American Blues: An Interview with Levi Parham

Levi Parham is a songwriter from McAlester, Oklahoma and is playing at Atwood’s Tavern on Wednesday, June 1.

With two previous releases under his belt, he is set to release These American Blues on June 24. We took a few minutes to chat while Levi was on his way into D.C. after playing at Gypsy Sally’s the night before.

RLR: The single you’ve released, the title-track for These American Blues, is great. It seems to explore some territory about how as our world has become more digitally connected, our communities and relationships might seem farther apart. How do you think about making music in that backdrop?

Levi Parham: I don’t want to call it a fight; it’s an evolution and it’s where we’re at. It’s a hard growing pain for people who have been doing this for a long time, but it’s not as hard for guys like me, because I’m getting started. But for folks going into it, don’t fight it and be adaptable.

Because it’s a tough go, artists, as a community, are so tight. The artists I play with, we’re all scratching each other’s backs. It’s not a competition, it’s communal, it’s “if you win, I win.” And as far as fans go, I think there’s more investment in people’s locality. If you’re in Tulsa or Boston, you know the artists working hard in those places, and you’re supportive of them. Even Nashville’s not competitive, maybe because everybody’s from somewhere else.

RLR: There’s a shift in sound between your first two albums: “An Okie Opera” seems more blues-based than “Avalon Drive.” What are we in store with your forthcoming album “These American Blues”?

Levi Parham: Whenever look back I want to see growth: am I doing better, am I taking what I learned and applying it? I wish there was some bigger intent, but it was more of a game of what can I accomplish? With An Okie Opera, it was all done at home and it was an amateur recording. I’d never been in studio before Avalon Drive, so I wanted to get out of my own box. My manager produced the album; he’s a big pop guy, so it has more of that radio-friendly feel, which I like.

With These American Blues, I was literally teaching the guys in the band the song and we’d go through it a couple of times and hit record. So it was very organic. And If I pat myself on the back for anything, I picked the right guys. They are good friends who are amazing musicians. I knew the kind of tone they each had, and had an idea of what it would sound like when they played together.

This album isn’t even out, but I’m going back in the studio in September to do some demos for the next album. And I’m excited because I’ll be touring with the guys who played on These American Blues and that will impact the songwriting. When I’m solo, I’m fingerpicking, it’s more bluesy, and I anticipate getting to simplify the songwriting and leaving it open for the other people to fill in the space.

I really want to explore and keep growing because I think you can be rootsy and still be cutting edge. There’s this big wave of traditional music, and I love that, but I also really want to live in 2016.

RLR: I read an interview with you where you said that you were kind of thinking of a more “practical” career but that your parents’ encouragement helped you take the leap as a musician. Out of curiosity, what would you be doing do you think if you weren’t making music?

Levi Parham: Hopefully something that makes some money [laughs]. It took me til I was almost 29 and my family has been very encouraging. Like many other guys, I played around in my twenties, but I didn’t know what I was doing. I never really gave anything else a chance and in the back of my mind, this is what I wanted to do. My whole family are teachers, so maybe I’d be doing that.

I have a lot of friends back in Tulsa who are multi-talented. Wink Burcham is a singer/songwriter in Tulsa, who’ll probably not be famous until he’s dead. He could have been a pro golfer, but he’s a country boy. I cover his song “Chemical Train” on the new album. So I have these friends who have multiple talents but I don’t really know how to do anything else.

RLR: Fill in the blank: I used to think ____ and now I think _____.

Levi Parham: I used to think I wanted notoriety: that I wanted everyone to think I was a great songwriter. But now I think it’s less about you and more about the listener and the connection they’re making with their own life.

You think about a group of friends going to a concert and they’ve been planning it for months and years down the road, they’ll remember that night. So it has nothing to do with exalting that performer, and is more about exalting that experience. And that’s what makes me want to continue doing this.

Tickets for Levi’s show are here. Get out there, people, and make Levi feel at home while he’s here in Boston.