Growing Pains

Here’s the thing: Jackson actually has a thriving music scene, filled with phenomenal, under-appreciated musicians and people who are working hard to give them opportunities to play.

People, by and large, do not come to Mississippi to hear music. Jackson, its capital city, is not much of a draw. People will go to Memphis and New Orleans, even Birmingham, to hear big- and medium-sized acts; they’ll also go to those towns feeling confident they’ll hear more good small-time acts than they could hear here. Mississippi may have been the birthplace of the blues—modern music’s mama—but it’s not known for its music scene now.

Jackson ain’t New Orleans, and it ain’t Memphis. Although Jackson has Jackson State University and several smaller colleges, it’s tough to call Jackson a “college town.” And almost nobody lives downtown. People leave their jobs at 5 p.m., and go home to the suburbs to eat burgers and watch “American Idol” on television. And when they’ve finally gotten home to, say, Madison or Clinton or Crossgates or Byram, it’s no wonder they don’t want to turn right around and head back downtown again. But here’s the thing: Jackson actually has a thriving music scene, filled with phenomenal, under-appreciated musicians and people who are working hard to give them opportunities to play.

True, the city doesn’t have the population to bring the major acts on a regular basis. But what we do have is a burgeoning, extremely talented, dedicated group of musicians, along with a few good people committed to showcasing them, and an awful lot of potential for improving the state of things in the future. It’s just going to take more people like Charles Hooker, Isaac Byrd Jr., Palmer Houchins and Malcolm White. People who put their money where their mouths are.

Oh, and a little downtown development wouldn’t hurt anything, either.

Malcolm White Ain’t Jesus

All right, you say, you can handle life without live Britney. But what about people like Alison Krauss, Ryan Adams, Alison Moorer, Wilco—people who might not pack a stadium, but will surely draw at least 500 to 1,000 folks?

Many people put the responsibility squarely onto the shoulders of Malcolm White, co-owner of Hal & Mal’s.

“What Jackson needs is what any city needs to truly have a lively music scene—a mid-sized venue that can have middle-sized acts,” says David McCarty, Jackson resident and avid live music fan. “Hal & Mal’s is the only place that can accommodate that.”

White says Hal & Mal’s can accommodate 150 in the restaurant, 200 in Soulshine and 1,000 in the back room—standing room only. But, White says, it’s not that easy.

“This city holds me accountable,” he says. “[Jacksonians] expect me to furnish them with a certain amount of entertainment of a certain caliber. I have to tell people all the time why I don’t have Alison Krauss. It’s because when I booked her (back in the early 1990s), she cost $5,000, and now she costs $25,000. It’s about how much you can charge for a ticket and get away with it.” So, even if he packed in 1,000 people into the back room—which would be hot, smoky and a bit sardine-like—he’d have to charge $25 per person just to break even on the tickets.

And that’s only if he could pack the room to capacity, which, in this town, is an iffy proposition. White lost $7,000 of his own cash bringing Ike Turner this past fall. The music business is up and down, he says. Sometimes he can bring in different acts or more expensive acts—but it’s always a risk.

“Jackson’s a weird town,” notes Chris Crothers, co-owner of the beer lounge MusiQuarium, referring to crowd turnout. During football season, for instance, the bars can stay empty. Longtime Jackson musician Raphael Semmes has noticed there’s a sort of unpredictable crowd scene, too. But, Semmes says, people who believe in the scene have to be vigilant about showing up.

“People will say, ‘Oh, yes, we meant to go check that act out, but then we got home and we were so tired,’” Semmes says. “And of course, there are a finite number of next times.” If a big name or a creative music act is going to play Jackson, it’s going to play it quickly. Like independent movies or traveling theater, if Jacksonians don’t see them for the two days they’re here, those acts may not come again.

A common retort is that shows aren’t promoted well. Musicians typically think responsibility for promotion rests squarely with the club. Clubs are typically busy as all hell and think the musicians should do it. This is especially true of younger, less established artists.

