Obzeet Music Ethnography

Introduction

Obzeet is a South African restaurant located nearby the intersection of Frankford and Preston in Richardson Texas. The restaurant is one of the most laid back restaurants I have even been to with a quiet environment to eat in with a patio on the backside of the building. Even the name means “groovy”! The music culture of Obzeet fits right in with the environment of the restaurant too: laid back. Although there are several different genres of music in Obzeet, they all have one thing in common: they are not there to impress, they are simply there to enjoy music. The music in Obzeet ranges from jazz to rock (with several variations of each in between) and is a very soothing mix of these genres for the enjoyment of the people who eat there.

Methodology

Before this assignment I had been to Obzeet several times but had never viewed it in this way. Sharing in this music culture, then, was as easy as going to the restaurant and having a meal. The music is normally played outside on a patio in a nice relaxing atmosphere. Lately with the cold and rainy weather though, the music was done inside of the store which branches onto the restaurant itself. The majority of my information came from two sources: waiters/waitresses and (in a lesser amount) the musicians themselves. I never actually set up a formal interview with any of the waiters or waitresses simply because they did not have time during their work schedule to have a full on conversation. Therefore, as they came to our table to serve us I would ask questions as we went and slowly gain information from there. These sources gave me more information towards the restaurant itself and not as much information about the bands themselves because for the most part they did not know too much detail about the bands (several bands cycle through as time progresses). The other interview conducted was with the two members of tu-tones; this interview was fairly short as well since it was during a 15 minute intermission, but it gave me sufficient information to get an idea of their inspirations and their repertoire.

Aspects of the Obzeet Music-Culture

There are certain aspects of this music culture that make it unique. All of the music is in a slow tempo, and relaxed form. The focus of the restaurant is not always on the music itself; sometimes it is more of a background ambiance to set the mood for the meal. Other times, though, the music takes center stage (literally and metaphorically) while interacting with the audience and causing them to dance. For example, 3 of the 4 times I went to Obzeet, Eric Erickson was playing a solo acoustic set. One of the techniques that Eric is known for is that he brings with him a home-made repertoire of songs that he knows how to play and the audience is allowed to select which song they would like to hear next from this list. This helps give the audience a more welcoming feel, and shows that their opinions are important. This was demonstrated by the fact that the same elderly couple was there every Tuesday in the past and each time they would choose the same song to hear and begin to dance with it. (Upon further investigation from the waiter, I found that they met at Obzeet, got engaged and even married there all with Eric playing; this shows a great appreciation for the music from these customers.) More recently, the duo “Tu-Tones” was playing on a Friday night (the music starts about 7:00pm on live music nights) and I got a chance to talk to them and discover a little more detail about the culture at Obzeet. The Tu-Tones are a duo that travels around Texas and not only in Obzeet, but Obzeet is a regular venue on their schedule. They were unlike any other band I had seen before in the fact that “Mr. 18 Karat” plays the guitar, drums, sings and sometimes plays a tambourine all at once! “Stompin’Bill Johnston” is more of a main vocalist (lyrics only occur in about half of their songs though) and a harmonica player for the duo but can also play several other instruments such as the guitar, and a synthesizer. This unique blues band takes their music from several older blues legends such as Little Walter and Jimmy Reed, and these inspirations come out in their songs (the majority are cover songs of these previously mentioned artists and various others, but some are originals). The cover songs that are performed by the two men take certain ornamentations and blues scales that are very familiar to the 1960’s and 1970’s form of blues, which demonstrates how the Tu-Tones continue to bring out these traditions even today. In addition to drawing off of previous artists, several features that seem to be the norm at Obzeet show from these two talented men; the first being the enjoyment of their music. I could see from the smile on their faces while they played that this wasn’t just another job, it might as well have been a very enjoyable hobby; the interview only backed up this idea as they stated: “you ain’t workin if you’re havin fun right?”. The majority of the bands that play in Obzeet take this attitude on as well. So much so that every artist that I tried to find using other sources (besides the www.Obzeet .com website) simply did not exist on the internet. Popularity is clearly not a huge concern for these musicians, and most don’t even have albums to sell to the public. The artists’ relaxed attitudes vibrate throughout the restaurant as you can see when you look around at the other customers tapping their feet and, every once and a while, dancing along to the music. The materials used in the restaurant and the band are even relaxed, with running water to sooth your nerves, loose clothing to give the band a relaxed feel, and ambient lighting to calm your soul.

Conclusion

Most of the features that have been mentioned can be expanded to practically every band that plays at Obzeet: overall it all comes down to the open and accepting environment. There are no fancy clothes here, no worries about peoples’ opinions, race, or religion; simply a mellow environment where people can enjoy themselves and this includes the musicians. Of all three musicians that I have experienced in Obzeet, these characteristics hold true and I will have to assume that this holds true to the other bands from what the waiters/waitresses have told me (the third was not mentioned due to the fact that I saw him several months ago and do not recall his name).

Tu-Tones Live at Obzeet­. By Mr. 18 Karat and Mr. Stompin’Bill Johnston. The Obzeet Restaurant, Richardson. February 6^th, 2010.

Sommerhalder, Christian. Program notes. Tu-Tones Live at Obzeet. February 6^th, 2010. Richardson: Obzeet.