IAN HUNTER – ROCK ICON OVERBOARD

By Tom Semioli 

This feature appeared in Amplifier Magazine Online,  July 2009

"Various lunatics!" proclaims Ian Hunter when asked how he went from being an All American Alien Boy in 1976 to a Man Overboard  in 2009.  "I’m kind of sad, in a way, that old George (Bush) has left the building—there were plenty of 'words' coming when he was in! I just feel so much more optimistic now. The political thing just doesn’t seem to have the same appeal as last year."

Ian Hunter still has plenty of vitriol (and sentiment) left in him as evidenced on his latest, luckiest 13th solo album since his long lamented departure from rock's greatest underdog ensemble, Mott The Hoople, in early 1975.

Akin to his distinguished rock poet peers - you can count Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Lou Reed, Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith among them, Ian is rendering his best work both live and on record. Ever a man of the people, Ian affords props to his veteran road ensemble for MO's aural sense of urgency: producer/guitarist Andy York (John Mellancamp), drummer Steve Holley (Paul McCartney & Wings, Joe Cocker), bassist Paul Page (Dion), guitarist Jack Petruzzelli (Rufus Wainwright, Joan Osbourne), guitarist James Maestro (Patti Smith, John Cale), and keyboardist Andy Burton (The Db's). For the record (pun intended) Man Overboard only took a week to record and a week to mix.

"Andy was so committed that he should be" jokes Hunter. "It’s very 50-50 with me and Andy – it’s kind of like a marriage in a way, I’ve got my weak spots, and he’s extremely good in those spots. It’s not like I’m over here and the band is over there." Continuing the momentum of the highly acclaimed Shrunken Heads (2007) album boiled down to one simple tenet.  "Commitment!" says Hunter once again.  "Not only with me, but with anyone my band has worked with. It spreads…like good seeds."

And like good seeds, Ian Hunter songs will grow on you. For fans of "Irene Wilde," "Ships In The Night," and "I Wish I Was Your Mother" - you have a new romantic epic to cherish "Girl From The Office." Ruminates Ian "she was pretty gorgeous at the time. Most of my songs have an element of truth in it - I just employ a little poetic license."  "The Great Escape" which kicks off the album, is a classic Ian rocker worthy of his old Mott mates. "The thing with that song is it’s kind of like the odds are always against ya' – and if you think about it and you analyze any situation you’re in – there always seems to be a way out even if you’re on your own and that’s a good sort of thing to know in life!"

In age of Tweets, Facebook, MySpace, file-sharing, pod-casts, and other digital foolery (and thievery), the long-player format remains sacred to Hunter.  "My business is to make albums – I like a complete album whether it’s in date or out of date.  I don’t care what anyone else is doing –that’s my way.  I love making music! I’m not really concerned about the 'music business." The appeal is obvious to Ian and his dedicated following, though it may be lost on the current generation: how foolish would a dramatic video of "All The Young Dudes" or "Crash Street Kids" appear in modern times? Ian elaborates: "Use your imagination – that, to me, was the big attraction of it. That’s a wonderful thing for a kid – to just imagine. When I started out and listened to American acts – Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis and all those people - my imagination ran rampant."

And thankfully, Ian gives no concession to age. "I think there’s a place for anybody who wants to connect" he opines on the most taboo subject in our youth obsessed culture: longevity.  "People are wide open to it, as long as you deliver in some way, shape or form. On the ‘pop’ side of things you wouldn’t get away with it, but in the rock field – yeah! The blues guys are still going at it. When we were pop artists and we had hits and stuff and I could see that 'longevity'  could be detrimental – getting old and doing pop stuff." Ian begins to measure his words. "But the kind of thing I’m heading for…and it’s okay because there’s an element of….the thing you have to watch out for is…." He pauses, then finds the perfect word to describe his modus operandi: "Dignity!

