A Conversation with Happy Traum (continued)

PM: So if I may ask, are there any special books circulating in the Traum household at the moment? What are you guys reading?

HT: Oh, you mean, in terms of non-musical stuff?

PM: Yeah, just book books.

HT: Oh, well, yeah, there are always some books.

PM: We just like to know what people are reading.

HT: Oh, really? Well, I've gotten hooked on a guy named Charles McCarry, who's kind of like an American version of John Le Carre.

PM: Oh, really? Because I'm over the top about Le Carre.

HT: McCarry is very literary. They're well-written and well-plotted spy novels.

PM: Oh, that's right up my alley.

HT: He's extremely good. And a lot of his stuff is not in print, but it's gradually coming out in print. His latest book is called Old Boys, and then there's another one coming out. But anyway, I've really gotten into him.

PM: And he's writing about the American spy side, right?

HT: That's right, exactly. And the same kind of intrigue. And there's another guy, Alan Furst, who also writes great spy books, all of his books take place between the two world wars in Europe. So you get a lot of atmosphere of that whole European intrigue, shadowy--they're also very high-class writers, not writing potboilers at all.

PM: Right. Spy literature.

HT: Exactly.

PM: And what's playing on the CD player? Are you guys always listening to what's next in the catalog, or something else?

HT: Well, I'll tell you what's on my iTunes right now.

PM: Cool.

HT: I've got Abigail Washburn.

PM: Ah, she's a buddy of mine. She's great.

HT: I've got Ollabelle.

PM: Uh-huh. And Larry [Campbell] produced that, right.

HT: Right. I've got the Be Good Tanyas.

PM: Oh, yeah, I just videoed them. Sure love them, wow.

HT: Got a Bill Frisell record.

PM: Which one?

HT:Good Dog, Happy Man.

PM: [laughs] I don't know that one.

HT: A great one. I love his new record. I have a lot of Brownie McGhee, because I've been going back--he was my first guitar teacher.

PM: So I learned, at your site. What a privilege.

HT: Yeah. I'm going to make an instructional lesson, at some point, a DVD on Brownie McGhee's style. So I've been going back and revisiting a lot of his old records, listening to stuff, and then also tapes that I made personally of him back in the early days, which I recently discovered and that I transferred to CDs.

PM: Wow. What kind of a guy was he?

HT: Oh, he was a complex guy. But he was very urbane, extremely well-spoken, intelligent.

PM: Really?

HT: Yeah, he was a very bright guy, very sophisticated in his way.

PM: And where did he come from?

HT: He came from Kingsport, Tennessee, originally, and then went on to spend some time in North Carolina, and then came to New York in the '40s, and got taken in by the sort of left-wing folk music crowd. He got to know Josh White, Leadbelly, all around the Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, Almanac Singers, all that stuff. So Brownie got into that. But he also was a little bit in the R&B field, too. So he kind of crossed boundaries. He was a great guy.

PM: One hears, even down here in Nashville, that John Hall [of Orleans fame] is running for Congress.

HT: That's right, that's right.

PM: It would be incredible to see him there. What are his chances considered to be?

HT: I think he's got a good chance.

PM: Wow.

HT: John is very smart.

PM: Oh, yeah. He's a hell of a good guy.

HT: Yeah. [The votes were cast a couple weeks after this interview, and indeed Democrat John Hall will be a member of Congress, elected to represent New York's 19th District.]

I've also been listening to the new Chris Smither album.

PM: Ah, yeah, we just interviewed him, and we like that record a lot.

HT: Yeah. He just made a DVD for us, and several of the songs on his CD are on the DVD that he did for us. That just came out.

PM: We've got to take a listen to that, because he just sounds as great as ever.

HT: Right. And this band Crooked Still is pretty great. And I told you about the Duhks?

PM: Oh, yeah, we love them, too.

HT: I've been listening to them.

PM: Yeah, you're right on the cutting edge there. It's beautiful.

HT: I've got a lot of old stuff, too, like John Prine and Steve Goodman. Kate Rusby, I like her a lot, from England.

PM: Yeah, on Compass.

HT: A folk ballad thing. Yeah, she's on Compass, right. I like her a lot. Kelly Joe Phelps, I have a lot of his music.

PM: Interesting, that new record, not as complex as some of the other ones.

HT: I actually haven't gotten into it yet.

PM: Yeah, it's very kind of country blues. It's not lyrically impenetrable and musically just mind-boggling, it's simpler, and still really good.

HT: Right. And then one of my old-time favorites, who doesn't get enough respect in this country, is Paul Brady.

PM: Ah, I thought you were going to say Paul Geremia.

HT: Well, Paul Geremia, too. But Paul Brady, I think he's just incredible.

PM: And yeah, I agree. And we're truly remiss in not having covered him yet. And we must get to Paul Brady.

HT: Yeah, that was another big thing for me was to get him to do a DVD, which is really a great one.

PM: And what was the nature of his?

HT: It's taking his songs and the way he plays them on the guitar. I mean, he has a wonderful guitar style, and how he makes his arrangements, with the folk, very acoustic stuff, and also how he handled his more electric stuff, although it's all on acoustic. But I'm a big fan of his, and we became friends.

PM: Well, jeez, I know you're a very, very busy person. And I really appreciate you taking the time to speak with us today.

HT: Well, thanks. I'm very flattered that you're interested.

PM: Yeah, and we think that what you're doing at Homespun continues to be a huge cultural contribution to the country and to the world. And please say hi to Jane and to Artie for me.

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