Tom Simon, drummer for Crackers and Jam
By Lisa Wakeland, Staff Writer
April 4, 2007 | 6:48 p.m.
Whether 50 or 15 people are dancing, Crackers and Jam continue to play with the same intensity and passion. The chemistry between them is unmistakably clear and they genuinely look like they’re having fun.
A band for two years, vocalist and guitarist Dan Freeman, bassist Dale Barber and drummer Tom Simon’s strong connection becomes evident when they’re on stage or telling stories.
Unaware of each other’s presence, all three band members attended the fall Hookahville at the beginning of their freshman year, a large festival near Columbus featuring Ekoostik Hookah, a band that Crackers and Jam would later open for at the Blue Gator. Barber, former Ohio University student and current junior at Hocking College, spent most of the night with Simon.
“He was with another friend, who is our roadie now,” Simon said. “I lost all my friends, and they lost all their friends. It was just us three walking around, playing drums all night.” Freeman was actually in the same drum circle as Barber and Simon but said he didn’t realize it at the time.
At Ohio University, the band members realized they all lived in Brown Hall and knew each other from Hookahville. They started hanging out together, but they got themselves into their fair share of trouble.
“Some of us got separated and some of us got suspended,” Barber said with a laugh. “They didn’t like a lot of the things we did.”
Simon and Freeman, both seniors at OU, met on the first day of freshman year during orientation activities. Walking up Richland Avenue on the way to the student organizations fair on College Green, Simon said he noticed Freeman heading in the opposite direction of everyone else and thought they would have similar interests.
“I saw him too and asked if he wanted to hang out,” Freeman said. About five minutes later, they ditched the freshmen activities to explore campus.
After forming a band, they needed a name before they could perform at a benefit concert for the OU Environs. This was during a phase when Simon was calling his friends crackers.
“Somehow, I said crackers and something,” Simon said. “It was Crackers with Jam at first and then it morphed into Crackers and Jam. We thought it was a funny play on words.”
Freeman said he wasn’t sure about the name at first, but it grew on him. Barber added that once they started using the name they couldn’t change it. But Simon had different concerns about the band’s name.
“We thought some people might take it the wrong way because [cracker’s] a derogatory word or whatever,” he said. “We hoped people would realize we’re just making fun of ourselves.”
It’s easy to hear Grateful Dead and Phish influences in the music, but the band seems to reject the simple comparisons. Simon said it goes deeper than that, referring to his interest in underground hip-hop. Freeman said Crackers and Jam’s style, as a trio, is up the same alley as Cream.
“Tom and I have very colorful musical tastes,” Barber said, citing Soul Coughing, Led Zeppelin, the Beatles and Pink Floyd as favorites.
“We don’t like to limit ourselves,” Simon added.
Regardless of what genre they’re described as, the guys in Crackers and Jam are talented musicians. Barber, Simon and Freeman have played their respective instruments for eight or more years. And they’re very supportive of each other’s musical talents and past ventures.
Barber claims Freeman can play any instrument with strings. Freeman disagrees with him by saying he can’t play the violin, but he acknowledged Barber’s claim by dabbling with a banjo. Freeman was in a band prior to Crackers and Jam, that was, as he described, similar but with a keyboard.
Later, Simon uncomfortably admitted that he was in punk rock bands during the beginning of high school.
“You don’t have to be ashamed of that stuff. Dude, that’s awesome,” Barber said without hesitation. “I wish I was in a band in high school.”
The rest of the band laughed when Simon mentioned he wants to start a hip-hop band. “They make fun of me every day for it, but it’s cool,” he said.
Crackers and Jam enjoy playing live, but Simon said connecting with the audience depends on the crowd.
There are constantly new faces at each show and the diverse crowd keeps coming back, Barber said.
One memorable show for them was last year’s free show at the Blue Gator when Freeman’s dad came on stage to play the Grateful Dead tune “Turn on Your Love Light.”
“There were 300 people there. After we did ‘Love Light’ with Dan’s dad on sax, it was a wall of insanity,” Barber said about the crowd. “That’s the best feeling.”
After graduation, Simon said he would like to stay in Athens. But moving to a bigger market like Columbus would allow the band to expand their audience, he said.
Crackers and Jam have an upcoming album they recorded live at the Blue Gator. “We should have it in about a week,” Freeman said. “In about a month,” Barber corrected.
Around Athens, Crackers and Jam played with more frequency in the past but continue to play shows around Ohio. They are playing two shows at the Blue Gator, one today with Guest and another on May 10 with Jakob Freely.
“We also do weddings,” Freeman joked. “And Bob Weir is our God.”
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For more information on the band visit: http://www.crackersandjam.com
Listen to their tunes on MySpace at: http://myspace.com/crackersandjam