The Book of Mamaw: Artist shares Appalachian memories through song

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — When Lela Bernice Gentry Rader walked Appalachian ground, little Gene Wolf paid attention.She's now gone, but she's long from forgotten.As if by a beam of light, she returns in her grandson Eugene Wolf's "The Book of Mamaw." A one-man play with a considerable amount of music and poignancy, the show stages at The Down Home in Johnson City on Friday, Jan. 5."She never met a stranger," said Eugene Wolf from his home in Johnson City. "I can't tell you how many times we visited the sick and shut-ins. She was compassionate."Wolf's "The Book of Mamaw" unfurls in chronological fashion. He introduces us to various relatives and friends, as well as himself as a child and through various stages of his teenage years. But Mamaw stars."She was my foundation," Wolf said. "I've seen her read her Bible, and the room would change. I would just get out of the way. She would shut her eyes, move her mouth. And this light would come into the room."She was an avid member of the Church of Christ. Wolf said she was immovable in that sense. But not at the expense of her humanity."In my show, it's not the doctrine," Wolf said. "It's the love and the compassion and the kindness she showed. That's what Mamaw gave to me."Attendees may well feel her presence as he shares generous examples of her essence. Photos of her will be onstage. Songs accompanying dialogue create a musical space where her personality can roam. As best as he can, Wolf brings her back in his show."When I do the show, she's activated," he said. "My mamaw and grandaddy raised me. I'm honoring her and her spirit every time I do it. I cannot reach out and touch Mamaw. She lives in me. But I call her up every time I do the show. She gets activated. So, yes, I am bringing her back."Wolf composed "The Book of Mamaw" with music in mind; songs with personal meaning provide the show's structure. They document a time, a place and occasionally certain people. The hymns, including "Never Grow Old," hearken to Mamaw."The songs mark certain times in my life," Wolf said. "You will hear 'My Shoes Keep Walking Back to You,' Connie Francis' 'Singing the Blues,' the Beatles, Petula Clark's 'Downtown,' the Carter Family's 'Keep on the Sunny Side.' People always sing along with 'Downtown.' It's a baby boomer's delight."Wolf grew up in Greeneville, Tennessee. His mamaw lived there, died there and is buried there. The story bears a distinct Appalachian imprint. However, thanks to a universal message, it translates and moves audiences far beyond southern Appalachia.Indeed, Wolf's "The Book of Mamaw" has legs. In addition to Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia, he has performed the seven-year-old play in New York City and Washington, D.C., as well as in Georgia, Alabama and elsewhere."They sometimes mispronounce the word Mamaw," Wolf said. "They say 'Mouw Mouw.' They're not familiar with the term. But they find out that whatever they called their grandmother is the same thing."In telling her story and weaving his through the narrative, Wolf provides avenues through which people can relate to one another. His mamaw did not understand his love for the Beatles. And that's OK. She did not get the hippie movement of the 1960s. That's OK, too.But Wolf's Mamaw loved people, all people. So does her grandson. Therein lies the heart, the mind and the soul of Eugene Wolf's "The Book of Mamaw.""She's opening people's hearts by me telling her story," Wolf said. "Every show, there are moments when I almost lose it. Sometimes there are tears. The emotion flows."What: Eugene Wolf's "The Book of Mamaw"When: 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 5Where: The Down Home, 300 W. Main St., Johnson CityInfo: 423-929-9822Web, audio and video: www.facebook.com/EugeneWolfMusic/