Diving Deep Into
MUDDY GUMBO

By Robert E. Martin

Although together for slightly over 3 years now, the musical
quartet known as Muddy Gumbo have evolved into a formidable concoction of
musical influences that prove persistence, determination, and a solid
musical vision yield substantial rewards.

Consisting of Bay City Times photographer/journalist Scott Baker on guitar
& vocals; Earl 'The Squirrel' on percussion & vocals; Patt McCarthy on
bass; and drummer Tim Scott, the group began as an idea to assemble some
guys together that wanted to play music and see if they could jam, create,
and maybe put some gigs together.

With a debut CD, Jambalaya, released earlier this year and after spending
much of the month of June in the studio at Wagner Music Group recording
fresh tracks for an upcoming EP, the creative flow generated by the 'Gumbo
Alliance' is not only substantial, but has attracted the attention of such
heavy-hitting artists as Larry McCray, who offered the group opening slot
at any performance he books within the area.

After enlisting friend & bassist Jim Spaulding back in 1998, Tom Towns soon
joined the fold and the trio agreed to put something concrete together and
get off the idea of 'wishing' to play.  Baker would often sit in with
Spaulding in the band Gone Daddy Gone and eventually met percussionist Earl
'the Squirrel' through a co-worker.  Subsequently Baker's long time high
school drum & music brother Eric 'Ace' Asel was called in for duties on the
skins, and in late 1999 the group began jamming at Squirrel's pole barn in
North Midland with nothing but Neil Young and Traffic in mind.

Muddy Gumbo debuted as an acoustic trio on March 3, 2000, opening for the
rock band Kevorkian and returned a week later with new bassist Jay Miller.
However, the band needed a permanent drummer, so noted stickman John
Cashman came into the picture along with Doug Moe.

Later that year, Gumbo received ten nominations in the 2001 Review Music
Awards, which was a milestone for band only together for under a year.

"Each of us contributes something distinct and varied," reflects Baker. "In
terms of the band's fluidity, Earl's percussion makes the music flow for
us.  Muddy Gumbo is all about tone.  When Tom Towns was in the band, he had
a very rock oriented flavor which added to our progressive style.  We went
through a number of drummers & bass players and ended up with Cashman and
Jay Miller for the album. By that time everything was falling into place.
Plus, Ray York and Neil Jones helped out tremendously with the recording."

When the group first started performing live, their first show consisted of
primarily all original material.  "We wrote a lot of stuff as a band in the
Pole Barn up in Midland where we rehearse and I've been writing lyrics
since the late '80s," notes Baker.

In terms of distinguishing their sound, Scott credits the intoxicating
percussive styling of Earl as a key element.  "It's the first thing people
jump off on," explains Scott. "Then they'll hear us mixing different
elements reminiscent of Pink Floyd, the Allmans, Neil Young, Phish and The
Black Crowes, and also listen to us playing acoustic material that has a
Zeppelin feel.  The combination of all these different elements is what
keeps us apart from the crowd."

"Whenever we were invited to perform live we would play original material,
whether the audience accepted it or not" continues Scott.  "I believe this
approach was not only critical but effective. We played what we wanted and
the audience loved it.  I know we have a certain crowd that comes to see us
for that aspect - the fact we don't play the 'same old/same old' and that
we do what we want to and enjoy it.  People view it as something different."

True to form, the groups' fan base has been steadily growing along side all
their hard work.  Word-of-mouth has helped bolster the group's reputation
and they've sold CDs from their website as far as California.

The group also makes it a point to rehearse two to three times a week,
which is a testament to their commitment insofar as each member all have
regular 'day jobs', plus the group is working studio time on top of their
grueling schedule.

"In terms of club support, The River Rock has been incredibly supportive,"
states Scott. "Everybody we've played for has been great, but in terms of
making a commitment, Greg Kimbrue has been phenomenal. He put us on with
Larry McCray and now Larry wants us and offered us any opening gig we can
do with him anytime.  But Larry has been a friend of mine since 1996. He's
watched me grow on guitar. The same is true with Dick Wagner.  They all
want to be a part of this."

In terms of that growth within the band, Scott credits working with one
less guitar player as a critical difference.  "The music straightened
itself out because we weren't all over the place, yet we sounded just as
jam-oriented as we always did."

"Plus the band has all grown as musicians. We know what we need to hear
now. Our songwriting has gotten better.  When Earl and I can go and hang
out with the Allman Brothers, whom we do, or talk with Larry McCray about
the music business, we take all of this back with us.  Our own experience
as human beings gets better, too."

In terms of challenges, Scott sees two components at this junction of the
group's career.  "First, the band itself needs to keep growing and being
productive to take it to the next level, which is the hardest thing.
Secondly, we all try to hang out with other bands and jam as much as we can
to keep our sound active.  But we also have to go the people, not just the
musicians, to keep ourselves fresh in the scene and carve our niche.  It's
got to be a constant thing - a drive. Without that we might as well pick up
a hobby."

Regarding their moniker, the name Gumbo was on the group's original list.
"Gumbo popped up early on but was scrapped. However, as Earl pointed out,
that's our sound - so much of everything. But the name couldn't just be
'Gumbo' and we felt it needed something else.  One morning I woke up
humming a Muddy Water's tune and was listening to a lot of Blues at the
time and then the name just came to me - Muddy Gumbo. We did a search and
nobody else had it, so the band voted to go with it because it rolls off
the tongue, is memorable, and in tune with a great band name."

In taking Gumbo to that 'next level', Scott readily admits that as with
most things of value in life, it won't be an easy journey.

"Gumbo is hard to market," he admits. "We're not he 'current flavor of the
month' and not an 'all blues' type band. That's why certain clubs can only
put us on the bill on certain nights of the week even though they love us.
But I think that also makes a difference and soon you'll see a change in
the whole industry. Bands are coming together to experiment more."

"The problem with the 'major labels' is that nobody backs you long enough
to get your career off the ground, even if you have a hit. If your second
LP flops, they have five more guys to follow it. That's where the power of
independent labels comes into play."

"One thing we learned is to keep all our publishing rights," continues
Scott. "That's a 401K plan for yourself.  Plus, if you look at groups like
Phish and REM, if labels can break those bands, a ray of hope exists.
Those groups did what they wanted on their own terms independently and
eventually the majors couldn't overlook it anymore. They wanted to be part
of it. In fact, that formed the basis of their contracts - the notion that
these bands were doing what the majors were not, so they still got to
maintain their independence after they were signed.  That is very rare and
hard to find.  Our operative philosophy regarding major labels is what are
you going to do for us that we can't do on our own."

Deeply immersed in recording the new CD at Wagner Studios, Scott feels it
important to keep the creative flow going.

"I thought it important to get some new material out in the form of an EP,
even though our debut album came out earlier this year, just because the
configuration of the band has changed and our sound has evolved."

Listening to early raw and rough mixes of songs such as Soulsucker,
Detailed Memory, Trippin', Mr. Mole and Capture the Moment, one can hear
that phenomenal occurrence of a band discovering their sound while they
simultaneously define it.

If you've yet to catch Muddy Gumbo 'in the flesh', be sure to check out
their website for pending performance dates at
http://muddygumbo.wagnermusic.com.

Armed with a strong musical vision, a loose & fluid framework to let their
ideas grow from, and demonstrable talent to tempt the musical taste buds,
Muddy Gumbo is definitely a strong musical force that adds a much needed
flavor to the tri-city music scene.