The man who plays it all
BRENT BERRY is a lifelong musician dedicated to translating the sounds of place, whether the high lonesome sounds of the Heartland, or the Latin liveliness of farther south. Berry was born in Kansas City raised on a steady diet of Fleetwood Mac and Journey. He played in marching band when young and then in a bagpipe group, and, later, he stepped into the breath of bluegrass, then world music, and on into other genres. A lot of his songs foster a sense of coming togetherness, loving one another and rising up. In “Go On” (featured in the movie “Garbage Warrior” about Mike Reynolds Earthships) Berry sings: “Gonna help one another / my sister, my brother, right on.” And in “High Time” (featured in the British show “Skins”) he sings, “It’s a high time for livin’ / givin’ / we’re all forgiven.” The once-Rio Grande river guide plays Thursday and Saturday shows at the Adobe Inn.
Your music is such a fun mix. It’s a little bit of reggae, bluegrass, blues, folk, et cetera. Super feel-good with positive messages. Can you talk about your relation to these genres?
As far as reggae, I was playing timbale/congas and singing in a group called “The Band That Saved The World” in Lawrence, Kansas and crashing on this old couch in a rehearsal space that a couple bands rented. That practice space was like a river eddy,
always players hanging around. I’d been working on my own songs that summer, really putting in more time on the compositions, feel, et cetera, and was jamming with the Johnson brothers in the space a lot. Tom and Eric were real engine room players — plenty of solid ground to stand on and no fat to shine up, just the facts. Both had studied the reggae and ska of the 60s and 70s and really opened my ears up. We all dug this tune “54-46” by Toots Hibert at the time and after a gig at The
Jazzhaus across the street we all ended the night jamming it in the practice space till sun rise. It was good.
And bluegrass, folk, world?
The singing got me first. Music was everywhere in my youth: on the radio, in the living room, playing in the garage, on the speakers at the pool. Everywhere. At about 8 years old I started singing the gospel and hymnals in church choir, learned the trick of harmony and thought I’d cracked some secret code. The world seemed brighter.
I found a love for world and indigenous music studying with the Kansas City Traditional Music Society under Augustine Diaz, Pat Conway and Bird Flemming, as well as performing with Samba Du Mau.
I love your song “Divisadero.” For starters, the lyrics are beautiful — “The deep and snowy mountains gave me eyes to see” and “I found a trail in the forest that leads me straight and true.” And, two, it makes me feel like I’m walking through Taos’s beautiful and diverse natural wonders. Do you often get out to the Devisadero trail? Is the song based on that?
I’m more of a South Boundary Trail guy. “Divisadero” (English definition: division) was a tune that came from a highlife guitar melody (a musical genre started in Ghana) I’d carried for a bit. It was recorded with Giles Shelton, Ryan Beckwith and Peter Oviatt here in Taos. Glad it made its way into the world. And stoked it won a New Mexico Music Award in 2019.
How long have you been playing the Adobe Inn gig?
I think my first time playing at The Taos Inn was at an open mic in the bar. Bogey was the host, you could barely see across the bar the smoke was so thick. Such a great room to play.