There is a great series of articles on songwriting featured in the New York Times. It's called MEASURE FOR MEASURE: How to Write a Song and Other Mysteries, and you should definitely try to keep up with it. Today's article is written by Suzanne Vega, and it's GOOD. Check it out here and thank me later.
2006 Mountain Stage NewSong Contest Co-Winner Ingrid Michaelson appeared on Jay Leno last night. So for those of you who didn't see it, or Tivo it, check out YouTube in a few hours and you're likely to see it posted there.
NewSong Academy kicks off in just a few short weeks! Between now and then, we'll be posting some profiles of our great Academy instructors and workshop leaders. We're starting the series with Craig Bickhardt – a fabulous songwriter and inspired performer.
Spots are still available in the Academy, so register today. To register and learn more about all of our faculty, and to preview the schedule and course offerings, visit the NewSong Academy site.
1/ Craig Bickhardt, what is musically occupying your attention right now, this week? Whats song(s) are you working on and for whom, or what projects/gigs/brainstorms are you pursuing that are keeping you awake at night?
I've recently returned to performing. It's been a challenge to "sell" myself to promoters and venue owners because I've been a behind the scenes person for so long. But so far the shows have gone very well. I've done concerts with Livingston Taylor, Suzy Bogguss, Maura O'Connell, I'm playing with Billy Joe Shaver in a few weeks, and opening for America and Poco this fall. I'll also be touring my way down to Nashville in October to record my third solo CD with John Mock at the helm. I've taken a hiatus from writing, but I think I'm just about to end that. When you write songs for a living, you write about 35-40 a year. I did that for 25 years, so I needed a break to figure out what I really wanted to say next. I think I've written about every subject in life already, so the break has been like recharging my batteries.
2/ Name a few songs/CDs orlive acts you've listened to recently that made you glad you have two good ears (well, that's hoping you have two good ears -- one will do )?
Of the younger artists, I really enjoy Josh Ritter's music, also Bret Dennon and Mason Jennings. Peter Mulvey does great work. I miss Dave Carter. But I'm never too far away from the music of my own generation. It's great to hear artists like Chris Smither, Bob Dylan and Bruce Cockburn still raising the bar for their particular styles of music. There are some local acts here in Philly I'm following-- a band called Ellipsis and an excellent young singer songwriter named Liz Longley. We've done some shows together and I think they have tremendous potential.
3/ What's the one song (or two songs) you've written that you think people will be playing after you're gone -- or you hope they'll be playing?
Well, judging from the response I get it would probably be "This Old House", which I co-wrote with Thom Schuyler. Last weekend a woman in the front row was in tears after I sang that song. I get asked about it often. I get wonderful emails almost every week from people telling me stories about houses they've loved and lost for whatever reason. When I sold my house in Nashville I finally understood what the song really meant to others. I hope if I remembered for anything it will be a song of that caliber, a song that moves people.
4/ What was a musical experience you recall when you were younger that made you think: "Damn, that's what I want to be -- a singer-songwriter!' ?'
I don't know if it was one event, but I spent a lot of time at the legendary Main Point coffee house in Bryn Mawr, PA. back in 1973-74. I got to see some amazing shows with Tom Rush, Dave Van Ronk, Eric Anderson, Jackson Browne and others. There was no flash, no gimmicks, just powerful performances of really great songs. That's still what I aspire to. Even when I wrote songs in Nashville I was trying to meet those standards. Most of my live show is drawn from my Nashville songs, and I think they hold up pretty well against anybody else's.
5/ Why did you leave Nashville?
