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Taken from Sentinel-Tribune (September 6, 2016)
6 questions with the legendary Little Axe
by VICTORIA DUGGER, Sentinel-Tribune Editor
Photo provided: Skip "Little Axe” McDonald |
The Black Swamp Arts Festival scored big when securing legendary Skip “Little Axe” McDonald to play on the main stage on Saturday.
In a career spanning more than four decades, the Dayton native has lent his musical talents to a wide variety of top artists, including James Brown, Afrika Bambaataa, Sinead O’Connor, Donna Summer, Force M.D.’s, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, and the Sugarhill Gang. McDonald also was part of the house band for the venerable Sugarhill Records. He is often associated with legendary producer Adrian Sherwood as well.
His body of work includes more than 300 credits on sound recordings, either as a solo artist, co-performer, or producer.
According to his website, the name “Little Axe” was drawn from Bob Marley’s “Small Axe” and gospel singer Willmer “Little Ax” Broadnax. McDonald has roots in gospel, doo wop, funk, blues, and hip hop, and R&B, just to name a few genres.
McDonald is no stranger to the Bowling Green area, having performed here during the Electric Guitar in Popular Culture Conference in 2015 and during The Blues, the Hines Farm Blues Club and 21st Century Blues Conference in February.
Based in the U.K., McDonald took the time to answer some questions for the Sentinel-Tribune ahead of his Black Swamp Arts Festival performance.
Q: Your musical styles have spanned a wide variety. Where do your musical loyalties lie today? How does your sound draw upon all of the styles you’ve mastered?
A. My loyalties lie with the fact that music is always renewing itself. In order to stay current you have to pay attention to any and everything that happens around you and hopefully it touches a wider audience. I hope my music is a combination of all the styles that I have attempted.
Q: I see you’re a native Ohioan. What inspired the title of your album, “Stone Cold Ohio?” What other influences from the Buckeye state do you draw upon?
A: The title “Stone Cold Ohio” comes from respect for where I came from. I am very proud to be from Ohio. My influences are vast, as Dayton, Ohio, was a music hub with a wide variety of musical styles. There are lots of bands from 1970-1990 that show this point.
Q: You’ve collaborated with an impressive and extensive list of people. If there was a dream lineup for you at a gig, who would that consist of?
A: There are so many people that I love to work with it makes this question impossible to answer.
Q: What do you like to listen to yourself? Are there current acts that you have in your listening rotation?
A: At the moment I am focused on my new album, so I am doing research. I am listening to blues from 1940-1960.
Q: What, if any, difference do you see in the scene in Europe as opposed to the scene in the United States?
A: What I see now is music as a whole all over the world is more and more in unison because of internet and online services.
Q: What songs are you particularly proud of or particularly excited to share with the audience?
A. Songs are like children. I am proud of them all.
Online: http://www.little-axe.com/
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