For the first time in more than ten years, renowned blues guitarist C.W. Stoneking returns to the road with his old band His Primitive Horn Orchestra.
First forming in 2006, the Orchestra – comprised of James Clark (tuba, double bass), Stephen Grant (cornet), Stu Barker (trombone), and Johnny Machin (drums) – appeared on C.W.'s ARIA Award-winning fourth studio album, 2009's 'Jungle Blues'.Later this month, the band reunite for a massive 13-date run across the country.
Up until now, C.W. has been, as he puts it, cruising along. His last studio album was 2014's 'Gon' Boogaloo', it too having racked up a number of awards – ARIA Awards, AIR Awards and Music Vic Awards among them.
None of that means much to C.W. if he can't tour, which for the last two years he hasn't.
Speaking about the reasons that prompted the reunion with the Horn Orchestra, C.W. says: "I was forced not to work for a couple of years and when I started up again, I realised how tiring it was to do it by myself. I thought 'I'll get a band together, coz I'm too old now to keep on doing those shows'."
In the business of blues, apparently 48 (C.W.'s age) is too old. He's gruffly unsure about that remark, maybe even a little nonchalant, even tired.
Or C.W.'s conversation is perhaps a little out of practice thanks to so much time spent away from others and not discussing his craft.
"I dunno," he says, still mulling over the band's reformation, "when I used to go play night after night it was alright, but after two years off, it's real goddamn tiring.
"So, I was like 'I'll get my old band together’, that'll be fun and I ain't gotta stand there for two hours by myself."
Though the tour begins at the end of July, C.W. says rehearsals on the set list have yet to begin. He's not too fussed though, agreeing that performing together with His Primitive Horn Orchestra will be much like riding a bicycle.
"We were meant to do some stuff last year, a couple of shows in Melbourne," he says, "and we did get one rehearsal in and yeah, it all come together pretty good.
"It's a whole mixture of stuff, I guess. I never used a straight-up horn band for the last record, so there'll be a lot of that, I reckon, remade just for this type of line-up, not taking any extra singers with me. It's just going to be a cross-section of my stuff."
It's been eight years since we heard a new album from C.W. but that's not to say – even though he says he's getting too old to tour solo – he's retiring from solo studio work.
"I probably will do something again but I couldn't say something about it in terms of the timeline there," he replies in his thick Katherine (NT) accent.
In the last two years where a lot of artists have been left with the time to work on nothing but their craft, C.W. actually found himself deterred from music.
"I went off music altogether for that period," C.W. admits. "I'm just now beginning to wonder if it's going to continue to be a viable thing in the future again."
It's an unexpected statement from C.W. "I didn't go off music," he continues, "I just didn't see how. . . I support four kids, my ex-wife and myself, and then I had no job and I [couldn't] go nowhere. I still can't go overseas. So, I think I just. . . it was better to just not think about it.
"It didn't fill me with a good feeling about anything, really. I slept a lot, and hung out in me house," C.W. says of how he spent his time these past two years.
Performing is C.W.'s bread and butter, and it seems not having the opportunity to do so took a bit of a toll. "It's not an ideal situation," he agrees, "but, you know, some people got power of that, some don't. I'm in the second category."
This tour, mind you, will be very enjoyable for the guitarist. C.W. says when he plays music, he feels good, and obtaining that good feeling through performance has "never been a problem".
In fact, C.W. says – his voice the most confident it's been throughout our chat – he'll feed off the energy of his audiences. "That's kind of just natural, when you're playing in front of people, when that happens."
C.W. Stoneking & His Primitive Horn Orchestra 2022 Tour Dates
Thu 28 Jul - Miami Marketta (Gold Coast)Fri 29 Jul - Princess Theatre (Brisbane)
Sat 30 Jul - Solbar (Sunshine Coast)
Fri 5 Aug - Theatre Royal (Castlemaine)
Sat 6 Aug - St Brigid's Crossley Hall (Crossley)
Thu 11 Aug - Volta (Ballarat)
Fri 12 Aug - Thornbury Theatre (Melbourne)
Sat 13 Aug - Thornbury Theatre (Melbourne)
Thu 18 Aug - Torquay Hotel (Torquay)
Fri 19 Aug - The Memo (Healesville)
Sun 21 Aug - The Gov (Adelaide)
Wed 24 Aug - The Grand Junction (Hunter Valley)
Thu 25 Aug - Paddo RSL (Sydney)
