Jack Rentfro: Between a Ballad and a Blues
Carpetbag Theatre celebrates life and work of Howard Armstrong
Cast of Between A Ballad & A Blues
Howard “Louie Bluie� Armstrong once described his music as “somewhere between a ballad and a blues.� That conversation with Carpetbag Theatre’s Linda Parris-Bailey would set the stage for a musical drama about the renowned musician’s unique life and creativity. And provide a title as well.
Between a Ballad and A Blues, still being crafted by Parris-Bailey, director and playwright for the Carpetbag Theatre, is based on the life stories and string band music made famous by Armstrong. Besides being a master string jazz fiddler/mandolinist, the artist’s life serves as a prism through which we can glimpse the unheralded “African American Appalachian� experience. A half-hour excerpt of the play will be presented during the Louie Bluie Festival Saturday, June 9, at Cove Lake State Park near Armstrong’s childhood home, LaFollette, in Campbell County.
When Armstrong died in 2003, the 94-year-old was one of the last living links to a unique and rapidly disappearing musical subculture: the string bands of the ‘20s and ‘30s. The St. James Hotel collection of vintage regional music includes Armstrong’s first recordings with The Tennessee Chocolate Drops (available for download at www.lynnpoint.com). Armstrong was in that group with his long-time partners, Carl Martin and Ted Bogan. The trio would enjoy their greatest popularity among the youth of the ‘60s and ‘70s when they rediscovered this rustic offshoot of jazz as performed by “Martin, Bogan and Armstrong.� A much-heralded 1985 documentary, “Louie Bluie,� would encapsulate much of Armstrong’s life and music, including priceless reminiscences about Armstrong coping with the institutionalized racism in American society.
Between a Ballad and a Blues isn’t necessarily a new type of project for Parris-Bailey’s theater troupe which she founded in 1969. The esteemed company has mixed music and drama before. But, this will be Carpetbag’s first use of outside musicians who will be on stage with the actors.
The play, for which Carpetbag continues to seek support to produce in full, is co-commissioned by Appalshop of Whitesburg, Ky., a non-profit arts and education center.
“We are losing all memory of the black string bands that were just as important and influential as the legends we enshrine,� said Suzanne Savell, Director of Appalshop’s Traditional Music Program.
Parris-Bailey said she expects to debut the full production next year with a preview of the whole work this fall at Appalshop.
To learn more about the Carpetbag Theatre, visit their website.
Read more about the fantastic Louie Bluie Festival here!