Downchild Blues Band - Canadian Blues

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Downchild Blues Band

Written by John Taylor

Quick - name three things that define Canada. Maple syrup? Okay. Hockey, of course. And then there's Downchild…

Together in one form or another for over 30 years now, the Downchild Blues Band has come to symbolize, not just the blues in Canada, but Canadian music itself. And any Canadian blues fan will instantly offer up their own story, their own encounter with the outfit that's come to be known as "Canada's Blues Band."

Much of Downchild's history is a matter of public record. It all started in the late sixties, a time when there literally weren't any blues bands in Canada. Co-founder Donnie Walsh, who along with his brother, the late Richard "Hock" Walsh, founded what's since become a Canadian institution, admits he didn't even dream of such longevity when the band started out.

"Our minds were on different things back then," he laughs. "We were quite young at the time, and we were thinking of things like writing songs, and girls… beer, and music… and girls! We were young and we were having a great time.

"But the music was the most important thing to me, playing blues music, because nobody around really played the style of blues that I learned from, which was the older Chicago and Texas style blues. So I was concentrating on that, trying to remain true to the way blues was at that time. We've evolved since, of course, but I think we've stayed true to that."

Asked if there's a specific accomplishment in his long and distinguished career that he's particularly proud of, Walsh replies, "My songwriting, and having other people acknowledge that and perform my songs. That would be one of the main things. And of course the other thing is going out and playing blues for my contemporaries, being appreciated and seeing people enjoying themselves, getting them to feel better when you're finished playing. Just getting them out of the funk of being blue, getting them dancing and having a great time. That's what it's all about, really."

Walsh is fully aware of the curious dichotomy involved in playing blues to banish the blues.

"It's basically music you play until you've gotten rid of the blues. Then you can set your guitar down and you're okay. It's kind of like the musical version of A.S.A. - you play it until your headache goes away!"

Among the many highlights - surely far too many for a detailed accounting - of a lengthy career, Walsh says, "Meeting James Cotton, being a friend of James Cotton, is one of the main things that influenced me. We're still friends, although we don't see each other that often. And I guess just playing new places, seeing new faces… we just played the Springing The Blues festival in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. Most of the people there had never seen the band or heard our music, but we started playing and the crowd went nuts, jumping and having a great time. It's really a thrill to know that you can start playing, and people will start tapping their toes, start jumping and dancing, and we can put a smile on their faces."

Asked whom he respects the most within the blues community, Walsh doesn't hesitate. "The hardest working guy I've ever seen was B. B. King. He had a mission, and he pretty much accomplished it. He managed to make the blues respectable."

"It's basically music you play until you've gotten rid of the blues. Then you can set your guitar down and you're okay. It's kind of like the musical version of A.S.A. - you play it until your headache goes away!"

Closer to home, he cites both Jack de Keyzer and The Sidemen as performers he admires.

Given Downchild's astonishing staying power, it should come as no surprise that there've been a few personnel changes over the years. Some estimates put the total number of musicians who've passed through the ranks at well over 130! But Walsh considers the current lineup among the best he's ever worked with.

"I think it's a great band. Everybody plays really well together, and they play really well period," he explains. "There's a gelling of the music; a lot of these guys have been in the band for a long time now, and you just get a real musical feel - it takes a while to get, and the better the musicians, the better they know the style of music, the less time it takes to get there. But it's a great feeling. When I write a new song, it takes so little time to get everybody to understand the concept of what I'm trying to say."

Downchild alumni include some who've gone on to greatness ("Kenny Neal was in the band for a while. He's gone on to a very successful career on his own. He was great then, and he's even greater now"), and some to whom fortune wasn't as kind. "Jane Vasey (who passed away in '82) was in the band for several years. She was really great because she had so much musical experience. When we'd go to rehearse things, if there was any question about anything, she'd always know the musical factor of the equation. She was also a great performer."

And, of course, there was Donnie's brother, the late Richard "Hock" Walsh. "He was a fabulous singer; he could sing the blues better than anybody I've ever heard. He had the timing, the phrasing, a fabulous voice… he was just great!"

Equally adept at both guitar and harmonica, Walsh claims he doesn't really prefer one over the other. "You do a song with guitar," he explains, "and then the next song calls for harmonica. You just do what's essential for the song at hand."

He does admit to exploring new sounds. "I'm starting to play a lot more slide guitar, and I think there'll be more of that on the next album."

That album, currently in the works, will feature many of Walsh's old friends. "James Cotton's already on there, and it looks like Kenny Neal's going to be on it, along with Colin James, Dan Aykroyd… hopefully Dutch Mason, and Gene Taylor - he was in the band for a while before The Fabulous Thunderbirds… it's a lot of fun, but a lot of work too. But I'm sure the end result will be pretty exciting."

Looking even further down the line, "There's a whole lot more to be done. I've never played outside North America, and that's something I'd like to do. I'm still looking forward to going and playing somewhere foreign," he laughs.

And there are still parts of North America to be conquered. "We've never toured the western United States," Donnie says. "There's been some interest, but it just takes so much money to get a band out there!"

The name Dan Aykroyd prompts questions regarding the Blues Brothers, whose covers of Walsh's songs made them famous. Many dismiss the act as little more than a novelty, but Walsh sees long term gain in it all.

"They did as much for the blues as anything I can remember, ever since it ceased to be just a race-record thing. They just blew it wide open, and helped to make a lot of people aware of the blues."

Yet while blues is widely regarded as a traditional form, Walsh resolutely maintains it's not about nostalgia. "Blues is definitely current. It's about day-to-day life. You can write a song about something that happened years ago, or about something that happened yesterday, or about something you think might happen tomorrow. It's just a matter of the way you present it musically."

And after all these years, all the miles, how does Walsh feel about touring and the life of a musician? "Touring's still fine," he says, "although when you get down to that point where you're driving nine hours a day, it can be tough. But we don't tour the way we used to. In the old days, we'd be on the road for 300 nights a year. I can't keep that up any more, and I doubt I'd still be here if I'd kept up that pace!" These days, says Walsh, "I can pick and choose to a point, and it's just a better thing. The hours on the road don't do you any good after a while."

Now dividing his time between Ontario and Florida, Walsh spends much of his spare time fishing.

"I like being on the water. I'm a water guy. I live on the lake up here, and on the ocean down south. It's something that's been with me all my life. I just like to be near the water."

The peaceful solitude of fishing seems an apt getaway for someone who's spent such a large part of his life on stage, making others very happy indeed in the process. Here's hoping they're biting, Donnie

The above can only begin to scratch the surface of the story of the Downchild Blues Band, and we can only hope that someday, someone will undertake a book. In the meantime a visit to Downchild's website at www.downchild.com is highly recommended!

Copyright 2003 John Taylor. Interview conducted by Baron Bedesky with Don Walsh.
Copyright 2002 - All photos Mako Funaska - Talkin' Blues Productions - www.talkinblues.com

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