The sober knowledge of Atlanta musician Brandon Reeves’ blues

Brandon Reeves was inspired by country blues greats such as Robert Johnson and Mississippi John Hurt. (Photo by Andy Forbes)

Atlanta may be better known for its guitar-dominated, high-energy electric blues, but it’s also home to a quieter style of blues — one in which the musician, lyrics and instrument play equal parts in telling stories of shared experiences and hard-won wisdom. Brandon Reeves plays that type of music, and, while it may not be as flashy as that of his electric blues counterparts, its complexity and depth of insight make it every bit as entertaining.

Reeves primarily plays acoustic country folk blues, a style pioneered by people such as Robert Johnson, Mississippi John Hurt, Lightnin’ Hopkins and Elizabeth Cotten. This style of blues relies heavily on guitar fingerpicking, which allows for one person to create the full-bodied sound of a whole band. While there are several approaches to this style of playing, guitarists typically create a melody line not just by strumming but by plucking each note individually. At the same time, the thumb alternates between bass notes to establish harmony and rhythm. Harmonica may also be layered in to vary the melodic voice, while vocal syncopation, foot stomping or palm slapping can add rhythmic nuance and definition. Together, these and other techniques produce an intricacy of sound that belies the genre’s plainspoken lyrics.

Brandon Reeves. (Photo by Carl Smith)

It’s not an easy style to master, but Reeves has been perfecting his craft for more than 30 years. He first became inspired to learn after hearing recordings of Robert Johnson as a teen. “I couldn’t believe that it was just one guy. There’s so much going on, and it’s so complex,” he says. It takes patience and time to master the process. Reeves explains that when you’re learning it, “All you can do is just take a tiny little piece, slow it down and repeat it a billion times until it becomes more fluent, and you get to doing it without thinking about it.”

Reeves relies on that same steady, step-by-step process when writing his own music. He begins a new song by working out each part — chords, a melody and the bassline — then comes up with a title that seems to fit what the music is saying. Only then does he fill in the lyrics. He’s written dozens of songs this way, but it’s the tracks on his last two albums, There’s No Going Back and Putting Together Pieces, that have special meaning for him. That’s because those songs were written while he was getting sober.

Addiction crept up on Reeves. “I think most musicians probably need some kind of fake confidence or boost to push us to take those first couple of steps,” he says. “Alcohol gives you a sense of relief from being exposed to the world in a sense, you know?” But things slowly escalated, and he soon found himself drinking after shows and on his days off. When COVID-19 hit, and he was stuck in his home all day, he finally faced the fact that his drinking had become a problem. He sought help, and, while the road wasn’t easy, he’s been sober for over five years now.

“The songs on those two albums were me figuring out sobriety,” he says, “and a lot of those references are thinly veiled sober talk. Before that, I think I felt like I should write stuff that was more stereotypically blues-oriented. But with those two albums, my sobriety was pretty new, and you’re still trying to figure out how to do regular life stuff without going back to drinking. There’s a song called ‘Until it Takes a Hold.’ The chorus says, ‘Do what it takes until it takes a hold.’ That was something I needed to keep telling myself.” Other songs on the albums explore the importance of being kind, forgiving others and yourself, living simply, being authentic and just taking life a little at a time — the very wisdom that helped him get through to the other side.

From these experiences and others, Reeves found that honesty in music is the key to audience engagement. “If the song is truthful enough, it seems like that’s what’s going to reach the audience. The closer it is to being truthful, the closer it is to being a universal feeling that resonates with the listener,” he says. Accordingly, rather than playing a predetermined set list, he varies the set depending on what he’s feeling and how the audience is reacting. He calls some of his music “children’s songs for adults” and is often both surprised and pleased when people come up afterward to say that particular lyrics were exactly what they needed to hear that night.

It’s not just general audiences who appreciate Reeves’ work. Local legend Bill Sheffield describes him as a “brilliant musician and writer,” while internationally renowned blues master Tinsley Ellis calls him “a triple threat on guitar, vocals and songwriting” and “one of my favorite Atlanta artists to go see.”

But despite the high praise, Reeves never stops trying to grow as a musician. Along with a steady stream of performances, he’s also currently earning a jazz studies degree at Georgia State University. He hopes it will result in new directions for his music. And while he can’t predict just where his music will take him, there is one thing that he knows for sure: “I’m always just taking it one step, one day at a time,” he says. And whether it’s learning something new, creating, interacting with others or simply navigating life’s challenges, it’s advice worth taking to heart.

Find out more about Reeves and where he’s playing next at his website.