From Ringo Starr and Gerry Rafferty to Drive South and The Wilenes: The ‘amazing’ guitar work and powerful songs of West Michigan’s Roger Brown

A hidden gem along Lake Michigan’s shoreline, the guitarist with an impressive past shines these days as a vintage country music artist.

 

For years after returning to his native United States, Roger Brown continued to head back overseas regularly to perform.

“I was touring like seven months of the year. I was commuting basically to Europe because I was a known quantity over there,” the Holland-area guitarist, singer and songwriter says.

Although fellow players in the vintage country music scene consider him a gem residing along Lake Michigan’s shoreline, Brown might seem like an “unknown quantity” to many in West Michigan.

But for decades, he made a name for himself in England. He not only played and recorded with Gerry Rafferty and the platinum-selling rock band Stealers Wheel, but worked as a studio musician and toured Europe extensively as a solo act and with country star Freddy Fender.

He even wrote the songs for Ringo Starr’s 1977 children’s album, “Scouse the Mouse,” part of an illustrious run for Brown in the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s.

“Ringo had a suite at The Ritz in London which was actually bigger than any house I’ve ever owned,” Brown recalls. “I had to go over there with my guitar and knock on the door and play him the songs so that we could find out what keys to do them in. It’s very interesting to knock on a door and the door opens, and there’s a Beatle standing there.”

FINDING AMERICANA HARMONY IN DRIVE SOUTH AND THE WILENES

The doors to fruitful musical collaborations have opened frequently for Brown – a North Carolina native who relocated to the Lake Michigan shoreline in the mid-1990s after spending decades in Europe – with much of his time spent in recent years writing and performing vintage country and Americana music with the Traverse City-based duo Drive South and the foursome The Wilenes. The bands perform mostly in northern Michigan.

“It’s his heart. He’s a very sensitive person,” says Traverse City singer-guitarist May Sue Wilkinson, who performs in both bands with Brown. “He matches that with his dedication to his craft. He rehearses every day and he has for so many years that he is an amazing guitar player. Really clean and melodic.”

The Wilenes, which began as Sister Wilene in 2009 (renowned Traverse City mandolinist Don Julin is a former member), play “straight-up, old-school country music,” including songs by Patsy Cline and Hank Williams.

Brown isn’t the only band member with impressive credentials: bassist Brian Nolf played with country star Marty Stuart in Nashville for six years, drummer Roger Tarczon has played with rock’s David Crosby in Los Angeles, and Wilkinson spent decades touring the country and major folk festivals with Michigan’s Iowa Rose, featuring much-respected musicians Mark Schrock, Jeff Rose and the late David Raffenaud.

Brown credits Raffenaud, a widely admired Fennville keyboard player who died suddenly in April, for introducing him to Wilkinson and Schrock. “I just started making connections from there,” he recalls.

WRITING UP A STORM AND FINDING VOCAL SYNERGY

For Wilkinson, who grew up in Iowa and started playing “a little black Kay guitar” at age 12, the Drive South side project with Brown allows the duo to focus on Brown’s songwriting, roots-based music “and our vocal harmonies. It is naturally a simpler sound because it is two voices and two acoustic guitars.”

And, she says, his songwriting is extraordinary. “His original repertoire is such a gift,” Wilkinson raves. “He was an English major in college and so you have this man that has great command of the English language and poetry coupled with someone that grew up in North Carolina rooted in that old-time musical tradition. The combination makes for some powerful original material.”

Brown last year released a solo album, “Sometimes You’re Lucky,” which Local Spins listed among West Michigan’s 10 best albums of 2013. The guitarist performed the entertaining title ditty during a recent appearance on Local Spins Live on News Talk 1340 AM (WJRW). You can watch a video of that in-studio performance below.

He previously had released the solo CD, “Any Way You Please,” and plans to work with Wilkinson on a new Drive South album this summer.

“Roger has been writing up a storm, so there will be lots of new material,” says Wilkinson. “Vocally, he and I have a blend that can be hard to find. We just clicked when we met. We know so many of the same songs and singing harmony together is like falling off a log for us. There’s a synergy that makes playing music together very special.”

Brown, who’s also played with the Michigan retro-country act Midnight Cattle Callers, regards his second career in West Michigan as a blessing, connecting with musicians along the lakeshore and meeting other writers through the Grand Rapids Songwriters Alliance.

“I’ve met some great people and wonderful musicians,” says Brown, who as a youngster worked summers at his grandfather’s hotel on Lake Michigan and eventually chose to move to West Michigan after his European adventures.

Like Wilkinson, he started playing guitar at age 12, raised on country music with a guitar-playing father and uncle. Indeed, he says, he bonded with Starr over their mutual love of vintage country, specifically a song by Merle Haggard he happened to play when they first met.

“What I do now, it’s really called Americana,” he says. “It’s a wonderful category because you can do darn near anything.”

At 8 p.m. Friday, Brown performs with The Wilenes at Workshop Brewing in Traverse City. See a full list of upcoming shows at drivesouthmusic.com/gigs, including The Wilenes’ Sept. 5 appearance at the prestigious Wheatland Music Festival in Remus.

For more about Brown, visit his official website.

Email John Sinkevics at jsinkevics@gmail.com.
Copyright 2014, Spins on Music