The North Mississippi Allstars have just begun the initial leg of their 2011 tour campaign in support of Keys to the Kingdom, their first studio album since 2008. The vigorous work was inspired and produced in honor of the passing of their late father, legendary producer and musician, Jim Dickinson, featuring a dozen tracks of departure and despair. Still, there are few hints of that latter attribute as the overall arc of the piece seems to be more a celebratory ode to the passing of life, rather than remorseful—a fitting tribute to a man known as much for his deep soul as his lasting impact on the music scene.
Jambands.com sat down with guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Luther Dickinson en route to Colorado as the NMA trio headed into the western swing of their initial 2011 tour dates. Dickinson has been extraordinarily busy of late in between 2010 tours with the Black Crowes, his own band, and stints in New Orleans, his “second home,” with George Porter, Jr. and Johnny Vidacovich. Dickinson, like his late father, and his brother and band mate, Cody Dickinson, is an old school southern gentleman while being respectful yet honest in his continuing journey as one of the scene’s most inventive guitarists and songwriters. Never one to miss a courteous word or gesture, Dickinson is also well aware of the fine line between silence and communication and nuance and texture, as he chooses his words with candor, care, compassion, and, ultimately, friendliness.
RR: My father passed away a few years ago so I know how you feel to a certain degree. The new album, Keys to the Kingdom is centered on the memory of your father, Jim Dickinson, after his passing in 2009. I wanted to talk about the preparation and execution of the work on this album based on that poignant theme.
LD: Well, first off, I’m sorry to hear that, man. I’ve been meeting people on the road who have gone through the same thing, and I’m glad that it isn’t too personal to me, and that other people can relate, as well. Yeah, man, I mean, everyone —it’s the natural cycle of life. That’s the deal, you know? (laughter) Jesus…
But, I didn’t prepare. Fortunately, I was home a lot the summer of ’09 when he was ill. My wife was pregnant, and my dad was in the hospital for two or three months. It was just brutally real. It was the most intense life I’d ever experienced. I had plenty of time to prepare for the record. I wasn’t trying to write songs about the situation, but they just kept coming out. They came out so strong and quickly and powerfully, and I had never experienced anything like it. They just kept comin’.
I guess as a songwriter or as a musician, that’s how I deal. It was weird. Some of the songs just fell together, or I’d wake up and write the whole song first thing in the morning—not that I dreamed it; it was with me as I woke up. It was definitely the most satisfying songwriting cycle I had every been in, and the recording session was the same way. We cut all the music in six days; we did the whole record in two and a half to three weeks from top to bottom. We just kept it raw and honest. I also wanted it to sound as old-fashioned as possible. We used as few mikes as possible to try to get a real recording.
RR: I love how I can hear the sound of the room on the new record. I hear so little of that these days.
LD: Yeah, it’s a shame, man. (laughs) It’s a battle. Modern technology is alluring and seductive, but, man, you’ve got to keep it reined in.
RR: As I mentioned, you also managed to nail down a consistent theme throughout the record. There are so many themes of departure, whether it is the remorse over a lost one, or someone was being pushed away, or the longing to go somewhere else. Are the elements of wanderlust tied in with your life on the road, too?
LD: Definitely. Some of those are from my point of view, and some of those are written from my father’s point of view. Sometimes, the point of view changes within the song. Our father was really brave. Towards the end, he was very thankful for his life. I was very proud of him. He didn’t want to go, man. He fought for months and months, but I think he really fought for years. I think his health had been messed up for a long time. But when the time came, through my mother’s spiritual strength, he was able to make peace with himself through his gratitude. As he said it, his life was so amazing that there had to be someone to thank for it. I think at the very end he found his spiritual center that gave him a lot of strength.
Part of that is my life, too. I’m always leaving home. (laughs) I’m always on the road. There is definitely a sense of departure. It is also, I think, coming from my father, and other spiritual musicians that I’ve known that there is a celebratory side of the cycle, as well, like the old New Orleans funeral march.
RR: And you tapped into that vibe with “New Orleans Walkin’ Dead.”
LD: (laughs) That was one of the songs that I woke up and I heard the music in my head. I did a quick demo, and I sat down at wrote the whole story. I don’t know where that came from. Well, I do know. I spent a lot of time in New Orleans in the summer of 2010 playing with Johnny Vidacovich and George Porter. I love New Orleans; it’s like my second home for my wife and I. I don’t know; the lyrics just came out.
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