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Image provided by: Suffolk Cooperative Library System
THE_RECORP \\\:JANUARY 9, 1991. Lovin' em Blues By Judith H. Bernstein L ittle Toby Walker and The Rocket have a big love: country-style blues and ragtime. That love is evident in the way they · talk about their music. It shows in the in- . . struments they've learned so they can =.:.~;.;:~:;:~::-; play it authentically and in the trips they ~ ..... ~.._..._7-._v ... , • ..._ .. ~~ , -.w.w.·.·-~·.w.w.w.-. take to rural areas of the southern United ~!o!O:«•:•:{o!'-!Y!·!_..0:•:-!•!•!0:. . . :-:<«<««·>:·:·'\'\'<<·>:< States to learn more from the masters of this type of music. And it's evident in their performances, one of which is coining up at Classy Coffee in Huntingtbn this Saturday. They also perform at Long Island li- braries, where they not only play the blues, but also discuss the music, its musicians and its history. Little Toby Walker and The Rocket - Kurt Fran- Ide of Huntington, 34, and Ken Korb, 35, of West Is- lip, respectively - started playing together only last . March, but individually, they have been working as musicians for more than 20 years. They admit their music has a limited following, but they contend country blues audiences are small only because folks aren't familiar with it Once audiences hear the blues, the pair say~ they':r~ loyal listeners. \If there ever was a chance of people taking it seri- ously, we're going'to improve the sound and be ready when it hits,\ said Mr. Walker. \There's not anyone around this area that's doing this type of music. We have a narrow but hard-core audience ... People who are open to other types of music - bluegrass, elec- tric blues- are open to our music., \It's a listening music,\ Mr. Walker said. \People come to listen to the music, to the stories. We have lit- tle kids just dancing to Rocket's rhythms. They get a big kick from. Rocket's instruments.\ Older people listen, too, Mr. Korb added. \People tell us: 'My father used to listen- to ,, this.' In the libraries, the smaller places we play, they hear the subtle things in the music.\ While the two have day jobs in addition to their music, that's also part of the blues tradition, one of the roots of which is the work songs that helped laborers get through their daily. toil. Mr. Walker is a postal worker; Mr. Korb makes furniture and cabi- nets. Little Toby Walker playa his bluea guitar at a recent Clasay Coffee gi~C. They said they could probably make music a full-time career if they played a more mainstream genre. But the duo is sticking with what they love. ''We realize that it's a fringe music. The con- solation, in a sense, is that most of the people [responsible for · Don't Ml•=· Art league reception, awards on Sunday at Northport Galleries Ken Korb playa walhboard, a traditional blues Instru- ment, a• well as hannonlca, pemywhlatle and guitar. country blues] worked day jobs all their lives and when they hit their 60s ... there is a b1ues renaissance., Mr. Walker and Mr. Korb don't think they'll have to wait long for their music to become popular. Elec- tric blues is getting hot now, and Mr. Walker believes musicians just starting to explore that genre will even- tually work back to its roots. \Country blues should be coming along in about three years,\ he predicted. Mr. Walker already has an album, Thumbs Up For The Blues, which contains a dozen original songs. He and Mr. Korb are getting together music for an album they plan to start recording in about a month which will be available, they hope, this summer. \I'm practicing, playing every day, bringing in new SEE THE BLUES, PAGE 18 IG EASt SIDE COMEDY CWB 326 West Jericho Turnpike, HuntingtOn. 271-6061. Jonathan Solomon, Steve Sashen & Dulldini GARviN'S 47 Green Street, Huntington. ··NIGHTLIFE . AlJSTRAUAN COUNTRY INN& FAST'EDDJE'S PLACE GAR . 1'\eaJ&! ·· · ·· • 330 New YOrk Ave., Hunting~ ·. · ~w · · · · ........ \'*~ ~ 0 ~. -2278~ . 1036 Fort Sidonga Ro~d, •· \'\· .7Q.,.J, ~ N:orthJ\L 754-4400;. Sundajs:· Willie Steel and the ·n ·• J 11 tSi...1... T'!' e Tenaplane.Blues Band ,rfi.. an. ·t .t:ia,e rlV . . . s T 12\ s·. . T 1 .. 'l • Wed.~' Jan 9: R~gae with The ·•· .... •at.11 .,an. :. · . un.:t ,an... J.: . . . ··:Clint Hays & co.ll' jazz · ··· :MUtones · Thut., Jan. 10: Comedy: John · ···. · -, ·.Vatady&DannjlKinsella, ·····!l~~s~. G .. .:......· ....... •·.· ......... ·:Wn.· · Prt~:Jwl. ll! Eddie'& the 26t';'3iQ.' ~-\* ~~~ · Blasting C8ps .. :. · · · .. J ·0· ~ t. .. n:.....,.L_....... · S&,·Jan.·n: Velvet Swans .Thor., •~J ... lY~l'tN · ··T·· · , .... ··u···Mi baol'Man ~···\~~iiiii:ti~jt' ··4~.,· •· . Every Wed •• 9 p.m.: Joan St. Onge and the East Side Players • Fri .• Jan. U & Sat •• Jan 12: \ ••• :-~ • ' > Sun., Jan. 13: Melvin George Mon .• Jan. 14: Fund-raiser for PAWS: John Joseph, host, plus guest comedians. 673·1195. Tuesdays:. The Magic Show SEE JtERE COMES WEEKEND, PAQE 1.6 Double Locked BroadHollow Theater,. in its first offering of the new year, lights VP the glOOmy months of January and February with a . bright sex farce, Key For T~. The plot concerns () woman who juggles the affec- . tions of two men. neither of whom knows about the other. Key For Two premieres Friday night, Ja~uary 11r. as the Broad- Hollow Players. serve up,laughs along . wlth opening..tlight coffee and cake, start- . .· ing at 8:30 p.m. The farce continues on - Thursdays, Frldays, Saturdays and Sun- days through February 16 at the theater, 2.29 Route 110 in Farmingdale. TicketS range from $15 to $10: call 752·1400 for information.
