Too Slim and Co. make pit stop at BrewsFest

BrewsFest is a ‘hometown’ show for Seattle’s Taildraggers

Although Tim “Too Slim” Langford now calls Seattle home, Spokane is where he went to high school, dismantled a band and formed Too Slim and the Taildraggers.

“Spokane is a great town, my hometown,” Langford said in a phone interview from Seattle.

Calling the band’s appearance at Silver Mountain’s BrewsFest on Saturday a home game isn’t far from the truth. The band now includes Coeur d’Alene resident Zach Cooper on drums and Dave Nordstrom, of Spokane, plays bass.

Langford moved out of Spokane in 2002 to be with his new wife, Nancy, a Seattle resident. Making the move was purely cosmetic, and the band, formed in 1986, continues to tour constantly, logging at least 50,000 miles each year, Langford said.

“I don’t really think it matters where we live,” Langford said. “We’re kind of a road band anyway. Depending on where we’re going, that’s where we meet. It makes it a little harder to hook up and rehearse or work on a new record.”

The band has been in the studio recording a new album, which has been referred to as “Big Red,” but Langford doesn’t think the name will stick.

The Taildraggers’ most recent offering is “Beer and BBQ chips,” recorded live in Bozeman. The band wasn’t intending on making the live record, but the soundman’s recording of the show was so good they decided to sell it.

“It’s a good representation from how the band sounds now,” Langford said.

Before the band became a hit with regional blues fans, Langford and company cut their teeth at Spokane venues such as Ahab’s Whale and The Fort Spokane Brewery. But the music the Taildraggers makes now, Langford said, is hardly the same that he was making in the ‘80s.

“I’m always trying to evolve … take it to the next level,” the former East Valley High School student said. “It’s a constant battle to keep it fresh. And I think the new band has really stepped up. We probably rock more on the rock side these days.”

Since Langford left Spokane, he’s picked up new players to round out his trio.

“I had the same guys in my band for a long time,” he said. “They just got tired of the road. It’s a hard life, traveling all the time. Music’s my life, so that’s what I want to do. Traveling and taking the show on the road is part of it. If you don’t want to go on the road, you might as well get another job. I can’t imagine doing anything else.”