{"id":13236,"date":"2014-04-22T12:08:22","date_gmt":"2014-04-22T17:08:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/?p=13236"},"modified":"2014-04-22T14:11:11","modified_gmt":"2014-04-22T19:11:11","slug":"talbot-adams-beyond-the-black-and-whites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/talbot-adams-beyond-the-black-and-whites\/","title":{"rendered":"Talbot Adams: Beyond The Black And Whites"},"content":{"rendered":"

Talbot Adams will be playing at The End Of All Music and Ajax Diner on April 25th, and at Snackbar on April 30th <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n

Talbot Adams<\/strong> is a prolific songwriter, and plays both a mean guitar and a steady bass. He even dabbles in drumming. (Not to mention that he\u2019s one of the nicest guys you might ever meet.) But what\u2019s always shined through is his songwriting, the text, the heart and soul of his music.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Talbot_byBeckyLong\"<\/a>Talbot, a New Orleans native who has called Oxford home since the early 2000s, has worked with some amazing veteran regional musicians: he was in The Royal Pendletons<\/strong> from 2000\u201302 and then from 2003\u201305 The Dutch Masters<\/strong> in Memphis with Eric Oblivian<\/strong>, Scott Rogers<\/strong>, and Pat McKeage<\/strong>. He played bass for Oxford\u2019s own Jenny Jeans<\/strong> with Rogers, Tyler Keith<\/strong>, and Twinkle VanWinkle<\/strong>. And those who\u2019ve been in Oxford for any time remember The Black And Whites<\/strong>, a Punk outfit fronted by Talbot, with Johnny Valiant<\/strong> on guitar and Pat McKeage on drums. Jay Reatard<\/strong> put out their first single, and the band put out a great full-length on Douchemaster record label in 2008; after that year\u2019s tour, though, The Black And Whites wore down, and they officially broke up in 2011. \u201cI Need a Good Girl\u201d from their one album is still one of my favorite songs to ever come out of Oxford.<\/span><\/p>\n

Talbot has been writing music solo since 2010, when he got back into it after spending some time with his wife and two young boys. The resulting recordings show maturity, the product of a songwriter growing over the years along with his music. Talbot\u2019s ultimate solo recording thus far, though, is the self-titled album just released: Talbot Adams<\/strong><\/em>, also featuring Oxford\u2019s Beau Bourgeois<\/strong> on drums and Matt Patton<\/strong> on bass. The opening track, \u201cNashville Avenue,\u201d is about \u201cenduring grief and loss and driving in New Orleans on the day that it all started to finally lift off my shoulders,\u201d<\/em> according to Talbot’s website\u2014and this song sets the tone for the album: optimistic. I like Talbot\u2019s succinct summaries of his songs\u2014just more open windows into his meaning. You can hear his history with The Black And Whites in songs from the new album, like \u201cSame Old Things Again,\u201d which is \u201cA song about the average, stressed out, working person with a lot of bad habits.\u201d<\/em> We can all relate to that, right? My personal favorite on the album is \u201cBroken Dream.\u201d Simply summed up: \u201cChange is no fun.\u201d<\/em> But change is inevitable, and the lyrics of the songs on this album give us all a little advice on how to deal with that change, even embrace it. \u2014Intro & photos by Rebecca Long\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n

Q&A with Talbot Adams<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019re from New Orleans originally, right? How long have you been in Oxford?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nI have lived here for 11 years. But, Oxford has always been my second home, as my dad\u2019s family is from here.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"TalbotAlbums\"<\/a>What\u2019s your favorite instrument?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nBass, but I have played bass for so long, that I was ready for a break. So, I\u2019m playing guitar these days, which is fun. I love playing drums, but am really limited in what I can do on the drums.<\/span><\/p>\n

How did you learn to play?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nPiano lessons as a young kid, of which I remember none, unfortunately. My dad gave me my first guitar when I was 10. I took guitar lessons from age 12 to 14, then went from there on the bass.<\/span><\/p>\n

What was the first concert you witnessed?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nGrew up as a young kid going to Jazz Fest in NOLA with my parents, where I saw amazing artists like James Brown, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry and Fats Domino. The first concert I ever went to on my own initiative was R.E.M. In 88 or 89, when I was in middle school. Green Tour at The Lakefront Arena in NOLA.<\/span><\/p>\n

