Cobb >> In 1979, the Fargo Brothers came together for the first time and they’ve been performing ever since. “As far as us staying together, that’s a miracle,” said songwriter and guitarist, Michael Adams. “Either something like that happens for a group, or it doesn’t.”
The band performs at the Village Pubb in Cobb tonight, March 28, at 8 p.m.
In the beginning the group went by a shorter name, but after a while they felt that their title was missing something important. “For us, we became brothers,” said Adams. “We actually were named ‘Fargo’ up until the point we played about 1,000 gigs and then we realized it was more than that, so we added the ‘Brothers.’ It’s a family at this point.”
Adams began the Fargo Brothers, or rather, Fargo, after his previous band came to an end. “It was a practically seamless evolution from a band called the Jodi West Band that I was a member of then several members disbanded,” he said. “So in order to keep the group going I started auditions and it’s something that stuck.”
The band members are Adams and bassist Russ Whitehead, who are original members of the group. Joost Vonk, drums, and Mojo Larry Platz, guitar, joined up with the Fargo Brothers after 1979, when Adams and Whitehead lost a few musicians. “I’m the songwriter, but each of the group, like the Beatles … they all have their part in the creation of the finished songs,” Adams said. “They’re a very creative bunch of guys.”
With only two of the four musicians living in Lake County — Adams is from Gernville and Whitehead lives down in Oakland — it may seem like rehearsal time is hard to come by, but Adams said they make it work. “We’re professionals and we all want it done, so we just make time,” he said. “It is a challenge but we manage to do it.”
Performing a combination of covers and originals, the Fargo Brothers don’t lack variety. “Being together this long we have a huge repertoire,” Adams said. “We can pull from a lot of different genres. The covers that we do a lot of time will fit the venue … If we have four hours we’ll rock them with a Beatles medley, a Tom Petty medley, it just goes on and on really.”
Whatever songs they choose, the band always plays with conviction. “What we try to do is – this is just a natural thing – we try to be the song, not just sing it,” Adams said. “Unless you own what you’re performing, it’s not authentic. And that helps us choose our material because you can’t really choose what you can’t own.”
Adams said the group is “heartfelt, high energy, Americana and rock with a bluesy edge.” Though he added that the best way to get a sense of the band is to make it to one of their shows. “The only way to describe us is to come out and see us, then you’ll see what the fuss is about,” he said.
Pros at their trade, Adams said the Fargo Brothers possess a great deal of versatility. “There’s bands that are club bands, that when you put them on a stage they still appear to be club bands,” he said. “When they put us on a concert stage, they’ll see a concert band. The guys definitely rise to occasions.”
The group’s shows flourish due to their love of performing. “For that moment in time, everything else fades away and I’m there in the moment really being alive,” Adams said. “It’s hard to describe, but I’m definitely a performer type of musician as opposed to a practice. I like to play for people … It’s exhilarating.”
Those who attend the Fargo Brothers show tonight should, “expect to be surprised,” Adams said. “It’s our harmonies that set us apart from other groups. We have very tightly arranged vocal harmonies … The thing to come and enjoy are vocal harmonies. They’ll hear things by the Beatles, by the Stones, ZZ Top, Tom Petty. We’ll be doing songs off my own album and other original tunes.”
The Fargo Brothers perform at 8 p.m. at the Village Pub in Cobb, 16365 Highway 175 and there is a $5 cover charge.
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