In addition to Man Overboard, 2009 will mark the most improbable reunion of all for Ian - Mott The Hoople. Five 40th Anniversary shows are slated for the first week of October at the HMV Hammersmith Apollo in London with all the original members on stage- Ian, Mick Ralphs, Dale "Buffin" Griffin, Verden Allen - and a man who hasn't been seen by the general public in eons, the charismatic guru of glam, bassist Pete "Overend" Watts.  Says Ian of Overend "I talk to him on the phone all the time, but I haven't seen him. He must be fit, he walks all over Britain - twenty five miles per day - though not in those platforms I'm sure." No word from Ian on Overend's retention of his signature metallic hair, we'll have to wait for the gigs.

Ian Hunter's Man Overboard is out on New West Records on July 21, 2009

GRAHAM PARKER’S COUNTRY COMFORTS

By Tom Semioli

This feature appeared in Amplifier Magazine,  January 2004

"A sort of mercenary feeling crept in" confides Graham Parker from his American home in upstate New York. Ruminating on the current state of pop culture, Parker has developed his own acerbic theory as to why things are the way they are: novelty has become more important than substance. "So why not do myself a favor?" he shouts.  "I'll surprise the media. They'll probably figure 'oh look, he's gone country! We'd better write about him! We'd better have him on our show!" In keeping with his legend, Parker lowers his voice and adopts a decidedly cynical posture. "How can I fool all those bastards?"

The good news is Graham Parker isn't really intending to fool anyone. He certainly has not abandoned his iconoclastic pop sensibilities. And he's in very good spirits these days. Parker's latest release, Your Country, is a deliberate foray into roots music with a rock 'n' roll heart. The East London born recording artist and author continues his impressive thirty year streak of stinging social commentary, melodic craft, confessional word-play, and passionate performances with healthy dose of piss and vinegar.

Typecast as an "angry young man" at the onset of the 1970s punk explosion, Parker's early records with The Rumour, the UK's premier pub-rock ensemble, produced a stunning series of  R&B meets power-pop classics  Howlin' Wind (1975), Heat Treatment (1976), Stick To Me (1977) and his most recognizable effort Squeezing Out Sparks (1979). Mid-career gems such as Another Grey Area (1982) and The Mona Lisa's Sister (1988) solidified Parker's reputation as a pop music force possessing the lyrical brilliance of Bob Dylan meshed with the unkempt rock 'n' roll swagger of the Rolling Stones. By the 1990s Parker emerged as a respected elder statesman via mature works including Human Soul (1990), Struck By Lightening (1991) and Deep Cut To Nowhere (2001), exploring domestic life and mortality.

The organic impetus of Your Country, titled in part as homage to the Beatles' White Album track "Yer Blues" is a no-brainer. "The country influence has always been there in my music," emphasizes Parker. "I was going to call it Yer Country but Americans would probably miss the British slang…though I can't stand the thought of a DJ announcing "Yourrrrrr Country."

It is a natural progression for Parker as well. "I much prefer acoustic music to play and listen to. My voice is suited to these kinds of songs. I can still rock with the best of them, but I cannot sing in that upper mid-range that I used to. Besides, that's something a younger man should be doing." Parker does not rule out making another rock album in the foreseeable future. "I could have done these songs in the typical GP format: a mish-mash of rock, folk, reggae, and soul. And then you'd have people saying 'ho hum, he's done another one."

Your Country could not have appeared without the collaboration of fellow singer song-writer, bassist, and multi-instrumentalist Tom Freund, whom Parker describes as the best musician on the planet without a record deal. Freund, who garnered acclaim as a solo recording artist and as a member of the Silos, led Parker to a tiny sixteen track studio in Venice, California and enlisted former Lone Justice drummer Don Heffington to round out a trio. With four hours of rehearsals and a little over a week in the pits, Parker and company cut at a rapid pace, nailing five songs on the first day of recording. Parker brags "we did every song no more than twice.  Ever since I started producing myself on Mona Lisa I've been trying to get my vocals recorded live. All these producers that were costing me 50K were doing the wrong thing with my voice, forcing rough scratch vocals, and then asking me to come back two months later to give them a final take. That's totally unnatural." Your Country is Parker's finest hour as a singer. "I ordered the engineer to leave the vocals dry, which is a gutsy move for me."