There were personal reasons-- my son was unable to get medicaid for his disability because Tenncare is bankrupt and broken. But also it was becoming a stiffling place creatively. When I went to Nashville in 1982 the hit songwriters were Townes Van Zant, Guy Clark, Rodney Crowell, Wendy Waldman... Steve Earle was working there, so were Lyle Lovett and Nanci Griffith. These songwriters were approaching commercial music as an art form. That appealed to me. But that Nashville is long gone. Publishers don't allow writers much artistic latitude now. You're either writing Clear Channel widgets or you're out of work. Sometimes a great song slips through. But we used to get 3-5 year publishing deals, plenty of time to explore our writing. Now they give you 18 months and if you haven't had a smash you're history. I can't write in that environment. I need to experiment and grow. I came back to eastern Pennsylvania looking for my roots again. I feel at home here creatively. Audiences appreciate my point of view and the textures and "colors" I use in my writing. It all reflects where I grew up.
NewSong is thrilled to announce that our longtime friend Devon Sproule will be joining us as a teacher at this year's NewSong Academy. To register, click here. The deadline for advance discount registration ($50 off!) is midnight on June 1. For more information on the Academy, click here. See ya. Gar
Here's a recent New York Times article, about the life of a independent singer/songwriter/blogger, music entrepreneur. I think we can all identify with most if not all elements of this piece. Click here to read.
-Gar Ragland
- by Gary Reynolds, musician & NewSong Co-founder
This was the underlying question asked the listener of an Emily Harris Morning Edition Sunday story concerning a lawsuit between descendants of opera-meisters Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hofmannsthal, the composer and librettist, respectively, of some of opera’s most enduring works. (Von H. was the wordsmith of nine of Strauss’ most enduring operas, including the operatic mainstay Der Rosenkavalier.) You can listen to the piece here:
www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9591796
Being a songwriter, this story grabbed my attention while I was making pancakes for my son and me. I feel that whether we’re talking opera or the 3-minute song, it’s worthwhile thinking about this question, as it may bear on how we approach our writing.
Major-league songwriters of both lyrics and music who also teach (Thank you!) are often asked by their students whether they begin a new song with the music or the lyric. I’ve heard this question more than once at our own NewSong Academy. Procedurally, great songs have been written in many ways. The common wisdom around Nashville is to start with a killer title, and that’s one highly effective way to begin, and the way I’ve been mainly using myself over the past year. But it is undeniably a lyric-centric approach. This begs the question with which I begin this piece. Many of you are aware that the most covered song of all time, McCartney’s timeless hit “Yesterday” began with a dummy lyric including the title/hook, “Scrambled Eggs.” Would the song have been covered over 3000 times with the “scrambled eggs” lyric? Probably not. But it does interest me that the title came only after the melody had been written, and that the tune is as good as they come. It makes sense that many, many of those covers have been instrumentals – no singing (and no lyrics) at all.
I write both music and lyrics. I am a “story” guy, and I take great pains with my lyrics. And my songwriter’s ears are admittedly tuned into the lyrics when I listen to others’ work. But it’s the music – melody, harmony, groove, and also the production – that initially pulls me in. That pulls us all in: How many songs on the radio begin with singing? Virtually none; those songs begin with a musical intro generally including a hooky riff. And for good reason: that approach works. “Here I am, now listen to me!” the music demands. And we generally do, at least momentarily, often longer.
It is a song’s tune that tends to stick with me first and longest. I’m hardly alone: As returning Academy faculty and mega-successful songwriter Jason Bloom says, “No one walks down the street humming a lyric.” And let’s not forget all those great instrumental hits from rock’s early years, e.g. The Tornadoes’ “Telstar,” the Chimps’ “Tequila,” and all those undeniable surf hits from The Ventures, Dick Dale, and many others. Not a lyric in the bunch, excepting brief exclamations like “Wipeout!”
On the other hand, I cannot recall a single spoken-word hit from the past 50 years. (Though there may have been one, probably by Rod McKuen.) And heck, the theme from “Titanic” was huge – I wonder what percentage of us recalls the title of that song?*
So what’s the lesson here? I think it’s this. A great lyric is important, even critical, to a great song. But the music – and particularly the melody in most genres – is what initially and generally “gets the song’s foot in the door,” to use a sales metaphor. The Music Sells The Song. Jason Blume advises that we put AT LEAST as much into our melodies as into the lyrics, and to never settle for the first melody that pops into our heads. I think that’s “sound” advice!
