Applegater Winter 2015
Music magic in Williams
BY GABRIELA EAGLESOME
In big cities, people enjoy music
as consumers. In Williams, it is an
integral part of life: impromptu jams in
friends’ homes, two pubs with live music
throughout the week, a grassroots radio
station (operated by Iwill, a musician
and longtime resident), open mic nights,
and concerts that draw visitors from far
beyond Williams.
It seems that every third
person in Williams plays an
instrument, sings, or performs with
a group. Williams’ musicians travel
with their instruments to play at every
opportunity. They are frequently at the
Applegate River Lodge, where people
gather after the main act to jam until
early morning.
Willy Warwick is a venerated
musician in the area, whose mother,
Martha, started the Old Time Fiddler’s
Camp in Williams many years ago.
When Willy began playing fiddle, “there
were three to four musicians living in
Williams,” he says, “but now there may
be three to four hundred,” playing in
genres ranging from classical guitar to
bluegrass, reggae, jazz, folk, and rock.
Kim Mericle, a musician who
closely follows the local music
scene, likens the Williams’ music
phenomenon to the creativity and arts
that thrive in Taos, New Mexico. Many
musicians who live in Williams are good
enough to do well in Los Angeles or New
York, but they prefer to live here.
Dennis Dragon’s “The Studio
at Pacifica” offers world-class
recording opportunities. Dennis won
Grammies for his work before he moved
to the Applegate Valley from the Los
Angeles area. Disenchanted with the
big-city scene, he came to visit a friend in
Williams. When he saw the Steve Miller
recording studio at Pacifica, he realized it
was exactly the way he would have built
it, so he got his equipment out of storage
and moved to Williams eight years ago.
He is amazed at the talent here. He says,
“This is such a small area, so it blew my
mind that there is such a diverse range of
quality musicians in Williams.”
Windsong, a singer-
songwriter and guitarist who has
lived in the area since 1978, thinks there
is a “strong musical spirit in the area.”
She says, “Amazing and fairly famous
musicians come here to find quietness
during their off-the-road time, and then
they tour.”
Many musicians feel that Williams’
relaxed, laid-back, even spiritual
ambiance and natural surroundings
make it the perfect place to compose and
escape the rat race. Kim Mericle says,
“Musicians seek the lifestyle of Williams,
where people want to live their own
lives, but have a strong community at
the same time.”
Warren Wolfe, who moved to
Oregon from Monterey, California,
in 2009, says that making music in this
rural community is better than the grind
COLONEL MUSTARD
Part of the fun is that they make
people happy because it’s so obvious
they’re having fun themselves. And
part of our fun is that we’re listening to
familiar music we have loved for years.
They are a cover band: they do other
people’s music—lots of Beatles, anything
from Santana to Amy Winehouse,
anything from the 1940s on through the
decades. One of their audiences’ favorites
is their Beatles medley, but if you have
a request for just about anything, they’ll
be able to do it.
Another part of the fun lies in
the generous spirit of the band.
Though they aren’t averse to turning
down a benefit gig if it seems too private
or petty, they are quick to say yes to
nonprofits they support or if it’s a cause
they feel strongly about or if it’s a medical
cause—“the important things people
rally behind,” B. says. They have played
for Relay for Life, the Women’s Crisis
Center, individual cancer benefits, and,
of course, for the Applegater fundraiser
at Red Lily last summer, proving us an
important cause people rally behind.
B. says the thing that sets their
13
and competition he experienced as a
professional musician. “Elsewhere,” he
says, “it is cutthroat. There is no sense
of the collaboration or community that
you have here in Williams. Of course,
musicians here don’t have money, but it’s
fun to do what you love with your heart
wide open.”
Others believe that there is a high
density of musicians all across the United
States and that Williams is nothing
noteworthy. Brian (Buzz) Sulgit hesitated
to say that Williams deserves special
recognition, saying, “I’ve heard people
say that there is a lot of music happening
here, but I just don’t notice it, because
I have been here for 22 years and it
just seems normal.” Warren Wolfe, on
the other hand, insists, “I would chalk
it up to emotional energy, spirit, and
even magic.” In spite of the threats and
disasters happening in the world, Warren
thinks that here in Williams “we are
making our own paradise; we are living
in the Shire.”
Gabriela Eaglesome
gabrielas@aol.com
FROM PAGE 1
“It’s effortless,” Johnny says. “We
always know where we’re going. Just a
hint, and we’re there.” B. echoes that
spirit when she says that singing with
the other two vocalists is like being with
siblings.
The Colonel Mustard Band
plays at weddings, wineries, and resorts,
which, Johnny says, is more fun than
being at a bar till midnight. Wherever
they play, they like the moment best
when they see people bopping their
heads. There’s no mystery about that—
they’re a dance band.
Diana Coogle
dicoog@gmail.com
Colonel Mustard Band playing at RoxyAnn Winery. Band members, from left to right, are
Chris Graves, guitarist and vocalist; Sandy Ficca, drummer; B. Wishes, guitarist and vocalist;
and Johnny Trujillo, bassist and vocalist. Photo: Renee Olmsted.
band apart is that they “play fun dance
music with great vocals,” but there’s
something more, too, something that has
to do with the spirit of the band when
they are playing music together. Johnny
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY
talks about liking the camaraderie of the
band, the way they respect each other
and appreciate their professionalism. The
secret to their good music might be no
more than that they like playing together.
Check our online calendar
for upcoming
concerts featuring
• Colonel Mustard
• Stolen Moments
• The Evening Shades
and many other groups
who play all over
southern Oregon.
www.applegater.org