Quality Americana

By Lindsey Eck

Jimmy Joe Natoli tells me to come by “around 8:12ish.” I remark that the to-the-minute timing was typical for a bus driver, but he says he just doesn’t like fives and zeros.

His rural compound, not far from my own, is home to a large collection of cats. I arrive at 8:16.

Ellen’s Ride

Natoli, besides playing guitar faster than you can listen, has been a school-bus driver in Austin since 1998. He blogs about that at School Bus News.

Recently, he fused his musical career with his driving adventures in a whimsical and fantastical children’s book—which adults will also love—Ellen’s Ride.

“I had a passenger named Ellen. She was the only passenger on my bus for three or four years.  … So. it was like we were in a parallel universe. We made up magical animals and places that we would encounter,” Natoli said.

These fantasies became a song and then a book, completed so that Ellen—a kindergartner when the rides began—could enjoy it upon her graduation from UT–Austin.

He teamed up with illustrator and fellow guitarist Darrin Kobetich to self-publish Ellen’s Ride, which includes a QR code that takes you to an online version of the recording, so you can sing along with verses like:

Look down river
over there to the east
It looks rather odd
a most curious beast
It swims and floats
and walks with a twist
It must be a three legged iron back
rusted belly fish

The book release featured a concert by author and illustrator that ventured into world music, with Kobetich on oud. Natoli is known for jaw-dropping virtuosity and an approach to songwriting that is usually witty and often riotously funny.

On My Way

Natoli’s self-produced album On My Way is in the can, and will drop later this year. With 13 songs, all by Natoli (with one co-write), this full-length album—recorded at Jimmy George’s The Roost—complements Natoli’s guitar wizardry with support from Central Texas studio musicians and vocalists.

Can we call it Americana? Yes, “If Americana encompasses folk, country, blues, rock, klezmer, and jazz pop.” Indeed, Natoli’s métier can’t be confined to any one genre.

New York

Originally from Baldwin, New York (Long Island), Natoli had private guitar lessons, then studied at Berklee and GIT before landing in central Texas. He is long-time musical host of the Barton Creek Farmers’ Market, where he has showcased musical guests who represent some of the best in local (mostly acoustic) music.

We can eagerly await the release of On My Way as one more sonic and lyrical trip from a composer-songwriter whose work resounds like the burring engine of a well maintained bus.

Support the Artist

More information about Jimmy Joe Natoli can be found here.

Folk Tales is a column written by Lindsey Eck.

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