Seattle Blues

Stacy Jones BandWashingto Blues Society multiple award winners

Brandi CarlileInterviewed by: Rick J. Bowen

Premier IssueSeattle’s alternative to alternative

July 2012.

Stacy Jones BandLive and Untapped

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Premier Issue Stacy Jones Band CD Release :

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Content

2 Content

3 Editor’s Notes

4 Stacy Jones Band

6 Brandi Carlile

Editor’s Notes:

Seattle is music scene is alternative rock, right? Then why dedi-cate a magazine to the blues in a city known for its grunge rock.

Washington State has one of the largest blues societies in the nation. It has dedicated HD radio stations that only play the blues. Last year four artists went to Beale Street for the In-ternational Blues Competition. One of them, The Wired Band came home with the 1st place trophy.

Still, when people think about where to go to listen to the blues, they think of the Delta or Memphis. It’s time for people to rec-ognize Seattle’s Alternative to alternative.

n future publications we will have articles about setting up your gear to get that classic blues sound. We will review local clubs that have live music. Also, clubs that have open jam sessions and what you need to know to join. We will have reviews of the current CD releases of local artist. We will also throw in an interview into the mix.

I hope you enjoy this and future magazines.

Jon-Paul JonesInterview with: Brandi Carlile6 Credits:

Publisher:Jon-Paul Jones

Designer:Jon-Paul Jones

Editor:Jon-Paul Jones

Senior Writer: Rick J. Bowen

Photos: Photodune(Cover),

Jon-Paul Jones (Stacy Jones Band).

Rick J. Bowen (Brandi Carlile)

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Stacy JonesBandLive and Untapped

Back in May 2011, the Stacy Jones Band rocked the Untapped Brews and Blues Festival in

Washington and recorded it for prosperity.

The band – Stacy Jones (lead vocals, harmonica, piano, and guitar); Jeff Menteer (guitar, vocals); Tom Jones (bass); and Rick J Bowen (drums, vocals) ripped through an 11– song set which included nine originals and a few covers.

Showcasing their hybrid of blues, rock and soul, the band comes out blazing with the 7–minute – plus “T–Bone Shuffle” which has a frantic harmonica/guitar standoff. The band keeps the pedal pinned to the floor with one of their best songs “Heavy Water” about Hurricane Katrina.

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Stacy Jones Band

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Stacy Jones and company covers “You Upset Me Baby” by B.B. King, which flows right into a spot– on jam of the Rolling Stones “Miss You,” which finds Stacy Jones own-ing that harmonica. The third cover is “I‘d Rather Go Blind ”originally by Etta James and it fits in their set perfectly.

Other highlights of original material from the band are the back-woods swamp boogie of “You Belong to Me,” and the catchy “I Think I Feel like Leaving.” The band closes out the set with a cover of the Jackie Wilson classic “(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher & Higher,” which I am sure got the crowd dancing.

All in all, the Stacy Jones Band is one powerful blues rock band, it‘s no wonder they have won awards. Individually this quartet has it all together. Sometimes you hear a band’s studio work and it doesn’t hold up live, not the case here, Stacy Jones Band is the real deal.

Published 6 – 27 – 2012 By: Jonathan Tuttle

Brandi Carlile

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Brandi Carlile has spent the better part of

the last decade traversing the planet, bringing her music to an ever-growing following. Her new studio album, Bear Creek, sees the singer/songwriter using the experience garnered from life on the road to elevate her already astonishing artistry to a new level.

Recording at Bear Creek studios, a con-verted turn–of–the–century barn nestled among the tall trees of Woodinville, Washington, proved to be ideal. In March 2011, she brought co–producer Trina Shoemaker, a Grammy Award–winning engineer and mixer, and members of her

"road family"– including multi–instru-mentalists/songwriters Phil and Tim Hanseroth (a.k.a. "The Twins"), cellist Josh Neumann and drummer Allison Miller, as well as her touring sound engineer and guitar tech–to Bear Creek, and together they spent the next month recording.

The new album was released last month, and Carlile and company have hit the road for an extensive summer tour opening for Dave Mathews and headlining dates at Red Rocks, among the highlights.

I caught up with Brandi Carlile at her home in Seattle to talk about the new album and her storied career.

Rick J Bowen : You recently performed at the Johnny Cash tribute show, "We Walk The Line" in Austin, Texas. How was that?

