Why Cowboy Mouth plays an eclectic brand of music and how to see them in Massachusetts
Befitting a rock band from New Orleans, Cowboy Mouth’s music includes elements of practically every American music form, from blues to country, jazz to jambands, punk to funk, to various south of the border rhythmic accents. It has served them well for more than three decades and eleven albums.
Earlier this year Cowboy Mouth released a couple of singles, both of them exemplifying the quartet’s exuberant style and joie de vivre, “Mardi Gras State of Mind,” and “A Better Time.”
Cowboy Mouth is swinging through the area next week with three area dates. Thursday, Aug. 10, they’re headlining City Winery in Boston, and then moving onto the Narrows Center in Fall River on Friday night, Aug. 11. On Saturday, Aug. 12, they will be performing an outdoor set at the Bands for Badges Music Festival at the Cape Cod Fairgrounds.
(City Winery is located at 80 Beverly St. in Boston, the show begins at 8 p.m., and tickets are $25-$45, available through citywinery.com/boston, or call 617-933-8047 for more information.
Showtime, ticket prices: What to know about Cowboy Mouth's Fall River show at the Narrows Center
The Narrows Center is located at 16 Anawan St in Fall River, and the Friday show begins at 8 p.m., with tickets $35 in advance, $38 day of show, check narrowscenter.org or call 508-324-1926.
Cowboy Mouth playing a Bands for Badges Music Festival: Who is playing
The Bands for Badges Music Festival, a benefit for first responders’ support organizations, features music from seven different acts, from roughly 2-10 p.m. at the Cape Cod Fairgrounds, with former Creed singer Scott Stapp headlining, and local talent on the bill like The Aldous Collins Band, and Cape Cod songsmith Monica Rizzio. Cowboy Mouth expects to be on at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $40 for the festival, available through Eventbrite.com, or call 508-563-3200 for more information.)
Established in 1990: Who is plays in Cowboy Mouth
Cowboy Mouth got its start in 1990, named after a play written by Sam Shepard and rock goddess Patti Smith. After releasing a couple of independent albums on their own, the major label MCA signed them in 1996, and their “Are You With Me?” album yielded the hit single “Jenny Says.” The band toured relentlessly and developed a loyal fan base, but when 2000’s “Easy” album didn’t meet expected sales numbers, the label dropped them.
Cowboy Mouth has been persevering since, releasing their music on their own albums, while also earning a reputation as one of the most exciting concert draws in the country. Their most recent record was 2020’s “Open Wide,” a six-song EP recorded live.
Cowboy Mouth is notable in another way, as their frontman is drummer Fred LeBlanc, surely one of the most energetic lead singers in rock ‘n’ roll. LeBlanc perhaps supplied the best summation of the band’s intriguing sound when he offered “If the (New Orleans R&B legends) Neville Brothers and The Clash had a baby, it would be Cowboy Mouth.”
We caught up with LeBlanc as the band arrived in Memphis on the current tour, and asked if the two new singles indicated a new album in the works, or had changing times in the music world made shorter works, singles or EPs, a more effective route?
What songs is Cowboy Mouth known for
“I’m a pretty fervent music history student, and it’s always changing,” said LeBlanc. “We look back and a lot of popular music first came to people on 78 (rpm) records, yet there were no high-end record or music stores. You might buy a record at a hardware store or department store back then. Over the years the music economy grew and metastasized into something huge. But right now, music doesn’t have the hypnotic hold on popular culture it used to have. There’s so much of it, we’re inundated, from video games, social media, creating ‘content.’ Over the last 10 years, unless you’re The Beatles or Taylor Swift, releasing an album is not viewed as a big deal. It’s an emotional point of view for some of us, but you can release an album now and have it lost in the rush within two weeks. Singles seem to be the way to go right now, and perhaps we can compile them later for an album down the road.”
It used to be that touring helped record sales, but now releasing music serves to support touring, which is how most bands survive these days. Cowboy Mouth’s new singles hint at what exhilarating fun their concerts can be.
“They show what the band is capable of,” said LeBlanc, “and that we’re still vibrant. It is a difficult situation for mid-level bands like us, where you record an album to hopefully have an impact, as well as keep your fanbase happy. But we’ve always been a touring band first and foremost, and we’ve built a loyal fan base, which still seems to be expanding. We don’t limit ourselves, style-wise, and try to make music with a qualitative approach, and that seems to keep building our fanbase.”
Cowboy Mouth includes LeBlanc on drums and lead vocals, John Thomas Griffith on guitar and vocals, Brian Broussard on bass, and Frank Grocholski on rhythm guitar and vocals.
A not-so-welcome break
For any touring band, the pandemic was a not-so-welcome break, but Cowboy Mouth stayed busy.
“We don’t all live near to each other now, so the lockdown was largely not good,” LeBlanc chuckled. “I got to spend more time with my family – the first time I’d been off the road since the mid-80s. It gave us a great appreciation for how the fans support us. It was awkward, with me in New Orleans and John Thomas in California. We started doing online acoustic shows, every Friday for free, and my wife and I used it as an excuse to host a party at our home. It was great fun, and the response from our fans was very positive, so it was a memorable time.”
“We’ve got tons of new stuff in the pipeline for music,” LeBlanc added. “We could have another new single out by the time we get to Massachusetts, and we may do it live too. We have a pretty extensive songbook by now, but we always play a lot of the songs people know and love, like 'Jenny Says,’ and ‘How Do You Tell Someone?’ I never get tired of playing our hits.”
