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Follywood Insider: Folly Beach has the Blues

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 21:20:10 +0000

By Ben Bounds

Still reeling from the tragic and untimely death of Mississippi Delta bluesman Lil’ Dave Thompson on Valentine’s Day, and reflecting on the success of this year’s Lowcountry Blues Bash, it’s as good a time as any for us to turn the spotlight on the Folly Beach blues scene.

As some of you may or may not know, Lil’ Dave Thompson was killed in an automobile accident on Feb. 14, after playing a gig at Fiery Ron’s Home Team BBQ on Sullivan’s Island as part of the Blues Bash. Although the club had arranged lodging for Thompson and his band for that night, he told venue employees that he was worn out from nearly two months on the road and was longing to get back to Mississippi.

“Dave was truly the most professional touring Bluesman and all around nice guy,” Home Team BBQ Talent Buyer and GM Tony McKie said in a conversation with the Follywood Insider this week. “I am lucky also to have called him a friend. Hosting what turned out to be his last show leaves me with mixed emotions. He will truly be missed by Blues fans everywhere.”

Thompson embodied everything that is the Mississippi Delta Blues. A throwback from the old days with a new generation swagger, Thompson was always on-time, friendly, courteous, grateful, and most importantly, he always brought his best to the stage.

Although none of the venues on Folly Beach were officially involved in this year’s Blues Bash, Follywood Productions and the Surf Bar hosted one “unofficial” event on Feb. 14, which ran simultaneously with Thompson’s last performance just an island inlet away, featuring The Eric Deaton Trio with special guest Davis Coen. Deaton is best known for having joined North Mississippi Hill Country Blues legend Junior Kimbrough’s back band as a bassist and sometimes guitarist when he was only 18. When Kimbrough passed in ’98, Deaton found an immediate opening as bassist for the Burnside Exploration with Garry Burnside, youngest son of Hill Country Blues legend R.L. Burnside, and his cousin Cedric Burnside. He parlayed that into lead guitar roles with both Afrissippi and Jimbo Mathus’ Knockdown South. He has since struck out on his own with his new trio featuring Nate Robbins of Rockett 88 and Charles Gage of Duwayne Burnside & Mississippi Mafia. Mathus’ new band, The Tri-State Coalition, was also a part of the Blues Bash playing the Pour House on Feb. 12.

The show at the Surf Bar, which followed the overwhelmingly successful Folly Gras Parade, was on-fire. Deaton & Co. kicked things off with a straight-forward electric mix of classic blues standards and his own originals. Coen also chimed in with some originals of his own, sharing the vocals with Deaton throughout the night. The Surf Bar staff was highly complimentary of the performance and said it was “exactly the right fit” for the bar’s post-parade party. Deaton and his band mates said they would spread the good word about both the bar and the island’s hospitality and good vibes from here to North Mississippi.

The Surf Bar kept with the Mississippi music theme the following Saturday night when they hosted local Alt-Country / Americana act Guilt Ridden Troubadour which features Mac Leaphart and his partner in crime Reid Stone, former Daybreakdown front man and Vicksburg, Mississippi, native. Stone’s musical roots and past touring and recording experience in Mississippi led him to both personal and professional relationships with each of the aforementioned artists, and the band’s set that night seemed to take on a tone that was just a little on the Bluesy side.

Considering that so many of those tightly-knit Mississippi Blues musicians were all in Charleston on the same weekend, and that it ended with such a tragic note, you can bet that there were many heavy hearts traveling that highway from here to the Crossroads. Please keep Lil’ Dave, his family and band mates in your prayers.

Ben Bounds is the owner of Follywood Productions on Folly Beach. Follywood Productions strives to be the islands’ most dedicated event coordinating service, handling live entertainment and promotion for local and regional artists, venues, festivals, fundraisers, universities and special events. For more information, call 408-6439 or email follywoodrocks@gmail.com

This is Follywood – This is The Edge.

