Songwriter with revolution in his soul

Waiting by the door of the Secor Studios was a tall, dark-haired young man wearing sunglasses with his guitar wrapped around his chest. His name is Lucian Townes, a Toledo area folk musician possessed by the ghosts of Bob Dylan and Townes Van Zandt.

Lucian Townes took me through the hallways of the studio building, which were covered with paintings and photographs. The door to his studio read, "The Late Great Lucian Townes."

His studio space was scattered with guitars, banjos, drums, pianos, microphones and bottles of whiskey to fuel those long nights of writing music.

"When I'm writing, I don't listen to music," Townes said. "And if I'm not writing, I'm always listening to music."

We talked about his process of songwriting, recording and playing around the Toledo area.

Townes began performing music when he was 18 at the coffee house formerly known as Brewed Awakenings and has since played all over Toledo, most prominently at Mickey Finn's and Woodchucks. Sometimes Townes is seen with a band playing behind him; however, his solitary presence accompanied by his wailing voice and finger-picking abilities are enough to move an expectant crowd of listeners.

"When everyone in the room is focused, when they're all dead silent, that's when you know you have a good song," he said.

Townes' songs are filled with lament, tragedy, longing and pain in the spirit of Delta Blues legend Robert Johnson's testimonies to the devil who bought his soul. In one of Townes' newer, untitled songs he sings, "Dirt flies off my jeans like an outlaw flees the scene. Well, a lifetime is a long time to run. The rope's around my neck but my feet are on the ground; I guess courage just isn't in my blood."

In Townes' song "Revolution Soul" he sings, "I don't have to change my name, but I might do it anyway. I've been acting strange ever since the moon's been full; Cause, brother, I've got revolution in my soul."

In total, Townes has recorded approximately 200 songs. Although he has never released an official album or EP, Townes' progress as a musician is not stifled. His ability to create as many songs as he has in the period of a few years is a testament to his ability as a singer/songwriter.

"That might be a downfall for me," he said. "When I write a song, I want to move on immediately. I know in my head what songs I want to keep in the future and refine. The style of my songs change all the time. Six months ago, I would write a song really quickly. Now, I have better structure in my songs."

When Townes began to play regularly to the public, he did not think that music would become his primary passion.

"I sit back and wonder how I learned guitar but I can't remember," he said. "It just grew. I think I've really found and strengthened my voice in the last year. Learning to sing and play guitar at the same time is an enlightening experience in itself; it's all about separating both sides of your brain."

Townes was never formally taught to sing or play guitar, but the pragmatic pleasure of his songs flow from his subjective style and mannerisms.

"When you teach yourself how to play music, you find your own style," he said.

When asked about his musical influences, Townes replied with a laugh, "Anything that makes me shake my can."

However, his acoustic style of picking and singing are obvious recreations of the early Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Johnny Cash.

During the interview, Townes was eager to play one of the most recent songs he wrote called "Paper War."

"I'll play it for you," he said. "It's pretty fuckin' cool."

He picked up his rustic guitar, decorated with a picture of a lasso-swinging cowgirl, plucked the strings one by one and sang the opening lines, "This man I know is fighting in a paper war; Where ‘In God We Trust' is on the money he pays the whore; The devil is a woman who didn't treat him right, so he's getting his fix on a Saturday night; This man I know is fighting in a paper war."

Townes' studio at the Secor Studios overlooks downtown Toledo.

Looking out the window with guitar in hand, he said, "I love this city, but it's a drag. But if you live anywhere your whole life, it's going to bring you down."

"Broken glass and broken dreams," he said.

Townes is a musician who believes in collaborating with other people and sharing creative energy.

"It makes you and your music more legit when you reach out," he said. "It's a way of being open-minded."

"Listen to what I have to say," he said. "Come up on the street and just talk to me. I'll change your mind if you let me open my voice."

—Lucian Townes and The Mahonies and JWC will be playing at Woodchucks on April 26 at 8 p.m. for a $3 cover charge.