Jim Kweskin is not only an upbeat, engaging singer and a ragtime-blues fingerpicker in the model of Mississippi John Hurt and Reverend Gary Davis. Jim is a legend.
The Jim Kweskin Jug Band was fixture of the folk revival in the 60s, and a tremendous influence on popular music of that era and to this very day. They inspired the Lovin’ Spoonful, the Grateful Dead, and hundreds of home grown jug bands around the world, including, yes, “skiffle” bands such as The Quarryman. Hmmm, where have we heard that name before? Of course, that was John Lennon’s proto-Beatles band.
A half-century ago, Kweskin was one of the leading figures in making jug-band music cool, as a singer, superb finger-picking guitarist, and dedicated explorer of the arcane. He could be found on television, radio, headlining festivals with 10,000-guests, or the main act for openers such as Janis Joplin & Big Brother, Linda Ronstadt & The Stone Ponies, and Jim Morrison & The Doors. That explosive fame gave way to a lifetime of playing and performing the feel-good music of the Great Depression that he loves and popularized.
The original jug bands were a phenomenon of poverty, especially among Southern Blacks, who used instruments up-cycled from household junk like old washtubs, washboards, cigar boxes and broom handles, in addition to clay jugs. Jim and his bandmates gave life to that forgotten music. Jim is a force of nature and of good-natured music. His influence is historic. Please join the Stayaway and welcome this legendary performer to our streaming community for a rollicking and excellent time.