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Joe Frye & The Low Down Dirty Heathens.
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Raw and real in the low down dirty, Joe Frye’s
song entitled American Outlaw sets the stage
for the story line telling...“I’m just’ a poor ol’
country boy from a little bitty one light town,
For years & years all the people here were
always putting me down,
They all said there’s no way I’d amount to
much at all,
All because I liked running wild & always
having a ball.
And I’ll agree that way back when, Yeah I
was pretty wild,
With all the things I used to do it’s a wonder
I’m still alive,
Up all night chasin’ lines with good ol’
moonshine,
If I told you that was all, well it’d ---- sure
be a lie;
People say what they want, it don’t make a
---- to me
Want you to think they’re innocent but
they’re guilty as me,
I just choose not to hide, Nah I just let it
ride.....
Cause this is me & this is who I am, & who I’ll
be till the day I die.”
Remembering back to when Hurricane
Florence whipped through town on September
14, 2018, Joe stepped onto the stage to raise
money for his hometown of Robbins when
Donnie Smith organized a hurricane benefit
show in October 2018. Hosting musicians from
both Moore and Montgomery Counties, it was
at this event that Donnie and Joe first met for
the first time and established connections.
Recharging his passion for performing and
energizing audiences who wanted more, Joe
decided to follow his heart and go for it!
When the town of Candor called Donnie in
January of 2019 about playing at the Peach Fest
in July, Donnie had seven months to prepare
for the event. In figuring out a plan, fate sealed
a deal. With Joe bringing the vocals and guitar
lead, Donnie offered the drums and contacted
a friend named Ronnie who had hung up his
instrument years ago. Having played together
in a band named South Whiskey Road, Donnie
Smith and Ronnie Latham reunited to join Joe
Frye, and—“It was on!” smiles Joe! On April 11,
2019, the three guys played together for the very
first time and a band of brothers formed.
In wanting to run through a practice gig of
sorts before the Peach Fest, the guys hosted a
free concert at Sandhill Trophy and Sports in
Eagle Springs,where Joe works, and with around
two hundred in attendance, the band raised
just shy of $1,000 of support for three local
churches. The May 18th show at Sandhill Trophy
and Sports marked their seventh time playing
together and landed two more invitations to
play before the Candor event.
Inquiring about a name for the band, the
Peach Festival needed a title for the program
when the brainstorming began. Joe laughs,
“We hadn’t even thought about a name. Donnie
became our Google expert who looked up our
ideas to make sure no one else was using it. I
wanted to use an old word name like Heathens.
Ronnie suggested Low Down Dirty. So among
the three of us, we came up with Joe Frye and
The Low Down Dirty Heathens—you either love
it or ya hate it.”
Celebrating their one year anniversary this
spring of 2020, Joe describes the Low Down
Dirty Heathens as, “The band just IS. It’s home!
It’s awesome! It’s a state of mind, done on our
own terms.” As the band lights up audiences
all over town, Joe Frye and the Low Down Dirty
Heathens plays a mix of original songs and
covers, always improvising and always putting
their own spin on the music.
Never recalling a moment when music wasn’t
a part of his life, Joe remembers his family sitting
around the house playing music any chance
they could. With instruments readily available,
it was only natural for Joe to find his song. With
his grandfather Marvin Frye being a local legend
performing in bluegrass bands and giving music
lessons, Joe found some inspiration. He tells, “I
don’t really remember sitting down for an actual
lesson, but my grandfather would show me
chords. My brother Jordan and I wanted to play
rock and roll, but our grandfather didn’t know it,
but he knew blues. Blues is the root of rock-nroll,
so once he showed us, we fell in love.”
Growing up in the Eagle Springs area with
his father from Robbins and his mom from West
End, Joe attended the local schools from West
End Elementary to becoming the first graduating
class of West Pine Middle School. Not a fan of
school, Joe dropped out of Union Pines but
soon earned an Associates in Art from Sandhills
Community College. Always a fan of the arts, Joe
informs, “I took all the religion classes, all the art
classes and all the history classes I could. I just
had fun and took the classes that I enjoyed. At
one time I wanted to be an archaeologist, until
I found out it took 8 years of school to do that.
After 2 years I was about to die!” Ha!
Never really knowing what he wanted to be
when he grew up, Joe tells, “Once I played the
guitar, that’s all I wanted to do. All of the other
jobs have been side jobs to pay the bills and
to take me where I want to go.” By age 15, Joe
started playing in a band along with his best
friend Matt Barnes; both guys sang and played
the guitar as they performed together on the
local scene. While Joe was trying to get his life
straightened out, they split up for a year or two
until the unthinkable happened. Matt was killed
in a car wreck when Joe’s world derailed about
twelve years ago.
Over time, Joe found a new song whose
melody stays driven by Matt’s legacy. Joe muses,
“Remembering Matt’s life made me want to
perform again. I do it for Matt, and I do it
because I love performing. Music is Life! I eat,
sleep, breathe music. It is all-consuming. Music
is all I’ve ever known.”
Feeling whole again after overcoming the
loss of his friend, Joe found the courage to strike
up the band! He shares, “I feel whole again, like I
was missing something in my life when I wasn’t
performing. After we played that first night, I
didn’t sleep much; I was ready to go. If we’d had
a tour, then I would’ve left right then!”
The brotherhood in the band drives the
trinity uniting Joe, Ronnie and Donnie. Joe, the
chief songwriter writes the lyrics while Ronnie
perfects the timing and fine tunes the details.
And all three agree that Donnie is the hardest
critic, the moral compass pushing the band
to the next level. Donnie assures, “The best
part about the band is that I have two brothers
who always have my back. We have a complete
story—a bond that normally isn’t found.”
The inspiration for the lyrics comes from
living life! Joe explains, “The music just comes
out. Sometimes I’ll be playing around on my
guitar and will just push record on my cell
phone and go from there. Then we all come
together and work it out. We all sing and back
each other up.”
Scheduling remains the toughest part of
the band as the members work full–time jobs.
Joe shares, “Whenever we aren’t performing
or working, then we are practicing at Donnie’s
house. He has the best family ever! They attend
all the shows and support us 100%.”
Raised in a musical family, Ronnie tells, “I
was raised on Charlie Poole and bluegrass, and
I thought everybody knew how to play music.
I was in my teens before I realized that wasn’t
true. My mother, two cousins and my uncle had
a band when I was a tater tot. They practiced at
my house so all of their equipment was at my
disposal. Whenever they were gone, I’d tinker
around with the instruments. Basically I watched
them 3 nights a week and would duplicate their
example. I guess you can say I am self-taught.”
Playing bass for the band, Ronnie also rocks the
guitar, keyboard and drums.
Surrounded by a supportive family, Donnie
the drummer for the Low Down Dirty Heathens
remembers his heritage, “I fell in love with
music as a kid, but I didn’t learn how to play the
drums until I was 20 years old. Since Ronnie can
play all kinds of instruments and started off on
the drums, he showed me all he knew. I’ve been
playing drums now for 25 years.”
From the guitar to the bass to the drums,
each member holds his own while backing up
p.36 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. No. 138
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