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Sept. 12, 2009
Interview with Jim
Pyrts
Mornin Jim. Here are my ramblings. Thanks
for the opportunity to express myself.
JP
1. You're obviously well versed in
ragtime-fingerstyle guitar. How did you learn to play this complex
style?
I started out with a flat pick in 1961,
when the folk revival was in full swing. I remember trying to
finger pick a little, and how baffling it seemed to me then. A man
named Chet Atkins was at the height of his career, and I loved his
style, as well as that of Merle Travis. In high school I got
involved in rock n roll. I was in a band that did Rolling Stones
covers. We were quite good, and opened for some big name bands in
San Francisco. In the mid 60’s, Paul Simon
was the guitarist who inspired my gradual preference for finger
picking styles. As each new song hit the charts, I loved it, and
learned to play it. Also, John Sebastian ( in The Lovin Spoonful )
was adapting old blues styles to his music as well. He called it
“good time music”, but he was showing his folk/blues roots, and it
was easy to un-adapt them right back to country blues. I actually
took the final turn to finger picking on a Fender Telecaster. It
just happened to be the guitar I had when I made the decision, but
soon acoustic guitar would occupy most of my time, and Arlo
Guthrie did that wonderful tune, Alice’s
restaurant, which I loved, and soon learned to play. By that time,
in the late 60’s - early 70’s, I had the Holy Modal Rounders, Guy
Van Duser, Roy Bookbinder, Doc Watson, and the ilk all finding a
comfortable place in my musical appreciation catalogue. During
that period I also became a banjo player, prefering claw hammer
style. In the 90’s I, and my own band of brothers had the
distinct privilege of producing the Napa Valley Music Festival,
which brought me in contact with many of my musical icons. I
worked with among others, the Kingston Trio, Lou Gotlieb and The
Limeliters, Glenn Yarbrough, Odetta, John Sebastian, Sylvia Tyson,
David Rey, and Peter Yarrow. That experience has deeply impressed
me. Almost out of context, I would like to add that most recently,
I have been attempting to steal the tunes of Tom Ball, and
Kenny Sultan, who I admire greatly. To Tom I sheepishly apologize,
again, for transmitting that computer virus which brought down his
laptop for a short time.
2. You mentioned that you recently
moved to the area. What connection brought you here?
The desire to put food on the table
brought me here through a circuitous route. For many years I was a
photographer in the Napa Valley, but in 2006 when the digital
revolution started to demand more and more time to make less and
less money, I quit, and my wife and I started moving north, first
to Mt. Shasta where I did a stint as a Weed, California police
dispatcher ( the irony was not lost on me ), then to The Dalles,
where we took positions as live in managers of Cherry Heights
Retirement in August of 2007, and where we remain today.
3. One way to meet a lot of musicians
in the area - all at once - is to check out The Pines Tasting Room
on Thursday evenings. It's a huge jam led by Kerry Williams. Have
you been there yet?
I have not been yet, but I am pointed in
that direction. I have tried to find open mics, and even
inaugurated one at Cherry
Heights, which never attracted much
attention from good musicians.
4. Do you have any CDs available? Do
you teach/give lessons?
My CD, “The Flame” is a work that is
more than 20 years in the making, and runs rampant over the idea
that an album should concentrate on one theme, and stick to it. It
is mostly a compilation of songs that I rescued from tapes from my
Tascam Porta-1 multi track machine. Half of the CD is my own
original work, and the other half are covers of some of my
favorite songs, in several different styles, from echoes of Santo
and Johnnie, right on through to Jorma Kaukonen. It’s available I
guess.
I don’t teach guitar. I have, and it’s a
frustrating experience for me. ;O)
5. When you play music, do you like to
perform solo or with a band?
I am torn. My happiest moments are spent
playing with good musicians. I play more often by myself because,
for good or bad, I am a musical perfectionist, and I cannot
tolerate bad timing. There’s a lot of bad timing out there. I
don't seek it out. Sometimes I am the culprit, and I give myself
hell for it.
6. Who do you listen to nowadays?
I love music of all kinds. I guess I
listen to whoever grabs my attention. I like clean simplicity that
shows a special talent. I appreciate genius, whether it be
orchestral, or rap.
7. Finally, what is it that makes a
person want to collect, repair, talk about, play, seek out and
document the Guitar?
You have to love guitars to do that. I
wish I still had all the guitars that I have owned, but I don’t.
I’ve done a little repair work, and through that experience I
learned what a guitar is; a marvelous balance of sturdiness, and
fragility . . . not the kind of object one should entrust to
the typical guitar player. ;O)
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