Pokey LaFarge (born Andrew Heissler, June 26, 1983) is an American musician and singer-songwriter.

Early life

Pokey LaFarge Square Room Knoxville TN April 2010

LaFarge was born Andrew Heissler in Bloomington, Illinois. The nickname "Pokey" was coined by his mother, who would scold him to hurry when he was a child. LaFarge took an interest in history and literature during his childhood, and was greatly influenced by his grandfathers. One was a member of the St. Louis Banjo Club who gave him his first guitar and tenor

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

. The other, an amateur historian, taught him about the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In his early teens, he discovered an appreciation for older blues musicians like

Skip James Nehemiah Curtis "Skip" James (June 9, 1902October 3, 1969) was an American Delta blues singer, guitarist, pianist and songwriter. AllMusic stated: "Coupling an oddball guitar tuning set against eerie, falsetto vocals, James' early recordings ...

, Robert Wilkins, and Sleepy John Estes. After hearing

Bill Monroe William Smith Monroe ( ; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre takes its n ...

at age 16, LaFarge traded the guitar his grandfather had given him for a

mandolin A mandolin (, ; literally "small mandola") is a Chordophone, stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally Plucked string instrument, plucked with a plectrum, pick. It most commonly has four Course (music), courses of doubled St ...

. He adopted the name "Pokey LaFarge" because it sounded like what he was looking for musically during the time he was moving around the country. After graduating from University High School in 2001, at the age of seventeen he hitchhiked to the west coast and earned a living as a busker on streets, sidewalks, and pedestrian malls. He met Ryan Koenig and Joey Glynn of the St. Louis band The Rum Drum Ramblers while he was playing on a street in Asheville, North Carolina. Koenig and Glynn began playing with LaFarge in 2008, and the addition of Adam Hoskins in 2009 resulted in the formation of the South City Three.

Career

LaFarge independently released his first album, ''Marmalade'', in 2006. During the same year, he toured with The Hackensaw Boys. His second solo album, ''Beat, Move & Shake'', was released in 2008 by Big Muddy Records. ''Riverboat Soul'', the first album with The South City Three, was recorded in July 2009 at the Nashville studio of producer Phil Harris using vintage instruments and electronics. It was released in 2010 by Free Dirt Records and won the Independent Music Award for Best Americana Album. The group's second album, ''Middle of Everywhere'', won the same award in 2011. The band released ''Chittlin' Cookin' Time in Cheatham County'' produced by

Jack White John Anthony White (; born July 9, 1975) is an American musician who achieved international fame as the guitarist and lead singer of the rock duo the White Stripes. As the White Stripes disbanded, he sought success with his solo career, subse ...

for his label Third Man Records. White asked the band to collaborate with him on the song "I Guess I Should Go to Sleep" for his album ''

Blunderbuss The blunderbuss is a 17th- to mid-19th-century firearm with a short, large caliber Gun barrel, barrel. It is commonly flared at the muzzle (firearms), muzzle to help aid in the loading of Lead shot, shot and other projectiles of relevant quantity ...

'', followed by opening for him on tour. In 2013, LaFarge signed with Third Man Records and released his first album on the label, the eponymously titled ''Pokey LaFarge'', accompanied by a larger band that included Chloe Feoranzo, Matthew Meyer, and T.J. Muller. During the next year, he signed with

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts, by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by A ...

and released ''Something in the Water'' in April 2015. In 2017 his album ''Manic Revelations'' was released on Rounder Records. On January 22, 2020 LaFarge announced the release of a new album called ''Rock Bottom Rhapsody'' which was released on April 10 on the New West label. LaFarge released his seventh studio album, ''In the Blossom of Their Shade'', on October 15, 2021. On February 13, 2024, LaFarge announced the release of a new album called ''Rhumba Country'' to be released on May 10, 2024, on the New West label.