What would you call your music\u00a0style\/genre?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nHard to say. Singer\/Songwriter Rock?<\/span><\/p>\n

What bands\/artists\u00a0most influenced the new record?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nSonic Youth, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Jesus and Mary Chain, The Equals, and Big Star are the influences I hear in the record when I listen to it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Do you have a favorite band?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nGeez. Tough question. I would say The Rolling Stones if I had to pick just one.<\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019ve been part of the Oxford music scene for a while now. What are your favorite things about the scene, and what would you like to see change?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nI think right now is the best era of the Oxford music scene that I have ever seen. There have always been two or three good bands from here going back the last twenty years. Now it seems like there are 9 or 10. I would like to see musicians get paid a bit better. Most rock musicians have never gotten a raise from the five dollar cover, which was standard for a rock show 25 years ago. Also, a lot of bar owners don\u2019t appreciate bands and pay them poorly, when the band may bring in 30 or 40 hard drinking people that wouldn\u2019t have been there otherwise were it not for the band. Plenty of nights where one bartender makes more than the entire band. That\u2019s one of the many things that makes music a tough endeavor to be in.<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s your favorite musical project you\u2019ve worked on so far?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nThis last album, hands down. Went very smooth and was just fun to do. Very low stress. Beau Bourgeois did a great job with recording the album. <\/span><\/p>\n

Do you have a \u201cday job\u201d? If so, where?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nI primarily work as a psychotherapist in a nursing home. Tough job, but I love the people I work with.<\/span><\/p>\n

Where do you\u00a0like to\u00a0hang out in Oxford?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nCity Grocery Bar, Ajax, Snackbar, and Lamar Lounge are my favorite places to hang out.<\/span><\/p>\n

Any more upcoming shows or future plans you\u2019d like to share?<\/span><\/strong>
\nYeah! I\u2019m recording a single this spring that will be out on a British label called Market Square Recordings this fall. I will also be doing some regional shows around the south this summer. That\u2019s about as much as I can tour. Just weekend trips. But, we\u2019ll see. <\/span><\/p>\n

Should we expect it to be you and Beau on stage together, or do you know of some other musician friends who might be joining you on stage for those dates?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nColin Sneed as well. I\u2019m really lucky to play with Beau and Colin. They are both great, versatile musicians. Also, Print Chouteau has played with us in the past and may play again perhaps. He has also been really\u00a0great to have in the band. <\/span><\/p>\n

Anything else you\u2019d like to add?<\/span> <\/strong>
\nI want to give a shout out to Spacecase Records, who put my album out\u2014great label, great people. Check out www.spacecaserecords.com<\/a>. Also, check out www.talbotadams.com<\/a><\/strong> for updates on shows as well as recordings.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Talbot Adams will be playing at The End Of All Music and Ajax Diner on April 25th, and<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":238,"featured_media":13239,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52],"tags":[3301,65,2764,549,3302,3303,3316,3321,3304,315,3320,3307,3314,3313,3315,1603,3318,1709,3309,3310,3311,1614,3306,3305,3317,3308,3319,35,3300,3299,3312,249,1615],"class_list":["post-13236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music-shows","tag-adams","tag-ajax-diner","tag-album","tag-beau-bourgeois","tag-black-whites","tag-black-and-whites","tag-broken-dream","tag-cd","tag-dutch-masters","tag-end-of-all-music","tag-eponymous","tag-eric-oblivian","tag-jay-reatard","tag-jenny-jeans","tag-johnny-valiant","tag-matt-patton","tag-nashville-avenue","tag-new","tag-pat-mckage","tag-pat-mckeage","tag-punk-rock-pat","tag-record","tag-royal-pendletones","tag-royal-pendletons","tag-same-old-things-again","tag-scott-rogers","tag-self-titled","tag-snackbar","tag-talbot","tag-talbot-adams","tag-twinkle-vanwinkle","tag-tyler-keith","tag-vinyl"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/TalbotAdamsFeat.jpg?fit=620%2C349&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/238"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13236\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13239"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}