Brandi Carlile: It was so special; so many great people were there, Shooter Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Kris Kristofferson.

RJB: You opened the show with "Folsom Prison."

Carlile: Yeah, I didn’t know that was gonna happen, until that day. But I’m always ready to throw on my guitar, get out there, get people going and on their feet. I also got to sing with Sheryl Crow on "Walk the Line." I just love her.

Brandi Carlile:Raising Hell and Finding Personal Growth With ‘Bear Creek’

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RJB : It must have been amazing hanging with your heroes.

Carlile: Yes, it was great until I spilled a drink all over Lucinda Williams. I felt so embar-rassed. It was a wild night; I got no sleep and had to catch a flight in the morning. It was a proper Johnny Cash tribute.

RJB: You were scheduled to play the Erase Hate event in Tampa the next day, but it was rained out. Seems you are quite involved in activism and being a role model.

Carlile: Yes, the Erase Hate event will get a makeup date; it’s very spe-cial event and needed in Florida. But I

don’t know if I am a role model; I'm as flawed as anyone. But I have forum as an artist, to raise awareness and try to make myself a blessing to others.

RJB: I would say you’re a role model to young women as an artist who has "made it."

Carlile: I don’t feel I've really made it big yet. I don’t have a red sports car and a swimming pool. I’m not going for the Hollywood type thing, that’s not what I mean. I am still working hard and feel I have a ways to go.

RJB: Wouldn't you call being the producer on your new record, Bear Creek, "making it?"

Carlile: Yes, producing the album with the twins and Trina [Shoemaker] is a mark of success and personal growth. It was a chance to apply all the knowl-edge we’ve acquired from the past. It’s exciting to do that. No one wants to be a perpetual student. All the combina-tion of producers, like Rick Rubin and T Bone Burnett on the previous records has brought us to this point. I just hope people like it and it has a chance to grow over time. Some records age better than others, so I hope this one does.

RJB: As the producer were you going for a certain sound or concept with Bear Creek?

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Carlile: Well, we have cultivated a band sound for some time now. So we wanted to bring that feeling and sound into the studio. We went in as a band and played the songs the way we do live. There is so much pressure if you’re in L.A. and making a record with a big producer and you’re worried about fucking up that little guitar part, because there are 10 guitar players down the street who can do it better. Doing this record oursel-ves, closer to home gave us a chance to stretch our legs and relax. Then we took it a step further and brought in our road crew. So we had our sound tech and guitar tech to help us get our sound.

Every time you make a record people start talking about how great records were made, and who played on them, all the classic sounds from famous studio players like the "Wrecking Crew," and the "Motown guys," and try to reference that sound. But what people forget is they were a band. That is how they got that great sound.

RJB : Did making the live album have an impact on that?

Carlile: Oh, yeah. After listening to the Benaroya Hall record, which I love, even after listening to it a lot, you know it’s tough for a singer to listen to themsel-ves. We brought that concept to Bear Creek and brought in the whole live crew. That will be the hard part now, when we take these songs on the road. I like to change little things on each song when we play them, but because we worked out the nuances as a band I won’t have as much to change. But I’m excited for people to hear the record.

RJB : Tell me about the songs and the writing process. You and the twins are credited as writers.

Carlile: We write everything together. I don’t care who writes the songs in this band. When I say “the band” I mean the twins and I. We are very close. They only live like a mile away, so I see them all the time. We’ve been together over a decade, and we do everything as a band, all our business and life decisions, like family. I am naturally codependent I guess, and the twins being born together are sort of forced by nature to be that way. But we are going for that classic songwriting collaboration like Elton John and Bernie Taupin.

RJB: So it's not "I'm the lead singer, do as I say."

Carlile: No, not at all. We are a band; just because my name is on it, doesn’t mean anything. I’d be in a band with those guys no matter what it was called.

RJB: The album has defiant tone overall. Is that accurate to say?

Carlile:: My mom says I've sounded that way since I was 13. It was a time of some upheaval; I had just turned 30 and spent the year considering that and all the things I’ve done. You seem to over-nurture some aspects of your life and career and under-nurture others. The songs reflect that.

RJB: Have these songs been around awhile?

Carlile: Some have, yes, and they took a while to cultivate. Others are new. I wrote "Just Kids" in the studio.

RJB: That song is very Brian Wilson.

Carlile: Well, we did listen to "God Only Knows" to reference the drum sound, so the influence is there.

