By CM Gorey
Chuck Prophet & His Cumbia Shoes Tuesday 1/21 at The Jefferson Theater
For his latest record, Wake the Dead, singer-songwriter Chuck Prophet teamed up with cumbia band ¿Qiensave?. The result is a mix of Prophet’s alt-country rock blended with the Latin-rooted sounds of the Salinas, California-based group, in the umpteenth album of a man with more than two dozen records to his credit—if you include his early output with the band Green on Red. The association with his new backing band, currently on tour, raises a couple of questions.
First, why is it billed as Chuck Prophet & His Cumbia Shoes and not Chuck Prophet & ¿Qiensave?? The answer parallels the loose translation of the band’s Spanish wordplay name: Who knows? I can’t imagine that five guys appearing on stage every night across the country are hiding from some sinister element (big brimmed hats aside) and trying to work out a national tour undercover.
Is it repression from the top down? I’m not trying to insinuate that Prophet and his management are engaging in the worst kind of musical colonialism, as Prophet credits his all-consuming fascination with cumbia music as the inspiration for his ultimate remission from Stage 4 lymphoma. He’s even drawn a parallel of his exploration with The Clash’s interest in reggae. So while he’s got the band lending its talent to big tracks like “Jesus Was a Social Drinker” and “Ford Econoline,” in slightly retrofitted arrangements that make use of the percussionist, extra slide, and acoustic 12-string guitars, it’s weird that the band’s called Cumbia Shoes. Maybe it’s because the guys aren’t playing their own songs, but backing up a punk-rooted dude who found his way to their musical style. Semantics!
The set does flaunt a wide range of genres, with the overall thought, as I understand it, that the band’s rhythmic sound is pulled from the many hues of cumbia’s dance-focused tapestry. And that brings me to question number two: If the audience is supposed to get up and shake it, why is this a reserved seated show with the standing general admission areas confined to the periphery? Higher ticket prices? An elderly clientele? Because it’s on a Tuesday? It could be all of the above but really, I have to ask ¿Qiensave?. Best not to seek answers. Instead, allow two talented parties to take you wherever they plan to go—with whatever name they give you.
