I’ve spent (or wasted) more hours than anyone probably should, trying to create a web of connections that would link me to the actor Kevin Bacon in six steps or fewer. I’m sure we’re all familiar with the game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, which entered the pop culture lexicon over two decades ago. For years, the best I could do is a dozen or so links to connect me to Bacon. But over the past year, since I’ve started interviewing celebrities, that linkage has decreased significantly. And earlier this month, I became one degree of separation away from Kevin Bacon, as he and his brother, Michael, popped up on my computer screen to discuss their forthcoming concert at UCA on Saturday.
AT: You guys are performing Saturday at the University of Central Arkansas. Have either of you been to the Natural State before?
Kevin Bacon: Yeah. We’ve played in Arkansas. I’m just not sure where. It’s been 26 years and we’ve played a lot of shows in a lot of different states, and I lose track. But the band is very good at remembering, especially our drummer. He has an uncanny memory for where we’ve played. Not only that, but he remembers what we ate. But I actually did a movie [“End of the Line”] in Little Rock. The director [Jay Russell], I think was from Little Rock. So, I spent several months there filming that movie.
AT: Like you said, you two have been playing for nearly 30 years. But both of you got your start in Philly, right?
KB: Yep, we grew up right in the middle of Philadelphia, in what they call a townhouse, which is like a real skinny row house. I’m the youngest of six, and Michael is somewhere in the middle. We have four sisters. And our parents weren’t in the arts, but they were big supporters of music and theater and dance. And whenever we were creating anything, that was always kinda put on a pedestal in our house. I used to write songs when I was a boy, but didn’t play any instruments. So I would sing them to Michael and he’d put them to different guitar chords and harmonies.
AT: You said there were six of you, was it obvious early on that you two were going to be the entertainers of the family?
Michael Bacon: It depends on what you mean by entertainer. Because me and our four sisters, we couldn’t compete with Kevin as a strict entertainer. He was always cracking jokes, doing impressions. But as musicians, I always thought our sister Hilda was going to be a star. First off she was gorgeous, long blond hair, sang like an angel. Played guitar beautifully. We were actually in a jug band together during high school. But she never kept up with singing. And I went into music and Kevin went into acting.
AT: Was there any competitiveness between you two growing up?
MB: Well I’m nine years older. And I think competitiveness comes from battling brothers, wrestling around, that are one or two years apart. But we just never went through that phase. We were always supportive … but that could change any minute, you never know.
AT: What was the music scene in Philly like, and were you both inspired by the same styles?
KB: Yeah, the age difference interestingly affected the band, in that we have slightly different musical influences. I think both of us were lifetime consumers of popular music, whether it be soul or country or rock or folk music. Michael often talks about he got his influences from our parents, listening to show tunes and stuff. Which I really wasn’t exposed to that style of music all that much. And I don’t know if that’s because when I was coming around, I had commandeered the turntable so I didn’t have to listen to Tchaikovsky. Instead I could listen to Earth, Wind, and Fire.
MB: I’ve never really processed this, but the nine-year difference in our age … you took that … and put it in context, put it smack dab in the center of the ’60s, that was a monumental change in the world, politically, musically, socially. And I think my aesthetic came from a folk aesthetic, where you could understand every word, it was very intimate. It was acoustic guitars and fiddles. And in the mid ’60s, Kevin was just coming of age, where you would be a sponge, soaking up music.
KB: And I’ve really never thought about this before, but I don’t think my musical influence came from my parents. I’m the youngest of six, so I grew up listening to the music of my siblings.
AT: It’s like you’re bringing two different eras of music together. You describe your band’s sound as Forocoso (folk, rock, country, soul). Is it difficult to switch between those different genres?
KB: Nope. I wouldn’t call it difficult. We always say that the song ends up being played in the way that the song takes it. It’s not like we sit down and go, “let’s try to make this heavier. Let’s try to make this reggae.” In fact, I would say that one of the greatest examples of Forocoso is The Band. When you look at those guys, how they came together, coming from Canada, coming from Arkansas, coming from classical music, and folk music, and country. And they all got thrown together.
MB: We even had the honor of playing on Levon Helm’s show up in Woodstock. And we got to know him. We also got to open for The Band in Carnegie Hall. And they asked us up for their last song. And we sat in with them, and I’ll never forget that. Looking back at Levon and seeing a smile across his face.
AT: Is there anything else you’d like to add?
MB: I’ve never seen a razorback in person, so that’s my goal. Do they roam all over the roads and stuff like that?
AT: Not here in Central Arkansas, but if you go up to Northwest Arkansas, there’s quite the hog problem up there.
