In 2014, it became the . Before that it was the Medford Jazz Festival. When it began in 1989 it was called the Medford Jazz Jubilee. They had eight bands perform that year, and the community exploded in a celebration that has continued for 27 years. Like the Redwood Coast Jazz Festivals in Eureka, CA, the Southern Oregon 老夫子传媒 Festival has evolved from the traditional, Dixieland jazz that was the foundation of the first fests, to include all forms of jazz, swing, blues, zydeco, R&B, rockabilly and funk.
SOMF lights up seven blocks of downtown Medford, as 15 bands provide over 100 hours of entertainment at five different venues.
From 2:00 pm Friday, Oct. 2 through 4:00 pm Sunday Oct. 4, The SOMF will light up seven blocks of downtown Medford, as 15 bands will provide over 100 hours of entertainment at five different venues. 95 sets of diverse music and dancing await, as preparations for the festivities gear up over the next few weeks.
Bishop Mayfield
When I moved to the Eureka area in 1983, I was impressed by the developing culture of the region. The variety of music was part of the picture, and one name that kept appearing in the entertainment listings was Bishop Mayfield. He was fronting a funk band at the time, regularly raising the roof all over Humboldt County. He鈥檚 in Central Point, Oregon now, leading a 10-piece band that will be appearing Friday Oct. 2, 9:30pm at KOBI, Studio C. I spoke to Bishop recently about music, and how music has informed his life.
Bishop was born in New York City, and first sang when he was five years old, at the grace Baptist Church in Harlem. Growing up a couple blocks from the Apollo Theater cemented his life in music, as he was able to hear, and meet, some of the greatest recording artists in history. 鈥淥ne of the first songs I loved was Ebb Tide, by Roy Hamilton,鈥� said Mayfield. 鈥淲e were seeing all kinds of music. The Platters, the Mills Brothers, Clyde McPhatter. Billy Eckstein鈥earl Baily was one of my favorites, and Ella Fitzgerald. Dinah Washington and Billie Holiday performed there often. You鈥檇 see these entertainers around town, and they were reachable back then. You鈥檇 go in a restaurant and they鈥檇 be sitting right there. You could sit down next to Dinah and have a cup of coffee with her.鈥� I asked him if this was a lingering part of the Harlem Renaissance. He said, 鈥淵ou know, it seems like there鈥檚 a Harlem Renaissance every few years, but there was something going on ALL the time, that鈥檚 for sure. We were fortunate enough to have them come to our schools!鈥�
Mayfield saw more than the greats of jazz and ensemble vocals at the Apollo. While he saw Little Richard, Chuck Berry and James Brown at the dawn of their careers, it was Jackie Wilson who provided a most vivid inspiration. 鈥淲hat a showman,鈥� said Mayfield, 鈥淒ressed to the nines, a great singer with sharp moves and steps. I loved him. The Motown revues were part of the picture as well, with great choreography and arrangements.鈥� We鈥檝e all enjoyed the virtuosity of the artists Bishop Mayfield got to see as a youth, but to see them live, in their heyday, imparted values of entertainment and respect. He told me, 鈥淏.B. King said to 鈥楾reat your audience like they鈥檙e family, like they were in your own living room,鈥� and a lot of that is lost now. Like shaking everybody鈥檚 hand at a venue, thanking everybody who came out to see him, you don鈥檛 see that in entertainment very much.鈥�
Bishop Mayfield鈥檚 had a long journey from Harlem. In 1978 he moved to Humboldt County to manage a band from Visalia, CA. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 leave for 30 years. I formed a band called Straight Shot with a great keyboardist, Charlie Thompson, and had the only funk band in Humboldt County. 鈥� For the Oct. 2 show in Medford, he鈥檒l be leading a 10-piece band, including a three-piece horn section with a trumpet, trombone and sax, and 2 female singers, 2 guitars, bass and drums. Drummer Denny Carmassi played with Ronnie Montrose and Oregon鈥檚 beloved band, Heart. One of the guitar players is Dave Storie, who also played a large role in the musical melting pot that was Humboldt county in the 80鈥檚, and continues to perform and collaborate with Mayfield.
