The ageless BluMeadows
Musician with a message
By Erin Coburn
Independent Intern

“I don’t like a lot of vulgar cussing, and I don’t do that ‘hey, baby baby’ stuff.”

For anyone who missed the opportunity to see Jimi Hendrix play live, they are, in a sense, being given a second chance.

This Thursday and Friday, BluMeadows, a Seattle resident who has been described by some as Hendrix reborn — not simply for being left-handed and playing a guitar strung upside-down — will perform at the Muse.

The music of BluMeadows has been described as a mix of various styles — Afro-Cuban, funk, hip-hop, reggae, rock calypso and everything in between. BluMeadows said his music is best described as “consciousness” music with a universal message.

“I like message-oriented music,” he said. “I don’t like a lot of vulgar cussing, and I don’t do that ‘hey, baby baby’ stuff.”

He taps every aspect of his heritage, which includes Choctaw, African and Welsh, and draws from every side of the musical world. “There are only two kinds of music: good music and that other stuff. And I’m into music, not just into one idiom,” he said.

Even though BluMeadows has become well-known for his Hendrix renditions, he said that is only a part of who he is as a musician. “I was big into everything I heard… Chuck Berry, Adrian Belew, Chet Atkins… I was just trying to soak everything in,” he said. “I didn’t eliminate anything.”

Born and raised in Iowa as Maurice Culpepper, BluMeadows said even that had an influence on him as a musician. “With the plains and flatlands, there are no mountains to hide behind, so you have to look at yourself.”

BluMeadows, who comes from a musical family, has been playing the guitar ever since he can remember. His mother played the piano, his father played the saxophone and his three older brothers played the guitar.

He would not say, however, how old he is. “I don’t acknowledge that. I just live. I feel like I’m from long ago and far away somewhere.”

He picked up the name BluMeadows from friends along the way, and he said it describes who he is. “It’s about being clear… water… cleansing,” BluMeadows said. He also has the name Looking-Bird, which is his Native American name.

But whether people call him BluMeadows or Looking-Bird or Maurice Culpepper is not as important as his music.

BluMeadows and Ben Crutcher, a Nantucket local who manages BluMeadows’ performance dates, said Hendrix is simply a springboard for BluMeadows to launch his own career. “I just take Hendrix and mix it up and fill it out,” BluMeadows said. “I have a lot of variety.”

Crutcher said he does not think that playing Hendrix will harm the reputation that BluMeadows creates for himself as an original, creative artist. “It’s almost paying homage as opposed to imitation. He doesn’t dress up as Hendrix; he just does a damn good job playing him,” Crutcher said. “The guy is a monster.”

BluMeadows also said it is not about imitation. “I’m not a Hendrix wannabe. I’m not really imitating another artist. It’s about musical appreciation.”

Crutcher has shown his confidence in BluMeadows by self-funding his concerts, describing it as an “independent, DIY-style” of promotion.

BluMeadows’ performances at the Muse may be marketed as a Hendrix tribute, but he will also play his own original music to expose listeners to what he has to offer as an artist.

Although BluMeadows has already gone international with his music, having spent January, February and the first part of March touring in France and Italy, he said he is coming to Nantucket because any opportunity to perform is a good opportunity.

Crutcher and BluMeadows are also working with a producer in Los Angeles to produce an album. Yet, BluMeadows says he is not interested in fame, glitz or glamour.

“I’m not trying to be another record company’s pet-project,” he said. “Sometimes being on those big labels is more of a curse than a blessing. It’s just about playing music. I’m not into all that glitter — I don’t sell out to what I feel inside.”