Beaucoup Blue, an acoustic duo made up of Adrian Mowry and his father, David Mowry, will perform at Mom & Pop’s Coffeehouse in Levittown, Pa., Jan. 27.
By: Matt Smith
It doesn’t seem odd to Adrian Mowry that he performs in a group with his father, David.
"For me, it’s not strange," says the younger Mr. Mowry, half of Philadelphia-based acoustic duo Beaucoup Blue, which performs at Mom & Pop’s Coffeehouse in Levittown, Pa., Jan 27. "I think some people kind of have a hard time grasping it because they picture themselves with their own fathers, and they can’t imagine it. I’ve grown up with it my whole life, with him being a musician and me listening to him perform on his own and with other musicians. It’s some of my earliest memories, and it’s also something I’ve always wanted to do… It made sense for us to try to get together and make music."
Beaucoup Blue just released its latest CD, Hearts at Home, featuring a mix of blues/roots originals by both Mowrys as well as choice covers such as Benny Goodman’s "Stompin’ at the Savoy" and Tony Joe White’s "Rainy Night in Georgia." Mr. Mowry says the make-up of the CD was semi-accidental.
"The only thing that we planned for this album was that it was just going to be the two of us and we were going to record the majority of it live," he says. "The songs come together. As we’re speaking about this album, we have more than half of another album ready to go. You have to live with the songs for a while before they’re ready to record."
Adrian Mowry plays six- and 12- string guitars and David Mowry handles six-string, slide and dobro guitars, and, of course, both men sing. At one time, Beaucoup Blue was a quartet, but the younger Mr. Mowry says he’s most comfortable with the current set-up.
"When you can do it all with a duo," he says, "it’s very rewarding to hold a room with two people."
Beaucoup Blue will perform at Mom & Pop’s Coffeehouse, United Christian Church, 8525 New Falls Road, Levittown, Pa., Jan. 27, 8 p.m. $10 suggested donation. For information, call (215) 547-1124. On the Web: www.momandpops.org