MUSINGS & RAMBLINGS

Pulling up to the Ace I had to circle once for a parking space, always a good sign. At the door was a better sign: “Harp Blowout with Sonny Lowe, Sweetharp Santana, and Skye O’Bannion.” I hadn’t known of Skye’s participation and I was delighted. Skye after a rough stretch has been determined and disciplined about moving forward.

The band was in their opening number and there were plenty of familiar faces in the crowd. The drummer was Steve DuBois (formerly of Johnny Nitro)

and the new-to-me bass player was Dave Duport.

The great (and almost unknown outside Sebastopol) guitarist David Burke was down on the end of the bandstand hiding in a camouflage t-shirt with a baseball cap pulled down over his eyes so no one would know he was there. The cap had a beaver on it signifying David’s long, deeply held interest in conservation and wild life.

On six string baritone-bass Tall Paul Dowling was handling rhythm chores with authority.

What a wall of sound! It was bullet mic night with a three-harp attack. Sonny was opening with some of the classic numbers the band usually does like “Miss Bessie’s Barbecue” to start the show off and they were hot from the beginning. Skye was really blowing and the shy seventeen-year-old Sweetharp was really getting the tone out of her harmonica.

A triple harp show could be a train wreck but this one worked as the three harp players all had different styles and personalities. Sonny is a leathery genial but cynical Sonny Boy Williamson type; Skye is a blonde pompadour punk with attitude and a chromatic harp; Sweetharp is a shy cute maturing teenager in large punk boots with a harp tone like Big Walter Horton.

When I arrived the dance floor was empty and there were a lot of people sitting around. I put myself out on the tile dance floor and Mo was out there quickly too. Within minutes others got themselves out on the floor and the dance floor began to fill up. This was due to the band starting out fast and keeping it up. The rhythm section was working hard and really sounding good and the three harpists began trading solos and somehow never getting in each other’s way. Little guitar fills and a huge bass sound perked the harpists as they began somehow developing individual voices in the wall of sound.

Sonny with his spare clean sound and Skye with his fat tone and frequent use of the organ toned chromatic harp led off as Sweetharp hung back a little at first. The power of what was going on with fine solo after solo took over Sweetharp too and she really began to wail with the others. The dancing on the floor was packed and stayed that way for the rest of the night. Skye tried to do his “Lying On The Floor and Blowing Harp” piece of showmanship, but there just wasn’t room as the dancers were so packed. There was nowhere to back up to.

I’m not sure how they managed to keep the solos so individual all night. It was inspiring and the band really seemed to be into the show. It just kept getting better. There was never any room for taking notes so I don’t remember the order of the songs nor a lot of the titles. I do remember great organ like solos, buzzing burning solos, melodic solos, and wails in the night. Classic bits of harp lore like “I want my Mama” noises and train sounds were quoted but were never made the centerpiece of a song. Every so often they’d turn David Burke loose for a song or a solo as a refreshing variation. David hard cider voice and cutting guitar would cut through the wall of sound.

The second set was as good as the first and the songs and solos were just plain done right. The dancing got even wilder and the crowd was really into the show. I heard later the Ace had one of their biggest nights. Certainly they got the pool table and its light out of the way pretty early. The staff and manager were rocking too once the kitchen closed. A lot of people had a rally good time and stayed for the whole show and talked on after the show.

If Sonny is able to repeat this Harp Blowout show don’t pass it up, it was something we haven’t seen in Sonoma County for a while.