*The “Titanic” song’s title was”My Heart Will Go On” (I had to look it up.)
For Immediate Release:
April 19, 2007
Proper Distribution to release “My Remembrance of You”
Diana Jones heads to Utrecht, Holland to play the Blue Highways Festival this Saturday. From there, she travels to the UK where she will perform at several clubs promoting her latest cd, “My Remembrance of You”. Diana is accompanied by Beau Stapleton on Mandolin and Tenor Guitar. She will also be taping 3 BBC Radio shows, Keith Warmington Bristol Sessions, Robert Elms, and Bob Harris Country. This first introduction to the EU, is only the beginning of what we know will be a whole new audience for Diana and her music. Diana’s label NewSong Recordings has secured Proper Distribution to release My Remembrance of You in the UK in July. Will McCarthy Promotions will be working with Proper on publicity and radio promotion. Asgard’s Paul Fenn completes the team as Diana’s new UK agent. Paul has already confirmed several fantastic opportunities including Cambridge Folk Festival in July and in October a 10 day opening slot for legend Richard Thompson. So stay tuned to www.dianajonesmusic.com for further news across the pond.
Contact: Cole & Company
Pamela Cole 615-650-1030
An Interview with Devon Sproule; by Mira Stanley
Devon Sproule’s “Plea for a Good Night’s Rest” from her last album Upstate Songs became an important song for me, as I am sure it has become for others. The theme, imagery, and even the intricate form of the song suggest an imaginatively scrupulous way of perceiving life, a way of not overlooking or devaluing what can seem like the tiniest parts of our days. Good writers tend to have a knack for that. They uncover something revelatory in the everyday, the seemingly mundane, and remind us that profound works of art do not always have to be mind-bogglingly esoteric or allusive.
Devon’s new album Keep Your Silver Shined represents the next phase of her lyrical journeys into the everyday. “Dress sharp, play well, be modest, make good what you have,” is both the refrain and title of one such song, asking, “when you’re warmed up in a wood room, what could be better? What more can you do?” Although this album ultimately instills the feeling that there is more that you can do, it does so through its playful insistence on the importance of everyday actions, thoughts, and dreams.
This is, however, simply one theme pervading Keep Your Silver Shined. Since releasing her last album, Devon married fellow singer/songwriter Paul Curreri, and Devon herself describes Keep Your Silver Shined as her “marriage album.” If this album offers any commentary or feelings on domestic life, family, love, and home, it is refreshingly celebratory.
Also notable is Devon’s increased proficiency as a musician on this latest release, which seems to have given her a greater confidence and ability to explore. Keep Your Silver Shined is a commendable balance of tradition and eccentricity, and an elegant rhapsody of lyrical and musical integrity.
For more information on Devon, her album, tour dates, and much more, visit www.devonsproule.com. You can also find her on MySpace at www.myspace.com/devonsproule.
The following are a series of questions I recently sent Devon, along with her full responses:
1. How would you describe your experience(s) with NewSong?
“One of the main attractions of NewSong for me is its commitment to West Virginia arts and culture. No matter how many national artists come through, no matter the high profile press, NewSong is intent on lending its support to West Virginia artists and businesses. I'm down with that. Every year has been a different sort of adventure, whether in a grassy field, or a quaint little town. Even in a downpour, folks are pleasant and days full of good music.”
2. How would you say your upbringing influenced you?
“Any musician with supportive parents knows how big a difference it makes. That I grew up in an intentional community (Twin Oaks, founded in the 60’s, egalitarian, non-violent, income-sharing) with 80 or so similarly supportive adults around at all times ...well, let’s just say that no one ever told me it wasn’t a worthwhile profession to pursue.”
3. When you were fifteen you left high school, recorded an album, and began to tour. Was that a difficult decision for you? What solidified that choice?
