Author: sayitwithgarageflowers

‘I’m really excited about the new album – I think it’s the best record I’ve made so far…’

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Photo by Laura Proctor: @lpphotographs  https://www.lpphotographs.ca/Info

With its Dylanesque country-rock, rootsy blues, folk and haunting mountain balladry, Jerry Leger’s new album, Time Out For Tomorrow, will feature highly in our ‘Best of 2019’ list.

We spoke to the Toronto-based singer-songwriter, who will be playing shows in Europe and the UK in spring next year, about the ‘short and sweet, lean and mean’ sound he wanted to achieve on the record and how he was inspired by listening to Lou Reed and Nick Lowe…

Here at Say It With Garage Flowers, we’ve been championing Canadian singer-songwriter Jerry Leger since we first heard his brilliant double album, Nonsense and Heartache, which came out in 2018.

It was one of our favourite records of that year – as we said at the time, ‘essentially it’s two distinct collections of songs.  The first half  – Nonsense – is a raw, primal, bluesy, electric rock ‘n’ roll record, while the second instalment – Heartache – is a stripped-down, alt-country affair, with intimate ballads, lap steel, piano and fiddle. Put them together and you have an album that reminds us of those classic early Ryan Adams long-players Heartbreaker and Gold – yep, it’s that good…’

In April this year, Toronto-based Jerry and his band, The Situation, toured the UK and Europe to support the release of the limited edition, retrospective compilation, Too Broke To Die, which was put together especially for the European market and was available to buy from his merch stall on tour.

In an exclusive interview ahead of his East London headline show at What’s Cookin’, in Leytonstone, Jerry gave us a scoop – he spilled the beans about his latest studio album, Time Out For Tomorrow, which was due to be released in the winter of 2019.

He told us: “I’m really excited about the new record – I’m very proud of it. I really think it’s the best record I’ve made so far. It’s a cross between Early Riser [his seventh studio album from 2014] and Nonsense and Heartache sound-wise and it’s very concise – songwriting-wise, performance-wise, arrangement-wise and sequence-wise.”

Jerry Leger talks to Sean Hannam – picture by Laura Proctor: @lpphotographs https://www.lpphotographs.ca/Info

Talking about the recording sessions, which were overseen by producer Michael Timmins (Cowboy Junkies), who worked on Jerry’s two previous albums, he said: “What was different this time around was that we rehearsed a lot before going into the studio, trying out different arrangements, but there’s still spontaneity on this record… A lot of it was played live in the studio, but I had more of a clear idea about how it was going to be executed. I already had in my mind what the arrangements were going to be. It took about a week to make.”

He added: “We went in with 18 songs, focused on about 15, then cut it down to 12 and 10 made it. Some of the songs that didn’t make it are some of the best, but they didn’t fit. It was like putting together a puzzle. I like records that are rough around the edges, but with this one I took a little more care putting those puzzle pieces together.”

‘It’s a nice, short and sweet, lean and mean record. I wanted to capture the sound of Nick Lowe’s The Impossible Bird and Lou Reed’s Coney Island Baby’

Asked about the sound of the new album, Jerry told us: “It’s a nice, short and sweet, lean and mean record. Two records I really dug the sound of that I wanted to capture on this record were Nick Lowe’s The Impossible Bird and one of my favourite Lou Reed albums, Coney Island Baby – I love that dry drum sound and the real directness of it. Some of the songs just coast along. I also like a lot of Nick Lowe’s older records with Rockpile, where he doubled the electric guitar solos. I doubled my vocals on some songs.”

It’s now more than six months since we spoke to Jerry – Time Out For Tomorrow was released in early November and it’s easily one of our favourite albums of 2019. From the Dylanesque country-rock of first single Canvas of Gold – with slide guitar and organ – to the melancholy, piano-led ballad That Ain’t Here, the blues-folk of Burchell Lake – inspired by a ghost town in Ontario – and the haunting and cinematic mountain tune, Survived Like A Stone – with fiddle and saw – these are raw, powerful and emotional songs that deserve to be heard by a much wider audience.

