alwayshavebeen, travelingHighway
61,TheBluesHighway. Icouldhear
them theminuteIsaton thatbike
andclosedmyeyes.
U.S.61 isaroadofghosts,butI
alsohavea lotof the livingon this
trip:BlackKeys’ frontmanDan
Auerbach, theembodimentofsoul
andblues;DaveOhrt,mymentor
and themanwho introducedme
toantiquemotorcycles;producer,
songwriterandrecordingartist
ButchWalker;CurtLisius, at63 the
grandoldmanof thegroup;Todd
Stopera, soundengineerandmotorcycle
junkie; fashiondesignerMattEddmen-
sonof Imogene+Willie; andofcourse
mybrotherRobbie,oneof theAmerican
Pickers.Quite thecrew, indeed.
FEW YEARS AGOON APICK
inDavenport, Iowa, I founda
fadedold jacketpatch from the
’30sstitchedwith thename
“LuckyRiders.”Since then,whenweride
together,we’re theLuckyRiders.Matt
madeusmatching jackets.Dangotus
patches. Igotusshirtsandhats.We’re like
teenagersagain.
Wesetoff fromNashvilleon the first
morningastrideeightHarleys—six
Knuckleheadsand twoPanheads—
vintage1937 to1954.Anhour later,we’re
brokendownon thesideof theroadand
twohoursafterDan’sbike ispatchedup,
Butch’sPanheadbuys it. If itwasn’t for
Dave,we’dstillbesittingon thesideof the
road.
It’smore than200miles toMemphis,
andwepickourwayacross that last110
milesofTennesseecountrysideunder
coverofnight, countingon thedimglow
of70-year-oldheadlamps togetus to the
frontdoorof theold ladywhorules the
city—ThePeabodyMemphishotel.
MattEddmenson (from left),DanAuerbach,
MikeWolfeandButchWalker on the road to
Clarksdale,Mississippi
B
ELOWRIGHT
:DanAuerbach taking refuge from
the stormunder anoverpass
U.S.61 isa
roadof
ghosts,but
Ialsohave
a lotof the
living
on this trip.
76
DECEMBER2015
AMERICANWAY
PHOTOS
LUCKY R IDERS (3)
A
