Charlie Parr: To Quote Mason Jennings...

"Nobody says the things he says, nobody moves like he moves."

Jennings may have written the song "Duluth" about the love between a well-meaning girl and an absent railroad man, but he could have been talking about Duluth native Charlie Parr, a musician whose fingerstyle blues invoke a similar working aesthetic and solemn power. If you haven't had a chance to see Charlie, come on out. He's tremendous. The show starts at 9 p.m. in the HoDo Lounge tomorrow night. $5 cover, 21+. Seating is limited, so come early to get a good view of the action.

Charlie Parr ... He'll Play Forever If You Let Him

There's still a lot of winter between here and Duluth. As we emerge into the post-blizzard albedo, it's comforting to know that such mistreatment from nature won't stop the irrepressible Charlie Parr, fingerpicker extraordinaire. It's the Nth time back here for Charlie and, like spring, it's better to have him here than not.

Good friends The Johnson Family Band will start the show at 7:30 p.m. tonight in the HoDo Lounge. Charlie and the JFB will make a running start at exorcising this late winter torpor. $5 cover, 21+.

You Can Feel It Your Very Soul - Charlie Parr on the Radio

Charlie Parr - fingerpicker extraordinaire and man of the people - will return to the HoDo Lounge this Thursday evening with special guests the Johnson Family Band. The JFB will kick things off at 7 p.m., there's a $5 cover and it's 21+. Bring your favorite whoopin' boots and stamp along.

You can also catch Charlie on Prairie Public radio's "Hear It Now" at 3 p.m. (Central Time) this Thursday, the 18th. He'll do an in-studio performance with host Merrill Piepkorn. Tune in on 91.9 FM in Fargo and on your local Prairie Public station elsewhere in the state. You can also stream the show online here.

There's a Man Goin' 'Round Takin' Names - Charlie Parr

Your friendly editor of the The HoDo Dispatch recently attended a show by the Flaming Lips at the 10,000 Lakes Festival. It resembled a birthday party thrown by aliens, or maybe for aliens. And, while their neon grandeur was truly exciting and fun, the question was begged: is all that necessary?

In terms of a band like the Lips, the answer is yes (spectacle evokes a special brand of joy). But through a broader lens, the answer is no (rock musicians are frequently guilty of overstatement). Exhibit A? Charlie Parr, who works harder than a one-legged guy in a you-know-what-kicking contest, puts two total ingredients into his stew, guitar and voice. The result is as startling and provocative as a 40-foot video screen and a confetti cannon. Probably more so. His style of blues peels back the veneer of our image-driven popular culture and exposes the conflicted relationships that modern humanity shoulders vis a vis its technology, the planet and its membership. It is our blues, timeless and fantastically immediate at the same time.

Charlie was gracious enough to answer a few questions in anticipation of his show at the HoDo:

HoDo Dispatch: You criss-cross Minnesota more than any other person I can think of. How does the state of Minnesota, its geography and people, influence your music?

Charlie Parr: I think everything influences the music, and especially my home. My entire personal history is here, which is where everything starts. I love MN, and crossing it for shows never gets dull.

HD: Traditional styles of blues/country music often get an "olde-timey" label. Do you think of your music as "olde-timey?" How would you characterize the relationship between your music and the world today?

CP: Those labels aren't really helpful for the most part. They were made up by radio stations and record labels to help them market music, so I try not to pay them a lot of attention. I don't think of myself as playing 'old-time' or 'bluegrass' or 'blues'. It's kind of a mash-up of all them sometimes, and then sometimes none.

HD: I was not at all surprised to find that you come from a labor background. What affect has this upbringing had on your approach to your career?

CP: I don't know, really. I've always been from that rank-and-file kind of place, and haven't really known much else.

HD: In your bio, it is mentioned that dignity, and the struggle to keep it, is a central theme in your songs. Could you expand on that?

CP: There's a horrible idea that rides along just underneath the surface of things that says that there's a relationship between your economic status and how much respect you're afforded. It's wrong, and I doubt it'll change, but it's wrong and it's one of the things that we all have control over - one person at a time.

HD: I'm willing to bet that you expose a lot of people to acoustic blues. How do they normally react when hearing you for the first time?

CP: I try and direct them to the folks that really made this type of music what it is - I struggle to keep it up, and there are some real good players out there to hear, both alive and dead.

HD: You play a lot of shows. What motivates you get up on stage as often as you do?

CP: I love to play guitar. I'll play no matter what - when no one wants me at the shows anymore, I'll play in the kitchen - when I get kicked out of the kitchen, you'll find me in the basement playing guitar.

Charlie will be back in the HoDo Lounge Thursday night at 9 p.m. There's a $3 cover for the show and it's 21+. You can listen to him here, via MySpace.

The One, The Only ... Charlie Parr

The rise of regional stalwart Charlie Parr should take no one by surprise. Charlie's faithful recreations of cherished blues and country sounds are exciting for both their historical value and their novelty to our modern ears.

While many may recreate sounds, Charlie also has the work ethic to back it up. Throughout the next two months he'll be in Utah, Colorado and down into Texas as the summer festival season heats up. He's a busy guy. Before heading out for all points south and west, Charlie will be checking in with us tonight in the HoDo Lounge at 8:30 p.m. There is a $3 cover for this show but, believe me, it's worth every penny. Come on down.

Foot Stompin' with Charlie Parr and the Johnson Family Band

"Hootenanny" is a term that gets thrown around so much, it's lost most of its meaning. But, really, it's the only word that accurately describes what will happen tonight at the HoDo Lounge. Charlie Parr and Fargo's own Johnson Family Band will each present their own lesson in revival Americana to the HoDo Lounge tonight. The music starts at 6 p.m. There is a $3 cover charge for Charlie Parr starting at 9 p.m. Both shows are 21+.