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Follywood Productions launches into music scene

Akhyari — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 00:25:54 +0000

Charleston is a flourishing garden of music. The gardeners are, of course, the local musicians and their fruit is a vibrant and eclectic scene grounded with an intelligent fan base that’s way ahead of the curve. However, as the local culture has evolved and grown, those involved may find themselves lost. Musicians struggle to find gigs and agents are springing up out of garages. Organizations don’t know where to turn to hire a band for their fundraiser. Everyone involved seems to be wandering aimlessly, trying to find each other. Enter Ben Bounds and Follywood Productions, whose goal it is to make sure that all roads lead to great music.
Follywood Productions is a new event coordinating service in Charleston which focuses on providing original live entertainment for events of any size in the Greater Charleston Area. The agency will be focusing on connecting local bands with local venues, as well as bringing touring bands to Charleston and putting Charleston bands on tour. Follywood will also be focusing on are festival booking, both locally and out of town/out of state, corporate and university events, private functions and fundraisers.
Ben has seven years experience as an event coordinator. He founded Dirt Road Records in Oxford, Mississippi, in 2003, where he handled management, booking and publicity for Southern rock band Daybreakdown, which featured Charleston’s Reid Stone of Guilt Ridden Troubadour on vocals and rhythm guitar. He’s also worked with more than 100 bands and more than 100 venues across the Southeast and Midwest. At Dirt Road, Ben began to get a sense of the rich music scene in Charleston.
“I had already booked three or four tours through Charleston over the years, and had worked with Alex Harris at the Pour House and Tony McKie at Home Team BBQ, as well as Reid Stone of Guilt Ridden Troubadour,” said Ben. “Those guys have been a huge asset to me from a networking standpoint here in Charleston. And they have continued to help me lay the groundwork for Follywood Productions through my entire first year here. It’s taken a little time, but I think we’re just about ready to get this thing going and start helping the local artists get their music out there, as well as bring some high quality touring artists to the Charleston music community.”
With the advent of online music sources, Ben realized years ago that a new emphasis on live performance would be necessary for local musicians to survive. Bounds left DRR in 2006 and for the next year served as the music and entertainment editor for three different publications. He then took over the Starkville Area Arts Council, a non-profit organization supporting the arts in Starkville, Mississippi, for one year, and followed that up by serving as director of marketing and media relations for the Greater Starkville Development Partnership, focusing on tourism and Chamber of Commerce needs for the city and county. During that time, he founded First Team Productions, an event coordination consulting agency. Among his Mississippi clients were the Historic State Theatre in Starkville, Two Stick Rock & Sushi Bar in Oxford, The Market Street Festival in Columbus, Howlin’ at the Moon Festival in West Point and RiverFest in Vicksburg. He was also the founder and event coordinator for the 2004 and 2005 Great Southern Rock Revival at The Grove at Ole Miss. Last January, Bounds moved to Charleston and began working on establishing Follywood Productions.
Bounds has already brought several acts to Charleston, including the Burnside Exploration, Cary Hudson of Blue Mountain, a five-date acoustic run with three of the five members of Daybreakdown, Rocket 88, Eclipse: Ultimate Pink Floyd Experience and Memphis bluesman Davis Coen.
“One thing that’s really taken me by surprise is the need for artist and venue representation in Charleston,” said Ben. “Over the past nine months, I’ve had so many bands, venues and festival coordinators contact me, it’s been startling. It’s more than I can handle on my own, so I’m in the process of trying to set up a network of agents and interns who are interested in learning this business from the ground up. Hopefully, we’ll be moving full-speed ahead by February. It will be a challenge, but I think it’s going to be a lot of fun, too.”

Follywood Productions Launch Party

To introduce Charleston’s newest musical “instrument”, Follywood Productions is hosting a public launch party on Sunday, January 24, at the Pour House with an oyster roast at 4pm and live music from 4:30pm to 1am. The Hawkes and Po’ Ridge will be featured on the Deck from 4:30-8:30pm. Guilt Ridden Troubadour and Lindsay Holler’s Western Polaroids will be on the main stage from 9pm-1:30am. Tickets are $5 for the Deck Show or $10 for All Day/Night.

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