It seems that the word is getting around –  the recent European edition of Rolling Stone awarded Time Out For Tomorrow four and a half out of five stars and called it “his masterpiece”, monthly music magazine Uncut gave the album a positive review in its latest issue and well-respected specialist website Americana UK also had good things to say about it.

We caught up with Jerry recently and asked him if he thinks Time Out For Tomorrow could be the album that takes him to the next level?

“I hope it does – just to make it easier to keep travelling and making albums. I certainly think that there are enough people that would dig it to make that happen, but it’s hard these days,” he says. “Once upon a time the music would come to them, now they gotta dig for it, unless there’s a lot of money behind it, pushing it. We’ll be back in the UK and Europe in the spring [2020] – I’m really looking forward to it.”

Time Out For Tomorrow feels less bluesy than its predecessor – it’s more of an Americana record…  “Yeah – that’s a fair comment,” says Jerry. “I think the Nonsense portion of Nonsense and Heartache was basically a blues record. It’s just where I was at for those sessions. They’re all kind of blues records, but this one swings more.”

The basic band set-up for Time Out For Tomorrow – guitars/ vocals, piano, bass, drums and organ – is very mid-‘60s Bob Dylan…

“He’s influenced everything and everyone, whether they like it or not,” says Jerry. “As Warren Zevon once said, ‘He invented my job.’ Having said that, it wasn’t anything intentional. We just have a good buddy, Alan Zemaitis, who plays the organ like you’ve never heard. He recently played with Buddy Guy in Chicago, and Buddy gave him the nod and thumbs up. I really wanted him as part of the family on this record.”

 

The first single, Canvas of Gold, which was only written a few days before the recording sessions for the new album, includes the lines: “Everything was almost decided when we were young. You stay poor like your family before and I’ll keep hustling…”

Is the song autobiographical? “Well, my dad had a rough upbringing – not a lot of money in a very full house in St. John’s, Newfoundland,” says Jerry.  “He always worked very hard – he did a few jobs to make sure that we didn’t grow up the same way. His work ethic is still inspiring to me. He always had pride in what he was doing. My dad was no sell-out.”

‘Life is a hustle for people that don’t rely on luck, or rely on someone to create the illusion for them’

So, as a full-time musician trying to earn a living, does he feel like a hustler? “Yeah. Life is a hustle for people that don’t rely on luck, or rely on someone to create the illusion for them.”

One of our favourite songs on the record is the moving ballad, That Ain’t Here, which seems to be about escaping from fake people and from the harsh realities of life by being with a loved one. There’s a great line in it: “We sang our favourite song that everyone gave up on…” What’s Jerry’s favourite song on the album?

“I guess I like that one and Corner Light, and I love I Would – I just think it does what it needs to and doesn’t overstay its welcome, ” he says.

The title, Time Out For Tomorrow, was taken from the name of an early ’60s dime store collection of science fiction short stories given to Jerry by a friend. “I just couldn’t get the title out of my head. Everything around me seems like science fiction these days and the phrase ‘Time Out For Tomorrow’ fits these songs and my mood in one way or another.

“It seemed to make sense to me for this record,” he says. “Sometimes I know exactly what it means and sometimes I think it could be something else. I dig that.”

So do we. Time Out For Tomorrow is here and now – you need to take time out to listen to it today…

Time Out For Tomorrow by Jerry Leger is out now on Latent Recordings.  Jerry Leger and The Situation will be touring Europe and the UK in spring 2020. These are the confirmed dates so far – more will be announced:

09/04: Hengelo, NL – Metropool º
10/04: Arnhem, NL – Luxor Live º
22/04: London, UK – Green Note
23/04: Glasgow, UK – Broadcast
24/04: Hull, UK – O’Rileys
25/04: Stockport, UK – Roma Lakes
26/04: Winchester, UK – The Railway Inn
29/04: Örebro, SWE – STÅ – Pintxos & Vänner
30/04: Stockholm, SWE – Snotty Seaside
01/05: Ringebu, NO – Arnemoen Gard
02/05: Trondheim, NO – Moskus
03/05: Oslo, NO – Krøsset
05/05: Recklinghausen, DE – Creative Outlaws
06/05: Eindhoven, NL – De Rozenknop Eindhoven
07/05: Groningen, NL – Der Aa-Theater
09/05: Houffalize, BE – La Truite d’Argent – Hotel & Cabanes
10/05: Utrecht, NL – Café de Stad

º w/ Ben Miller Band

In my hour of darkness

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Here at Say It With Garage Flowers, we love country and darkness, and we love My Darling Clementine and Elvis Costello, so we absolutely love Country Darkness Vol.1, the new four-track EP from My Darling Clementine, on which the UK husband and wife duo – Michael Weston King and Lou Dalgliesh – reinterpret country songs written by Costello.

