John Prine’s brother, guitarist bring tribute to Lexington
Billy Prine always felt close to his older brother. They shared a love of storytelling, a fascination with songwriting and a drive to share both with an audience. A year after his sibling’s passing, the youngest of the Prine brothers is on the road to put some of that musical joy into motion. The songs he will sharing, though, won’t be his own. They will be the acclaimed works of John Prine. Call it a case of brotherly love.
“John and me were really tight,” Billy Prine said. “Out of four brothers, I was the youngest. John was the next one up from me. He was seven years older than me. I was close to all of my brothers, but me and John were especially close growing up and hanging out. We had a lot of life experiences together that are just a treasure. I cherish them so much.”
Aside from being a frequent touring companion for elder brother John (including duties as assistant road manger), Billy discovered a taste for blues and soul, often traveling from his Nashville home base to play clubs in the Prine family stronghold of Chicago. He has cut recordings, including the 2020 album “A Place I Used to Know.” But since his brother’s death in April 2020 from complications of COVID-19, Billy and guitarist/producer Michael Dinallo sought a way to put their own spin on John Prine’s considerable musical legacy.
The result is a touring program titled “The Songs of John Prine” that plays the Lexington Opera House on Nov. 19. John Prine played the Opera House numerous times throughout his career, including a sold-out performance on Derby Eve of 2001, the same night U2 play to a sold-out crowd across the street at Rupp Arena.
“Billy and I spent about two weeks, as we were getting the whole show together, going through John’s catalog,” Dinallo said. “We were going for some deep cuts and, obviously, some of the songs that could be called the hits. And Billy tells a lot of stories in the show because he was there when John was writing some of these songs. He’s has some of the same experiences. It’s really the songs and stories of John Prine, even though it’s billed as ‘The Songs of John Prine.’”
“As far as the songs go, we’re not doing, like, an Elvis tribute,” Billy Prine insisted. “I mean, these are some of the greatest songs in the world, but we’re doing them in our own style. And that’s going over really well. We saw (veteran folk stylist and frequent John Prine collaborator) Iris DeMent in Iowa City recently and she really complimented us. I very much respect her as a friend, so it was nice to hear her say that.”
The Opera House show will be one of only two dates on the “Songs of John Prine Tour” that also will feature Jason Wilber. A songwriter who spent 24 years as John Prine’s onstage guitarist, Wilber will open the performance with a set of his own compositions before joining Billy Prine, Dinallo and the rest of their Prine Time Band for a few tunes by his former boss.
For Wilber, the show is something of a re-awakening. Despite releasing a new album, “Time Traveler,” in 2020, he has done little performance work since John Prine’s passing and admits he is still processing such an intense personal and professional loss.
“I started playing with John when I was about 26 and remained with him until he passed away. I was 50 when that happened. That’s kind of my entire adult life. Honestly, it’s hard for me to put that experience into any kind of perspective. It was a huge part of my life – the main part of my working life, certainly, and a big part of my personal life, too, because when you work with people like that on the road, it’s not like they’re just your co-workers. You’re with them all the time. You travel with them. You’re all staying at the same motel. You socialize. They really become like your family. So, I don’t know. It’s going to take some time to have the perspective to be able to really talk about it intelligently.”
What Wilber can articulate, though, is the vivid personality that was John Prine. His summation: If you thought you knew John Prine by the kinds of songs he wrote and performed, you were correct.
“I have jokingly said at my own shows that I thought I had an idea of what John would be like personally just by listening to his songs before I got to know him. But that’s pretty much what he was like. He was a very easy-going person, very funny – probably the quickest witted person I have ever known. Loved a good laugh about anything. Very generous. John had his competitive side, sure. He was proud of what he did and liked to do it well, but he was just a really easygoing, nice person. I worked with him for 24 years. That’s a testament to what a great guy he was.”
Perhaps that’s why John Prine’s popularity thrived so readily. Introduced to the folk and pop masses by way of his self-titled and highly revered 1971 debut album, he was still riding a wave of renaissance popularity at the time of his death that began with the release of his 2018 album “The Tree of Forgiveness.” He may have been singing about opioid abuse or a drug-addled war veteran. He may have been serenading you with lighter reveries of everyday whimsy or devastating isolation. Whatever his songs worked off of, you sensed the humanity of the artist that created them and the joy he summoned when he shared his music with you.
“The bottom line is these are great songs – great songs that brought happiness to people,” Billy Prine said. “As the late (Nashville songwriter, producer and instrumentalist) Cowboy Jack Clement told my brother, ‘We’re in the fun business.’ If it’s not any fun, what’s the point of doing it? That’s kind of like my creed as far as doing music. Of course, John’s songs are so diverse. There’s so much humor but there’s also sadness. All the human emotions in the world. You really couldn’t ask for a better bunch of songs to interpret.”
The Songs of John Prine
Who: Billy Prine and the Prine Time Band perform “The Songs of John Prine” with Jason Wilber
When: 7 p.m. Nov. 19
Where: Lexington Opera House, 401 W. Short St.
Tickets: $37 and $57 at ticketmaster.com
