rss
mobile
Feeds
Since childhood, Allan Harris had been intrigued by that mostly untold tale. So, he decided to tell it himself -- through music. The accomplished New York jazz vocalist dove into country music and created "Cross That River," a series of albums that chronicles an escaped slave who heads West and finds work as a cowboy. He also plans a musical and novel based on the narrative.
Harris performs at The Mall at Shelter Cove at 4 p.m. Saturday . He explains his switch into the Wild West.
Question. How did the idea for "Cross That River" come about?
Answer. It came about because my family had a 600-acre farm, and I'd spend my summers out there riding with people of color. Growing up watching Westerns I didn't see anyone depicted who looked like me, basically, aside from the porters or dishwashers. Years ago, I decided to write the story using strong black characters in the role of Western cowboy and it morphed into this song cycle. It's really taken over my life. It is an American story.
Q. Why is it that we really haven't heard these types of stories before?
A. I really don't know because a lot of those people who helped form the West were people of color. During the heyday of the Civil War, a lot of slave owners went west to set up camp and they took their slaves with them. It's a plus for my show because people walk away wanting to know more about it.
A large part of the formation of the West was because of white and black cowboys working together. The cattle or the horse doesn't care what color you are as long as you could ride. Ranchmen did take in runaway slaves. It was at a great risk to themselves. They didn't have time for prejudice. There was a need for beef in the East and they needed to get the job done.
Q. Coming from a jazz background, when you said you were doing country music, did people look at you a little funny?
A. You bet. But a lot of the musicians in the band are schooled in jazz. We bring the country form but also some elements of jazz into it. It gives it a really nice twist and eases the mind a bit of the people who may not like the phrase "country music."
Q. Was there a certain point when you decided to move forward on this project?
A. I did a few schools back in 2003, and I saw the apathy in the eyes of the children. I saw there wasn't much for them to grasp onto. The only thing they had in their mind was that there was slavery, and I'm embarrassed to go there. I wrote this to empower these children, black and white, to let them know that it's not just slave owners and slaves. There was a time back then when we all pulled
together.
