Bill Sims' Heritage Blues Orchestra to Tour Europe

LOOKING BACK -Originally published April 20, 2015

Raised in Marion, Ohio, Bill Sims, Jr. comes from a family that emphasized religion and music--the blues and gospel. Bill was a quick learner. By age 4, he was picking out tunes on an old piano in the living room. Throughout his school years, Bill learned to play several instruments and explored several musical genres. Bandmate and Harding High classmate Randy Baker remembers "Bill played keyboards and was an obvious talent even back then. During rehearsals, he played bits by Thelonious Monk and other jazz titans in between the soul and rhythm and blues stuff."

After attending Marion Harding High and Ohio State University, Bill continued playing music. In the early 1970s, Bill joined the Four Mints, the popular Columbus group that recorded several soulful sides for Bill Moss' Capsoul Records.

THE MUSICIANS

Sims' current group is the Heritage Blues Orchestra. Its seeds were planted during a 2009 residency Sims held in Paris France. There, Sims met and worked with Bruno Wilhelm, a talented saxophonist who now writes the horn arrangements and performs with the group.

Along with Bill Sims, the Orchestra consists of Sims' daughter Chaney Sims (vocals), Junior Mack (vocals and guitar), Kenny Smith (drums and percussion), and Vincent Bucher (harmonica). At some concerts, these musicians perform as a quintet. At other concerts, the full orchestra - the quintet plus a four-piece horn section led by Bruno Wilhelm - play.

Heritage Blues Orchestra quintet on tour in Paris, France. From left: Kenny Smith (drummer), Vincent Bucher (harmonica), and the core founding members Junior Mack, Chaney Sims, and Bill Sims, Jr.

The members of the group are talented musicians in their own right. Chaney Sims has performed with Keb' Mo', the innovative drummer Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, and singer and civil rights activist Odetta. Earlier this year, Chaney presented songs of the civil rights era in "An Evening of Freedom Songs with Chaney Sims and friends."

Guitarist Junior Mack has always cited the Allman Brothers Band as one of his major influences. So Mack realized a dream when he joined the Jasssz Band, formed by "Jaime" Johanson, drummer and a founding member of the Allman Brothers. The Jasssz' album, Renaissance Man, includes originals and classics. One of many highlights is the group's innovative reworking of the Allmans' classic, "Melissa," as a bossa nova.

Vincent Bucher has played harmonica with many world and African musicians. His experience with African music, Sims believes, allows "Vincent to explore the connection between African music and the blues."  

In taking up drums, Kenny Smith is following a family tradition.  His father, Willie Smith, was the drummer for Muddy Waters' band beginning in the 1960s until 1980. Sims counts versatility as one of Smith's strength: "Kenny is at home in whatever the genre of music he's asked to perform. . .. You can't go wrong with Kenny Smith on drums." 

Beginning March 20, the Heritage Blues Orchestra begins a two-month tour of U.S. and European concerts. A concert in Augusta, Georgia, is the first of 12 performances in America.  Beginning May 1, the group starts the European portion of the tour, playing concerts in Holland, Scotland, and England.

Sims stresses that storytelling is an important part of a Heritage Blues Orchestra performance. "The blues comes from an oral tradition," he said. “[Our concerts] tell the story of the African American experience through the blues in all its forms from work songs, field hollers, gospel, and on. It's also a musical journey through places and time, from the Middle Passage to Clarksdale to New Orleans." The setlist won't vary a lot. The only changes depend on the length of the concert. The group plays a shorter time - 60 minutes or so, mostly during festivals when other groups are also performing. "No matter what," said Sims, "we end with "In The Morning". That's the closing number in a 60-minute concert. It's the encore in our longer performances." The number that precedes "In the Morning" is "Hard Times."

Since the full orchestra plays some of the shows, is it necessary before those shows to go over the arrangements and go through a full rehearsal? Sims said that wasn't the case. "Our arrangements are based on the vocals. The horns adjust. If we do need to rehearse, we go to a rehearsal hall the day before the concert. Often we just use a hotel room.”

THE RECORDINGS 

Released in 2012, the group's first record, And Still I Rise, garnered critical acclaim and was nominated for the 2013 Grammy Award for Best Blues Album. The review by American Roots UK notes that "this tremendous album just about covers the length and breadth of African American roots music. It’s almost as if they’ve taken the best artist in each of the styles covered and built a compilation album of modern versions of their work."

To Bill, the title of the first album And Still I Rise fits. "It expresses so well the African American experience as found in writers such as Langston Hughes and Maya Angelou." The title was partly inspired by Angelou's poem "Still I Rise."

The orchestra has started work on a follow-up record. We asked, "How's the new album coming along?" "We're looking for a release date sometime in late summer," Bill said. "We've played five songs on tour that we plan to include on the album. Those should be recorded fairly quickly." Even during the tour, the horns are recording at different studios in Europe.

Sims is also recording an album of Bob Dylan tunes with guest artists, among them Joan Osborne and Emmylou Harris. Sims mentioned that he'd recently recorded "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" with Emmylou, adding "I'm pleased with that one. It worked out really nice."

STAGE AND SCREEN

Sims has composed music for several theater productions. He won the OBIE award for best original compositions for the stage version of Lackawanna Blues. Sims performed his original music on stage every night. The HBO network adapted a television version of the play in 2005. Sims composed original music for two of August Wilson's plays Jitney and Seven Guitars.

A New York Times theater reviewer noted: "The rhythm of "Seven Guitars" is translated here into a natural flow, underscored by new music written by Bill Sims Jr. that makes this production an improvement on the Broadway version, which is something to say!"

Sims has worked in film as well, writing the music for Miss Ruby's House, performing on the American Gangster soundtrack (2007), and serving as a technical adviser on Cadillac Records (2008). There's also a good chance you've heard Bill Sims speaking on television. He's been the voice on several commercials.  

Bill and Karen Wilson and their children, Cicily and Chaney, were featured in An American Love Story, a 10-hour series that aired on PBS in 1999. The groundbreaking documentary, filmed over one and one-half years, provides an intimate look at the lives of this interracial family.  

LINCOLN CENTER EDUCATION

This year, the Heritage Blues Orchestra again participated in Arts in ED with the Lincoln Center programs. The group's in-school performances help New York City students understand the importance of storytelling in the blues as well as the influence of the blues on American music. 

Bill Sims, Jr. and Chaney Sims from their 2012-2013 tour. Video is courtesy of Larry Skoller.