"I
sincerely hope that Napster will see fit to treat the average songwriter
and recording artist with the kind of reverence they have been forced
to show to the corporate record companies."
AN INTERVIEW WITH GRANT-LEE PHILLIPS
February 2001
Q:
What memories do you keep from the Shiva Burlesque days? Would you
do anything different if you could
return to those days?
Grant-Lee: Shiva Burlesque was firstly a collaboration between singer
and fellow songwriter, Jeff Clark and myself. I was 19 when I met
Jeff, who was some seven years older. I began to sit in with his
band, The Torn Boys, shortly before leaving for Los Angeles. An
automatic song writing game which we referred to as "One -minute
songs" eventually led to a partnering that continued for most of
the eighties. That spirit of experimentation is what I value the
most from this period. If I could do it all again? ... I wouldn't.
That sort of defeats the idea of an experiment doesn't it?
Q: Which Grant Lee Buffalo album do you consider as your
best? Which is the song of which you are the most proud of?
Grant-Lee:
I can't avoid a natural aversion to
rating such things. I don't believe in the best. There are songs
that resonate with me personally today more than others but I wouldn't
call that pride. Some of the earlier material still holds a great
attraction. Perhaps because, for all the performance anxiety attached
to that era, there was also a solidarity among the band at that
time. Fuzzy is a favorite song however and a favorite album in places
I suppose, but again my favorites are scattered over all four releases.
Q: Why did Paul Kimble leave the band? Are you still in friendly
terms?
Grant-Lee:
Paul's a complex figure. He's someone
whose extremely gifted, critically respected and loved. All of this
aside, the two of us found ourselves at odds with our environment,
our professional situation and one another. I see little of Paul
or Joey these days but I do regard them as people I care about.
Having been through so much together over the years it's difficult
to divorce the multitude of feelings I have regarding both of them.
Q: Your song on the Velvet Goldmine soundtrack was easily
one of the best things on it, how did it come about and how did
you get involved in this project?
Grant-Lee:
Michael Stipe was deeply involved with
the making of the film and it was he who sought to bring us onboard.
There's was a small handful of songs that I wrote for the film ,
one of which was with Michael that never made the picture or the
album. 'The Whole Shebang' was a fun track to record though and
the playfulness of the experience helped me to work through material
that would eventually find it's way to 'Jubilee'.
Q: A lot of your songs are haunted by a poetic breeze, we
can assume that your influences are not only musical, is this correct?
What is your source of inspiration?
Grant-Lee:
I tend to find inspiration in all sorts
of things, including music but also in books, poetry, films and
so on. Of course real life and real emotion is the most fertile
source and that's ultimately where it all comes from. The gestation
period, however is something that's difficult to measure. My most
genuine writing comes quickly it seems, in fountains. I can't coax
the tap but it's true, for me, that an openness to influence and
a nagging want to communicate is crucial in order to produce.
Q: Which other artists and bands do you admire?
Grant-Lee:
Bands have to list all this when they
advertise for bass players, along with "must-have-long-hair-kick-ass-image-no
drugs-let's-party-professionals-only." I admire all who go about
about their own business without concern for being admired. Maverick
types, who are so eternally dogged by their own inner demons and
muses that no rational path might serve to emancipate them. Examples:
John Lennon, Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, Bjork, Elliot smith, Michael
Stipe and Robyn Hitchcock and my wife, Denise to name a few.
Q: Are Grant Lee Buffalo still active as a band? Will a fifth
album be released anytime in the future?
Grant-Lee:
No and double No is the short answer.
I made a pretty firm decision to not be bound to the three ring
circus which Grant Lee Buffalo came to be. The songs are something
that I gave spiritual birth to however and the songs will always
remain alive. The band is something to be cherished through it's
archives and the memories of those who were there.
Q: In what way is your solo recordings different from the
Grant Lee Buffalo days?
Grant-Lee:
The most plain way I can put it is
that for once, I can hear myself think. In that quiet place there
is a strength, to take chances, to speak truthfully and to live
my life as an artist. For all my want to cooperate and seek partners
in crime it turns out I'm not much of a pack animal. There are musicians
who I count as dear friends and contemporaries who I derive a great
joy in playing with and I wouldn't once take them for granted. Nevertheless,
if I avoid my own lonely mission then I feel I have a little to
offer them in the way of a dialogue. It's likely that I will forever
require both understanding and an endless spool of slack from my
fellow musicians. The latest solo recordings will have to speak
for themselves, but it's my feeling that I am beginning to turn
a new corner in terms of integrating both invention and tradition
in my song writing.
