Veteran Canadian bluesman Al Lerman is cooking up country-fried blues with his new album Country-Fried Blues released …
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?
There’s nothing like longevity to make one feel very confident in what they are doing. I’ve always had a passion to play music and that hasn’t diminished. It drives me to play, to get better, and it inspires me to continue writing.
Why do you think that the acoustic sound continues to generate such a devoted following?
lt’s a pure and organic sound. Songs written and played on an acoustic bring it down to its most basic level. Adding to that is where the fun starts!
Do you have any interesting stories about the making of the new album “Country-Fried Blues” in Ganaraska Recording Company?
I’ve lived out in the country for the past fifteen years, and going to GRC was a very comfortable fit. Alec Fraser produced, and I always have a ball working with him. He’s a great player and really understands what makes my stuff tick. Along with Jimmy Bowskill, Chuck Keeping and Steve O’Connor, we played all day and into the night.
We weren’t watching the clock. I’d played quite a bit in the past with Chuck and Alec, but never with Jimmy or Steve. Playing with new people seems to invite some spontaneity. The vibe was very positive and everybody was into it. There was lots of laughing and carrying on too. It had been a long while since I stayed up to 4am, but it was so much fun, nobody wanted to go to bed. I think that funky, old farmhouse somehow contributed to the mood of this record as well.
What has been the hardest obstacle for you to overcome as a person and as artist and has this helped you become a better blues musician?
Early on, I developed a thick skin. As a musician, you get a lot of negative things coming your way. It’s a very competitive business where everybody wants those best gigs. Trying to solicit work for yourself, you’d hear the word “no” more than anything… if you heard anything at all. I realize as a career musician that there are ups and downs. As far as “has this made me a better blues musician?”, I don’t know. It certainly keeps me humble. I think the years spent playing is really the thing that has made me a better musician.
What’s the balance in music between technique and soul? Why is it important to we preserve and spread the blues?
To me, playing with soul, feeling it, is more important than technique. Naturally, you’ve got to have some chops in order to pull this off, but a technical performance without feeling would sound bland. It wouldn’t move you. Some of those old blues recordings might be considered crude, but man, they had something going on! Robert Johnson had soul AND technique! Guys like him, Ray Charles and BB King, possessed both soul and technique… that’s genius.
Blues music has been changing since it was first played, and that keeps it current. Genres have to evolve, or you are just repeating licks. I try and do my own take on things, but I’m sure the blues will always influence my music. It was the music I’ve been listening to and studying for decades. In my younger days, I got to sit in with giants like Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, and would hang out all day with Carey Bell learning how to play harp. Those guys encouraged me and inspired me. I hope I might inspire somebody to dig deeper and check out the pioneers of this great music.
Life is more than just music, is there any other field that has influence on your life and music?
There’s a song that says “I feel so damn good, I forgot that I have the blues”. I’ve been with the sweetest woman in the entire solar system for thirty-seven years! We live in a beautiful secluded spot on a river. I’m happy, and that’s how I feel when I play. That’s how I hope people will feel when they hear me.