“We went through a time a short while back when musicians were so anxious to play that the venue owners would put the responsibility of promotion and audience development on the artist,” says JudyKay Jefferson, vice president of artists and repertoire for Ojah Records, and a longtime supporter of the live music scene in Jackson. But she doesn’t think it should be that way. “When an artist brings a performance into your space, they’ve done their job. If an artist has to promote herself, it puts too much pressure on, and in some ways it devalues the music. I think it’s still important that we recognize that what we have is very valuable, and unless we cherish it, we won’t be able to keep it.”

White, who encourages younger music through a program called All Ages*Low Wages run by Palmer Houchins, typically lets them have a performance space at Hal & Mal’s, but expects them to promote their show, charge what they want and take the money at the door.

Robert Arender, who does double duty as talent booker and a bartender for Martin’s, says, “It’s just hard to do everything.” He adds: “There are local bands who will make their own flyers when they do shows.” But promotion is the lifeblood of the show for the music Martin’s likes to showcase—indie, underground bands. “It’s really good to have those kind of people involved as much as possible.”

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

We’ve all seen it: crowds shouting over the amazing acoustic musician at Fenian’s, two tables of people showing up for Lisa Palmer in the Hal &s Mal’s restaurant—resulting in low pay for musicians. It’s a feedback loop, really.

“I don’t think there’s a big respect for what we do,” says Rhonda Richmond, jazz singer and protégé of Jackson native Cassandra Wilson. It can seem that Jacksonians take for granted the high caliber of musicians who perform here. Just because Ezra Brown isn’t featured solo on a national label doesn’t mean he isn’t better than a lot of people who are.

Andy Hardwick, one of the oldest jazz musicians in Jackson, as well as mentor to everybody from Cassandra Wilson to Brown, wishes there were more people interested in jazz. He thinks that’s a responsibility that falls, first and foremost, on the schools, starting at the elementary level. “The children are the future of tomorrow, and they can’t come to the clubs,” he says. And then, he thinks the people that really love jazz ought to get out and hear it more.

“Black people—this is our music,” he says. “We don’t support it.”

Another problem Richmond sees is lack of places to play, especially for jazz artists.
“I just wonder if you’ve met the needs of the people,” Richmond says. There does seem to be a burgeoning crowd of jazz lovers in town—but where can they hear the music? Well, Hardwick plays at the Hilton five nights a week. There’s jazz at MQ on Wednesdays (moving to Fridays in March), at Schimmel’s on Saturdays, at Brown’s club Seven* and Hal & Mal’s offers jazz on a regular basis.

Also, Subway owner Jimmy King has plans in the works to open a jazz club (hopefully near the Subway, he says) either in the summer or early fall.

This is a step in the right direction, but is it enough? Are there enough places for jazz artists—as well as musicians who work in other genres—to perform?

Bitch, Moan and Wine

When you start talking about venues and clubs, there’s a major consideration, one that’s rather difficult to get around: Booze.

According to state law, establishments that serve wine and liquor must get between 20 percent and 30 percent of their revenue from food. Ever wonder why MusiQuarium is a beer lounge? Sure, the concept’s good, and it appears to be working—but the club doesn’t serve booze because it doesn’t have a liquor license. And they don’t have a liquor license because the ABC Board wouldn’t give them one.

In fact, they’ve tried to get a liquor license twice. In order to win approval, an establishment has to submit a potential menu, and the ABC Board has to come out and have a look around the kitchen, or proposed kitchen site. The first time, MQ planned on installing a pizza oven. They were told it wouldn’t be enough. The second time, they proposed serving cold sandwiches—they just don’t have room for a big kitchen—and, again, were turned down.

“I enjoy cooking, but I never wanted to have a restaurant,” owner Crothers says.

“I think if I could get a liquor license, I would. But—I’m almost glad that I can’t.” When you start selling liquor, he says, people get drunk much faster. Liability goes up (and so do insurance rates) as does the drunken-####### factor. But he wishes he had the option to sell liquor if he wanted to. Crothers also believes, along with many others in town, that the liquor laws stifle the nightlife.