Enter Lucinda Williams. The reigning queen of alternative country opened on Parker's 1992 tour as her Sweet Old World album was breaking into the mainstream. While composing the tune "Cruel Lips" Parker envisioned a duet with Williams, but dismissed the idea due to logistics. During a session break Huffington mentioned that he'd played on Williams' recent Essence tour and kept her number. Williams was in town and gladly agreed to come to the studio to help an old friend.  "Her voice is kind of naughty. My knees turned to jelly whenever she sang the word 'lips.' I couldn't take it. I had to walk out of the room." But Parker kept poking around the hallway. "I'd come back in to just make a comment, and Lucinda would admonish me 'no Graham! We're not in that part of the song.' Ok sorry, I'll leave it to you then. Fucking great!" Parker loathes the idea of inviting guests to boost his commercial visibility. "That pleases the record company, and that's the last thing I want to do. I'd rather piss 'em off than make them happy." After a pregnant pause, Parker calms down "I did it because it was the real thing to do."

The cool reading of the Jerry Garcia classic "Sugaree" emanates from Parker's numerous solo acoustic shows over the past two decades. When he first heard the Grateful Dead in the psychedelic era, he dismissed the band as "lame country," though Parker did find merit in Garcia's solo debut. "I loved 'The Wheel,' 'Deal,' and 'Sugaree.' I crudely taped those three tracks from a Deadhead friend. The cassette was at my parents' house until a few years ago. Whenever I visit, I pull something out of the drawer in my old room and shut it quick so there's always a surprise when I come back. I found the tape and instinctively knew what was on it." That tape consequently fell to pieces after Parker learned the tune.

Another classic, Parker's own "Crawling From The Wreckage," a huge hit for Dave Edmunds, returns on this collection as a hillbilly rave-up. "Nation Of Shopkeepers" affords Parker yet another chance to pine autobiographical. "I think the title came from Churchill. The song captures that small-time lack of ambition that we British are known for. I come from a nation where we're supposed to be satisfied with our lot in life, and not do what I did."

From the man who railed against the machinations of a homogenized rock music industry with such vitriolic diatribes as his 1979 FM radio hit "Mercury Poisoning," a parting shot at his old label, Parker has no plans to pen a blow by blow account of his ups and downs in the business. His comedic novel, The Other Life Of Brian, a fictional romp detailing a year in the life of a musician who tours obscure places such as the Arctic Circle and Tasmania, boarders on reality. "I can deal the most sharp observations on paper by writing in fictional terms" he laughs. "It allows me more latitude." On GrahamParker.Net, Parker fields questions about life in music and why it's incomprehensible and completely unaffordable to reunite the Rumour, even for a one off gig. "I love to bust myths and explain to people in great detail about how much the music business sucks! I think that's a lot of fun."

Parker admits that he's not up to snuff on new music, nor does he feel out of step. His nineteen year old daughter recently wrote a college thesis as to why rock music is not as good as it used to be. She also asked dad to buy her a copy of Bob Dylan's Blood On The Tracks and is currently mesmerized by David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars. "I saw the latest issue of Amplifier online with Air on the cover. I thought 'wow,' what's going on in the world? People are actually giving credit to French musicians!' I must be well out of touch!"

PRETTY FLY FOR THREE JAZZ GUYS

By Tom Semioli  

This feature appeared in Amplifier Magazine, February 2004

"I could smell Elvin Jones in the curtains," chuckles drummer Jeff Ballard after a sold-out three-night stand at the legendary Village Vanguard in lower Manhattan. Ballard, tenor saxophonist Mark Turner, and bassist Larry Grenadier comprise Fly, the hottest new entity on the post-bop modern-creative jazz scene. Their self-titled debut on the resuscitated Savoy Jazz imprint runs the voodoo down from free style improvisations to structured compositions with melody and purpose.