“My parents were never huge fans of traditional schooling, so moving from high school to community college, and then on to regular old living wasn’t too big of a deal. If I hadn’t been a relatively motivated, curious kid, it would have been different, I’m sure. I had a wonderful young manager, friend and housemate between ages 15 and 20, Jessica Baucom, who arranged the recording of Devon and Long Sleeve Story, and did just about everything else but the actual playing. It was a lovely, exciting way to get started.”
4. What have you learned performing and making music over the past few years that you wish you'd known when you began?
“I wish I’d started writing songs a bit earlier -- say, 11 or 12, instead of 15. One’s inner critic is already pretty strong by 15, and since I was already so musically bent, it only made sense that I should start writing, which created a certain amount of pressure, especially from within. I have a very slow writing process, which took me years to accept and be comfortable with.”
5. How do you approach writing a song, and once it's written, how do you approach finding the right delivery?
“Songs usually start with a guitar bit that I’m excited about -- often something I’ve sort’ve ripped from another song (most recently, old jazz and swing standards). I try to find a few phrases or ideas that fit the guitar bits, work on the lyrics over the course of a few weeks, and then work and re-work the melody, using the guitar to remind me of notes my voice has forgotten, until I’m satisfied with everything. By that time, I have a general idea of how it’s going to go over, whether it’ll be easily accessible to an audience, or whether I’ll have to work to get the idea across.”
6. Your new album Keep Your Silver Shined is set to be released April 17th.
“Keep Your Silver Shined” is also the name of one of the songs on the album. Can you talk about what "keeping your silver shined" means to you and how it might encompass the ideas contained on the record? “Keep Your Silver Shined was written and recorded in the year following my engagement to Paul Curreri, which is what I think of when I listen to the record. When Paul and I moved in together, the neighboring old lady was being moved out of her house, to a nursing home, and I adopted an old set of silverware that I found at her estate sale. It was only one of many moments of sentimentality in my haze of marital bliss, but it was one that stuck. It's about keeping the good things in your life good and shiny, in addition to yearning for sparkly new things. On a quirky side note, I also seem to have a funny thang for alliteration in my CD titles, with ‘s’ -- Long Sleeve Story, Upstate Songs and Keep Your Silver Shined.”
7. In what ways has your life changed since being married and how has that affected your songwriting?
“Being able to successfully solidify my love life has opened all kinds of doors toward solidifying other things in my life. It's been such a relief to be able to focus on writing and making music, knowing all the while that I have an insanely handsome, talented and supportive husband to go home to.”
8. What was the recording process like for your new album?
“Long and lovely. Jeff Romano, my producer, was the hero of it all. He brought in all the other musicians (mostly folks from the nearby Richmond jazz scene) and played many of the parts himself. My husband Paul also contributed a song, and played a few crucial guitar bits. It was a grand exercise in patience, and resulted in a record that I can't imagine being more proud of.”
9. It's clear that Virginia is nurturing you. How important do you think where you choose to live is to your songwriting?
“Paul and I have considered moving to a larger city with more of a music industry presence from time to time. But the only city that is even a tiny bit tempting is Austin, where our friend and fellow songwriter Danny Schmidt lives. Things may take a little longer in Charlottesville, but it keeps us sane. And as anyone who travels for a living knows, the time away just makes the coming home even sweeter.”
10. You're getting ready to tour again in the UK. Can you talk a little about your perception of that music scene and how independent artists are received there?
“I'm actually writing from the UK now and the tour has been great. I don't know if it's longer attention spans, or less frantic radio & press, but things do make quite a bit of sense over here, in terms of the music business. Granted, the weather and food are shite, but the friends I've made here are top notch. I mostly hang at the Tin Angel Café and Taylor John's House venue here in Coventry, a working-class city with a very small but vibrant music scene. Check www.tinangelrecords.co.uk for more info on that front.”
