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Myspace Exclusive Interview
In the middle of her cross-country tour (look for dates near you at www.susanwerner.com), your trusty webmaster caught up with Susan Werner.
Hello Susan- Where do you find yourself now? ..:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
A wi-fi coffeehouse in Saugatuck ..:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Michigan, the so called Cape Cod of the Midwest. a bit of a stretch, that, but it's plenty pleasant here. hey, a couple drinks, and the lake looks a little atlantic.
Gospel Truth
How has the tour been going for you? How has the audience reaction been to the new project "The Gospel Truth"?
well, i totally stepped on something with this one. everybody wants to talk to me about this project – that's the language they use – "I really want to talk to you about this CD" – it seems to bring so much up for people - in their own lives and experiences with the Church in America.
and it seems, for the last few years anyway, as if music has been divided into two camps with regards to the church – either unquestioning praise gospel/Christian pop or far left folkies calling it all ignorant horsesh*t. and never the twain shall meet.
but the twain does meet – in a lot of us – who know the Church to be f*cked up in so many ways, but also know that the Church can inspire us to think of others, help others, take action on behalf of other people – to ENGAGE with our families and communities, and not just live lives of endless pleasure seeking and complaint.
so i decided, with this project, to try to acknowledge both sides of the divide – and found that there are many, many of us who are putting the sacred and the secular together, side by side, in our lives. and it's comforting to know we're not alone, we are so not alone, in doing this.
Where did the idea for "The Gospel Truth"? Did the songs come instantly, or was it a lengthy process?
i thought i'd write a blues album, started listening to Chicago Blues and Bessie Smith and Robert Johnson and others, but i just got so tired of the "my baby done me wrong" routine - just couldn't get worked up about that part of it.
but when i went to the Chicago Gospel Music Festival in June 2006, all the lights went on. because i was so overwhelmed and excited by the music – the choirs, the intensity of the performances – and at the same time i was kinda freaked about by their certainty that there was a God who was gonna make everything alright. because i'm anything but convinced of that.
and that disconnect – that discomfort - well, i've learned anymore that that's where all the best songs reside. in the friction. those are songs that seem to need writing – they even seem to write themselves, once you find out where they're hiding.
Did any songs miss the cut for "The Gospel Truth"?
yes, we had to leave off "I will leave this world in good hands," a ¾ church ballad, a type of "let me die easy when I die" type of gospel tune, and also "o doubt," a pop sounding tune. we'll probably send those around as bonus tracks for free soon – but they just didn't quite fit the parameters of the rest of the project, once we had all the songs recorded.
Tour
Do you have any plans to tour overseas anytime soon?
we're putting together a British invasion plan – don't let the british know – for 2008.
No Susan show is ever the same- how do you come up with songs to play each night?
part of it's a list of songs from the current project and past projects, part of it is based on my personnel for the night – sometimes i have the full band, sometimes i have Trina Hamlin on harmonica, or Greg Holt on bass – and that'll dictate some of what i choose to play – but also i'll steer off into the high grass if the audience energy seems to want it, require it, or if i'm in an odd mood. i did a show in Binghamton this spring where i sang in portugese (a samba cover of a phil Collins tune), French (an aria from carmen), and Italian (madam butterfly), just because i felt like it. i don't know what it is about Binghamton – mighta been the wine -
What guitars do you have with you on tour?
i just carry my Jenkins custom chameleon guitar around, it does most everything i want. i'd carry more but dragging axes around is, frankly, a drag.
About how many dates do you play a year?
oh god what was it, 120 last year? something like that.
Any shows from the past that stick out as extremely memorable?
well, there's always the naked folk festival in West Virginia. i mean, you don't forget playing an event like that.
there was the West Chester Pennsylvania roof of the parking garage gig when the thunderstorm was coming from ten miles away and we all saw it coming the whole time and I sang as many rain related songs in a medley as I could remember in the half hour before all hell broke loose – lightning, hail, etc.
there was the Beacon Theater show in New York in 1996 with joan armatrading - i was special guest - where I walked out and everybody knew my songs from my first strummed chords. that was freaky – an introduction to the power of the radio to create audience. amazing.
Who have been your most recent music influences?
i dig sufjan stevens a lot. weirdly, i'm also into cat stevens. really.
Have you ever felt starstuck playing throughout the community?
i'm not sure i understand the question - but i've been starstruck by richard thompson everytime i see/hear him play, he's just so brilliant it hurts my head. and seeing ani difranco solo at falcon ridge, that was beyond the beyond. have i been starstruck by myself? if that's the question, well, no. i've written some songs and played some concerts i thought were pretty good, though.
Today's Environment
Your song My Strange Nation touches upon several topics that America is facing. In your opinion, what are some solutions to making America a better place?
quality of education de-coupled from local property taxes - access to quality education regardless of income
civil unions for everybody - marriage u gotta go to church for that
health insurance de-coupled from employment - access to healthcare regardless of income
manhattan project - scale effort toward american energy independence
more americans speaking arabic and chinese, like, yesterday
Have you ever considered running for a political office?
no no and more no
What are your feelings on the upcoming 2008 presidential election?
weird - it's the secular right and the religious left on the rise right now. that's the opposite of the traditional party identities for the last twenty years. here's my guess: i think you'll see a democrat win, unless we experience another terrorist attack on u.s. soil, then you'll see giuliani and the secular authoritarian law and order right win. that's my two cents, and about what it's worth, too.
Songs and Songwriting
What song are you most proud of in your entire career and why?
i like "i can't be new. " just think it's a good melody, good lyrics, and a great concept - a concept given to me by my road manager famous jane, by the way - i have to admit that.
Are there any songs that you do not like to play live?
nah, i'll play anything.
What song has taken/is taking you the longest to finish?
"sunday mornings" took a long time, it musta sat around for months, because i wasn't sure what had to happen in the bridge, couldn't quite figure it out. actually, listening to sufjan stevens helped me, because in the middle of his songs, he'll just float off somewhere into a free association zone... seemingly disconnected from the rest of the tune and the harmonies and the concept. i repeat, seemingly... because it isn't. so i decided to just write another melody and harmony section right in the middle of sunday mornings - and that seemed to do the trick.
On your DVD, All Mapped Out, you were still writing on a typewriter. Have you stuck with the typewriter or given in and bought a Mac like everyone else?..
of course i have a laptop at home, but for my songwriting office, i still write on a typewriter. i'm not writing a novel - i'm writing a few verses - so i don't need to store enormous amounts of text. and if i can't remember it in my head, it's probably not a good song anyway, has no internal logic to it. lo-tech is a songwriter's friend, as i see it. forces you to keep it simple.
Future
Do you plan on releasing any more songbooks?
i've received so many requests for lead sheets for The Gospel Truth that i plan on getting something out there sometime soon. i know people are playing these tunes in all kindsa settings, in concerts and at parties and also at churches, which thrills me - and i wanna help the cause, because this record is about a whole worldview, not just a song or two. i think if we can all mellow out about religion, we can get on to working on stuff that matters more, however ironic that may sound to some "faith first" types.
Throughout your career, you have amassed a hefty sum of unreleased tracks. Any intentions to release some?
oh god, if i can remember where they are. floating around my office somewhere, and on a few bootlegs some fans have stashed away someplace.
What, oh what will you do next?!?
i will go to the counter and order a another vanilla nonfat latte. beyond that, i'm not really sure. :)
2:11 PM
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