An energetic and enthusiastic player, I remember Storie鈥檚 work behind the scenes as well as onstage. At one venue, the venerable Jambalaya Club in Arcata, musicians were endangered by a rotten floor and stage, and Storie assembled a crew of volunteers who rebuilt the crumbling structures, because nobody else was doing it. His perpetual smile is how I remember him from those days, and his laser focus on the music, playing as part of the song, unobtrusive yet vibrant.
The band will be performing originals, Otis Redding songs and Gospel music, starting at 9:30 pm Friday night at KOBI Studio C, the Festival鈥檚 premier dance venue, with a 1,200 square foot professional-grade, wood dance floor.
Giving Back
Having musicians visit area classrooms is a big aspect of the Southern Oregon 老夫子传媒 Festival. I spoke with Dennis Ramsden, the Executive Director of the Southern Oregon 老夫子传媒 Festival, and he outlined how they鈥檙e bringing music to the schools. 鈥淔or 26 years now, we鈥檝e been involved with bringing music to the students of 30 Rogue Valley elementary and middle schools,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e have bands split into a couple groups and visit the classrooms, performing the rudiments of traditional and contemporary American music. The students get involved, and so do the teachers, as the musicians get them performing songs and dances from the 60鈥檚 and 70鈥檚, with everybody having a great time.
This year, we鈥檝e got High Street, from Boise, Idaho, repeating their role from last year with the kids. They鈥檙e a Zoot Suit band; I think they have every color suit there is. And the kids just get so excited. Being a 10-piece band, they split up into a couple groups, and go out to the schools a week before the Festival.鈥� And the result? 鈥淥nce the kids become involved, they become better students. Learning the basics of music requires commitment, practice, and discipline. Statistics indicate that learning music gives the students benefits that carry over to other studies, and into the rest of their lives.鈥�
Ramsden also described a couple of new programs that have begun in the last few years; instrument donation and classroom music instruction.
鈥淭here are three components in the instrument donation program,鈥� he told me. 鈥淭he Festival, collecting used instruments from donors, the band instructors in the schools, and the repair shop. They鈥檙e like partners, networking to meet their needs and distributing instruments where they鈥檒l help the most. And we鈥檝e got people going out to Central Medford High, teaching guitar classes to disadvantaged kids. This has proven very successful. We also hold guitar classes at Jackson County Juvenile Detention Center. For many of these students, this is the first time they鈥檝e had anybody trust them, to give them a chance. And we鈥檝e already seen many lives turned around. If they maintain good grades and meet certain qualifications, they get to keep their guitars. We have limited scholarships for lessons.鈥� And while these programs just date back to 2011, the enthusiasm among all involved points to more music for more students.
Festival Marketing director Gwenne Wilcox added, 鈥淭he Festival is committed to including more diverse styles of music, as evidenced by the inclusion of performers such as Bishop Mayfield, Danny Maika and Leify Green, in an effort to attract a broader demographic audience. Our goal is to be able to offer Festival sponsored events throughout the year at our sponsored venues, which will help engage our community鈥檚 support for all live music in the area.鈥�
Bishop Mayfield remembers school in the 1950鈥檚. 鈥淲e had music in the schools, but we didn鈥檛 have a name for it,鈥� he says. I asked him if any 鈥渘ame鈥� players stopped by his classroom. 鈥淲ell, sure. Dinah Washington, Lionel Hampton, Roy Hamilton, Cab Calloway, Count Basie. They would play a little bit, tell you stuff to get you interested in learning to be a musician. They鈥檇 share their skills and their ideas, inspire you to know what it鈥檚 like being a musician.鈥�
The sharing continues the first weekend in October 鈥� a great local festival that has grown into an institution, feeding the soul of the community, gathering friends and family for the excitement and wonder of live music. It鈥檚 called the Southern Oregon 老夫子传媒 Festival!
Raised in Humboldt County, 鈥淕ood Rockin鈥� Derral鈥� Campbell has been programming blues music on the radio since 1986. Derral hosts Late Night Blues Saturdays from 10 pm to midnight on JPR鈥檚 Rhythm & News Service, from their Redding studio. He is also learning photography and plays saxophone in Redding鈥檚 Blues Rollers
