MUSIC

THE RAGGED JUBILEE

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JONATHAN DAVID

Arroyo Grande-based band, The Ragged Jubilee, loves to tell the story of their very first gig on their first tour. Their excitement was electric when they stopped at a Costco to pick up all of the rations they would need for their 17-day road trip. The van was loaded and the energy was palpable. First stop, Kimo’s in San Francisco’s Nob Hill neighborhood. The once-gay-bar-turned-music-venue on Polk Street drew “twenty or so people” to the show. The small crowd didn’t diminish the mood—they were now a touring band! But, the positive vibe faded as their songs echoed through the cavernous hall. It was bad enough that the club manager discovered that one of their members was underaged, somewhere around 17, but when their drummer at the time ended up in a fistfight with one of the patrons, they knew the gig was over. The unceremonious ending to the show led to a random traverse of San Francisco in the middle of the night with no place to sleep. While completely lost in the city, the band met a girl named Kat. She invited them to crash at her place, but warned that she owned a particularly territorial dog. By the time the morning sun made an appearance, the bandmates had consumed every bit of their Costco provisions and their bedding had been “marked” by Kat’s dog. Despite the fact that they had no food, no bedding, and nowhere to stay, they could not have been happier—they were on tour and still had 16 shows left.

The joy for their craft is most apparent in frontman, Ethan Burns, who started writing music at just 11-years-old. “It’s constant,” he says, “I always keep a notepad with me and I’m always thinking about words and music and how they go together, new ways of saying things.” Burns grew up listening to blues and soul and his influence on the band is clear. Their sound has been likened to a 1950’s Chicago-style, including a hint of gospel, with similar traces found in the music of The Dead Weather, Otis Redding, and, even Neil Young. Their soulful roots are most apparent in their song Like a River where Burns’ throaty, raspy voice parlays a compelling urgency with incredible feeling which connects with a unique musical combination that includes an organ. The result is a rhythmic, almost hypnotic repetition which slowly accelerates and reaches its crescendo with the the chorus that repeats, “I just want to love you / I just want to love you / and hold you in my arms.” The band holds residency at Harvelle’s, Santa Monica’s iconic music venue, and can be seen playing there nearly once a week. Live shows featuring original music from their two albums, American Moan and In the Valley can also be found filling up venues such as The Del Monte Speakeasy in Venice and The Echo in LA. A two-week-long end of summer tour is up next and the band has dates scheduled in Sacramento, Grass Valley, Arcata, Salem, Portland, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Diego, and, oh yeah, San Francisco… but don’t worry, The Ragged Jubilee has come a long way since those early days. And, as Chandler Haynes, the band’s bass guitar player shares with a laugh, “After that first experience, we said, ‘Okay, we got it out of our system. Let’s never let that happen again.’” And in case you were wondering, they’ve already lined up a place to stay.

l e f t t o r i g h t Phillip Wahl (drums/banjo/organ/vocals) Ethan Burns (guitar/harmonica/lead vocals) Austin I’Anson (electric guitar/vocals) Chandler Haynes (bass guitar/sitar/vocals)