Harmonica Fats, Bernie Pearl Cast a Unique Shade of Blues

One is a rotund, 68-year-old harmonica player who wears a suit and tie on stage, the other a slender, 56-year-old guitarist whose clothes are California casual. Clearly they don’t share fashion notes. But Harvey Blackston, better known as Harmonica Fats, and Bernie Pearl do have something notable in common: They both love the blues and play it with urgency, persuasion and feeling.

They will display their passion Friday at the Hyatt Regency Irvine and New Year’s Eve as part of Fullerton’s First Night celebration.

The power of the twosome’s enthusiasm was evident earlier this month when they performed in Huntington Beach at the Ale House Rock and Brewery, a brick-floored, hacienda-style establishment that seems better suited to highly amplified music.

Abetted by only a few microphones, the pair employed Fats’ gravelly voice and Pearl’s empathetic, highly rhythmic guitar to deliver an engaging program of mostly original country-style blues. These numbers, which had the warmth and drive of tunes played by the pair’s major influences--guitarist Brownie McGhee and harmonica player Sonny Terry--made solid listeners out of a fairly boisterous crowd of 75.

The tunes, most drawn from the duo’s latest CD, “Two Heads Are Better,” included “You Drive Me Crazy,” “Just Like Richard Nixon,” “I Know She Crazy ‘Bout Me Too” and “It’s So Hard to Get Along.” These were slice-of-life stories, all but one--”Tobacco Road”--with lyrics by Fats. The words had their share of bite but were more often wry and humorous, reflecting the singer’s upbeat demeanor.

All of Fats’ songs were sung in his appealing tenor. He made some tones sound like a soft purr, while others had the wild sizzle of water on a hot griddle. Between the words were harmonica riffs--some brief and stark, like crisp taps on a car horn, others as long and mournful as a distant train whistle. Sometimes Fats would quickly pull the harmonica away from his mouth with his left hand; then the notes he was playing smeared, and disappeared.

Under Fats’ vocals, Boyle Heights native Pearl was a fount of imagination, finding all manner of accompaniment to buoy his partner and spur him on. On “Richard Nixon,” a song about fleeing from all manner of problems, the guitarist offered a four-notes-to-the-bar line that one associates with boogie-woogie; on “I Know She Crazy,” he picked single notes, chords and bass notes to create what amounted to a backup band. His solos revealed technical fluency and a high degree of intimacy.

They met in 1986 and have been playing together about four years. They often appear as the Bernie Pearl Blues Band with Harmonica Fats, but 18 months ago, they decided to also form an acoustic duo.

“There are a million bands out there, and some good ones, so this is one way we might be able to get some attention, get on some festivals,” Pearl says.

Fats, who hails from McDade, La., but has lived in Los Angeles since 1946, says the twosome brings something special to the blues genre.

“[Bernie] plays the way he feels; I play the way I feel,” he says. “We connect the two together and get a different sound from regular blues. It’s like a new blues, yet it is the blues.”

* The Bernie Pearl Blues Band with Harmonica Fats plays Friday at 9 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Irvine, 17900 Jamboree Road, Irvine. $5. (714) 975-1234. Also Sunday at 10:30 p.m. at Wilshire Auditorium, Wilshire and Lemon streets, Fullerton, as part of First Night Fullerton. First Night admission (good for nearly 100 activities and performances) is $10; $5 for ages 12 and under. (714) 738-6545.