LES COPELAND

To Be In Your Company

Earwig Music

By Mark Baier

Les Copeland may not be a household name in Chicago, but Earwig Music’s newest CD release of Les’ To Be In Your Company is sure to change all that! A native of British Columbia and lifelong musician, Les has spent his career fronting hardcore blues bands, jazz bands, pop music bands and everything in between. However, like so many versatile and talented musicians, Les’ first love has always been the blues. He was bitten by the Mississippi John Hurt bug early on, and his affinity for pre-war Piedmont and ragtime styles is very obvious, playing with an authenticity and ease that belie a deep talent. Primarily a solo performance, TBIYC reveals Les to be both a gifted vocalist and brilliant instrumentalist. His guitar work combines elements of Mississippi John Hurt, Blind Blake, Barbecue Bob, Furry Lewis, the ghost of Robert Johnson and Chuck Berry to name but a few. Combining this rich and colorful instrumentation with a wizened and playful vocal delivery, Les creates an intimate and heartfelt atmosphere that begs the listener to dig deep into the songs and arrangements.

While TBIYC is a solo performance, it’s certainly not your run of the mill “Man with a Martin” style of guitar strumming. Les appears to be using an archtop jazz guitar for most of the selections, and when combined with his syncopated bouncing bass treble counterpoint picking techniques, it gives the material strong sonic and rhythmic elements that invoke an intimate evening one moment, a crowded juke joint that’s a rockin’ the next. Don’t bother knockin’, come on in! The sound and dynamic of his particular guitar set up lends Copeland a distinctive sound that’s fresh, fun and familiar.

Copeland’s superior guitar playing could easily steal the show were it not for his sublime vocals and storytelling ability. Like the classic prewar stylists he’s channeling, Les creates sonic sonnets that relate the struggles and joys of a life lived hard but well. Some of the standout tracks include the title track, “To Be In Your Company,” a loving ode to Les’ friend and companion, late Delta legend Honeyboy Edwards; “Knucklehead,” a playful love song for Sarah, his wife; and “Sunny Afternoon,” Les’ free and easy interpretation of the Kinks ‘60s classic. Copeland evokes the ghosts of Ledbelly and BBQ Bob on the 12-string driven “Borderline,” “Bessie” and “Crosstown”. “Bessie” is notable for its heartfelt account of Honeyboy’s adoration for his wife Bessie. Les unwinds a deep cut written by Bob Dylan with “Moonshiner” and owns every lyric and turn in the process.

Les Copeland’s To Be In Your Company is one of those uncommon recordings that linger with the listener long after initially hearing it. Whether it’s the haunting celestial guitar playing or the clever lyrical vocals, it reveals more depth and nuance with every subsequent listening. And while Les Copeland is not widely known beyond his home base of British Columbia, this recent recording on Chicago’s Earwig imprint will loom large in increasing his stature and notoriety outside his Canadian base.

To Be In Your Company is highly recommended -- for both solo performance and prewar ragtime/Piedmont blues, it doesn’t get any better.

For info or to buy the CD, visit:

www.lescopeland.com

####