Delivering high energy
And one guarantee from a Cowboy Mouth show is that the quartet will deliver with energy and rock ’n’ roll heat.
“We try to put it all out there on stage,” LeBlanc noted. “I’m not saying it’s necessarily ‘Up With People’ or something like that, but I think everybody that hears our shows leaves feeling rejuvenated.”
We added one cultural side note, as Griffith was formerly a Red Rocker, with fellow New Orleans native Darren Hill, who now owns the fascinating POP Emporium (part museum/part antique store/part performance space) in Providence, Rhode Island. With all these shows so close, might the Cowboy Mouth guys divert for a trip to POP?
“I know Darren very well too,” said LeBlanc. “We’ve been friends for about 30 years, and we’ve heard about POP, but have never seen it. Now, you’ve got us thinking!”
Update on Suzanne McNeil and Fil Pacino's music and performances
Last week, Quincy’s Suzanne McNeil released her latest single, “Blurred Lines,” written and sung with South Shore singer/songwriter Dan Cody. The lyrics concern a failed romance – but is it really over? Recorded at Joe Clapp’s UltraSound Productions in Hanover, the tune is a bit different from McNeil’s usual folk-rock, with an alt-rock, or even prog-rock feel in its thickly textured guitars. The two singers alternate verses, and the words make you think, so thumbs up all around. Catch McNeil Sunday at 2 p.m. at Cabby Shack in Plymouth.
Elsewhere, Quincy’s Fil Pacino continues to be the "hardest working man in showbiz," but his Friday gig at Quincy’s Break Rock Brewing (2-5 p.m.) is really notable because it involves The Uplates, which is the name for the trio of Pacino and his two sons. See if dad is still the top dog. Or, catch Pacino in a duo setting with son Django, Monday and Tuesday at the Chatham Bars Inn.
Beach Boys coming to Cohasset: Live music this weekend in southern Massachusetts
Thursday, Aug. 3: Live music lineup
The Spire Center has a show with saxophonist Greg Abate and his quartet, and not only is he among New England’s premier jazz talents, he’s an actual professor of jazz at Rhode Island College.
The Beach Boys play all their hits at The South Shore Music Circus. 50 Cent’s supposed farewell tour at Xfinity Center. The Western-swinging Hot Club of Cowtown is at City Winery.
Granger Smith at the House of Blues. Sparta rocks Brighton Music Hall. Binki gets down at The Sinclair. Jabbering Trout’s folk harmonies at Club Passim. Crumb rocks The Paradise Rock Club.
Friday, Aug. 4: Live music lineup
Carlos Santana opens a two-night stand at MGM Music Hall. Country-pop sensation Jellyroll at Xfinity Center. New Kid Joey McIntire does a solo show at Cape Cod Melody Tent.
Don’t miss Hot Club of Cowtown at the Spire Center. The Hingham Launch has Studio Two the Beatles tribute. Quincy’s Ruth Gordon Ampitheater has a free Tribute to Ruth Gordon from 7-11 p.m.
Things to do: Free music, film series at Ruth Gordon Amphitheater in Quincy: What to know before you go
Turkish rockers Altin Gun take over Royale. Metal reigns when Havok and Toxic Holocaust invade Brighton Music Hall. The LaLas’ pop at the House of Blues. Soundcheck Studios has The Beach Bums, in a Beach Boys tribute.
The C-Note hosts a benefit, with tributes to The B-52s and Blondie. Extreme rocks Roadrunner, with Living Colour opening. Holly Near hosts comedy at City Winery.
Tore Up rocks Boston Harbor Distillery. Maine songsmith Slaid Cleaves has a new album to celebrate at Club Passim. Jesse Cook’s “rhythm and rumba” at the Narrows Center. Mellow Bravo heats up The Sinclair.
Saturday, Aug. 5: Live music lineup
Scituate Heritage Days offers free music all day, including Divas with a Twist at 4 p.m., and Brothers Doobie at 6 p.m. The Music Circus lights up with an ABBA tribute. Call Eileen Ivers a fiddler, or a violinist, but the Americana star is surely a riveting performer, at the Spire Center with her quintet.
The Mountain Goats land at The House of Blues. Foreigner rocks The Xfinity Center. Country star Tyler Childers is at The Leader Bank Pavilion, with Margo Price opening.
The legendary folk duo Novik and Van Duser returns to Club Passim. Smooth jazz with Spyro Gyra at City Winery. Night Train – a Guns N' Roses tribute – at Soundcheck Studios. Worth a trip to Cape Cod Melody Tent for Pink Martini’s swing, with China Forbes singing. The C-Note has Men in Motion.
Sunday night music and what's coming up this week
Sunday’s Scituate Heritage Days lineup includes Fat City at 1:30, Derek Lersch at 3:30, and Booty Vortex at 6 p.m. The ABBA tribute moves on to Cape Cod Melody Tent on Sunday, while Brighton Music Hall offers Afro-pop from Ghana with Stonebwoy.
Monday night, make room for the Glenn Miller Orchestra at the Spire Center. Tuesday is lit with Fantastic negrito at City Winery; while Coco Jones sings sweetly at The Paradise Rock Club. Wednesday’s free Project Arts concert in Plymouth has Cheap Voova rocking out. Folk star Patty Griffin has sold out her Aug. 10 show at The Narrows Center. Aug. 18 the band America returns to Memorial Hall in Plymouth.
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Cowboy Mouth playing live shows in Massachusetts in August: How to go
