by jon bosworth jaxvillain@yahoo.com
If JJ Grey got a minute off tour, he’d go to Disney World. That might seem unusual coming from a man that once sang “Building sub-divisions while the swamps are drained, makin’ room for people and amusement parks. It’s like watching someone you love die slowly.” Those are lyrics from the song ‘Florida’ on Mofro’s Blackwater album, so you can imagine my surprise when I called him for an interview and he was at Disney World.
“I would normally not [go to Disney World], no. This is for the kids,” JJ laughed.
As he’s talking to me, there are loudspeaker announcements coming through the phone. I can visualize him being carted around in a train with no walls, just rows of plastic pews, being towed from Goofy #7 to the park by a Mouseketeer. Just another guy at Disney, except this guy is JJ Grey and he’s one southern boy that is making a name for himself through his articulate Florida swamp funk.
JJ’s a local boy, and for native Floridians that are under forty, Disney World has always been a part of our Florida culture, so every now and then he has to swallow hard and take the kids to that Magic Kingdom. But we can cut JJ some slack, since he is currently doing more for the environment in Florida than any other national musician.
Blackwater Sol Revue was JJ Grey’s idea. About seven years ago he was driving by the old amphitheatre in St. Augustine. He’d been turned onto the Gamble Rogers Folk Festival (held at the amphitheatre) by his producer at Retrophonic Studios in Crescent Beach. Once he caught a glimpse of the amphitheatre, he knew he wanted to do a festival there.
“I was driving past the old amphitheatre, where they did Cross & the Sword, and the Gamble Rogers Folk Festival was done there, so I rode in to look at it and saw they had started renovating it. I said that as soon as they got that done, we gotta put something on there,” JJ said between children’s screams of joy in the distance.
And doing the festival for local environmental organizations was always part of that plan.
“I’ve seen [The Riverkeeper] putting up a struggle, and I saw a documentary on television that they put together that was phenomenal. They are getting things done. They’re picking some good battles and they’re winning. That means they are ready to roll up their sleeves and go in there and make it happen rather than throw up a quick fuss about it and then sort of dissipate. And it’s right at home. There’s nothing wrong with groups that are fighting battles in other parts of the world, but it’s good to start right in your own back yard, and they are doing great, so it was a no-brainer.”
A soul revue was a show back in the days of Motown and Stack Records where Booker T & the MGs would be the house band and four or five different singers would get up and do sets. The group of musicians he’s selected to perform in this festival represent a different kind of soul music than those Motown performers.
“To me, soul ain’t a genre.”
The Almann Brothers played the first gig on their first official tour at the then-newly-opened original St. Augustine Amphitheatre back in 1968 or so. In a perfect historical cycle, the Almann Brothers were once a local band on their way into music history and they launched that journey from the stage of the amphitheatre, so JJ Grey & Mofro are starting a new musical tradition upon a new stage in the same spot.
“We just opened up for [The Almann Brothers] for four shows and that makes it even better for me and for the festival. That’s great.”
If JJ Grey could put together his dream lineup for an event like this, who would he select?
“Tony Joe White, I mean, he’s the original.”
JJ first met Tony Joe White while he was working on the Blackwater album.
“I did grow up with Tony Joe White, but I had no idea it was him. He wrote ‘Polk Salad Annie’ and ‘Rainy Night in Georgia,’ and I heard Brook Benton and Elvis doing his songs, but I didn’t know it was him. He’s the best.”
If one legend wasn’t enough, JJ also got Los Lobos to come to town for the fest. JJ and the band recently toured with them in Europe.
“It was pretty wild. It was great watching Los Lobos play every night. Those guys are phenomenal.”
Add these acts to the up-and-comers like JJ Grey & Mofro, The Lee Boys, the Legendary JCs and locals that include Willie Green and Will Conner, and you have one hell of a Sol Revue with terrific music benefiting a terrific cause – the protection of the St. John’s River. When asked if we could expect this to be an annual event, JJ replied:
“I hope so. I say that because it is risky to try to put something on. It’s all up to whether people have the time and the inclination to go. With the support that [Mofro] had alone in North Florida, I feel that it will be [an annual event].”
And as for the primo new facilities, you’ll just have to come and see those for yourself.
“It’s beautiful. I was floored. I mean, I liked it before and the good thing is that they kept a lot of that same vibe.”
Check out the Blackwater Sol Revue on September 2nd at the new St. Augustine Amphitheatre. For more details go to blackwatersolrevue.com or mofro.net.
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