Ballard and Grenadier first came together as teenagers, cutting their teeth on bandstands throughout Northern California, then heading to the East Coast where they met Turner. Years later the threesome became part of a Chick Corea recording project aptly dubbed "Origination," an open forum which allowed individual band members to contribute original material. Thus Fly was born. "Chick gave me money to make a record" recalls Ballard fondly. "Mark and I didn’t want to be the leaders.  And Larry is the consummate sideman. Our music does not lend itself to a 'leader.' A leader hires you for yourself, and you play yourself, but you're still playing his thing. This is 'our' thing."

And this is not your father's jazz trio either. In Fly's world, the usual modus operandi of endless theme and variation or round-robin riffing have given way to an intimate three-way dialogue. The spark between the musicians is not only borne of friendship, but a shared goal. The result is an expansive, illuminating palate of harmonies, tones, and expressive counterpoint emanating from just three players sans the traditional rhythm section with piano and/or guitar comprising the creative canvass.

"Collaboration is the killing-est thing jazz has to offer," emphasizes Ballard. "Larry is a modern cat, who can cover a lot of ground. He's an outliner, a real meat-and-potatoes guy. We're not just laying a carpet for Mark to solo over." Turner, who has recorded extensively under his own name and alongside fellow tenor-sax star Joshua Redman and bassist John Pattitucci, among others, is quick to note that the recording dates for the disc, which only took two days, "were the smoothest sessions I've ever done. We were chilled out and there was no high-strung musical neurosis going on!"

Self produced and recorded live in the studio with few overdubs Fly not only breaks new ground but also pays homage to musical predecessors outside the jazz realm. "JJ," a Grenadier composition, is a funky paean to the legendary soul / R & B electric bassist Jerry Jemmott which features dexterous grooves most upright bassists would find impossible to navigate. Ballard brought in a BBC live recording of the Jimi Hendrix Experience Axis Bold As Love gem "Spanish Castle Magic" which the band tackles with poise. "It's a totally dangerous song to cover," says Ballard, who is still somewhat surprised that Fly was able to pull it off. "Sometimes it's kind of weak, sometimes it's super great. You need to really throw it all down on that tune, because if you don't it becomes a poor representation, and then it's downright embarrassing!" Motifs that would not be out of place on a Steely Dan tune emerge from Turner's "Stark," a fusion of three separate movements with contrasting arrangements and time signatures. The band's most personal offering is "Fly Mr. Freak-jar" written the studio by all three members and the final track recorded. Nailed in one take, the tune embodies what Ballard refers to as "filling the spaces, and not filling the spaces. It's about what's inferred, what's in the air. I find more truth in taking risks than in playing it safe," a credo which carries over to Fly's concert performances. "The other night at the Vanguard, Mark said to Larry and I that 'last night was nice, but we weren't as close to the edge of the cliff as we could be. Let's push it out and look over."

On the current state of jazz in the marketplace, Ballard ruminates over where the music is headed. "In jazz, and in most music, I think there is a fear of not succeeding, of not being a big seller. If you look back as recently as the 1970s, that was not the case. Weather Report came together because Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul wanted to continue what Miles (Davis) started, not because they expected it to be as popular was it was. The same goes for Chick Corea in Return to Forever and John McLaughlin in the Mahavishnu Orchestra." Fly intends to continue their flight throughout 2004 and beyond, recording and converting the masses at large jazz festivals and small clubs in the United States, Mexico, and Europe.

With a rapidly expanding fan base and critical acclaim, Ballard can afford a bit of self-effacing humor "I never do interviews and today I have three! Times must be changing, things must rough if I'm becoming a celebrity."