When asked to label what he does for a living, singer/harmonica player James Montgomery quickly says, ‘’I’m a bandleader. That’s what I do.’’
"It’s funny, but I’m not like (ex-NBA star) Larry Bird. I normally don’t like ‘having the ball with 30 seconds left,’ but in a band situation, I DO ‘want the ball,’" he said, predictably using the former Boston Celtic star as a reference point.
That’s because Montgomery has made New England and the Boston area his home since 1967, when he left Detroit to play his brand of blues. He’s quietly built a solid reputation as a singer, harmonica player and, yes, bandleader.
He’s also a force in the blues scene in that part of the country. He’s president of the New England Blues Society and is, in effect, an educator for his art form, and has helped establish a program to help musicians get extensive free legal and medical help. It’s the efforts of musicians like James Montgomery that keep blues music alive.
"I hear a lot of young players, particularly young black players say that the blues is the music of slavery,’’ he said in a recent interview from his home in Newport, R.I.
"Actually it‘s the music of empowerment," Montgomery said. "This is how so many people escaped that mentality and lifestyle. This music allowed them to become entrepreneurs."
He’s been called "the John Mayall of New England," having built a reputation for helping and working with young musicians over the years. He’s also an in-demand harp player, having worked with B.B. King, John Lee Hooker and Buddy Guy as well as Bruce Springsteen, Kid Rock and Aerosmith.
His travels are many and his musical trail is long. He talks about the difference between East Coast and West Coast blues. "West Coast blues is more of a blues jump thing. The Chicago thing is more straight ahead, but mine is rooted in the Detroit style, the funk stuff."
He’s generous with praise for other blues harmonica players like Rod Piazza, who’s from California. "Oh, man, he’s great," Montgomery says. "Style-wise, people are sometimes surprised to see that we’re really not that different." He even gives this writer an impromptu history lesson about blues harmonica that’s as carefully thought out and passionately presented as a college professor’s lecture. ("I’m definitely from the more urban Sonny Boy Williamson/Little Walter school if I had to label it.")
He mentions his friendship with the late John Lee Hooker and raves about his latest guitar player, youthful Marc Copely whose raw, gutsy sound is at the heart of Montgomery’s new album.
Here he plays some Al Green and Hank Williams, some Lowell Fulsom, John Lee Hooker, and Paul Butterfield, (and yes, a little James Montgomery is interspered throughout). His longtime friend and former Memphian, ‘Superharp’ James Cotton even sits in on a couple of tunes. It’s a sampler of moods of the blues, and Montgomery’s talents are well-showcased – not just with his singing and playing but also in his ability to put the right pieces together to make a great blues album.
"I wanted to sit down and look at the blues in different forms, so I think we accomplished that. Next I want to work with some different songwriters and see how it all looks through their eyes."
Asked to describe his playing style, Montgomery laughs and says he’s not too popular with the "blues Nazis."
"They say that I jump around too much, but I’ve always had a rep for having a great live band. I’ve always picked the best musicians.
"People forget that Jr. Wells, James Cotton and these guys were competitive guys and combined blues with showmanship.
"I try to do that too. I’m a competitive guy.’’
