By Jon Chown
When UC Santa Cruz alum Marty O’Reilly left the county to relocate to Sonoma about five years ago, his musical career took a new direction as well.
While he’d long been the lead man of Marty O’Reilly and The Old Soul Orchestra, he’d always had a band behind him. Now, he rarely does. And though years ago he never wanted to play solo, “I love playing solo now,” he said.
His latest project is Rhinefarm, which refers to the historic Gundlach Bundschu Winery in Sonoma, established in 1858. He performed at the winery as a child, and was married to his wife there. “It’s really special to me,” he said. The songs are mostly about growing up, and raising a family. He recorded the songs at the home studio of some friends over nine months. He said the music, like the way it was recorded, has a feeling of not being rushed.
This summer he will follow his path as a solo artist around the Pacific Northwest before an interlude at the High Sierra Musical Festival and then off to Europe before returning to the United States and Canada to finish the tour.
“It was hard to break up the band, but also empowering because I had to learn how to become a more compelling solo performer,” he said. “Now, I can carry the show on my back.” That’s both figuratively and literally.
Of the entire tour, O’Reilly said he is most looking forward to the High Sierra Music Festival from July 2-5, where he performed with his band in 2019.
“It’s basically my favorite music festival,” he said. “The thing about festivals is that big festivals can bring you big acts, while small festivals bring you a real sense of community. High Sierra strikes this balance of being just big enough to bring some real cool bands and small enough to have a sense of community around it. That’s why it’s so beloved.”
O’Reilly arrived in Santa Cruz in 2010 as a transfer student majoring in environmental studies. He eschewed the Music major, as he said it would not have fit him.
“I’m a Waldorf kid,” he said. “I felt like environmental studies was a program that would feel safe and familiar to me.”
O’Reilly said he did take some jazz and music theory classes. “I think I struggled more than anybody in the class and learned more than anybody else in the class.”
It was an unusual journey, but O’Reilly said that his environmental studies major actually led him on the path to his musical career. While applying for an internship at Natural Bridges State Beach, he met his future fiddle player Chris Lynch, and through him, the rest of his future band. Their debut album “Pray for Rain” was a big hit. Four years later they released Stereoscope.
“Then I started a family and the pandemic hit,” O’Reilly said. “It became apparent I needed to either find another job and quit doing this full time, or try to go it alone and see if I could create enough momentum by myself.”
O’Reilly said the overhead was too high to take a four-piece band on tour, so he needed to go solo. “It opens more doors,” he said. “I do about 100 shows per year. It’s really hard work. … Life is challenging, but good.”
O’Reilly will said he’ll be taking his wife and child to the High Sierra Music Festival, where he has two scheduled appearances, and will also be on hand to sit in during other performances. “There will be a little less jamming out and more song-driven stories,” O’Reilly said of his appearance at this year’s festival.
High Sierra Changes Locations
That won’t be the only change. The High Sierra Music Festival has moved from its longtime location in Quincy to the Nevada County Fairgrounds in Grass Valley. Dave Margulies, producer of the festival, said the new location fits like a glove.
“It’s perhaps the nicest fairgrounds I’ve ever worked with. It’s a spectacular venue. We were fortunate they had an opening,” he said.
Margulies said this year’s lineup will be much like past years’, with a wide variety of music ranging from bluegrass to funk. “You can’t put us in a box. We love everything from psychedelic rock to avant jazz.”
Margulies said O’Reilly’s blend of Americana, blues, and folk fits right into the mix.
“Marty is a force of nature,” Margulies said. “He’s an amazing singer, fantastic songwriter and guitar player. He can sing with incredible power.”
For more information on Marty O’Reilly’s tour, go to martyoreilly.com. For more information on the High Sierra Music Festival, go to highsierramusic.com.