Codell Rodriguez
Daily Egyptian
The Ole Fishskins is not exactly a band that shuns a little change.
Since its formation more than seven years ago, more than 25 musicians have held The Ole Fishskins together at different times. But one thing they've kept concrete throughout the band's existence is its style of music: bluegrass.
The Fishskins are made up of Tom Connelley (guitar/vocals), Johnny Mango (mandolin/vocals), Fiddlin' Joe Bob Joe (fiddle), Roy Davis (banjo), Jerry Griffin (guitar/vocals), Bill Fuson (bass/vocals) and Ray Maring (dobro or slide guitar).
Band members met the Daily Egyptian on the set of their WDBX radio show, "Back to Bluegrass."
How did you guys get together?
Mango: The Ole Fishskins have been a bluegrass band for about seven or eight years, and we've had a lot of local talent come and go.
Joe: There was a bluegrass jam, and it sort of developed into a band.
Any fan experiences that stick out?
Mango: You mean our groupies? Everything from wives and children to college girls.
Anybody get a lot of groupies?
Mango: That'd be Joe. Girls love the fiddler.
Where did the name Ole Fishskins come from?
Mango: Fella named Tom thought it up.
Connelley: Was it Randy Bob or was it Tom?
Mango: I don't know where it came from. Really don't.
Connelley: The first guy I heard use it seriously on a regular basis was Randy Bob Cotton. He's a great banjo player from Carbondale.
Joe: Who's now living in Japan.
Connelley: Yeah. He's teaching banjo and also playing bass in a band in Japan. (laughs) Teaching the Japanese how to play bluegrass is scary, because you see what happens when they play baseball. They're good at it. (laughs)
Do you know what the name means?
Mango: Well, we have a slogan, "We really know our scales." (laughs)
Connelley: It's open to interpretation.
It seems that bluegrass started to get a little more mainstream when "O Brother, Where Art Thou" came out. How do you feel about that?
Mango: Well, what happened is the government's been putting this drug in the water and it makes people think a lot more. Now that people are thinking, bluegrass has finally got recognition. (laughs)
Connelley: Actually, bluegrass was the largest growing musical genre in the '90s. So "O Brother" is kind of a culmination of that increasing popularity.
Joe: It covers a whole lot more than love songs or breaking up songs. You've got spiritual songs. You've got plenty "life is comedy" songs. You've got you're environmental songs.
Mango: A lot of working-the-land songs.
Joe: And songs about loved ones passing on. No matter where you are, it's hard to deal with. Bluegrass can help you with that.
I hate to keep on with this "O Brother" subject, but which one of you guys is the "Man of Constant Sorrow?"
Mango: Which one's not? (laughter)
Joe: It's definitely the blues; no doubt about it.
Connelley: Bluegrass has evolved from gospel, blues and mainly from the hill music of Appalachia.
Mango: And also slave music.
Any pre-show rituals?
Joe: One of the pre-show things that we do is get in a circle and play acoustic to warm up.
This question is completely unrelated to music, but I always throw a couple of these in.
Mango: Dolly Parton. (laughter)
If you could have any job, what would it be?
Joe: Wealthy leisure researcher. (laughter)
Connelley: I wanna work for him.
Mango: I want to work for Greyhound. Leave the drivin' to me. Get to see the country. My grandfather's a bus driver too.
If there was a movie made about your band, what would it be called?
Joe: We're thinking about releasing our first album, just to sidetrack here.
Mango: It's called "Cuttin' Teeth."
Joe: The movie would be about playing music.
Connelley: It'd be about learning how to play. We do all kinds of things. [Mango] is a carpenter, I'm an ex-carpenter, and now I'm a sound engineer for the University. Fiddlin' Joe does ...
Joe: Government work.
Are you the guy in the black suit?
Joe: Yeah.
Connelley: Well, we're from all over so we have some varied interests. The outdoors, being in nature, taking it easy and having a good time.
Catch the Ole Fishskins at 9 p.m. Friday, at Booby's Beer Garden. Cover is $3.
Reporter Codell Rodriguez can be reached at crodriguez@dailyegyptian.com.
Published on 11/17/05; 12:24:44 PM
