Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives play the Bay Area.
A musical legacy extends throughout Marty Stuart’s career. It stretches back to when the country music singer-songwriter was in his teens on his very first gig, with guitarist Lester Flatt, half of the pioneering bluegrass group the Foggy Mountain Boys. Later, Stuart would go on to play with Johnny Cash.
Now a seasoned troubadour, Stuart, 59, and His Fabulous Superlatives band are scheduled to play three Bay Area shows — one at McNear’s Mystic Theatre in Petaluma on Friday, Jan. 12, and two at Berkeley’s Freight & Salvage on SaturdaySunday, Jan. 13-14 — in support of their latest studio album, “Way Out West.”
A poetic but realistic exploration of the myths and realities of the Left Coast, Stuart’s 18th studio album was produced by longtime Southern California resident Mike Campbell of the Heartbreakers. The collaboration, Stuart says, “was a natural” as Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were Cash’s backup band on his “Unchained” record from 1996.
“Campbell is probably the greatest rock ’n’ roll player we have, and he was part of the best American rock ’n’ roll band we had,” Stuart says, speaking by phone from his native Mississippi. “Beyond all that, he’s a brilliant writer, brilliant producer, brilliant arranger. He’s just a worldclass musical citizen. I’m inspired by his presence.”
Stuart hopes that fans hear the musical magic the two experienced when recording “Way Out West” as he and the band tour throughout the year, making stops in Houston and West Hollywood and everywhere in between.
“When I first put this band together 17 years ago, one of our mission statements was to never forget small-town America,” says Stuart.
“One of the things we’ve been mindful of are towns that are bringing their old movie theaters back to life and the local arts councils that are trying to stage shows or plays or art exhibits. So we tried very hard to get to those places and play shows ... and they seem to be very appreciative — especially people working hard to stay in their communities.”
These experiences inform performances in medium and larger markets, such as Petaluma and Berkeley, he says. “When we come out and play the suburbs, we’ll bring those stories of American culture and American people with us in a very authentic way. It’s been a long journey, but I feel the light of the cities back upon us now.”
The San Francisco Bay Area in particular has washed Stuart in a glow that he says he’s always grateful for when playing in the region.
“One of my absolute favorite events across the world is Hardly Strictly,” he says, referring to the annual Hardly Strictly Bluegrass music festival in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. “The last time we played it, it was like 10 or 11 on Sunday morning. I thought, ‘Nobody’s gonna be there!’ And we came up over the hill, and there was a pasture full of people. I loved that show.”
Though he’s since had a chance to record and gig “Way Out West” throughout the U.S., the central Mississippi native continues to view the Golden State through the same wide eyes as in his youth.
“The landscape still inspires me out there. I get out, and I see palm trees and blue skies,” he says. “And the ocean, it still takes my breath away.”