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T H AT ’S SO DA DA
How opening at Club Dada kick started Clay Pendergrass’ career › Interview by JEHADU ABSHIRO | Art by CLAY PENDERGRASS
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f Clay Pendergrass and his brother opened the windows of the converted attic bedroom in their Anita Street childhood home, from one direction they could hear the music pouring out of the Granada and Arcadia. In the other direction, once the old Dr. Pepper Plant shut down, they could hear the music from the Dyer Street clubs. It was a different time, when you could still smell the fresh bread from the Mrs. Baird’s plant at Central Expressway and Mockingbird Lane all the way down Lower Greenville. Pendergrass would slip out of his window and stand outside the bars he was too young to get into, just listening to the music. “It’s not as crazy as it sounds,” Pendergrass says. “I don’t think we could do things like that now.”
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Pendergrass, a guitarist, bassist and percussionist who also dabbles in visual art, has been a mainstay in the Dallas music scene for over two decades. He’s recorded and toured with the likes of David Garza, Jackopierce, American Horse, Jack Ingram and more. Longyear, released by his label Clay Sounds summer 2020, is “psychedelic, funk, pop, noise, ambient, electronic, Tex-Mex and flute rock.” It’s a combination of original songs, a New Bohemians cover, a church hymn and the national anthem. Created with New Orleans-based producer Danny Kadar, the album was made over the course of several years with tracks being sent back and forth virtually. It features a lot of guests, mostly friends. It encapsulates Pendergrass’ career — a collage of genres and collaboration.
