talented musicians the night blended into one long dance party jam.

Late in the evening Blue Mother Tupelo’s Ricky and Micol Davis took the stage with their talented young drummer Gregg Cobb. They performed a few of their own songs until Sharde Thomas joined them. She played fife, keyboard and sang many of her own original songs. Singing with a sweet yet soulful voice the crowd went wild for her! Employing the stage presence of a much older performer, she whipped the crowd into frenzy. They responded by cheering and dancing until her performance closed out the evening well after midnight.

So ended two nights of music, barbecue, mingling, drinking, and dancing at one of the Mississippi Hill Country’s unique events. It’s a dance party any serious blues fan must attend at least once.

 

For a brief video of this event, see below.

For a FULL GALLERY of photos from this event see Galleries in this web site.

Words and photos copyright – Ray Proetto and Blues Power Photo.

 

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