Wednesday 19 Jun
 
 

Kanye West — Yeezus

Try as you might, but there’s no escaping Kanye West. Turn on the TV, radio, computer — hell, take a stroll downtown and you might see his mug projected on the side of a building. It’s an undeniable fact of life in 2013: Kanye West is bigger than Buddha, Krishna and The Beatles (today, anyway) and he’ll be the first to let you know about it.
06/18/2013 | Comments 0

John Moreland — In the Throes

With the soul of a poet and the look of a Sons of Anarchy extra, Tulsa’s John Moreland has been gifted the sort of gravely, booming voice that does Bruce Springsteen proud and a similar understanding of the universal human experience. It’s made for some fantastic records — both as a solo artist and with his dissolved Black Gold Band — and In the Throes is his best yet.
06/19/2013 | Comments 0

Jumpship Astronaut — Lights Burn Out

Oklahoma has never been the haven for electronic rock music that it is for country, folk and, as of late, psychedelic pop, but from the sound of Lights Burn Out, Oklahoma City upstart Jumpship Astronaut seems intent on changing that.
06/12/2013 | Comments 0

Various artists — Reaching Out

Like so many Oklahomans, the local music scene has responded with generosity and grace in the wake of last month’s tragedy in Moore. In the weeks since, droves of local musicians have banded together for benefit concerts and radio marathons to raise funds for the relief effort, and with extraordinary results.
06/04/2013 | Comments 0

Progress in Color — Get Well

It’s been a long, bumpy ride for Glenpool’s Progress in Color, which saw a record deal with Epic evaporate before even one record could come of it, but it’s led the outfit to where it was supposed to be.
06/04/2013 | Comments 0
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Music

Ware it’s at


Often a session player, guitarist Terry ‘Buffalo’ Ware takes center stage Sunday in a free concert for ‘Summer Breeze.’

Joshua Boydston July 20th, 2011  

Terry “Buffalo” Ware and The Shambles
7:30 p.m. Sunday
Lions Park
400 S. Flood, Norman
pasnorman.org, 307-9320
Free

Norman’s Terry “Buffalo” Ware is essentially a human jukebox. The veteran guitarist has toured with names like Ray Wylie Hubbard, Jimmy LaFave and John Fullbright, and has served as the leader for the Woody Guthrie Folk Festival’s backing band since its inception.

The catalog runs deep in this one.

“I don’t know how many songs I know, but I know it’s a lot,” said Ware, a veteran session player for acts coming through The Blue Door. “A lot of times, I play the gigs with someone just 15 minutes after I met them. You put on your big ears.”

To do what he does involves more than an expansive memory; the gut proves to be as fundamentally important.

“I’ve done it long enough that I can listen to what’s going on and can kind of hear what’s going to happen,” he said. “What you are doing is serving the song, whatever you can to add to it. There’s certainly an intuition involved.”

For all his talent, the instrumentalist is more than content to step back from the spotlight and quietly contributing his impeccable guitar playing for others. He’s the perfect role player, and most musicians familiar with Ware will tell you that.

“I do it well. I’m not bragging,” Ware said. “I just really enjoy it. I’m not the best singer in the world. Of course, I had the dreams of being a big rock star when I was younger, but I truly enjoy being a sideman, contributing what I can to what they are doing.”

Ware has indulged his inner front man with his work with The Shambles. Largely instrumentals with a base in surf and blues, their songs let him assume creative control while allowing his backups to shine. With a new album, they play a free show Sunday as part of the Performing Arts Studio’s “Summer Breeze” concert series.

“It’s a vehicle for me to play the things I’ve written, or songs that I just like to play,” he said. “I do it because I love that music. If I can keep recording it and playing it when I can ... that’s enough to keep me happy.”

On it is one of Ware’s favorite pieces he’s ever done. A longtime Jimmy Webb fan, he covered Webb’s “Skywriter.” An encounter with Webb at a recent Blue Door show gave him the opportunity to present the track to his hero.

“Long story short, he liked it,” Ware said. “He was nodding to the song over by the speakers, then looked over at one point and gave me a big smile and a thumbs-up. As far as career highlights, that’s about as big as I’ve had.”

 
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