I love this story Sal told me: a young Brother Sal in the pew of a Black Church in Indiana. Wide eyes watching a Gospel singer in the pulpit, tugging on his father’s shirt sleeve to say, “I want to sing like that when I grow up.” Sal says his father laughed and said, “Good luck!”
I was there again Sunday night for the madhouse that descended on the Piano Bar to see Brother Sal and his band do their thing and I can honestly say I don’t think Sal needs any luck to sound like a gospel singer.
I had the pleasure of having a conversation with Sal after his Sunday night show and learned a little more about the man behind the piano. Warning - I wouldn’t try to do this while he’s at the piano, I’ve seen a couple drunk fans learn this the hard way.
Sal told me his father was in the Navy so while he was born in Norfolk, Virginia, he spent a large portion of his life in Naples, Italy with other sporadic years in places in the northeastern part of the U.S. - i.e. Jersey and Indiana.
At some point in the laundry list of cities he grew up in, I was expecting something like South Carolina, Georgia, or New Orleans but no southern cities were named, which prompted me to ask where he picked up that soul that drips from the piano every time he plays. He explained that he never lived in the south but his grandmother was his first piano teacher and taught him to play using gospel music. On top of that, he credits his parents as having discerning taste in music which he feels distinctly influences his sound today. His father, for example, loved “old, black women singers” on records, and his mother loved Motown and introduced him to his favorite band to this day, The Band.
Sal says he listened to music along the way and picked up on the things he liked and just kept them.
When I asked about what things he’s listening to, being inspired by, and potentially keeping these days Sal had lots to tell me about what he’s reading. First on his list is his re-read of Last of the Mohicans. He explained to me his fascination with the intense amount of history the United States has gone through in its relatively young 400 years of existence. Further, he talked to me about how inspiring he finds it when artists take the “terrible tragic places they [are/were] in” and make something beautiful out of it. Whether it’s the French and Indian War in Last of the Mohicans or the music of Hank Williams and Steven Foster (which he says are two of the first people he would pay to see perform if he could see anyone dead or alive).
I was also curious about his plan to return to The Hotel Cafe on Saturdays in June. What was special about this space when compared to other places he plays in LA? What I got was a list of names. Not in an icky LA name dropping way. Not even close. In a, “I’m Brother Sal. This is my Family Shield. And all of these people belong under and are protected by my Family Shield.” Overwhelmingly what came across in listening to Sal talk about The Hotel Cafe was how much the community felt like a family of artists all there to support each other and participate in the love of music. Sal told me The Hotel Cafe is where he met almost all of his best friends as well as where he met most of the musicians he’s played with.
For some artists the thought of a close-knit community of musicians might scare them away. But law of attraction works its magic again, for Sal is nothing if not one to cultivate a feeling of community and family. Watching him walk through the crowd at the Piano Bar is like watching the host at a family reunion walking around giving hugs to brothers, aunts, and distant cousins alike. I’m sure seeing him at his Hotel Cafe Home will be no different.
What speaks even louder about Sal than anything he can tell me is the way that his band mates talk about him. I hung out with these guys too and the deep rooted love each of them has for Sal is palpable. I haven’t known Sal for very long and have only had a few passing conversations with him, but I can see why these guys feel that way. Sal is a generous, kind soul and I am so happy to get to support an artist who cultivates love through his words, his actions, and his art.
Yes, at this point I’m going to sound like a groupie but I’m kind of okay with that. I’ll be at The Hotel Cafe this Saturday at midnight to see Sal and his band throw down for their first Saturday (June 4th) in their Saturday residency there in June. If anybody wants to buy me a gin martini while I’m dancing, I won’t complain. :)
Scenes On Sunset
Brother SAL | Myspace Music Videos
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