A Conversation with Cindy Cashdollar (continued)

PM: I think "Locust Grove" is such an amazing cut. I mean, it brought tears to my eyes. Then they just kept rolling, the whole rest of the song. That's amazing when an instrumental can do that.

CC: Oh, thank you. I get the same reaction from a lot of people, which really is, I think, the biggest compliment there is: that you can get a physical, emotional reaction out of somebody from a piece of music. But when I wrote it, I was feeling very emotional at the time, so I think it just kind of translated.

PM: Yeah, you really stuck it in there, really got it into the composition. It's just truly a testament to your abilities, not just as a player, but as a composer.

CC: I wish I wrote more. They come out like once every seven to ten years.

[laughter]

CC: I don't know why, it just happens. [laughs]

PM: It was an incredible experience that a song without words will do that to you. That's very rare.

CC: Thank you so much. I really appreciate that. And my friends back in Woodstock, a couple of them that I grew up with, they say they listen to that piece a lot, because it takes them back. We all used to play in those barns, too. We spent a lot of time in that setting for what that piece was written for, which was my grandparents' dairy farm. So it means a lot to them in different ways. But I guess it's just a sad piece--I felt so sad when I wrote it, and so I think that's why it seems to have the same effect on people when they hear it.

PM: Yeah. I've always been so turned on by the playing of Mike Auldridge. And the two pieces on Slide Show with him really swung incredibly. When did you and he first meet?

CC: I met Mike back when I was doing the bluegrass stuff, the little circuit with the John Herald Band.

PM: It was sad to see John's passing. When was it, last year?

CC: Oh, that was a huge shock. Very shocking, very sad, because I think nobody knew it was coming. I mean, there were a few that weren't surprised, but nobody could foresee it coming.

PM: Yeah.

CC: And it was really just a waste of a talent.

PM: Yeah, really sad. I was such a Greenbriar Boys fan. They were so great. But he was one of your first bands, right, John Herald?

CC: Yeah, like the first real band, I would say. Because I was in a little guitar trio when I moved from Woodstock to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. My first gig was in a little bar called The Button, right on the main drag across from the beach, for happy hour, for tips. And then when I came back to Woodstock, I was in an all-girl band called Whiskey For Breakfast.

PM: A pretty bold name for an all-girl band at the time.

CC: Wasn't it?

[laughter]

CC: And that was fun. And I think at that point, I'd just started playing dobro. And then I was in a couple of bluegrass bands around town, and then came John Herald. So that was first--John Herald was a first for me in a lot of ways. Touring, TV shows, just a lot of things we used to do--with many of the bluegrass festivals that would have us--because we were not a traditional bluegrass band. And that's where I would see Mike Auldridge. Although when I was learning how to play dobro, I would listen to Mike's records all the time.

PM: Just unbelievable records he's made.

CC: Oh, they're all good. Even his first ones, I think, are still classic recordings.

PM: Just wore them out.

CC: I think Blues and Bluegrass is my favorite. Yeah, they're pretty worn down, too. They're just about playable. I just always thought he was great. And he was really very nice and gracious to me when I would see him at the festivals, and so it was great to have him on the CD. And to sit down and get to play with him was--it didn't seem like it was actually happening.

PM: Yeah. And those tunes really jumped.

You've played a lot with one of my favorites, Redd Volkaert.

CC: Oh, he's great. We're playing today, actually.

PM: He's so explosive and so unpredictable.

CC: And I love it! And that's why I love it here. When I'm here I work with him about three nights of the week, four nights of the week. And it's great because you just never know what's going to come out of those hands.

PM: Yeah. What kind of a guy is he personally? And what's he like to play with, for you?

CC: He's just funny! He just makes a gig fun. I mean, he just makes me laugh all the time, and everybody else that's around him. And it comes out in his playing. He likes to get up there and have a good time.

And he's not afraid to try anything. We never rehearse, so we'll usually work out tunes like five minutes before the show. We just sit there and while we're plugging in, I just say, "Oh, here's a new song." And whatever it is, he'll pick it up immediately.

PM: How about Bill Kirchen, is he a buddy of yours?

CC: Yeah. I love Bill.

PM: He's an old California friend of mine.

CC: Wow! You should move here. [laughs]

PM: When I was interviewing Eliza Gilkyson recently, we were talking about people in town. She said, "Frank, you should move here." [laughs]

CC: Yeah, Austin is definitely a musical hotbed of a community. Every night of the week you can go out and hear all this great music, all different music. And it's amazing that in the same town, the same night, Bill Kirchen is playing in one place and Redd Volkaert is playing in another place.

PM: Yeah.

CC: Sometimes Bill will come and sit in with us. And I just did a couple of tracks for Bill's new CD. I had never worked with him in the studio before. And that was fun. We just had a great time.

PM: Oh, I got to cover that. Yeah, I'm remiss in not having covered that.      continue

print (pdf)     listen to clips      puremusic home