Craig Morrison: ‘I go to concerts the way some people go to church’
“Through interviews with veteran musicians, I’ve discovered how they develop their personal style through performance,” says Craig Morrison, musician and part-time professor in Concordia's Department of Music. | photo by Linda Rutenberg
Professor by day, performer by night.
When he’s not in front of a classroom, teaching one of several popular music courses at Concordia — Rock and Roll and Its Roots, Black Music, Psychedelic Music, British Pop Music, Pop/ Soul and Its Roots, or Musical History Tour — Craig “Rockin’ Professor” Morrison can be found leading a band.
He’s living his research by playing live at concert halls, weddings, parties, nightclubs, radio stations, studios, gazebos, trains, synagogues, outdoor festivals, agricultural fairs, department stores, book stores, subways, private homes, and hospitals.
You can catch him at the 19th Annual Roots of Rock and Roll Concert on February 12 and 13 at the Oscar Peterson Concert Hall on Concordia’s Loyola Campus.
From his first guitar to a published book
Morrison’s passion for playing began exactly 50 years ago, when he bought his first guitar in his hometown of Victoria, BC. He had fallen in love with blues, jazz and rock music during live concerts. Soon after, he was playing coffee houses and becoming increasingly interested in the history of music.
Eventually, his curiosity translated into academic pursuit, with studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, York University in Toronto, and Concordia. Morrison’s research led to the definitive publication, Go Cat Go!: Rockabilly Music and Its Makers (University of Illinois Press, 1996).
“When it comes to rockabilly, you could say I wrote the book — and the Encyclopaedia Britannica entry to boot!” says Morrison, who is now known as a world expert on the musical style.
His fascination with musical styles continued into his PhD thesis, Psychedelic Music in San Francisco: Style, Context, and Evolution (2000), through Concordia’s Interdisciplinary Humanities program.
Craig Morrison rocks on | Photo by John Parsons
The power of performance
Through it all, live performances have driven Morrison’s teaching and research — as well as his own playing.
“Like lots of true music fans, I go to concerts the way some people go to church. But historically, the academic emphasis is always on the recording. I collect records and have thousands, and yet, when you talk to the people who experience the music — the fans — the live performance is often what has the most influence or is most memorable,” says Morrison.
Shifting the academic focus away from recordings, toward live performances and fan experiences has become one of the main thrusts in both his research and teaching. At a conference in Glasgow last fall, Morrison presented a paper entitled “Ethnomusicological Archaeology: Reflexive Concert Going From Satchmo to the Clash,” which contextualized a dozen concerts he had attended: Louis Armstrong (in 1967), Janis Joplin with Big Brother and the Holding Company (1968), the Grateful Dead (1970), Duke Ellington and Mance Lipscomb (both 1972), Captain Beefheart (1975), the Grand Ole Opry (1982), the Clash (1984), and Hawkwind (1991).
“Through interviews with veteran musicians, I’ve discovered how they develop their personal style through performance. And in the classroom, I assign homework that involves actually going out and listening to live music. Some people have never even been to a concert, so it can be an eye-opening assignment!”
Rockin’ Prof rocks on
Morrison is now gearing up for one of his favourite gigs: the Annual Roots of Rock and Roll Concert with his bands The Momentz and Vintage Wine plus numerous guests, including a three-piece horn section, at the Oscar Peterson Concert Hall.
Each year, the concert has a different theme, and this year’s is music from New Orleans, from Louis Armstrong to Fats Domino and beyond, covering dixieland, gospel, blues, rhythm and blues, and rock and roll.
“We did the first show in the series in 1998, and never looked back,” he says.
“It’s not just a celebration of rock and its roots, it’s also a showcase for Montreal's amazing music community. What’s more, it gives the audience the chance to see multiple generations of musicians playing onstage together.”
Attend the 19th annual Roots of Rock and Roll Concert: Blueberry Hill — Music from New Orleans and Louisiana, featuring Craig Morrison & The Momentz, Vintage Wine, and many special guests.
The show starts at 8 p.m. on Friday, February 12, and Saturday, February 13, at the Oscar Peterson Concert Hall on Concordia’s Loyola Campus (7141 Sherbrooke St. W.).