11. What musicians, poets, books, movies, etc. have you discovered recently that you are excited about?
“Always Matt Curreri & The Exfriends. When I was last visiting them in San Diego, they introduced me to Mulatu Astatqe (most famously in the US, from the Broken Flowers soundtrack), which I've been listening to constantly. My sister-in-law Maria and her boyfriend Dave gave me Elizabeth Bishop's collected poems, which I've been enjoying. She's another writer who takes her time! And of course my husband, Paul Curreri, who I was a fan of long before we dated.”
12. Do you have any other projects you are working on or that you know you would like to work on?
“I'm not working on this directly but I may as well be, I'm so excited. My husband is producing a CD for a British band called DON'T MOVE! (yes, all caps w/ an exclamation point!) and it's coming along fantastically. The two main members, Joe Carvell and Mason LeLong just came over to Virginia to mix with Paul at our house. I played the housewife for a couple weeks, buying beer and fixing food, and got to listen to it all in-the-works, which was a blast.”
Anais Mitchell's THE BRIGHTNESS,
An Interview by Mira Stanley
I first discovered Anais Mitchell at the Mountain Stage NewSong Festival. A few years ago when the festival was first starting, she played at one of the side stages to a group of exhilarated onlookers.
These days, Anais is a familiar name to a good part of the songwriting community. She was given the New Folk award in 2003 at the Kerrville Folk Festival, and the following year released her second album, HYMNS FOR THE EXILED.
That record spurred me to see her in 2005. She was just an opening act then, but I was so taken by the performance that I left immediately after her set, roaming the streets for the better part of the night, beginning to digest what I had just been part of. I was overwhelmed, but unable to articulate exactly why. Looking back now, I must have had an inkling that beyond the obvious merit of the songs she was playing was an even larger talent. Her new record, THE BRIGHTNESS, represents a fuller fruition of that talent, surpassing anything to come from Anais so far.
Her voice as a storyteller has strengthened, and while her lyrics have always been intelligent, they now evoke a heightened sense of insight and maturity, further intensified by imaginative melodies. It feels to me like she is writing from a different place, crafting lyrics that are both accessible and full of depth and complexity, while still unmistakably rooted in the "weird political and pagan songs of [her] upbringing."
Anais, along with producer Michael Chorney, has not, thankfully, erred on the side of over-producing this album. It was recorded in a converted gristmill, a peculiar setting that seems to have lent character to the recordings. The instrumental arrangements and overall production quality are what you would hope to hear from her—creative, but not too busy; smooth, but still raw.
The album comes out February 13th, 2007, and is being released by Ani DiFranco's label, Righteous Babe Records. I urge you not only to buy this album, but also to see Anais live. I saw her perform songs from THE BRIGHTNESS a few weeks ago, once again leaving the show with an unshakeable need for introspection, and a sense that I had witnessed and tapped into something significant.
After the performance, I sent a series of questions to Anais via e-mail. The full text of her responses appears below.
Visit her website www.anaismitchell.com or her myspace account at www.myspace.com/anaismitchell to learn more about her album, tourdates, and thoughts.
What have you gained from music and songwriting festivals? What was your experience at NewSong?
"Well when I first started writing songs I discovered the Kerrville Folk Festival in Texas. The festival itself, and the Mountain Stage NewSong Contest that is part of it, were really, really inspiring for me at a time when I wasn't sure if the songs I was writing could mean something to anyone but myself. Festivals are great because they're so democratic, a level playing-field so to speak, you can get your foot in the door of what's happening as opposed to so much of the promotional dance that goes on in the real world. Also... the spontaneity... the late night ecstatic moments... the comradeship. That's what I found at Kerrville. Kerrville has been around for decades and developed a very particular and entrenched culture, so my experience of NewSong, which was only in its second year when I went, was quite different-- it seemed like it was just beginning, as a festival, to develop its character. But I sensed a kinship between the two festivals because at NewSong, like at Kerrville, people were just crazy for SONGWRITING, not flashy stage shows etc., but the real bones of the music. You might play a song and when you deliver THE LINE there is an audible sigh-- people are listening, and they get it!-- that was very exciting to me. Also the lineup that year was fantastic... Devon Sproule, Peter Mulvey, etc."
