"The honesty and sometimes simplicity of Roots music is one of the things that make it so pure and beautiful to me. It's a good way for me to go about living, being simple and honest. Roots music also is a good reminder that simplicity can be very complicated. I think simplicity can be extremely important in a very complicated world."

Brandon Hudspeth: Riding the Blinds

Ridin' The Blinds (2023), the new album from Hudspeth & Taylor expands on the critically acclaimed and BMA nominated footprint their 2019 debut, Folie a Deux, created. The duo take 12 songs, all steeped in the traditions of Mississippi Delta Blues (mostly written and recorded in the 1920s and 30s), and rework them in a way that pays homage and (to an extent) reinvents them at the same time. "Most of these songs are pre-war Delta Blues," notes guitarist Brandon Hudspeth. "We wanted to bring back some of those old melodies people haven't heard for years, maybe even decades. The phrasing and harmonic sense of that period might even sound foreign today. We spent some time taking those ideas and going in other directions from the originals. We added some things in too, especially with the arrangements and layering of instruments. The concept was to take some of our favorite old and possibly obscure songs that maybe people haven't heard, and bring in a modern approach." Singer/percussionist Jaisson Taylor agrees, "the phrasing on those older songs, the way lyrics are repeated, there's a lot of cool things in there that are not simple and primitive like the way people tend to think of old blues."                                               (Photo: Jaisson Taylor & Brandon Hudspeth)

Taylor's staggering four-octave vocal range combined with innovative percussive work (in a blues context) are the perfect foil for Hudspeth guitar work. "I'm trying to place my voice so it's homogenous with what Brandon's doing on guitar and also be aware of other things that are going on, sonically. Guys like Manse Lipscomb, they hit their instrument and it adds things to where you think 'he's one guy, how diid he do that?' There's two of us, and I try to think of how can we make it sound like there's more." "Riding the blinds is an old hobo term," Hudspeth explains. "It's about trying to get somewhere. A guy doesn't have a ticket so he rides between the cars, they used to call that riding the blinds; in the '20s and '30s musicians used to do that a lot to get from town to town. That's the idea of the record, traveling from old time to new." 

Interview by Michael Limnios              Archive: Brandon Hudspeth, 2022 interview

How has Kerouac, the Beats and Counterculture influenced your views of the world and the journeys you’ve taken?

Kerouac is one of my all time favorite authors, as I have referenced him multiple times in song lyrics over the years. I think that being a musician out on the road has that same feeling of controlled chaos that Kerouac was writing about. I was always intrigued with the things that happen traveling from point A to point B on the road all while having to maintain a steady focus on the traveling musician's itinerary. 

How do you think that you have grown as an artist since you first started making music? What has remained the same about your music-making process?

When I listen back to older recordings of myself, I can hear the evolution in my writing and guitar playing. To me, my older recordings sound like I was coloring outside of the lines sometimes too often. Possibly, still experimenting with where the lines are and what colors to use. I have learned that everything has its place and perhaps more importantly that HOW you play or write something can have a bigger impact versus WHAT you play or write. 

I've always been attracted to how music makes me FEEL and I think that emotion is the biggest factor that people identify with. That has always been at the forefront of my music making process.  I'm just slowly learning how to manipulate harmony and rhythm to achieve musical honesty. 

"I feel so blessed to do what I love for a living so the highlights are many. I'd have to say touring in Europe and Canada has been amazing. Meeting some of my hero's like BB King and Buddy Guy has been a dream come true." (Jaisson Taylor & Brandon Hudspeth / Photo by Mick Larson)

Currently you’ve one more release with Jaisson Taylor. How did that relationship come about? Do you have any interesting stories about the making of the new album Ridin' The Blinds?

After recently arriving to Kansas City in 1999 I got a call to play with KC blues legend Little Hatch and Jaisson was the drummer. I thought he was great!  I started getting calls to do duo shows and I called Jaisson and it really went well the very first show!  We ended up representing Kansas City in the International Blues Competition where we made a good showing and more importantly met a lot of music industry folks. We've been hitting it hard ever since.

While we were picking and learning material for the record my wife and I had a beautiful new baby girl crawling around, so time was now compromised unlike before. So as soon as she would go down for her naps I would go to the basement and start to work on really getting into the style of all these great bluesmen. Basically, that time period for me was all baby and deep acoustic blues. Admittedly, I had a big head start on the music side as I always enjoyed playing the Delta and Piedmont blues. The sad part is a work in progress. 

What moment changed your music life the most? What´s been the highlights in your life and career so far?

I saw BB King so many times as a child I can't even count, but one time, when I was seven, BB King called me on stage in Tulsa, OK. He gave me a pick and a pen and told me to never stop playing the guitar. I was already into the blues and BB King was Superman to me, so it changed me. Thank goodness my parents got some good photos!

I feel so blessed to do what I love for a living so the highlights are many. I'd have to say touring in Europe and Canada has been amazing. Meeting some of my hero's like BB King and Buddy Guy has been a dream come true. 

How has the Blues and Roots music influenced your views of the world and the journeys you’ve taken?

The honesty and sometimes simplicity of Roots music is one of the things that make it so pure and beautiful to me. It's a good way for me to go about living, being simple and honest. Roots music also is a good reminder that simplicity can be very complicated. I think simplicity can be extremely important in a very complicated world.

"Technique conveys soul. Playing the right note at the exact right time to manipulate harmony and rhythm to portray a certain feeling takes technique. It's kind of like an author that has spent years developing a vocabulary and learning how to stream words together seamlessly versus and infant who may only know a couple of words." (Photo: Jaisson Taylor & Brandon Hudspeth)

What are some of the most important lessons you have learned from your experience in the music paths?

One of the biggest things I've learned is to "finish the song." There's been so many times in the past where I'd have a song idea and start to write it only to get stumped. I would give up to fast thinking "This was a bad idea." Now I think if an idea is good enough to grab you it's worth seeing through to the end so just finish the song. 

I have learned to remember why I'm on stage and that is to bring people together and to either forget or celebrate something in their own lives.

I think the biggest thing in any field is to be kind and thoughtful to others. 

What's the balance in music between technique and soul? Why is it important to we preserve and spread the blues?

Technique conveys soul. Playing the right note at the exact right time to manipulate harmony and rhythm to portray a certain feeling takes technique. It's kind of like an author that has spent years developing a vocabulary and learning how to stream words together seamlessly versus and infant who may only know a couple of words. The author can fabricate a clear image while the infant has a hard time describing the simplest emotions. It takes a developed technique so that people know what you are saying and how you feel about it. 

I think there are lots of great songs from the early 1900's that people may have started to forget about. I feel like it's good for the developing of future music.

Do you think there is an audience for blues/roots music in its current state? or at least a potential for young people to become future audiences and fans?

Yes, there is a good audience out there. I think the younger folks will soon be attracted to the Roots music again because of its honesty. It's too good to be forgotten!

Brandon Hudspeth - Home

(Photo: Jaisson Taylor & Brandon Hudspeth)