Jay Jay Johanson Interview
The Manhatten Transfer Interview
Charlie Haden: Montreal Jazz Festival 2000 By: Tal Charlie Haden: Press Conference Pictures
Among the Montreal International Jazz Festival's most impressive qualities is its close ties with the great musicians that return yearly. Among these is Charlie Haden, a friend of the Montreal Festival since his first appearance here in 1985. Haden has been involved in the evolution of music for almost five decades. On June 29th, The Festival honoured Haden with this year's prestigeous Miles Davis Award.
After accepting the award from Jazz Festival president Alain Simard, Haden immediately turned towards his memories of the Montreal International Jazz Festival which he describes as "the greatest festival in the world. The way they plan it, the way they put it together, the way they present the music. They are developing along the same way that society is. There are no more categories; it's all just music."
Hayden told a few endearing stories about his encounters with the legendary muscian. Haden simply could not say enough in lauding the jazz legend. "He was a beautiful, beautiful musician. He was a musician beyond category, which is why this award is so valuable to me. Because I see music as beyond category. I see music as honesty and beauty," said Haden.
Cool as a cat, yet sly as a fox, Charlie Haden continues to reflect an enigmatic jazz aura that is part sullen, part strong, and all cool. During this press conference, Haden made it perfectly clear that a lifetime chievement award does not necessarily encapsulate his whole life time. Brimming with the exuberance of youth and the wisdom of age, Haden proudly stated "there are still many many things to do, just not enough time."
Interview with Jay Jay Johanson by: Tal JayJay Pictures
If there is an up and coming artist at this year's Montreal International Jazz Festival, it could very well be Jay Jay Johanson. A native of Sweden,Johanson has established an extremely loyal following in Europe with his ultra-modern trip-hop hybrid sound. Back for his second tour of duty in Montreal, Johanson is furthering his reputation in North America. This seems like a fairly natural progression for Johanson, as he admits that the majority of his musical influences are from the West. "When it comes to voice," says Johanson, "I have always preferred female voices and I still do. I think the only male voice that I felt close to is Chet Baker's. I really like his sensitivity and honesty. There is something fragile in it.
" With his newest album, Poison, Johanson appears to be comfortable for the first time with "electronic crooner" persona. Says Johanson, "I must say that, when it somes to my voice, I don't feel comfortable at all. I don't think I have a good voice yet, but I'm getting there." The songs on Poison showcase Johanson's melancholic voice and lyrics against an electronic background that he first discovered when one of his neighbours in Sweden returned from a trip to the United States in the mid-1980s having seen the emerging urban hip-hop scene. It was from there that Johanson began to pursue scratching and breakdancing with a passion. Having been raised by his jazz-purist father, the future amalgamation of the two styles was an inevitability for Johanson.
In fact, Johanson admits that his father hates his music. The reason that Johanson gives for this generation gap is "he doesn't think it's jazz, but to him jazz is only how it was planned to be in the 1950s. He doesn't like when jazz becomes modern." This appears to be a long-standing point of discern between the younger and elder Johanson. Johanson admittedly pursues more modern sounds on every album he has done, beginning to further introduce more live instruments into his live show. Elaborating on his father's taste for jazz, he continues "he hates what Herbie Hancock did to jazz in the 70s and he hates when Miles Davis became interesting to me. To me it's very boring."
It is in this light that Johanson lauds the organizers of this year's jazz festival. It appears to be the perfect match for someone who is consistently expanding the conventional boundaries of jazz and electronic music. "I like that this festival is so open-minded when it comes to jazz, says Johanson. "I like that jazz is becoming more and more important for young musicians, because to me its always been a major influence in songwriting. At this festival you see both the old school and the new school, which I definitely like."
The defining characteristic of Jay Jay Johanson's sound is the perpetual melancholy that appears to embrace both his lyrics and vocals. In a past interview, he addressed this, saying that he could only write good music when he was said. He clarifies this message somewhat at the jazz festival, saying that he is simply more concerned with doing other things when he is happy, referring to his song-writing technique as a sort of self-psychoanalysis. In a sense, this cathartic technique is the foundation of jazz and blues. Overcoming the injustices of slavery, depression, and the darker realms of society. Johanson 's sadness is the ultimate muse, saying "I enjoy my lonely and sad moments because I feel that they give some sort of satisfaction as well. It would be worse if I weren't able to recreate it because otherwise the lonely moments might be really depressing, and they aren't." In this vein, Johanson points out that, when compared to pursuing a therapist, writing songs is certainly a cheaper and far more creative alternative.
The Manhatten Transfer: Interview by: Yorg
The Manhattan Transfer were extremely inviting during our brief but fun interview at the Windham Hotel press lounge. All four members of the Transfer were on hand; they include Cheryl Bentyne, Janis Siegel, Tim Hauser, and Alan Paul. The following interview has been transcribed word for word. Enjoy.
Q: Give me a short preview of what the audience can expect to hear from your live show this time around. A: (Tim): A special part of our show will be devoted to the music of Louis Armstrong and then the other part of the show is going to be about other things we've played. Our newest album that isn't even finished yet is a tribute to Louis Armstrong. We're still recording it.
Q: With Louis Armstrong's huge body of work, where do you begin to choose the songs you want to record for the CD? A: (Tim): There was so much stuff from which to select from. Each one of us just went through our own personal recordings of Louis and each one of us had personal favourites that we liked and we just wrote down the songs that we liked and we all got together and we met and we all laid it out, and there were a few similarities like Cheryl and I both picked Sugar. There was a little push and pull with a few tunes but for the most part it worked out alright and we did not do a literal interpretation, like we did not put an orchestra like what Louis did in the forties. A lot of the guys from K.D. Lang's band are on the CD.
Q: Where did you record your new CD? A: (Cheryl): In Los Angeles at a place called Sonora. We did the cutting tracks at Sunset Sound. Our producer is Craig Street who has also worked with K.D. Lang.
Q: When is the release date of the new disc? A: (Tim) October 7th is the street date.
Q: Can you tell us about what you enjoy about Montreal? A: (Cheryl): It's a gorgeous city, wonderful food, you've got some really wonderful restaurants, it's so liveable, so non violent. I think other than Boston this would be the only other place we'd live.
Q: What are your plans for when you leave Montreal? A: (Tim): We're going to Europe for two and a half weeks. We're leaving Montreal Tuesday afternoon and we'll be in Vienna on Wednesday. We're in Monte Carlo, Montreuil and other cities.