Appearances

*The group was featured by NPR on the ''Tiny Desk Concert'' series in 2011. *LaFarge wrote a song for the soundtrack of ''Brick By Chance and Fortune'', a documentary directed by friend of the band, Bill Streeter, released in 2011. * LaFarge and the members of the South City Three played on "I Guess I Should Go To Sleep", a track from

's album ''

'' released on April 24, 2012. * On September 23, 2012, LaFarge contributed to the soundtrack of

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

's '' Boardwalk Empire'' with his rendition of the pop standard "Lovesick Blues". The song was featured in the last scene and end credits of the episode "Spaghetti & Coffee" * LaFarge collaborated with JD McPherson on a rendition of country legend Bob Wills' "Good Old Oklahoma", released on June 28, 2013. All of the proceeds from the track go to the Oklahoma City Community Fund's Tornado Relief endowment. * Pokey & The South City Three recorded Jack White's track "Red's Theater of The Absurd" which appeared in ''

The Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in a ...

''s original score. The film was released on July 3, 2013 and the band made a brief appearance in the film. * The band played on episode 136 of ''The

Marty Stuart John Marty Stuart (born September 30, 1958) is an American country music, country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter, and musician. Active since 1968, Stuart initially toured with Lester Flatt, and then in Johnny Cash's road band before be ...

Show''. * The band appeared in the documentary film ''

The American Epic Sessions ''The American Epic Sessions'' is a documentary film in which an engineer restores the fabled long-lost first electrical sound recording system from 1925, and twenty contemporary artists pay tribute to the momentous machine by attempting to recor ...

'' directed by Bernard MacMahon and recorded " St. Louis Blues" on the first electrical sound recording system from the 1920s. The film premiered June 6, 2017. *The band appeared on '' Conan'' on August 17, 2017 and performed "Better Man Than Me" *He appeared as "Hank Snow" in the 2017 – 2018 CMT Television Series "Sun Records" *He appeared as "Theodore" in the Netflix film '' The Devil All the Time'' and contributed to the soundtrack. *He appeared in the upcoming film '' O'Dessa''.

Musical style

The group is thought to be "artfully dodgy ambassadors for old-time music, presenting and representing the glories of hot swing, early jazz and ragtime blues" who have "made riverboat chic cool again."

Genre

His repertoire consists of a mix of Americana, early

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its Syncopation, syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers ...

for string instruments,

country blues Country blues (also folk blues, rural blues, backwoods blues, or downhome blues) is one of the earliest forms of blues music. The mainly solo vocal with acoustic fingerstyle guitar accompaniment developed in the rural Southern United States in t ...

Western swing Western swing, country jazz or smooth country is a subgenre of American country music that originated in the late 1920s in the West and South among the region's Western string bands. It is dance music, often with an up-tempo beat, which att ...

Vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

, and Appalachian folk.

Influences

Musicians that have influenced him include

Howlin' Wolf Chester Arthur Burnett (June 10, 1910January 10, 1976), better known by his stage name Howlin' Wolf, was an American blues singer, guitarist and harmonica player. He was at the forefront of transforming acoustic Delta blues into electric Chica ...

Jimmie Rodgers James Charles Rodgers ( – ) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who rose to popularity in the late 1920s. Widely regarded as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Country Music", he is best known for his di ...

, Milton Brown and the Musical Brownies, Modern Mountaineers, Sleepy John Estes, Henry Townsend, Frank Fairfield,

Fats Waller Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. A widely popular star ...

, Emmett Miller, Marc Bolan, Peter Lafarge, and Willie Dixon.

Personal life

LaFarge married singer Addie Hamilton in

Camden, Maine Camden is a town in Knox County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,232 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The population of the town more than triples during the summer months, due to tourists and summer residents. Camden is ...

on September 29, 2023.