How did becoming part of Righteous Babe come about and how have things changed since you've become part of a label? Was that a defining moment for you---as in---your life before the label and then your life after? Any thoughts you might have on the benefits or not of a label...
"A musician & promoter in Buffalo, Michael Meldrum, put together some shows for me in town. He is also Ani Difranco's childhood guitar teacher and they've remained friends for many years, so he invited her to my show, since she happened not to be on tour. That was a ways back... it took some time for me to figure out how/with whom to record THE BRIGHTNESS and actually make the deal. Of course I was and am very excited. As for a defining moment... I mean, it was a defining moment when Ani Difranco, whose music meant so much to me, came to a show of mine and stood there in the audience! And as great as it feels to have the support of RBR and its wonderful team, I don't think "life on a label" and "life as an independent" are going to be terribly different... I've still got to write the songs... wrestle the demons... play the shows... I've always done that on my own and I always will."
On your website you say "If you knew what Ani DiFranco meant to me as a young woman and a young songwriter..." Can you talk a little bit about how she influenced you?
"Yah... Well, her songs were a big part of my musical coming-of-age. She was the first artist I discovered that I knew right away I would buy every record of and go see every time she came to town. Some of the first songs I learned on the guitar were Ani Difranco songs! I don't know if someone growing up right now could really understand it, because I think she gave voice to the political and emotional zeitgeist of my generation, it was a powerful cultural convergence thing, especially for women, since feminism (among other good ideas,) was in a lull back then and she picked it up and shook it in everyone's face and inspired women to reexamine their identity as women. Beyond her music/politics being influential... RBR was kind of at the forefront of the indie explosion... the fact that Ani Difranco refused to follow the corporate model was and is very inspiring. She paved the way for a lot of us."
Can you describe how the record was recorded and how that was decided on? the gristmill, etc? And how that influenced the writing, recording, and how it differed from other recording experiences you've had?
"We recorded it at this beautiful-sounding old converted gristmill in Bristol, VT... sometimes called the Brist Mill. When we began recording I was actually renting the apartment above the studio so I could just stumble down in my pajamas or whatever and record. I worked with Michael Chorney, the same guy who produced HYMNS FOR THE EXILED. The album began as an EP, I had a whole concept for it, all love songs, but by the time we really got our sleeves rolled up we realized we wanted a full length. The whole process was very intimate and organic, not unlike HYMNS in that regard. The big difference with THE BRIGHTNESS was the length of time we took to make it... it was a very slow process of many months, I would go on tour and come back and work more, etc... not that you'll hear a lot of overdubs or anything on the record... intimacy was our goal."
What places have you traveled that have most influenced you? And in what ways?
"The Middle East wins that contest for sure. I studied for a semester in Egypt back in my student days, and traveled the region pretty widely. I loved the chaos of Cairo and the dignity within it. It was a challenging and romantic place to be. With that region in particular, it was fascinating to see the reality in light of the violently charged TV news version I had acquired in the states. That's one of the big lessons of travel, to me... One can't get any idea of the sweetness and quirkiness and the everyday nature of a place from the news... Travel paints a human face on the big blank fearsome map."
You've mentioned that you once wanted to be a journalist. You have a great statement on your website discussing the similarities between journalists and songwriters. Were those two things that overlapped or did one lead to the other?
"I think I said I wanted to be a journalist because I was afraid if I said I wanted to be a singer-songwriter people would give me that pitying look... "ah... you mean, a waitress..." That was in college. I still do want to be a journalist, I just haven't been offered a job."
Your album is called the Brightness, which is mentioned in your song OF A FRIDAY NIGHT. Can you talk about what that song is about and any particular reason why you decided on that title for your album?
