photo provided by Jonathan Blackshire
Jonathan Blackshire
A singer-songwriter with five full-length albums to his name, Youngstown-based artist Jonathan Blackshire has written north of 100 original songs. Having contributed to the short film “I am Jane” and the web series “TeleviSean,” he’s a seasoned writer and multi-instrumentalist — whose songs often address social issues and direct action.
Blackshire, who was born in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, into a military family, has resided in several spots throughout the country and world — including Alabama, Maryland, Texas and Turkey. But for his material, he’s drawn observations predominantly from his time in Virginia.
“I’m not trying to be famous,” he says. “I just don’t want to be anonymous.”
Jim Ballard: How did you end up in Ohio?
Jonathan E. Blackshire: A girl, of course. I met my wife at a drum circle festival in Maryland in 2003, and the rest was history. She’s from Ohio, so here I am!
JB: What got you started in music?
JEB: I always liked jam bands like the Grateful Dead and Phish — loved the idea of playing music in the moment with other musicians. But in 2012, I had a friend, Christopher Reynolds, challenge a handful of songwriters, myself included, to write what he termed “songs of substance” — songs that had a topical point, story or social angle to them. At the time, the Occupy movement was pretty strong, so I visited several cities that had active Occupy groups. Each city gave me a different story, different angle and song, but the one that really captured me was Youngstown. Having come upon hard times earlier than most Rust Belt cities, they’d been at the recovery game quite a bit longer, so [they] had great urban and social programs. They were at a level of activism and commitment that I hadn’t seen before, so we stayed! Out of that came my second album, “Occupy Songs,” which somewhat set my course since then.
JB: You play fairly often. What’s your favorite venue?
JEB: My very favorite is Cedars [West End] in Youngstown. When I’m out this way in The 330, I especially love the Rialto [Theatre] in Kenmore. I also host an every-Thursday open stage in Youngstown’s North Side, called Open Stage at 204 — a really beautiful and intimate venue with great acoustics.
JB: What do you have coming up?
JEB: I’m partway through an album I’ve had in mind for a while, where I reinterpret old folk songs from multiple cultures going as far back as the 1600s. And, no surprise, many of them deal with workers’ rights, anti-fascism and social justice … all pertinent today. It’s sort of Woody Guthrie in action. Plus, you can dance to them!
photo by John Dorado
Jeff Varga
Cleveland native and Brooklyn, Ohio, resident Jeff Varga has left his musical signature in many places. Following high school, he moved to New York to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. There, Varga found himself learning everything from staging and lighting to sound — soon becoming involved with numerous musical groups. (Varga was even considered for a scrapped Scandinavian sitcom based on “Midnight Cowboy.”) He spent a five-year stretch touring the U.S. and Europe before returning to the Cleveland area, where he found himself playing up to 250 dates a year — and recording and releasing his music.
Jim Ballard: Tell me about your time in New York City.
Jeff Varga: Besides learning so much about theater and performing at the academy, I began to hone my writing and playing skills, playing in lots of coffeehouses and folk clubs, including the Gaslight [Cafe], Gerde’s Folk City and the Bitter End — all legendary places that hosted the likes of Bob Dylan, Peter, Paul and Mary, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott and Joan Baez — to name just a few. It was a great initiation and a wonderful experience!
JB: Did those artists inspire you and get you started?
JV: Pretty much. Back in that day, everyone would say, Have you heard the new Led Zeppelin album? And I’d be like, Check out this Jim Croce or Cat Stevens. I always loved the acoustic, more intimate songs and artists, especially those with something to say.
JB: What resonates with your audience?
JV: (Laughs.) You never know. I play a lot of wineries, so I wrote this light song called “A Little More Wine.” … People love it. I can be playing at a place where nobody knows me and [has] no idea I wrote it, and I get all kinds of applause and response from it.
JB: It’s your “Margaritaville”!
JV: Looks that way.
JB: What’s your joy of being a songwriter?
JV: I’ll tell you a little story. I was playing this noisy bar / restaurant a few years back. These two women came in and seated to have dinner. One kept turning around. ...When I took a break, she got up and came toward me. I thought, Oh, here we go. She came over and said, My sister and I stopped in here to have a nice quiet dinner and a glass of wine. We came from across the street where we were making arrangements for our mother’s funeral, and, when you started playing, you made our evening. Thank you! So, you never know.
Jeff Varga and Jonathan Blackshire perform, in addition to Jim Ballard, at Ballard’s monthly first Thursday songwriter series at the Rialto Theatre in Akron Dec. 5. Learn more at jimballard.net.
