By Jesse Davidson

 

If I’ve ever met a renaissance man, it has been JD Wilkes. After seeing a performance that brought an Iggy Pop like presence to the stage. Later I would learn of the many accomplishments of Mr. Wilkes such as his drawing, painting, and filmmaking abilities. Also, to my knowledge, he is the first real live Kentucky Colonel I’ve met. So with out further ado, here is some questions we had for Col. JD Wilkes.

 

Jesse: How has this tour and album cycle been going for the band so far?

 

Wilkes: So far so good! Lotsa great shows and press. Nine days away from home. Seems an eternity.

 

Jesse: After getting to experience the Shack Shackers live for the first time, I’ve been learning about the various artistic projects you have going and the list of artists you’ve played with as a musician. Has this work ethic always been with you or has it developed over time?

Wilkes: I go in spurts. It’s not a steady stream of constant work, but I will never turn down an opportunity that comes along. I’ve been at it twenty years or more, so anyone’s accomplishments would add up over that much time.

But yes, I’ve always been ambitious, yet super distracted by other interests and flights of fancy. I’d be a lot further along if I was just good at one thing and one thing only.

 

Jesse: Do you have a specific practice routine for all of your talents?

 

Wilkes: I don’t practice as a discipline, I just play a lot because it’s fun. Anything I’m into at the time I tend to go overboard with. I have these little obsessions that come and go. So when I “practice” it’s really just me sinking hours into something I’m really excited about. It never feels like work.

 

 

Jesse: Among your many accomplishments, you’re a Kentucky Colonel. Can you tell us about how that came to be?

 

 

Wilkes: I was nominated in secret by another Colonel who told the governor about my contributions to Kentucky’s arts. Specifically, harmonica music I recorded for a public radio piece on Stephen Foster, of all things.

 

 

Jesse: Can you take us through the process of writing “Barn Dances and Jamborees Across Kentucky“?

 

 

Wilkes: I took off on several excursions around and across Kentucky, taking along a notebook, a computer and some harmonicas. I tried to locate as many of the old barn dances that were still going on, sit in with the musicians, jot down my notes and type it out later. There are so many spots out there I have yet to document. Luckily I can update my book with each reprint!

 

Jesse: In what ways has growing up and living in the south influenced your artistic vision that you couldn’t receive from anyplace else?

 

Wilkes: The south is uniquely rustic, traditional, obstinate and yet multi-racial/cultural. There was a natural “hot house” flourishing of culture that went on there despite what Hollywood tells us. Bluegrass, Rockabilly, Old-time, Piedmont Blues, and New Orleans jazz are all examples of cultural interplay. Our cuisine is an example of that too. All of this makes us the secret envy of the world, which is why they disdain us.

I also like the isolation the Appalachians once provided. It acted as a deep freeze of old Scots Irish and English sayings, accents, folklore and ballads. Even the mountains boasted a strange hodge-podge of races: English, Scots/Irish, German, African blacks, Cherokee Indians, Melungeons (Turk/Portuguese), and even the Fugate “blue people”!

What’s not to love and be utterly fascinated by?!

 

Jesse: Has being an artist changed your view on society and humanity?

 

 

Wilkes: No, I don’t think art has done that. Life tends to do that no matter what you do. Perhaps being in “the arts” exposes me to other ideas, but TV and the internet do that too. I think I am confirmed in the fundamentals of my original assumptions more and more each day.

 

 

Jesse: Is there anything creatively you’d like to try that you haven’t yet?

 

 

Wilkes: I want to get my novel published, perhaps illustrate it as a full graphic novel one day. I’d like to get back into painting. I’d also like to complete the sequel to my film “Seven Signs”. That’s my To-Do list.

 

Jesse: Any upcoming news or information on the Shack Shakers you’d like us to know about?

 

Wilkes: Touring Europe next month! Back down south early 2016. Dirt Daubers tour in June.

 

 

Jesse: Lastly, do you have any advice for upcoming artists and musicians?

 

Wilkes: Don’t do it unless you’re already rich and beautiful. I got into the racket before the Millennials came of age and started demanding all artists be supermodels.

You will get paid more to be just a “DJ”, squiggling your finger across the screen of an iPad at a rave.

Get out while you can!

 

Jesse: Thank you so much for taking time to talk to us and for playing the Antelope Valley!

 

Wilkes: My pleasure!

 

If you haven’t checked out the Legendary Shack Shakers or JD Wilkes, do it right now.

Their new album, The Southern Surreal is out on Alternative Tentacles now