RJB: And "Raise Hell," you have called this a storm song. Why?

Carlile: I was really grumpy when I wrote that song. We were on a tough tour and kept getting hit with these amaz-ing thunderstorms that threatened to cancel like a half dozen shows in a row. I would sit backstage and wait to see if we could go on. It was frustrating.

RJB: It does have a terrific guitar solo.

Carlile: Yeah, it does, thanks man. Tim had been trying to find a song for this great solo idea, so I said, "Let's write the song around it."

RJB: Are you going to release that as a single? Guitar solos are what’s missing on the radio these days.

Carlile: I don’t know, a few people are afraid it might be a polarizing, saying I’m gonna raise hell. It’s also kind of a weird song.

RJB: No weirder than the line in "Keep Yourself Young" about filling snowballs with rocks. What is that song all about?

Carlile: That song is a testimony to the twins and their naughty childhood.

RJB: This has been a year of firsts for you, first time producer, first solo tour, and first time at the Grand Ole Opry, now headed out on a headline tour. What's next?

Carlile: Isn't that enough [laughs]? Oh yeah, the Opry sure was special. Well, I’ve tried to my get personal stuff together and want to focus my energy on doing good things. I have changed my foundation ([Looking Out Foundation] to a public company. I want to bring in the fans and make it a collaborative effort. I think that way we can really make an impact. I am excited about the tour and Red Rocks, wow! That’s gonna be something. Then we will be back in Seat-tle with the symphony in November.

RJB: Thanks for taking time to talk to me. I really dig the new record. I think it's going to blow up for you.

Carlile: Oh! Thanks man, glad you like it.

RJB: Now go raise hell.

Carlile: Thanks! I will.

Originally appeared in Innocent Words July 2012

More info go to: http://www.brandiCarlile.com

Rick J Bowen

BrandiCarlileTour Info

Jul 13, 2012 Kansas City, MO Uptown TheatreJul 14, 2012 Morrison, CO Red Rocks Amphitheatre w/ Ingrid Michaelson & Gregory Alan

IsakovJul 15, 2012 Salt Lake City, Utah Red Butte GardenJul 18, 2012 Anchorage, AK Atwood Concert HallJul 19, 2012 Fairbanks, AK Hering AuditoriumJul 27, 2012 Atlanta, GA Chastain Park Amphitheater w/ Josh Ritter SupportingJul 28, 2012 Floyd, VA FloydFestJul 29, 2012 Asheville, NC Bele Chere FestivalJul 31, 2012 Montclair, NJ The Wellmont TheaterAug 01, 2012 Albany, NY Hart Theatre “The Egg”Aug 03, 2012 Hyannis, MA Cape Cod Melody TentAug 04, 2012 Boston, MA Bank of America w/ Josh Ritter Co-HeadliningAug 05, 2012 Hampton Beach,

NH Hampton Beach Casino BallroomAug 07, 2012 Durham, NC Carolina TheatreAug 08, 2012 Wilmington, NC Greenfield Lake AmphitheatreAug 09, 2012 Charleston, SC Music FarmAug 11, 2012 Louisville, KY Iroquois AmphitheatreAug 12, 2012 Germantown, TN Germantown PACAug 15, 2012 Tulsa, OK Cain’s BallroomAug 17, 2012 Santa Fe, NM SOL PatioAug 18, 2012 Flagstaff, AZ OrpheumAug 19, 2012 Tucson, AZ The Rialto TheatreAug 21, 2012 Anaheim, CA House of BluesAug 23, 2012 Saratoga, CA The Mountain WineryAug 24, 2012 Grass Valley, CA Center For The Arts

Stacy Jones BandTour Info

July

Friday July 13th Duff’s Garage - Portland

Saturday July 21st Sound Harley-Davidson “2012 Navy Marine Bike Show”

Saturday July 21st

Rocking M BBQ 1215 80th ST SW - Everett, WA

Saturday July 28th The Rock Cut Blues Festival - Click for Info

AugustThursday August 2nd

Concert at Pine Lake Park 2401 228th Ave SE Sammamish, WA

http://www.stacyjonesband.com/

http://www.highway99blues.com/PLEASE DRINK RESPONSABLY AND ENJOY THE MUSIC

$6 Cover ChargeDOORS OPEN AT 6 PM

Highway 99 Blues Club

Thursday August 30th

Stacy Jones Band

Live and Untapped Concert Series