“Getting a beer license is pretty easy,” he says. Getting a liquor license is not, unless you have either a kitchen or “resort” status, such as that granted to Reservoir-area venues such as the Dock, for example. (Although the “resort” status, so designated by the Tax Commission, has been on iffy footing for the past year or so, it looks like the handful of bars in that area will be able to keep it.) Being a “resort” means that a bar has a 24-hour liquor license, and can keep serving later than other bars. Rumor has it that downtown Jackson could receive this status, particularly to bolster of the Farish Street Entertainment district.

That said, some clubs that do have a liquor license don’t seem to mind having to serve food, too. As Callop Hampton, owner of Hamp’s, says: “I think it’s probably the best thing. If you’re drinking for too long, you’ve got to be eating, too.”

Some clubs, such as Joker’s and Stardust, can serve only beer, but they allow patrons to bring in their own liquor and provide “set-ups”: ice and a mixer such as soda. And the Subway only serves beer (but allows patrons to bring in bottles), so they can stay open late.

Faces and Fannies

What else can be done to jumpstart the scene in J-town?

“There are a lot of things that could happen,” Semmes says. “But the start-up is people getting out and supporting it. People can sit around and talk about how great a certain singer or band is, but if their faces aren’t in place and their fannies on the chairs and the cash registers aren’t running, soon there will be no venues for people to come face to face with it.”

Another issue might be improving access to multiple venues, where one can experience different sounds and crowds. One potential solution—revitalize downtown Jackson.

What if there was a strip or cluster of venues and restaurants, kind of like Beale Street in Memphis, Five Points in Birmingham—or, heck, even The Strip in Tuscaloosa? What if it had clubs and restaurants, coffeehouses and grocery stores? What if people actually lived downtown?

Could a far-sighted developer come in and decide that if they built it, we would come? Or should that be something we ask our government for—top-down dollars for projects like the Farish Street Entertainment District?

Clearly, some financial interests in Jackson (and elsewhere) are taking a gamble on Farish Street becoming Jackson’s Beale. The city is working with the same developer, Performa Entertainment, that was largely responsible for the Beale Street revitalization in Memphis. The Farish Street project is happening in two phases—right now, infrastructure is being updated, with sewer, electric, water, sidewalks and beautification planned as a foundation for the entertainment district. (It’s also about six months behind schedule and a few hundred thousand over budget, thanks in part to wet weather and some interesting archeological finds.) Above-ground development will happen after the streets are done, with the 80,000 square feet being developed for entertainment, retail and restaurant space—the Entertainment District may be swinging by mid-2004. And Farish might well gain resort status, meaning relaxed liquor permitting.

Whether or not Farish will boost the overall image of downtown Jackson as an entertainment city the way Beale has for Memphis remains to be seen. If done right, Farish may serve as a calling card that helps define Jackson as a entertainment city—and such a moniker might be deserved, considering the wealth of talent Jackson has to offer. It could also simply leach business away from other venues in Jackson (think Overton Square in Memphis), particularly if it’s seen more as a standalone watering hole than as an anchor for a mixed-use, artistic downtown.

Up-And-Crooning

There is work to be done on Jackson’s music scene, but there are also indicators that the scene is doing well, better than in the past couple of years, anyway, and that it may continue growing. For one thing, there has been an upsurge of fairly young talent (starting at 16-year-olds), especially in the last couple of years. (Check out our Artists to Watch spread on pages 16-17 of this issue).

Also, the indie scene, peopled mostly by the younger crowd, is hopping. Martin’s has forged its place in Jackson indie history, but there is also a strong alt-Christian music movement in and around town. These “friendly rock” bands play mostly in Clinton at a no-alcohol venue called the CLB, but they play other places as well, such as MQ and Martin’s. Additionally, a record label called Esperanza Plantation (started by Chaney Nichols and Mississippi College junior Scott Prather) recently popped up. So far, they have three bands on their label.

With the burgeoning recording scene, though, comes a threat to the live scene.

“There is much more activity in the recording side of our community music scene than there ever has been,” Semmes says. “So, people can experience the Vamps in their living rooms—but it’s crucial they experience the Vamps face to face, too, so the whole process can continue for another cycle.”