"Yes! I wrote OF A FRIDAY NIGHT with two cities in mind-- Alexandria, Egypt and New Orleans. It's a long, dorky story if I were to really explain it... but basically, it's about the weird time-warp of arriving in a town, on a scene, whose moment of cultural brightness has come and gone and only the ghosts remain. There you are looking for poets and all the poets have moved on to another town. That feeling comes up a few times in the record, but sometimes in the guise of a love story... There you are looking for somebody's heart, the bright flame you could have sworn was there, but man, it's not there anymore..."
There is also a song "Hades and Persephone" on the album. Which came first, the song or the idea for the folk opera? And can you talk a little about the folk opera? Any other projects?
"Yeah... that's not the first song I wrote for the opera... so the opera came first... The show is called HADESTOWN and it's a retelling of the Orpheus myth but set in a sort of an historical American Depression company town. So, instead of love & song vs. death, it's more like love & song vs. the destructive and terrifying forces of defense & industry and lifelessness. It is... the opera that is... unlike anything I've done and I'm totally in love with the project and everyone involved in it. Hopefully we'll make a record this year and put on a new expanded version in the fall. Other projects... well, I recorded an EP with my friend Rachel Rise a couple months ago. Five songs, two of mine, two of hers, and one of our friend's. It is kind of a country record. Very fun to make, and we're planning to release it on vinyl!"
Aside from playing solo, you play with three of your friends as the Tin Pan Caravan? Can you talk about how that evolved and what you've gained from playing with other musicians?
"Yeah! We haven't done a tour for a while now. Those three friends are Rachel Ries (Chicago), Robert Blake (Bellingham) and Louis Ledford (New Orleans). We met at Kerrville and we actually got to play as a band at NewSong! We are all admirers of each others' music and good friends, and we found it fun and refreshing to play shows in- the-round, swapping songs, like at a campfire... We figured it was probably fun for audiences too... Those guys are inspiring, really breaking new ground in songwriting all of them, they raise the bar every time I see them. But I'd say the most delightful part of Tin Pan Caravan is sharing the stage with friends as opposed to going it alone... one can get lonesome and self-absorbed playing solo shows."
What musicians, poets, books, movies, etc. have you discovered recently that you are excited about?
"Well, he's hardly underground but I just discovered Ron Sexmith and he is getting a lot of spins in my house. Also a Philly-based guy called Devin Greenwood-- amazing! I'm reading PITY THE NATION by Robert Fisk-- amazing! In conjunction with THE BRIGHTNESS I'd recommend THE ALEXANDRIA QUARTET by Lawrence Durrell. As for movies... in my frenzy to watch every musical every made... I just saw Guys & Dolls w/ Marlon Brando & Frank Sinatra-- watched it twice in a row-- amazing!"
Any comment you want to make about anything politically, and any thoughts you have on the responsibilities that songwriters may or may not have in regards to politics.
"I think making art is about approaching Truth (with a capital T, you can lie all you want and still tell the Truth, etc.). I don't know how I feel about that word "responsibility", but I do think that "Truth with a capital T" is the ultimate spiritual potential of art and for artists not to strive toward it is sad. And will lead to the devolution of the culture."
------------
Mira Stanley is a singer/songwriter from Charleston, WV, currently
based in New York, and part of the NewSong family. To learn more about
Mira please visit www.myspace.com/miramusic.
In advance of her appearance in Charleston, WV tomorrow night (as part of the Woody Hawley concert series, produced by NewSong co-founder Ron Sowell), an interesting article on NewSong Recordings artist Diana Jones appears in Thursday's Charleston Daily Mail:
Woman returns to musical roots, discovers link to country great Chet Atkins
by Monica Orosz
Daily Mail staff
Thursday December 14
Adopted as an infant and raised on Long Island, N.Y., Diana Jones was drawn to music that wasn't part of her upbringing -- Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline and Emmylou Harris.
"I have to say there's not a lot of opportunities to hear it in that part of the world. But when I did hear it, my ears always perked up," she said.
The reason became clear when she met her birth mother and the rest of her biological family in Maryville, Tenn., just outside Knoxville, after college.
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