Born in Fargo, Jams With the Stars

By Tre Martinez
Contributing Writer

Grinding out earthy blues-rock since the age of 14, Shannon Curfman has taken a long, winding road to success and beyond. The Minneapolis-based Fargoan most recently found a place playing guitar and singing backup for WE Fest headliner Kid Rock. Here’s what Curfman had to say about record labels, Kid, jamming with legends and stars, and more in an HPR exclusive interview.

High Plains Reader: You’ve played with some big names before, but Kid Rock has to be, in terms of mainstream success, one of the biggest. How did this come about?

Shannon Curfman: Kid and I have known each other through a mutual friend for years. Marvin Young, which is Kid’s main co-writer as well as his guitar player, was my guitar player for years as well as my main co-writer; so before Marvin went to work for Bob [Ritchie, aka Kid Rock] he was working with me for about five years. Just recently, a few months ago, they called me and told me they thought they would be needing some help vocally and hiring a new background singer. They also said they would be hiring a new guitarist, a third guitarist, and I said, “Well, I could do both.” I would much prefer to play guitar and sing than just be singing. So I went to Detroit and hung out with them one day for one of their rehearsals, and that was it. We just wanted to see if we really dug each other, and everyone meshed. I’ve actually used a lot of his musicians on my recordings, as well, so it kind of was just a big reunion. We figured it couldn’t work out much better than this.

HPR: You’re going to be at WE Fest this year, with Kid. This area isn’t often that much of a tour stop, with the exception of the festivals. How does it feel to perform in this area, being a Fargo native?

SC: My parents have a lake place on Tamarac Lake and Leaf Lake as well, so DL is a place where we hung out all spring and summer and fall. A lot of years we were in Detroit Lakes more than we were in Fargo, when the weather was right [laughs]. It’s a huge thrill for me to be going there, especially for something like WE Fest; that’s been going on since I was little, so for me it’s nostalgic. I’m hoping to have at least a day there, before or after the show, to just hang out and go to Zorbaz; all the normal Detroit Lakes things.

HPR: A lot has been made of your solo beginnings. A major label release at 14 [“Loud Guitars, Big Suspicions” on Arista] is nothing to scoff at. With a little over a decade of time between now and then, what are your thoughts on that?

SC: Hindsight is definitely a blessing. I really couldn’t imagine it being any other way. I would’ve been absolutely miserable if my parents wouldn’t have let me do music. It was a really crazy time because my parents aren’t in the music industry. My dad works at Burlington Northern and my mom worked for the IRS. When all that happened it was sort of a snowball effect. This passion of mine became something so much bigger and such a huge part of our lives that we ended up moving to Minneapolis, so we were closer to a major airport; it was just a really crazy time. But I don’t know any different than that. I have kept in contact with a lot of the people I went to elementary school with, and some of the things that they talk about, like their high school days and their college days, I am so lost when they talk about things like that. I have no idea what they’re talking about! (Laughs) I have no way to relate to it, and that’s okay with me. And that’s okay with my friends, too. Like I said before, I couldn’t imagine not being supported during that time to do what I felt I was meant to be doing. I think I would’ve been absolutely crushed.

HPR: Jonny Lang has co-written some tracks on both your debut and your latest record, and played some on the former. Can we look forward to more collaboration between you two?

SC: I would love to. I just saw him play for the first time in years, actually. But we’re closer as families than we are as musicians. When I talk to Jonny and his wife, it’s always about the kids; it’s not really about music. I guess it’s kind of gone to the wayside to us, not intentionally. I’d love to do some more tracks with him, and some more writing. I’ve always wanted to cover this Stevie Wonder song called “Maybe Your Baby” with Jonny, so maybe there will be a time and a place where that makes sense for us to do it; whether it be for a movie, or one of our albums, or something like that. I absolutely love work with him, and I just adore him. He’s the best guy. Hopefully something will transpire for us musically, again.

HPR: What prompted you to start your own record label? Was it a difficult decision, or one that you were sure of when it happened?

SC: I started Purdy Records out of necessity. I had left Sony Records, I was on Epic for Sony, and it just wasn’t playing out as we had hoped. We didn’t have a president at our label for over a year. Therefore we had no one to report to, and during that time we sort of got lost in the shuffle. I also lost my A&R guy; he had left for another label. It was a really tough time for me at that particular label. Once we saw how everything was falling, it made sense to me at that point, starting my own label. Now I’ve had it for probably five years. Being an indie artist is really hard, it’s a lot of work. The work never stops, there’s always more that I could be doing and should be doing, but there’s just not enough hours in the day. I also have a family. It’s a lot to balance, but like I said it was necessary for me. I wasn’t as willing to play the major label game any more as I was getting older, and I wanted to start a family. That was something that was a priority for me. I knew that being on a major label and trying to balance my own personal life just wasn’t going to work. But now I’m the boss! (Laughs) It’s a lot easier this way.

HPR: Kid puts out quite a persona in his music. How true to life is it?

SC: It’s not a persona, that’s him! (Laughs) Kid does not put on an act. He’s very much himself. He’s a really, really, really hard worker; he’s one of the hardest workers in the business. He’s also a single father, and has raised a son by himself. He’s just—he’s his own person, man. He also likes to have a really great time. I don’t know how he does it all, but he successfully pulls it off.

HPR: The list of musicians that you’ve worked with is very impressive. Out of all of your astonishing collaborations, what were some of the more unforgettable? Did anyone make you stop and think “There’s no way I’m playing with _________ right now?”

SC: When I was younger, it didn’t really affect me; I didn’t get starstruck when I was younger, nor did I really understand that it wasn’t normal to be onstage with some of these legends. Back then, to me, it was just hanging out and playing with other musicians; and I loved it, I enjoyed it, but I didn’t really understand the magnitude of how legendary some of these people really were, or how big of an impact they have made on this Earth. Now that I’m older, I kind of get more of the perspective. Last night, for instance, I sang with Bon Jovi; we played “Turn the Page” by Bob Seger. We do this almost spooky, dark version of the song that we came up with at soundcheck yesterday, and on the third chorus, I literally forgot to sing the first line because I was so taken aback by everything. I had goosebumps, it was such a great, magical moment playing in front of—oh, God, I don’t even know how many people the Toronto [Rogers Centre] Stadium holds, I couldn’t imagine it was any less than fifty or sixty- thousand [the estimated capacity is fifty-five thousand]. It was amazing, that whole feeling comes over you and takes over. I’m really glad to have some more perspective now, because I appreciate my time with these people in a different way than I did when I was a teenager.

HPR: After this tour, what’s next?

SC: We’re planning for this tour to go into 2012, so at that point I’ll probably just take a few months off to be at home with my daughter. I’m not quitting my own music, I’m not really putting anything on hold except for my own touring. I’ll still continue to record and write. We have ample time of nothing to do on the bus, so I’m sure I’ll be doing a lot of writing. Once this [tour] is over, in 2012, I’m assuming I’ll just hang out with my daughter, write songs, and gear up for my own tour again. I’m sure at that point I’ll really have the bug to go and do my own thing while Bob’s recording his new record.

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Listen to this HPR Podcast Interview.

If You Go

What: Kid Rock set, WE Fest
Where: Soo Pass Ranch, Detroit Lakes
When: Fri, Aug 6, 10:45pm-12:15am
Info: 800.493.3378