Members

Current members

*Pokey LaFarge – lead vocals, guitar, guitjo (2006–present) *Andrea DeMarcus - bass, harmony vocals (2025–present) *Elizabeth Goodfellow - drums, harmony vocals (2025–present) *Erik Miron – guitar, trumpet (2022–present) *Hank Mehren – keyboard, organ (2022–present) *Addie Hamilton – harmony vocals (2021–present)

Former members

*Adam Hoskins – guitar (2009–2018) *Joey Glynn – upright bass (2008–2018) * Ryan Koenig – harmonica, washboard, guitar, guitjo, snare drum (2008–2018) *Matthew Meyer – drums (2014–2018) * Chloe Feoranzo – clarinet, saxophone (2013–2015) *Timothy Muller – trumpet, trombone (2013–2015) *Andrew Guterman – drums, harmony vocals (2021– 2025) *Kevin Carducci – bass, harmony vocals (2021– 2025)

Discography

Studio albums

* 2006: ''Marmalade'' (self-released) * 2008: ''Beat, Move, and Shake'' ( Big Muddy) * 2010: ''Riverboat Soul'' ( Free Dirt) * 2011: ''Middle of Everywhere'' (Free Dirt) * 2012: ''Live in Holland'' (Continental Song City) * 2013: ''Pokey LaFarge'' ( Third Man) * 2015: ''Something in the Water'' ( Rounder) * 2017: ''Manic Revelations'' (Rounder) * 2020: ''Rock Bottom Rhapsody'' (New West) (release date 4/10/20) * 2021: ''In the Blossom of Their Shade'' (New West) (released 10/15/2021) * 2024: '' Rhumba Country '' (New West) (released 5/10/24)

EPs and singles

* 2011: "'Chittlin' Cookin' Time in Cheatham County'" (Third Man) * 2013: "Central Time/St. Louis Crawl" (Third Man) * 2016: "Goodbye, Barcelona" b/w "Blue Morning Lullaby" (Rounder) * 2017: "Riot in the Streets" (Rounder)

Compilations and other appearances

* 2009: ''Face a Frowning World: An E.C. Ball Memorial Album'' (Track: "Poor Old Country Lad") * 2009: ''The White Belt'' (with Joe Manning) (Karate Body) * 2012: ''

''-

(Third Man) (Track "I Guess I Should Go To Sleep") * 2013: ''You Don't Know Me: Rediscovering Eddy Arnold ''-

Eddy Arnold Richard Edward Arnold (May 15, 1918 – May 8, 2008) was an American country music singer. He was a Nashville sound (country/popular music) innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the ''Billboard'' country music charts, second onl ...

(Plowboy) (Track: "Lovebug Itch") * 2013: '' Boardwalk Empire Soundtrack Volume 2'' (AVKCO) (Track "Lovesick Blues") * 2017: '' Music from The American Epic Sessions: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'' ( Lo-Max/ Columbia/ Third Man) (Tracks: " St. Louis Blues" & "Josephine")

Honors, distinctions, and awards

*2011 Independent Music Awards: ''Riverboat Soul'' – Best Americana Album *2012 Independent Music Awards: ''Middle of Everywhere'' – Best Americana Album *2014 U-High Alumni Hall of Fame: Inducted by University High School in

Normal, Illinois Normal is a town in McLean County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the town's population was 52,736. Normal is the smaller of two principal cities of the Bloomington–Normal metropolitan area, and is I ...

at the U-High Alumni Association Awards and Recognition Program on 26 September 2014 *2015 ''Something in the Water'' was named one of Peter Jones' Best Folk Albums of 2015 in the Folk Department of WTJU,

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

radio station. * 2017 Ameripolitan Music Awards Western Swing Male – Winner

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lafarge, Pokey 1983 births American male singer-songwriters American bluegrass musicians American country singer-songwriters American bluegrass music groups American street performers Singer-songwriters from Illinois People from Bloomington, Illinois People from Normal, Illinois Musicians from St. Louis Living people Singer-songwriters from Missouri 21st-century American singer-songwriters Country musicians from Illinois Country musicians from Missouri 21st-century American male singers Swing revival musicians Third Man Records artists Rounder Records artists Western swing performers