Wild Bill Jones

A staple character in the canon of American folk balladry, Wild Bill Jones is usually depicted as a dashing ne’er-do-well who seduces a young maiden only to succumb, with lethal consequences, to the wrathful scheming of a mysterious rival, which in some way constitutes the morality tale’s saving grace. In the hands of Aaron and Nicole Keim, a husband and wife duo collectively known as The Quiet American, the story of Wild Bill Jones is the starting point for a musical sequence encompassing folk ballads, hootenannies, gospel hymns, jug band tunes and minstrel rags.

The Keims are a kindly pair of acoustic roots adherents who some years ago retreated to the relative isolation of the Columbia River Gorge area in Oregon. When it comes to old-time music, my ears are more likely to be attracted by the darker, bluesier, sombre songs on the playlist. That’s why Wild Bill Jones enthralls me so. Played on ukulele, organ and frame drum, with bass accompaniment courtesy of Adam Selzer, ‘Gallows Pole’ captures the darkly menacing, yet no less enthralling, mood that permeates the album. ‘Give the Fiddler a Dram’ provides a completely different glimpse into the saga of Wild Bill and friends, as does ‘Free Little Bird’, a sweet little song which the Keims learned from Roscoe Holcombe. Wild Bill Jones can be enjoyed as an old-time audiobook of sorts, with each song-chapter contributing a separate but indispensible piece of a larger musical tome.