Reporter: Hi Reverend, it’s a pleasure to meet you. As I can hear you’re being on the road as we speak, right? (The interview had been scheduled for the time Reverend P and his Big Dam Band were traveling to Saint Louis after their gigs in Nashville. Because of that Reverend’s pone signal got lost every now and then during our conversation so I had to phone the band a couple of times in a row. Fortunately Reverend kept his patience and friendly attitude)

Peyton: Yeah, we’re almost always on tour. We’re on tour right now as our new record has just came out and we’re pretty excited about it.

Rep.: Congratulations on releasing Between the Ditches. I haven’t had the opportunity to listen to it yet. On the first day of sales, the album got to the top of the iTunes Blues chart. That’s something!

P: Thank you, that’s really cool and really exciting. Hope the people liked it and it will be spread round the world.

Rep.: How is your American tour doing? You’re just coming from Tennessee, right?

P: Yeah, Nashville last night was amazing ! We played at Grimey’s which is a cool record store and the next day we were at the Music City Roots. It was a really cool television show, radio show and live concert.

Rep.: You are one o the busiest bands I had the pleasure to meet. How can you survive it? Any tips for the young bands out there?

P: You know, music is my whole life, it’s like a dream job. There are some things which are not that nice and you just have to deal with it if you want to do the stuff you love. For me it’s just a necessary evil, I guess. You have to give up a lot of things especially at first. When we first started doing this we didn’t have a place to stay, we ate canned noodles and pretty much lived like the homeless people (laughs). Even now we are missing out on a lot of things including our families.

Rep.: So you also treat it as your job?

P: It’s way more than that but still it’s how my family survives and it’s how we eat, put gas on trucks and everything else, you know. If it was just a job, though, it would not be worth the while and the travels.

Rep.: How many concerts on average do you play a year?

P: Well, it’s easily about 250.

Rep.: That’s impressive. Let’s go on to your concert at the Rawa Blues Festival. Rawa is the biggest blues indoor festival in Europe. You have been playing in big stadiums, small clubs and music stores. Where do you like to play the most : small venues or big festivals. Does it play any major difference to you?

P: For me it’s all the same. A small room or a big amphitheatre, it’s all about the crowd. That for me is what makes the show. I had some favorite shows in small rooms and massive stadiums for thousands of people. It’s really all about what the crowd is giving back.

Rep.: Rawa Blues will not be your first European experience? Blues&Rockabilly are considered endemic to the states. The genres have been born there and thrived there. Have you noticed anything different in the way your music was received on the European tour?

P: Yes, we visited Europe. But it’s going to be our first concert in Poland and we’re lookin forward to it. Well, I don’t think that it’s the case of the place. It depends a little bit on the age of the people but I guess people in Europe tend to be more polite and it seems to be a bit quieter crowd. But the young people are all the same. For the most part I think that a real from-the-heart organic music doesn’t really have a nationality or any border. That’s the thing that I learnt from the many travels we have been through.

Rep.: Your Dam Band has been penetrating different styles of music. What is the biggest inspiration for you? Mainly old stuff or anything totally new that caught your attention?

P: As far as my guitar playing goes it’s about people like Chalie Patton, Fury Louis and John Hurt. The way I write songs is thanks to guys like John Fogerty and John Prime. I try to take country blues and take it to new places.

Rep.: I have read about your health problems from the past. I glad it's all over and did not prevent you from playing in the end. Do you remember the feeling when you had the perspective of not being able to play ever again?

P: Oh yes, my hand problems. It was horrible, I was lost for a long time. That’s one of those reasons I don’t take this for granted for one single day.

Rep.: The director of the festival, Irek Dudek loved the video for Clap Your Hands. Who are the people in the set? Are we going to get more of such clips for the new album?

P: The people in the video are friends and fans that live near us. We sort of put out the word that we’re doing this video and looking for people who dance in different ways. It was such a big deal and people loved it so much. You will be able to see us in another two clips made by the same director. The next video is going to be released today or tomorrow. You have to see this. The next clip is rally really cool. It’s different but I think it’s actually better. (Reverend meant the clip for Devils Look Like Angels)

Rep: Great, good to know. Who brought your attention to means of promotion such us youtube, videoclips? It’s not a very usual thing for a blues band.

P: We feel that we are doing music for today and for now. You know, our original music is not Charlie Patton. It’s influenced by him but I never wanted to be a some kind of a museum throwback thing. I wanted to be someone who makes the music for now, a timeless music that would last for the future. And people now are making music videos, have twitter account etc. Some of the stuff does not really come natural to me but doing a music video is a lot of fun. It’s great to come up with ideas for it and create something that goes along with the song.

Rep.: I have seen that before Rawa you are only playing in Ireland as far as Europe is concerned. Is there something you’re playing for the in-between?

P: There are shows worked out the whole time. I’m not sure exactly what’s finalized but we’re planning to have some more concerts in Europe. UK, Ireland, there’s also Serbia.

Rep.: That’s pretty far away. But then again, for you living in the States it’s not such a huge distance. About the setlist for the Rawa concert, is your gig going to be more of a promotion concert for the new album or are you going to show the Rawa audience some cross-section of your songs?

P: There’s definitely going to be a lot of stuff from Between the Ditches but we will play some of our old favorites too.

Rep.: I don’t know if you had the opportunity to check this year’s Rawa line-up. We have invited: Robert Cray, Eric Sardinas, Roomful of Blues and Davina and the Vagabonds.

P: That’s a cool line-up. I remember seeing Robert Cray when I was a little kid. That’s pretty exciting

Rep.: It is going to be your first gig in Poland. What comes to your mind when you hear the name of our country?

P: I think it’s going to be similar to some Eastern European countries we have been to. The people there were so friendly, the food was really good and the countryside was beautiful. Breezy has a lot of Polish heritage on her dad’s side of the family.

Rep.: Many thanks for the your time and have a great tour! Looking forward to seeing your show!

P: I guarantee it will be a SHOW! (laughs) It’s going to be a great party. Thank you so much and take care.

Questions and translation: Roland Krybus
Conducted by: Remigiusz Orłowski

42. Rawa Blues Festival

October 5th, 2024

Artists

Main stage, Spodek

Multimedia

Blood Brothers - Mike Zito & Albert Castiglia

Mr. Sipp

Charlie Parr

The Commoners

Shakin' Dudi

Duża i Mała Scena