Love the Blues? Time to Check Out Earl Nelson & the Company

Ryan Nelson, who goes by Earl on stage, might have made a deal with the Devil in exchange for his guitar chops in blues music. At least that's what Robert Johnson, who spawned the genre in the 1930s, did at the crossroads of highways 61 and 49 in Clarksdale, Mississippi — or so the legend goes.

“I’ve been in love with hill country blues music and Delta blues since I was eighteen and started to get into it,” Nelson says.

Originally from Kansas City, Nelson cut his teeth in Austin, Texas, where he worked as a bartender, barbecue pit master and welder for five years before moving to Golden in 2019 and forming his current group, Earl Nelson & the Company. “A lot of my time was spent as a musician doing side gigs,” he recalls of his Austin days, adding that he primarily played with a sludgier blues band called Mountain Rag down there.

His biggest musical takeaway from his time in Texas was a penchant for writing about workers’ rights and developing an everyman, blue-collar ethos. “My time as a welder is what formed a lot of my opinions on unions and labor rights, especially having to work in the 110-degree Austin summers,” Nelson explains, while pointing to such inspirations as Rage Against the Machine and Woody Guthrie.

“My overarching message through all my music is workers’ rights. Not every song is based on workers' rights, but Rage Against the Machine is one of my favorite lyrical bands, as well as Woody Guthrie,” he continues. “I really try to write about class struggle and stuff like that. Stuff that anybody can relate to, no matter what job you’re in.”

“Join the Union, Today!” is the best example of Nelson’s love for the working class, which is from the 2022 EP The New Square Deal, a reference to Theodore Roosevelt’s Square Deal approach to the co-existence of big business and labor unions in the early 1900s.
Earl Nelson & the Company are set to share a new EP, Drinkin’ Muddy Water, on Wednesday, May 22. The five-piece — which also includes Steven Huntley (lead guitar), Will Scherman (bass), Greyson Medina (banjo) and Andrew Gordon (drums) — is playing a release show on Saturday, May 25, at Globe Hall, with Gilded Lillies and Jack Cloonan.

The blues are synonymous with conveying the plight of the people, particularly oppressed communities such as Black America. Nelson and his bandmates believe the new material reflects that sound more than anything they’ve put out before. “Musicians around here are typically country or bluegrass. You write music and they play it along with you as best they know, but usually that comes out more country and bluegrass-y,” Nelson shares, adding, “That’s usually what I’ve dealt with in the past with my own stuff, which I still love.”

“This one I wanted to focus more on really hitting the roots of hill country blues and pay homage to it and align the songs more so with that sound as much as possible,” he continues. “I think we captured it on a couple songs. Some of it still comes out more country. But we are mainly white players playing this genre, so it’s going to come out a little more country. We’re mainly from the Midwest, as well.”

The previously released single “Haunted” showcases an acoustic Americana twang, while the new song “Forty Acres Forgiven” is more blues rock, thanks to Nelson’s gruff vocals and silky slide guitar. The EP title is an homage to an old blues saying and song, too. Over the years, Lou Rawls, Johnnie Taylor and the Yardbirds have all shared renditions of the tune.

“‘Drinking Muddy Water’ comes from the first part of a very common blues song and saying, ‘Drinking muddy water out of a hollow log.’ That’s a longtime folksy blues song,” Nelson explains. “Drinking Muddy Water is more of a reference to we’re trying to home in and get back to playing these hill country blues. We've stepped outside and done country stuff and funkier stuff, so we’re homing in back to the blues.”

Earl Nelson & the Company aim to bring that old-school juke joint vibe to shows, as well. Before starting the band, Nelson was more of a singer-songwriter, which he still does on the side, but he wanted to liven things up a bit, so he recruited the current cast of players.

“I think we’re an incredible live band. We’re made to be a band for people to enjoy their time at a show,” he says. “I’ve swayed away from singer-songwriter-type of deals because I like people to get up and dance. I like people to groove and have fun at a show. That’s the most important thing.

“That’s why I have a full band with me,” he concludes. “Huntley can kill any solo. We have a great rhythm section that creates bounce and groove. Overall, we take pride in being a really fun live band to go out and see.”

Devil be damned.

Earl Nelson & the Company, 7 p.m. Saturday, May 25, Globe Hall, 4483 Logan Street. Tickets are $17.