Q: Are you satisfied from the people's response towards the
music you make? Do you feel that you and GLB should be more well-known?
Grant-Lee:
A popular program here in the states
listed the top greatest 100 albums of all time tonight. There was
a bunch of great stuff as you can imagine , but there was no 'Rain
Dogs' by Tom Waits , there was no 'Diamond Dogs' by Bowie , nor
was there, 'Now I Wanna be your Dog' by Iggy Pop and The Stooges.
Most of my record collection got plumb shut out. All this considered,
it's not a surprise to me that Grant Lee Buffalo isn't a household
name like Frigidaire or iMac. If you're speaking to the disenfranchised,
chances are you're not a franchise and by the same token, you're
not likely to find a maverick whose signed to Maverick.
Q: What are your future recording plans?
Grant-Lee:
Funny you should ask. Just a few hours
ago I put the final touches on the mix and sequenced my latest album
which is due out sometime this year. The album was produced by myself
and Carmen Rizzo. While I chose to play all instruments ( vocals,
guitars, bass, acoustic & electronic keyboards) Carmen induced the
tracks with a kind of mechanical programming element. The result
is an interesting tension between the more organic instrumentation,
my voice, and certain abstract production treatments. The 6 week
session has been interrupted only on a few occasions to allow me
to make regular appearances on an American television drama called
the 'Gilmore Girls'. I portray a sort of psychedelic troubadour
type who strolls about the small American town with a guitar and
strap on PA system. It's a stretch I know, but that's what acting's
all about!
Q: How did your collaboration with Eels' E emerged? Are you
going to record together again?
Grant-Lee:
E and I came to know one another in
the mid nineties, as I recall. On occasion we would crash one another's
sets at Largo in Hollywood. He had asked me to record some guitar
and banjo near the end of his session for the second Eels album,
then a few years later he rang up again to ask if I could play the
bass on his album, Daisies of The Galaxy. This was on the eve of
the recording and I had never heard the songs until I went in the
next day but something about pressure of it all led to some inspired
takes. Months afterward, the two of us had a massive falling out
an account of a pancake breakfast that went awry and we haven't
spoken since.
Q:
You seem to be the ideal representative for the traditional singer
/ songwriter image. What's your opinion about Napster and music
being tranfered all over the internet?
Grant-Lee:
I feel as though the jury is yet to
arrive on this one. I sincerely hope that Napster will see fit to
treat the average songwriter and recording artist with the kind
of reverence they have been forced to show to the corporate record
companies. There's a part of me that wants to see all the good in
what Napster offers, that is the means to share music among music
enthusiasts. There's another part of me that felt plain heartbroken
while listening to Roger McGuinn speak and plead during Govt. hearings
on behalf of musicians who survive on a much more humble income
than that of Metalica, whose livelihood depends being compensated
for their works. Being taken advantage of is almost a job description
for most musicians, who regard this sad truth as being part of the
price for doing something they love. I fear that Napster, with it's
"Just a poor college Kid" poster boy, Shawn Fanning, sets a dangerous
precedent for future generations who will come to devalue creative
works.
Q: What artists are on your wish-list for possible future
collaborations?
Grant-Lee:
My good friend, the muti-instrumentalist/producer,
Jon Brion and I have been involved in an album collaboration off
and on for over a year now. Every now then, in between things like
doing the film score for 'Magnolia' and producing Fiona Apple or
his own debut on Artist Direct, all of which he has accomplished
so brilliantly, Jon finds a window of time in which we race to write
and record another couple of songs. There's about 13 in the bag
now in various states of undone. Robyn Hitchcock and I made a more
valiant effort of collaborating last year by setting out on a co-headlining
tour. We learned one another's songs and backed each other up. A
concert video from the tour is presently in post production. Both
of these artist would be high on my wish list of collaborators.
I'd feel greedy to wish for more at the moment.
Q: Have you ever been in Greece? Any message for your greek
audience? Can we hope for a live show?
Grant-Lee:
Grant Lee Buffalo never had the pleasure
to set foot in Greece. Nevertheless, when my wife and I moved into
our house a few years back, I was thumbing through interior design
magazines that were full of Greek lofts with amazing plaster walls,
beautiful rugs and little tables. I tried to cop that look some
but I'd sure like to see the real thing. I'm often happily dumfounded
to wake up and find myself in some new part of the globe. It seems
to occur most when there's little time to plan for it, let alone
pack for it. If I make it across the sea again you can bet I'll
bring a guitar.
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