Fortunately, there are the people who want to hear live music, and they make it happen one way or another. Take Prather and the shows he books at the CLB, or Charles Hooker, who sponsors OffiSource jazz nights on Wednesdays at MQ.

For those of us who only have enough space on our ATM card to make cover and maybe buy some drinks, though, the best we can do is just get out and support it, so the music can continue.

“What are you doing for the live music scene in Jackson?” is Malcolm White’s response when people give him hell about the bands he brings—or doesn’t bring—to Jackson. Most owners of live music venues, White included, do it because they love it—not for the (often meager) return. But people need to show up.

“It’s not so much about the money,” says Subway owner King. “It’s more about presenting musicians and giving them a place to play. That’s just a big part of me.”

“We’ve got a great music scene,” says McCarty, who estimates he’s out three times a week. He’s from Birmingham, where he says the scene is dead compared to what goes on here. He’s been in Jackson around three years. “The things I’ve seen since moving here and the people I’ve met make me very optimistic about the future,” he says.

“I sense a resurgence,” Semmes says. “There’s an influx of new energy that has been palpable to me in the last year or so.”

Lori Herring is the culture editor of the Jackson Free Press.

Previous Comments

I’d like to comment on the hundreds of crosses on the lawn of the State Capitol. Like others, I am concerned about the arrogance of this event. What did happen to the SEPERATION of church and state?! While anti-abortionists are busy planting Christian crosses, they may better be useful to the “born” children in this state who are neglected, abused, and molested at the hands of adults each and everyday. Count me in too, if this you all decide to do something!!

#76716 | Author: Diana Barnes | Date: Feb 22 2003

A staple on the Jackson club scene, 2 CD’s, 5 years without a personnel change, winners of “Best Jazz Group” in the Jackson Music Awards, a lineup that includes former members of B.B. King’s band, The Verve Pipe, and The O’Jays among others, and still no mention of The Vamps in your Music Issue… what gives? MAXimum respect, Denny

#76717 | Author: jive samba | Date: Feb 27 2003

It wasn’t possible to mention every great musician, band, or venue for that matter, in the 13 pages of this first Music Issue. And we gave the writers freedom to choose the acts they wanted to write about. It certainly wasn’t meant to be exhaustive coverage of music in Jackson; I’m sure that is obvious to readers. In many ways, this issue was meant as a statement that we plan to move music coverage in Jackson to a new, more dynamic and better-written level, and we will continue to cover music in every issue in a unique way. So hang in there: there will be lots of opportunities to appear in our pages. (And, musicians, keep sending out promotional material, updates and CDs; we can’t read your minds, and we want to know what’s up with you. But you have to tell us.) Donna

#76718 | Author: ladd | Date: Feb 27 2003

I don’t think the Farish St. entertainment district will do much to boost the fortunes of Jackson’s original music players. The city has been very upfront about wanting their own Beale St. The music of present day Beale St. is a bland blend of inoffensive music designed to entertain tourists. Memphis music fans do not go to Beale St. to hear music. If Farish Street does become an entertainment district, it will help provide work for bar bands, but will most likely not serve as an outlet for original music- too much capitol will be at stake to allow experimentation. One of the main problems with Jackson re: music is there is not a significant collegiate/post-collegiate bar crowd living here to help support it. There ARE encouraging efforts being made by the high school bands (The Symptoms are just a perfect H.S. band – you can see the potential), but these kids will be dispersed to Oxford, Hattiesburg, and Starkville in a year or so. I don’t agree with the record company person (Is Oha a real label? what have they put out?) about musicians doing self promotion. Unless you’re big enough to draw without any promo, you (or your Mom or somebody) needs to make fliers, put together email lists, call your friends, and get people to come out. Local bands that pull the diva routine (“I’m an Artist!!”) will continue to amaze their neighbors, but will get nowhere.

#76719 | Author: ironsides | Date: Mar 3 2003

FYI – You can find The Vamp’s mentioned under “Arender’s Alt-Advice” in the music issue which focuses on trying to get community support for bands like The Vamps.

#76720 | Author: slackmaster12@yahoo.com | Date: Mar 5 2003