#smalltownband

I don’t actually have the words for this one. 

I have edited and rewritten this post six times because I felt like it came out all over the place and that’s simply because I have never been more excited to write anything in my life.

EDIT: Seven times.

I’m pretty sure you saw it coming though.

Over the weekend (this is actually going to be posted much further in advance so it’s probably not the weekend you’re thinking of...not that it’s really that important, try not to think about it), I had the pleasure of attending a small music festival in Holland’s Landing, Ontario that highlighted some local artists from Ontario, ranging from Toronto to Barrie.

As an individual who thinks local music festivals were much more personable and exciting, I was on the moon. However, there was one band in particular that had me sweating just waiting for them. And if you’re wondering, I was not disappointed. Not. One. Bit. Chills.

I had known of this band prior to seeing them at this show, I had known of them...and that is absolutely an understatement. I believe my Spotify “top artist” has changed since I did discover them a few years ago in 2019. I am so sorry for keeping them a secret for this long.

And whether it’s the extremely talented musician or the nostalgic elements of our favourite classic rock/blues bands, it almost seems like the musical stylings of Floral Park is almost so intoxicatingly addicting that it makes you want to cut your hair into crazy layers, wear thick eyeliner, get plaid flared jeans and get into a 1960′s Corvette, convertible of course, and drive down a wide open road with nothing but chunky sunglasses and an overbearing aura of wanderlust. Fun fact, Jimi Hendrix was gifted many convertible Corvette in the late 1960′s, another fact from my father.

I have no idea where to start.

Floral Park is a little village in Hampstead, New York. I actually had the pleasure of visiting Floral Park (the village) the last time I visited New York prior to the pandemic and interestingly enough, listening to Floral Park (the band) reminded me of the mornings I would visit River’s Cafe to grab my morning coffee or occasionally stop by Jack Duggan’s for a drink after a day of tiring tourist-like things. The character in this town is what I think reminds me so much of Floral Park’s (THE BAND) music. There’s so much life in the lyrics, the rhythm. It’s hard to find emotion like this in music nowadays, where lyrics are riddled with narcissistic materialism and fabricated confidence. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard a song that made me feel something.

That is...until I heard Backdoor Man.

If you know me, you’ll know that if I find a song I connect with, I will play that song so much until it makes everyone else want to push me into traffic on the New Jersey Turnpike and I can confidently say, I listen to Backdoor Man every single morning on my way to work, at least twice, to get me in the mood. Though it will not be the train train that takes me there, but what’s left of my 2010 C-Class (if you get that reference, I will buy you a chocolate bar).

When I first heard Backdoor Man, I couldn’t help but think it sounded like what I had heard as a kid. My father, the same guy who knows a bunch of Corvette facts, was a huge Jim Morrison fan. More than that, he was a fan of the blues. Which is why I had the lines “I eat more chicken than any man has ever seen” memorized by the time I started middle school; which may have made my sixth grade teacher slightly uncomfortable.

But if that line rings a bell to you, you must be familiar with the musical stylings of Mr. Willie Dixon who wrote, and introduced to the world, the concept of a Backdoor Man.

After Backdoor Man was written by Willie Dixon in 1960 and recorded by Howlin’ Wolf that same year, it was recorded by more artists down the line, including my dad’s favourite: The Doors (1967), Dudley Taft (2011) and Willie Dixon himself in 1983.

Blues music in general has proved to have a very sexy funk to it, however this specific song is far from innocent. It’s definitely not about two people having a nice feast of pork, beans and chicken that’s for sure. Since then, the “Backdoor Man” has become a protagonist to blues music and when you finally realize what it really means, it’ll make you cock your brow.

A “Backdoor Man” is a man that a woman cheats on her husband with; a man who sneaks through the back door while her husband is gone and/or asleep so he doesn’t get caught. And while having the roles of our modern day “side chick” quite literally reversed, it seems quite feministic but, I can assure you it’s far from it.  

For men, the “Backdoor Man” is all about power play; it gives them something to brag about. There’s this idea of choosing him over her husband that gives men a little bit of an ego boost: she’s not happy with her husband but she’ll risk getting caught to be with me. It gives him a level of importance which is why Dixon and Wolf are literally bragging about it in the song.

Hey, all you people that tryin' to sleep I'm out to make it with my midnight dream, yeah

He’s literally interrupting people’s sleep to let them know. Interestingly enough, the “Backdoor Man” is supposed to secret, so her husband doesn’t find out however, he’s bragging so loudly about it, it begs the question as to whether or not it’s really supposed to be a secret. What exactly are their intentions?

You men eat your dinner, eat your pork and beans I eat more chicken than any man ever seen, yeah, yeah

I find this line quite confusing. If we’re talking about “boasting,” wouldn’t it be the other way around? In the 60’s, pork was actually more expensive than chicken, running at 59 cents a pound whereas chicken ran at 29 cents. So, is there an underlying sexual meaning to this line or is it just a silly little lyric put in there to rhyme? I’ll leave that up to you.

How did we start talking about the price of meat?

Either way, my favourite line in Wolf’s recording is: “I’m a back door man.” Focus on the “I am;” like he’s not even trying to hide it! Better yet, it almost sounds like he’s proud of it. There is no shame in infidelity which says a lot about society in the 60’s, but that’s not what this is about. This power play is very evident right in this line that he keeps repeating over and over again; he is telling her that he is her back door man and there ain’t nothing she can do about it except eat chicken with him, I guess. I still don’t really know what’s going on in that line there.

