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Quick Q and A with John Price (Jubilee Mule)
 by Kathy S-B  ·  26 February 2011

John Price is one of the founding members of the old time band, Jubilee Mule. His soulful voice and impeccable guitar riffs contribute to the organic sound of the band. As you’ll read below, Jubilee Mule truly mixes up their traditional music base with some quirky and memorable additions. For more information about Jubilee Mule, visit their website. This video is a good example of what the band does so well.

John Price
What is it about old-timey music that inspires and moves you the most?
Something about old time music resonates with me on a cellular level. I have my great grandfather’s banjo; I grew up in the south, and also spent a lot of time in Appalachia as a boy. It’s part of my cultural background as an American and I’ve been lucky enough to have learned a lot about the genre from bandmate, Tim Rowell and the rich old time community in Boston.
Your music background ranges from classical to gospel to pop to traditional. Do you feel that you’ve brought a little bit of all of these genres to your work with Jubilee Mule?
Yes, we’ve steeped ourselves in the old time tradition but have always also been seduced into playing pieces of pop songs like “Walk like an Egyptian” and “Mr. Spaceman” by the Byrds. Within the band, they are likely to keep it more old time, but other rogue elements, like myself, sometimes pull off a coup with an Appalachian tune or some Celtic or Bulgarian number.
I was interested to see that you actually toured with “Up with People” and did a number of USO tours too. What was that like? Any memorable experiences from that part of your life?
The USO dance tour was when I was still in high school. The guys were all dressed up like service men and the girls lindy hopped and jitter bugged with us to sing sing sing and stuff like that. Up with People was after that, and one of the highlights performance wise was doing the halftime show for Superbowl XX. The year in Up with People was one of the best experiences of my life.
Your day job as a business development manager for the Perkins School for the Blind takes you all over the world. Do you ever get the opportunity to make music while on your trips to far flung countries in the Middle East, Europe, Australia or wherever you are sent?
Yes, i usually travel with the mandolin because i can sling it on my back and go. Airports are great places for impromptu jam sessions and digeridu’s, kotos, and udes all sound great with old time.
Not many folkies cite Todd Rundgren as an influence. You know that I’m a major fan. So, tell me, what does Todd’s music mean to you?
Not everybody likes Todd Rundgren. When I first heard The Hermit of Monk Hollow album, I wanted to hear everything he’d ever written and recorded. The way he moves chords over a bass note, the feeling listening to or playing his songs gives me, and connecting with the lyrics, there’s a lot there to appreciate. I’m always interested in connecting with other Todd Rundgren fans at music parties. It’s like finding a long lost family member.

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