The time of their lives: The 67-year-old Kalamazoo bluesmen will open for the Grammy Award-winning Robert Cray Wednesday night at State Theatre in Kalamazoo.
Living the Dream … At 67: Luke Palmer, left, and Richard Edwards will play their biggest show, by far. (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
THE BAND: Delta Roots Blues
THE MUSIC: The duo name says it all
WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE BAND: 8 p.m. Wednesday, opening for the Robert Cray Band at Kalamazoo State Theatre
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Luke Palmer and Richard Edwards have a few things in common. They are both 67. They both love playing the blues.
And the biggest audience either one of them has ever played in front of was 319 people that came to watch an open-mic night at the Bohm Theatre in Albion a few years back when the two were members of The Shoestring Band.
Not Planning on a Call From State Theatre: Richard Edwards was raised in the United Kingdom. (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
That audience size gets multiplied significantly on Wednesday night for Palmer, a former welder and plant supervisor, and Edwards, a Pfizer Inc. retiree, when the duo known as Delta Roots Blues takes to the State Theatre stage to open for legendary blues Hall-of-Famer Robert Cray.
Strangely enough, despite growing up in the small town of Delton, only 20 miles northeast of Kalamazoo, Palmer has never even been inside the Kalamazoo State Theatre, and well, that’s stubbornly been by design.
“I’ve never walked in the doors,” he said. “I’ve always said to my wife one of my bucket list items is the first time I go into the State Theatre I want to go through the stage entrance, and that’s what is going to happen. I lived here all my life and never set foot in there. Wild, huh?”
Sometimes good things come to those who wait.
Unlike his harmonica-blowing bandmate, however, the guitar-wielding Edwards — who was raised in the United Kingdom — has been inside the State Theatre before. In fact, he and his wife went just last year to watch, you guessed it, Robert Cray. They enjoyed the show so much that before he received the call in late January for the upcoming gig, Edwards had already bought tickets to see Cray perform again. Edwards’ wife will now be taking Palmer’s wife instead.
A DEMO THAT IMPRESSED ROBERT CRAY’S MANAGEMENT TEAM
So how did all this happen anyway?
“We had made a demo CD (listen to it at reverbnation.com) and our manager, Chris Falk of Kzoo Music Scene, sent it off and the Robert Cray management team listened to it and approved the music and asked if we would open for them,” Palmer said. “This is such a great opportunity for us, we couldn’t pass this up.”
Five-Time Grammy Winner: Robert Cray (Photo/Anna Sink)
Who in their right mind would?
The pair, who both left Shoestring due to personnel issues over a year ago, formed the duo in September 2017 when Edwards encouraged Palmer to let him join him for a Saturday morning gig at the Parchment Saturday Market.
“This all came together on a sidewalk at Parchment on a Saturday morning and we decided to make a demo and then started to make a plan to play some gigs in the new year here,” Edwards said. “What we weren’t planning on was a call from the State Theatre to say, ‘Guess what?’”
The musicians, who’ve been playing music the majority of their lives, will play a 25-minute set, touching on an original or two and playing a few covers, likely some of “the forgotten stuff that nobody else is doing around town” such as obscure Bessie Smith, Big Bill Broonzy or Lester Lazy numbers.
‘JUST A COUPLE OF GUYS THAT REALLY LOVE PLAYING OLD BLUES MUSIC’
“Everyone is there to see Robert Cray anyway,” Palmer said. “We’re just a couple of guys that really love playing old blues music and love it if people enjoy listening to us. But if not, we’re just going to play it anyway. We’re going to have some fun up there.”
Tools of the Trade: Luke Palmer’s harmonicas. (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
Once the gig has come and gone, Delta Roots will continue to play smaller gigs around town, with plans to appear at HopCat Kalamazoo this summer along with a few other locales. They also plan to return to JAM Studios, run by Edwards’ musical mentor Jeremy Morris, and record an actual album. They aren’t sure yet if it will be an EP or a full-length project.
One thing they are sure about though, they will be having the time of their lives come Wednesday.
Not bad for a retired Pfizer employee and former welder.
Get tickets — $30-$57.50 — and show details online at kazoostate.com.
VIDEO: Delta Roots Blues, “If You Think I’ve Lost You”
VIDEO: Delta Roots Blues, “Detroit Blues”
VIDEO: Robert Cray Band, NPR Tiny Desk Concert
Delta Roots Blues (Photo/Derek Ketchum)
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