Archive for March, 2011
Martha’s Trouble: Anchor Tattoo
Anchor Tattoo, the newest release by husband-and-wife duo Martha’s Trouble, is a gem of polished pop.
Isaac Hayes
When I was a kid in Memphis, we used to do little Tom Thumb weddings, little stage plays and all that. But music can help you relate to the public, help you to come out of your shell. I remember my first performance as an artist was on the Dick Clark show, American Bandstand. I […]
Happy Birthday, Norah Jones!
With her 2002 debut Come Away With Me chalking up over 20 million sales, and her three follow-up releases—Feels Like Home (2004), Not Too Late (2007) and The Fall (2009)—each selling over a million copies, Norah Jones has become one of the most popular musicians on the planet. Her accolades include nine Grammys, national and […]
KT Tunstall
It was a definite decision with the first album to write an autobiography, to put together songs that were very real. I was very inspired by Tapestry by Carole King for the feel of the first album. I thought a good way of introducing myself was just to say, “This is my take on me […]
Duncan Sheik
Within the music circles I appreciate, “Top 40 Radio” is a very bad phrase. It’s not respected, and it’s seen as over-marketed, throwaway crap. I grew up buying things like 4AD import records—the most obscure kinds of art-rock I could find—and suddenly people were calling me a pop singer. That caused a lot of cognitive […]
Jerry Lee Lewis
“No, I didn’t push a piano in a river. It was an ocean (laughs). The Atlantic. I pushed this old piano out the back door of this theater in Florida and right down down the sidewalk and off into the water. Son, that was one bad piano. It floated pretty good, though.” From Performing Songwriter […]
Carly Simon
Co-writing can happen in so many different ways. In the case of “You Belong to Me,” the Doobie Brothers were doing the song for their album and using Ted Templeman as a producer, as they always did. There was a melody that Michael McDonald had written, and Teddy suggested that Michael call me and ask […]
Trey Anastasio
At this point in time I’m only now discovering the joys of singing. Maybe it’s because these songs are so personal. The guitar parts are starting to feel second-nature. Guitar-playing has been my form of communication for so long, it’s been really interesting to fall in love with singing. I guess you just eventually get […]
Ari Hest: Sunset Over Hope Street
Ari Hest’s soulful baritone, intimate lyrics and folk-pop sound are on full display with his excellent new release.
Pink
“I was a 4 Non Blondes fan and Linda Perry was one of the voices I connected with in my darkest moments as an adolescent. We went into her little studio and she said, ‘OK, how are you feeling today?’ and gave me a microphone and hit record. I got my little journals out and […]