Papa T {Thanks, Ed Schrader}

Papa T (Tyrice A. Dixon) is a Baltimore troubadour in the truest sense of the phrase. You might have seen him on the corner of Charles and Preston, strumming pleasantly coarse blues and singing with an inflection that seems almost Jamaican.

Yet Papa T, 49, is Baltimore-born and raised, and he’s lived here most of his life. At age 8 he began to play guitar and drums, performing only for family and friends in his Federal Hill home. Things moved along quickly.

As he explains, “At the age of 11, I started doing ballroom concerts as a backup musician playing guitar and drums for R&B and soul bands.”

When you talk to Papa T, it’s almost therapeutic. He has a way of making even a construction-laden landscape seem placid with his humble grin and glistening eyes. This pastoral poise can trace some of its origins to the late ’70s when, after being inspired by reggae hit-makers Inner Circle (ironically, best known for “Cops” theme song “Bad Boys”), Papa T began journeying into the spiritual and musical direction of Rastafarianism — reggae culture.

“The message in the music made me wanna be part of the movement,” he states. The transition left an indelible impression on him, one you can sense in his rhetoric, lyrics and demeanor. The logical progression was to join a reggae outfit. In the early ’80s Papa T played drums and sang for Baltimore reggae band Ja Rising.

He had ambition, too, thirsting for bigger audiences and broader recognition for his craft; he knew he would have to penetrate the national scene. In the late ’80s, that chance came in the form of the local band St. Bean Soul Jockey, which, in addition to reggae, infused elements of calypso and ska. With high aspirations, the band made a go of it in New York, with a slew of Manhattan shows in a year. “I went there for the big picture,” Papa T shrugs and explains, “but things just didn’t work out. Everyone went their own separate way.”

After coming home and playing gigs at the Marble Bar and Artscape with roots-reggae acts Zebulon and The Fullness, Papa T considered going solo. “In collaboration I never got a chance to become whole. I wanted to master my own style.”

Now solo work is his top priority. Papa T’s solo performance crystallizes the lessons learned from collaboration into a more restrained body of sound. He puts lyrical narrative in the forefront, with sweetly forlorn, meditative vignettes and minimal blues guitar, occasionally revealing accents of ska and reggae. For instance, on the song “After the Love,” he struggles with stagnancy in the wake of a hard-won resolution between two people who have drifted apart.

“The fire deep down inside me needs to be exposed,” he said, “and music is my highest level of communication.”

More scene highlights:

Tonight (Tuesday): Soft Targets, Abby Mott, The Jennifers. 9 p.m., The Talking Head. $7.

Thursday: Leprechaun Catering!, Witch Hat and Weekends. 8 p.m., Hexagon space. $5.

All weekend: Radical book fair! Mount Vernon Square.
Papa T performs Tuesday nights at Liam’s Pub, 911 N. Charles St. It is closed for renovations but performances will resume when it reopens. Visit pintsizepub.com. Ed Schrader is a founding member of the Wham City art collective. His column appears Tuesdays. Contact him at ed@whamcity.com.

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