They’ve even roped in the bespectacled singer-songwriter’s right hand man, Steve Nieve – keyboardist with The Attractions and The Imposters – to play on it, and, as if that wasn’t enough, it also features members of ace Sheffield crooner Richard Hawley’s backing band…

Opening song Heart Shaped Bruise is a stunning and dramatic, melancholy piano-led ballad; Stranger In The House has been reinvented in a rhumba style; That Day Is Done is a gospel song with a New Orleans funeral feel and I Felt The Chill Before The Winter Came is a classic-sounding country lament, with its themes of infidelity and regret…

We spoke to Michael and asked him to shed some light on the Country Darkness project…

 Q & A

In 1981, when you were 19, Costello’s album of country cover versions, Almost Blue, first turned you on to country music, didn’t it?

Michael Weston King: Until I heard Almost Blue, country music for me was the occasional Jim Reeves record on my parents’ stereo and also Glen Campbell, who I appreciated – he’s still one of my favourite artists.

When I was 19, I was going to see The Jam and Elvis Costello. I was into post-punk, power-pop, New Wave, Joy Division, The Smiths and Echo & The Bunnymen – I used to go to Eric’s in Liverpool. Suddenly, Costello – my main man – made a record on which he’d covered artists I’d never heard of, in a genre that took me by surprise.

To most 19 or 20-year-old kids who’d been brought up on Dr Feelgood and The Clash, it was like, ‘what the fuck’s this?’ At the same time, it was Costello, so it had to be paid attention to.

I liked the clever lyrics and the great songs. From that record, I discovered George Jones and The Flying Burrito Brothers and whoever else Costello covered on it… His version of Hank Williams’s Why Don’t You Love Me (Like You Used To Do)? is sped-up, trashy and rock ‘n’ roll – it had an edge to it.

I know so many people for whom country music became something of value once they’d heard Almost Blue. Not long after that, the New Country thing came along – you had bands like The Rain Parade, Green On Red and Jason and The Scorchers, who were from a punk-rock background, but had a love of country music. The first few albums by The Jayhawks were also a big influence on me – they were fantastic records.

The track listing for Country Darkness Vol. 1 is Heart Shaped Bruise, Stranger In The House, That Day Is Done and I Felt The Chill Before The Winter Came. How did you choose which songs to record?

MWK: We had a long list of songs to choose from – some got the chop because we felt they’d been done quite a lot before, or because, lyrically, they didn’t translate so well into being done by a duo.

I’ve always loved I Felt The Chill… and That Day Is Done is one of Lou’s favourite songs ever – I’ve not heard anyone else do it. That Day Is Done is a hard song to sing because of the vocal range. I also didn’t want our record to be totally country – I wanted a country soul vibe, as well. That Day Is Done is kind of gospel…

Interestingly, for the EP, you’ve chosen to cover some of Costello’s less well-known songs. You didn’t go for some of his more obvious country tracks, such as material from his King of America album…

MWK: King of America is one of my favourite albums. It’s kind of like an American record, as it was recorded in The States with T-Bone Burnett and musicians who’d played with Elvis Presley. It’s a really great collection of songs – well-formulated and brilliantly written. It was also Costello’s first album without The Attractions, so it’s a departure… I love the sound of it.

We certainly could have done a number of songs from it. In fact, there are some songs from it that are still on our shortlist – I’ll Wear It Proudly and Our Little Angel, to name but two, and they may yet be covered.

Lou had already recorded a beautiful version of Indoor Fireworks on a solo album many years ago, and I used to perform Sleep Of The Just in my solo set, so we intentionally chose to avoid those.

