St. Louis Songstress, Blue, Talks About Being Acoustic & The Irish Whistle

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Local singer/songwriter Blue has been the driving force behind the STL SHE! Shows, the all female musician showcases that are put on every two to three months around town. Blue's unique folk sound combines a signature blend of Celtic flair, jazz style and acoustic instruments for original songs and unique arrangements of old favorites.

In anticipation of her show at Picasso's Coffee House on March 21, Blue talked to us about her influences, the importance of her acoustic sound and the St. Louis music scene. Read on to learn more about Blue, and click on the Audio tab to hear her song "Deliver Me Up" from her CD Charm.

Many bands, even in the folk world, are starting to incorporate electric instruments like electric mandolins and guitars more often but you have remained primarily an acoustic performer. Can you explain why this is important to your sound and how it has impacted it?

I used to be in an electric band and there were a lot of fun times but as I've gotten older I've moved toward quieter and calmer music. I think that's a pretty normal progression but in my case it felt more like coming home again. I've always loved acoustic folk music and all of the songs I write are written as acoustic folk songs. When I've been in electric bands we've rocked up the songs some but I've always been more comfortable with these songs being performed as they were written.

There is a purity of strictly acoustic music that I love. My husband and I are nature freaks, lots of camping and long distance bicycle touring. Playing acoustic music parallels my love of the natural. We've been given such a beautiful world; I don't think we can do very much improve it. Music is the same way. I love that the combination of wood and string, wind and metal, can make such beautiful music. Adding to it is like a 10 page restaurant menu. Too many choices! How can you ever decide which is the right sound for each note of each song? I want to keep it simple and pure.

Your music is described as a mixture of folk, Irish and blues. Which styles and artists are your biggest influences?

My current music now that I'm a solo artist is a mixture of folk, Celtic and Americana. But some of the biggest musical influences in my life have been jazz musicians... mainly John Coltrane. The way I thought about music was totally transformed when I heard his "Ol'e" album the first time. I could listen to nothing else but that album for weeks. I'm a completely self taught musician and I certainly am not skilled enough of a musician to play good jazz! So perhaps my strange style is my poor attempt to emulate the feelings I get from Coltrane.

I'm also drawn to powerful female vocalists like Annie Wilson, Grace Slick, Holly McNarland, Tori Amos, and Janis Joplin. Lila Downs has inspired me the most. Her vocal range is just incredible and I work hard to increase my own range. I'm up to to two and a half octaves but that's probably less than half of Lila's. Maybe some day I'll have to admit defeat and take lessons.

How many different types of instruments do you play?

I play guitar, mandolin, flute, Irish whistle, a little saxophone and percussion. I use a looper pedal during live shows with allows me to record my guitar and mandolin and then play my flute and Irish whistles on top of that. The looper pedal has been a lot of fun to play with. I've started using it to build more complex songs and even add some vocal harmonies to my songs. I do all of the recording on the looper live during my shows... no prerecordings. I think it makes the show very interesting but is risky. Getting the timing right with the looper can be tricky; I'm actually surprised that I've been able to get as accurate with it as I have.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

I've been playing music and writing songs since I was a little kid. My first instrument was one of those little toy xylophones when I was about four years old. I taught myself how to play every song I could on a little eight note toy. Then we got recorders in first grade YAY! I took mine home and learned every song I could think of. I played flute in the school band for a short time in second or third grade but my flute got stolen and my parents were too poor to buy a new one for me... very sad.

I finally got a used guitar from a pawn shop when I was twelve and spent hours and hours with a "Teach Yourself How to Play Guitar" book by Roy Clark. So I do know how to read music (slowly) and chord charts but I mostly play by ear and "make up" my own chords to match the sounds I hear in my head. I have names for the chords like "Blue 7" and "Blue minor add G." It drives trained musicians crazy.

The mandolin I picked up used about six years ago in an eBay sale and learned how to play it quickly. It's a fun little instrument and is now one of my favorites.

There's a funny story behind the Irish whistle. My husband bought an Irish whistle to play around with but it sat in a drawer for a while. When we were recording "Deliver Me Up" on the "Mirror" album, I thought 'hey an Irish whistle would be really great in this song!' So I got it out of the drawer and played around with it for a few hours and then recorded the Irish whistle part of "Deliver Me Up" the very next day. I think that's so amusing because I had no idea what I was doing at the time... I hadn't yet gotten a firm grip on the correct breathing needed to play the three different octaves so I'm all over the place in the recording and there are a lot of unintentional squeaks. But we thought it sounded pretty good and I still love the whistle track on that song. Now that I'm more adept on the whistle I actually think I've lost the wild, unique quality of the solo on that song.

What are some of your favorite things about St. Louis' local music scene?

I love the rich musical history of St. Louis; we should be very proud of it. There is still a very active blues scene in St. Louis as well as a great rockabilly scene. But I think the St. Louis music scene is facing a lot of challenges today... the rise of digital entertainment and the evolution of our city into a sports city has really damaged the scene. I applaud people like you and others like Becca at STL Sound Magazine and KDHX radio for supporting our local music scene. Please keep it up!

Where can we find your albums and see you live?

My performance schedule is listed on my website BlueTappMusic.com and my CDs are for sale on CD Baby (find the link from my website). I perform around St. Louis three to five times a month at various coffee houses and venues. This Saturday I'll be at Picasso's Coffee House in St. Charles. Come on down!

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