She's Got The Blues
She's Got The Blues
May 13, 2011
By Peter Gerstenzang
FairfieldPatch
For a woman so steeped in the blues, Shemekia Copeland is pretty chipper, fizzy and funny in conversation.
"It's pronounced Shuh-Mee-Ka," she said from the Midwest recently, clearing up all misconceptions about how to say her first name. "I don't know what my parents were doing when they came up with that weird spelling. But I'm pretty sure some reefer was involved."
She laughs, jovially, one of many times she does in the course of our conversation. And she's on a role, comedically, so she continues. When asked if Copeland sees a lot of younger people at her shows, the way bluesman John Mayall claims he does at his. she responds, "Well, John is in his late 70s, so pretty much everyone is a younger person! I'm 30, so I can't say that's true for me. But we do see a smattering of kids."
Kid or not, you should try to make the scene when Copeland plays The Fairfield Theatre Company on Saturday. Daughter of legendary bluesman Johnny Copeland, this young woman is doing a fine job of carrying on the tradition of this American root music. All the while planting some of her own.
A taut, unfussy singer, who's been a pro for 10 years, Copeland gets deeply involved in the emotion of her songs, without ever over-embellishing them. She has a bit to say, too, about all those overblown American Idol-type singers out there. The ones who believe a line is never complete without a hefty dose of vibrato, a couple of whoa whoas, and a melisma that can shake your fillings loose.
"A lot of people mistake soul for that sort of melodramatic nonsense," Copeland said, as serious as a case of the blues. "It's the Christina Aguilera syndrome. Listen to Gladys Knight or Mavis Staples. They give it to you straight and it really means something. I refuse to sing in that ridiculous new way. No way!"
She credits her "great" mom and dad with providing her a strong foundation to lean on during her childhood, partly in Manhattan, the rest of the time in Teaneck, New Jersey.
"My dad was always playing guitar and singing around the house," said Copeland. "I was, too. My mom claims I was singing before I could talk. There was great music in the house, but also lots of love and a sense of morality. One of the reasons I've been able to last in the business for 10 years, while others have fallen by the wayside, is my upbringing. I've never had any of the same troubles, drugs, men, as a lot of female singers."
Her honesty can be as unnerving as it is refreshing.
When asked if she is writing songs for her next album, Copeland says simply, "I don't really write songs. I mostly look for good ones. A lot of people say they write songs, but they just put down a bunch of foolishness on paper. The Rolling Stones wrote songs. Bob Dylan wrote songs. I'm a singer."
Copeland is hoping to have a new album out in 2012, a follow-up to her acclaimed disc, "Never Going Back." Meanwhile, she's on the road with her longtime band, just hoping to spread the gospel of her music.
"I do between 80 and 90 gigs a year," she said. "I'd do more if the damn economy would only recover. I hope that's the case and not just for me. Still, I'm lucky to be making a living at this. A lot of people who sang the blues didn't, you know. So far, in my life and career? I've been really blessed
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