‘I know so many people for whom country music became something of value once they’d heard Costello’s Almost Blue…’

You recorded some of the new EP at Yellow Arch Studios in Sheffield, with members of Richard Hawley’s backing band – Colin Elliot (production, bass, cello, backing vocals, string and horn arrangements), Shez Sheridan (guitars, backing vocals) and Dean Beresford (drums). They’d played on your second album, The Reconciliation? How was it reuniting with them?

MWK: They’re fabulous musicians – Dean has become a regular part of the My Darling Clementine touring band and Colin and Shez are exemplary players and singers – technically and inspirationally. They’re a safe pair of hands. I can play those guys something I want to hear and they get it straight away.

When we came to make this record, we had The Imposters [Costello’s backing band] on board, who were up for it, but we had to look at how and where we did it. Would it be in London or L.A? It got complicated. In the end, we did pre-production, Steve Nieve put the piano down and sent it to us and then we went into the studio with Colin, Shez and Dean and built the tracks around the piano. It was interesting – in a way, Steve was leading the direction and then we followed that and added to it.

Had you met Steve before you worked on this project?

MWK: No – apart from maybe a nod backstage at a Costello gig. We had musical friends in common. It was interesting to go from exchanging emails with him to staying at his house in Trouville-sur-Mer [in France], which is where he and his partner, the filmmaker Muriel Téodori, have a place. We got stuck into the project – we were fully immersed in it.

Picture of My Darling Clementine by Jeff Fassano

You’ve released four songs on the first Country Darkness EP. Are there any more in the can?

MWK: We’ve worked out another five songs with Steve and I think we’ll record them using the same process, because it’s manageable and affordable and the results are fantastic. Yes – it would be nice to go and record in L.A. with The Imposters, but we can’t find the money to justify it… We’ll see… who knows?

‘It was interesting to go from exchanging emails with Steve Nieve to staying at his house. We got stuck into the project – we were fully immersed in it’

The new EP is the first in a series of Costello covers records you’re planning. Can you tell us any of the other songs you’re going to record?

MWK: Our plan is to record three EPs and then they’ll all come out together as an album. Either Side Of The Same Town from The Delivery Man is a real personal favourite of mine – it may turn up at a later date… My feeling about that song is that it’s Costello trying to re-write the Dan Penn classic The Dark End Of The Street – something we may all be guilty of trying to do at some point… It’s arguably the greatest country soul song ever written, particularly when James Carr sings it.

So what are your plans for the rest of the year? 

MWK: I’ve got a solo record that’s on the cards – I’m four songs short of having a squad that I’m happy to go and start working on. Hopefully the writing will be done by the end of November. I am going into a studio in Norway in the next few weeks to start work on that.

There are also two songs that I’m going to record with Colin Elliot and the guys – they’re bigger sounding tracks and I can hear them doing them wonderfully.

Finally, can you tell us any albums from 2019 that you have been listening to and enjoying?

MWK: My favourite record of the year has been Springsteen’s Western Stars – I absolutely adore it. It’s such a good record – it’s damned near perfect – he’s singing beautifully and I love the arrangements.

‘My favourite record of the year has been Springsteen’s Western Stars – I absolutely adore it. It’s such a good record – it’s damned near perfect’

It’s a great album – apart from one duff track, Sleepy Joe’s Café...

MWK: Why is that track on it? It ruins the record – if he’d taken it off, he would’ve had almost the perfect album.

Another record I really like – although, due to the things he’s been saying in recent times, he’s not a person to praise – is Morrissey’s covers album [California Son.] I think it’s a brilliant record with a great choice of songs – his singing is great and the production is fantastic. I love that he picked songs by Tim Hardin and Phil Ochs – some of my favourite songwriters. It’s very much an American record… I wonder if he’s going to do another one of songs by British artists?

I should be listening to some much more younger and hipper things, but I can’t say I am, unfortunately…

Country Darkness Vol.1 by My Darling Clementine is out now on Fretsore Records. It is available to download and stream and also on limited edition vinyl. 

https://mydarlingclementinemusic.co.uk/