Now here is where Floral Park really changes the game: not only does this super bluesy tune make us reminiscent of a lot of these renditions but, it’s the way that this “Backdoor Man” character is represented in modern day blues music.

Firstly, notice how our woman is being addressed: pretty lady, pretty baby, little darling. By addressing her with praise, they’re already giving her the upper hand in the power play. They’re taking the time to “woo” her. They want to make her feel good. And as a woman who doesn’t hear it enough, a little compliment will do that to you.

Secondly, there’s effort being made by this “Backdoor Man;” it’s not just a secretive affair:

Don't need no money or a diamond ring Well that's okay babe I'll still be your king

And:

600 miles that I drove tonight Now I got a rider that can treat me right

He drove 600 miles for her. How romantic.

Finally, the parallel to I’m a back door man, “I’ll be your back door man.”

The language is completely different. He’s giving her an offer rather than telling her how it’s going to be. This future tense offers us the idea that he was not a back door man but, is willing to be for her and though the second verse (and some of the third) follow into the theme of sexual insinuation, this male power play is eliminated through the way the lyrics are framed.

By framing the lyrics this way, they’ve made a modern, somewhat submissive version of a popular, cocky and confident blues character that has been made famous for always being in power; a way that they’re reinventing the norms and conventions within the blues genre. Not to mention the use of instruments: the electric guitar solo. Electric instruments in blues weren’t a thing until Mr. Walker made it a thing in the 30s.

Speaking of sexual insinuation, this is about to get a little NSFW.

We’ve made it clear that Mr. Dixon’s chicken, beans, and pork is very suggestive; which is kind of interesting because aren’t beans supposed to make you gassy? I wouldn’t know, I have IBS so I can’t really eat them anyways.  

Now I want to introduce you to a concept: Mr. Dixon’s little meat feast is Floral Park’s good ol’ boy stuff…and by that, I mean that trusty Corvette my dad has all these facts about. I’m talking about cars by the way.

Jazz and the blues have always been known for having some very sexual underlying themes. And if anyone disagrees, I will play them Shave ‘Em Dry and have this conversation afterwards. And while Floral Park isn’t as forward as Miss Lucille is, “Jump up and down and all around that thing” does get a nice imagine in your head, doesn’t it?

This automotive theme comes up quite a bit in the song. In the first verse, he says he “drove” six hundred miles, in the chorus he says he “has a rider” which sounds more like a bike, but you can always “ride along” in the passenger seat or the backseat, whatever has more room. Call it, “Backseat Man.” Badum, tss.

And you can’t even say I’m reaching here; we all know what happens in the backseat of many SUV’s.

Hey pretty baby you can shift my gear Yeah little darlin' you can even steer

Have any of you watched a 70’s movie and seen the hunky, 30 year old high schooler come out from under the car looking super dirty. See, ever since then, I’ve just associated cars, mechanics, shifts and gears with getting dirty. And I mean literally getting dirty. Not whatever this is. Get your mind out of the gutter.

I would also like to remind you what a gear stick looks very similar to. Now go ahead, shift his gear.

Floral Park takes the conventions of blues music and reinvents them in modern day society while making it clear that they are heavily influenced by our classic blues norms because they use some conventions, but not all. This makes them more appealing to today’s society, where giving power to women is sexy. And so is shifting gears and chicken and whatnot.

Now that I have put a very suggestive image in your head, or just made you very hungry, I will say this: Floral Park is gem to us Ontarians because they’re making music for Ontarians BY Ontarians. This band is from Newmarket, the same place I stole that hot sauce from the restaurant and got in trouble for it afterwards. Ah, memories.

But the best part, they make it very clear they are from Newmarket. Hence the name of their third EP, “Eagle Street,” which is a literal street in Newmarket, Ontario. This makes their music and detailed storytelling so reminiscent for us. 

There is literally a Floral Park song for every Ontarian experience.

Feeling homesick and wanting to hop on the first train back home? Train Train.

Feeling like leaving your dead-end desk job, hopping into your car and driving on a long winding road for hours just to get away from everyone and everything? Runaway Girl.

Feel like heading downtown on the 404, just to get drunk off the cheapest vodka, and walk down Queen Street for forty five minutes only to find a homeless man, offer him a slice of your pizza and talk about gender politics for two hours? Downtown Vibe.

Feel like you’re sick of getting heartbroken and want to put on your laciest, black undergarments, dark lipstick and leather boots and go get revenge on every man ever? Sticky Sweet.

Feel like driving down a dirt road, finding a random dive bar and getting up on the pool table to shake your bum and suddenly it’s last call, so you steal a cigarette from that one guy named Dave and Google the next closest bar to continue your night at? All Night Long.

Feel like watching the sunset from an Adirondack chair, while enjoying a weekend away with your friends at the cottage; drinking and laughing at old, nostalgic memories as the water peacefully crashes against the rocks?  Muskoka.

And I don’t really have to say anything about Rugged Lovin’.

Here’s the kicker: those are all memories I’ve made that I somehow connected to each song on each album. And that’s the beauty of Floral Park.

Their music and lyrics aren’t sickly manufactured by what society wants to hear, unlike other Toronto/Ontario artists. Their music is crafted from their own feelings, memories; the music that inspires them, the music they want to hear. This makes each album a story: a story of a guy named Fred, who heads downtown with his friends, finds a girl he is infatuated by (even though she’s taken), and starts feeling homesick being so far away from his small town and taking a long winding road back to where he belongs.