IN 1982, just its second year of existence, the Metro Fountain Blues Festival brought John Lee Hooker to San Jose. That was the beginning of the festival’s tradition of bringing the biggest and most acclaimed blues acts to the South Bay.
From Koko Taylor to R.L. Burnside to Bo Diddley to Etta James, many a legend has graced its stages since.
But what about the players behind the legends? For three decades, the best Bay Area blues musicians, many of whom have practically become legends themselves around these parts, have been the cornerstone of the festival. They’ve backed up the big names, either onstage or with an opening set, or both.
For the festival’s 30th anniversary (Saturday all day; see story on page 69), organizer Ted Gehrke wanted to do something to acknowledge that without these working-class blues heroes, there would be no festival. So he came up with the idea of the Metro Fountain Blues All Stars. “My thing was to pay these people back,” says Gehrke. “They all like each other, and they all fit together.”
Well, sort of fit, if you can figure out a way to make four guitarists, four harmonica players and a rhythm section work onstage together. But Gehrke is more of a big-idea guy. To make the Metro Fountain Blues All Stars really come together, he turned the organization over to San Jose blues guitarist JC Smith.
“He dumped it in my lap and said, ‘Run with it,” clarifies Smith, who admits his longtime pal Gehrke is nothing if not persuasive. “That guy could have sold me a car, and I wouldn’t have even realized it.”
Smith began drafting musicians who’ve been associated with the festival—all of whom he knew and had most likely played with, but some of whom he hadn’t even seen in 20 years.
There was former Tower of Power drummer Ron E. Beck, San Francisco vocalist Kaye Bohler, guitar wizard Maxx Cabello Jr., “Godfather of San Jose blues harmonica” Gary Smith, J.J.’s favorite Lara Price, sought-after harmonica master Andy Just, San Jose harpist (and accomplished photographer) Mark Fenichel, South Bay blues prodigy Little John Chrisley, Campbell multi-instrumentalist Endre Tarczy and, of course, Smith himself.
Suddenly, Smith had to figure out how to get them all onstage, playing in various configurations, and make sure they all had a song—and have it all fit into a 60-minute set.
The first meeting was as much a reunion as a strategy meeting, but Smith can safely say they’ve gotten the basics down. “It ain’t going to be like surfing, when you gotta fight for a wave. Nobody’s going to get hurt,” he promises.
If he seems like he’s not sweating the details, it’s because he knows who he’s got around him. He’s just enjoying the ride. “They’re all pros,” he says. “We’re all really good friends, but the only good time we get together is for stuff like this. The rest is for, like, funerals.”
Indeed, just as the idea for the Metro Blues Fountain All Stars was coming together, their friend and fellow bluesmen Rene Solis passed away last month at age 55, after complications from a liver transplant. He was the longtime leader of Metro Fountain Blues festival favorite NiteCry. Smith sees this upcoming performance, in part, as a chance to celebrate his memory.
Already the idea of the All Stars has led to two subsequent club bookings after the festival—although that seems a long way off with the big day rapidly approaching. “We’re under the gun,” says Smith. “It’s going to be exciting just to pull it off.”
He says the All Stars is also a way for the musicians to thank Gehrke for giving them a great festival to play over the years. “He feels he owes us something,” says Smith. “He doesn’t owe us anything.”
Admits Gehrke: “They’re taking this a lot more seriously than I thought they would.”
METRO FOUNTAIN BLUES ALL STARS
Saturday, May 8, 12:30–8pm
SJSU San Carlos Plaza
$10
