Ramsey Thornton makes modern-day folk music for early mornings and quiet hours. It's a warm, rhythmic sound, fueled by intricate fingerpicking and the observational storytelling of a lifelong musician who's still discovering new horizons. Long before he became an unsung hero of Tulsa's music scene — playing banjo in Ken Pomeroy's band, drumming for jazz combos, and collaborating with hometown heroes like Wilderado — the Oklahoma native began drumming at 6 years old. By his late-teens, he was playing stringed instruments, too. Banjo came first. Acoustic guitar followed, with Ramsey developing a hypnotic, percussive style — including intricate rhythms and uniquely phrased arpeggios — that seemed to nod to the two instruments he'd already learned.
Ramsey recorded I Called It! in Brooklyn, where he teamed up with Isaac Stalling and Sam Skinner (Pinegrove) in a Bed-Stuy studio. They anchored each song with a live performance of guitar and vocals, adding other instruments — from the interlocking layers of strings that sweep through "Tony's Song," a gorgeous duet with Ken Pomeroy, to the brushed percussion and keyboards that punctuate "Backyard" — for textural effect. Back home in Oklahoma, Ramsey tapped Chad Copeland (Broncho, Wilderado) to contribute synth, drones, and other atmospherics to tracks like "Fourth of July." Even so, I Called It generally unfolds like a one-man show, capturing Ramsey Thornton in his element: intimate, locked-in, and focused on the present moment.
"I like my music to sound natural," he says simply. "These are songs that I wrote around my kitchen table. I recorded them with my friends. I hope they just sound like me."
With I Called It!, Ramsey Thornton keeps his eye on the outside world and his hands on the fretboard, creating a gentle, guitar-driven soundtrack to everyday life.
