Ben Prestage and his One Man Show

Ben Prestage
By M. Alberto Rivera

At first glance, it would be easy to dismiss Ben Prestage as simply another good-time party musician whose favorite subjects are whiskey, weed, and women. But upon closer listen, the woeful characters in his songs have more depth than the average person who’s simply out for a memorable Saturday night.

On stage, Prestage is surrounded by drums set in a semi-circle before him. He sits playing guitar, harmonica, and drums while singing simultaneously. This is no awkward street performer making a spectacle of himself by making clumsy musical passes and mangling songs everyone knows. No, if you were just listening, you’d swear there was a full band on stage. Prestage plays with the smooth panache of road-tested band — subtly and powerfully at the same time. In between songs, he engages the audience with easy banter.

Raised in rural Florida, Prestage boasts the kind of musical pedigree rarely encountered anymore. He’s the grandson of a Mississippi sharecropper on his father’s side, and on the other, has a great-grandmother who was a vaudeville musician who toured with an all-girl orchestra. Her daughter — Prestage’s grandmother — was a boogie woogie pianist who played for him in his youth.

There’s also a real sense of place that Prestage brings with him. One can overthink the one-man band concept as something done out of necessity, considering his rural upbringing. But Prestage sounds like the other Florida — far from the lights and gloss that draws tourists here — the wild, untamed, and still dangerous Florida, full of gators, panthers, and a dense swamp that demands respect. And the characters who inhabit his songs aren’t always welcoming, nor do they suffer fools.

Prestage’s CDs are like his live shows in that they’re entirely free of overdubs. Everything is done live, often on primitive instruments like cigar box guitars and diddley bow. He’s the recipient of “The Most Unique Performer” award at The Songwriters’ Showcase of America, and he’s performed across North America, Europe, and as far as North Africa.

He proves himself every night, as there’s no one else to help carry the show. Like a true outsider, he doesn’t need anyone else. Unconcerned with popular trends, Prestage plays American blues, roots music, and Americana, taking ownership of each song with his performances.