Chords for Interview with Buddy Miller

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ over to the Griffin Technology Center.
Thanks Keith, appreciate it.
Well we had
so much talent here tonight, so many amazing musicians, but we definitely knew
we wanted to have a chance to talk with with this fellow here.
As they said he
did, he took home an armful of Americana Awards the other day and he's just
brought so much to this community, songwriting and band leading and
collaborating and producing.
Mr.
Buddy Miller is here to chat a few minutes.
Nice to see you buddy.
Hey, good to see you.
_ [G]
When I got to town years ago and I
was trying to figure out what is Americana anyway, I think I asked
Grant Alden from No Depression, what does this music, what does it mean, what
does that word mean?
He said, Buddy Miller, you've got to go listen to Buddy
Miller.
And I did and I've been a fan ever since.
And you've had an
exciting year.
Let's ask about, well before I get into what you're
going on, let me ask about your background as a lover of Tom T.
Hall
songs and how the song, That's How I Got to Memphis became a favorite.
Well like I
was saying before I sang it, I got the record that it was on, I forget which
record that was, I just remember the time period, it was a long time ago.
I remember
it was shortly after Woodstock, like I said.
And actually _ _ every Tom T.
record
was like a big deal when they'd come.
You know it's one of those
records that you'd wait for the next, you know, you'd be anticipating the next
Tom T.
Hall record because each one was so chock full of great songs and
there was actually a record that, you know, that was saying something.
The
songs were really saying something and they certainly registered with me and
that song was just the first one that did.
_ His way [G#] of dealing with a story
[G] and characters and situations _ was so much different and apart from the
here's how I feel, I'm in love, I want you.
What, what, what, and Peter talked about
it as a layered kind of songwriting.
How did it affect you or get you to
think about writing in a different way?
Oh it's just there weren't songs like
that before, at least for me.
You know they're great songs but something about
Tom T.
Hall songs were just so special and I mean That's How I Got to Memphis,
Old Dogs and Children, Watermelon Ride, so many songs just hit you in the heart
which is what a great song does.
Cool.
_ Well we're talking about stage about the
last couple years and your work with Robert Plant has been exceptional and
_ produced a record and a big tour.
How did that begin to come together?
How did he
find out about you and and as he's made this interesting journey into into this
sphere of music in Nashville and how did it come together?
Well I met Robert Plant
I guess when I was playing with Emmylou Harris and we had a gig in Dublin he
came out to it.
I didn't know it but after the gig I heard Robert Plant's in
the audience and it was one of those theaters in in Europe they have a lot of
them where there's a pub in the front and I heard he was just hanging out in
the front and and I thought well cool I'll go meet Robert Plant which is what
I did and we talked about you know psychedelic music from the from from the
60s and old blues and lots of things like that and and I guess I didn't suck
that night he just kind of kept my name in the [F#] back of his of his head then when
the Raising Sand tour popped up with Alison Krauss _ _ he asked for me on guitar
and we started hanging out during that time.
[C#m] And what kind of decisions did you
find [G] yourself making in a producer's role or suggestions I mean how do you
produce Robert Plant?
[Am] You know what I picked the band [G] which is just a
wonderful band Marco Giovino, Byron House, Daryl Scott and and Patti Griffin and we
just got in there and played for a while and just [Em] it was pretty natural the way
it all came together.
[F] And this became the Band of Joy the modern version what's
the story with it there was a previous Band of Joy that Robert was involved in
what's the story there?
That was the name of his very first band that he had
_ before the other band.
That other [N] band we have.
_ And _ given that this was his
second project in that sphere after the Alison record _ I mean making the decision
about the band is kind of like gets you about 90% of the way there right doesn't
it I mean the chemistry then forms out of the individual visions coming
together.
Right we talked a lot on the phone because he wasn't around and you
know I kind of got the sense of what he wanted to do and and and and you know
wanted to make it definitely different than that other project and the Raising
Sand and I think we did.
Right now I think that your last project was was
written in chalk and am I right there that that's your last record that you
released?
That's the last one I made with with my wife.
I had another one come out
called the Majestic Silver Strings which is more of a collaboration with right
with a couple other three guitar players who are like good friends of mine and I
just love their playing Mark Rebo and Bill Frizzell and Greg Lease yeah and
had a lot of guest friends stop by the house I'd make records in my house just
have a lot of stuff set up there.
It's a famous studio now.
Well not for my wife.
_ It's a glorious record the Silver Strings record and and I was anticipating
a very instrumental disc I thought it was gonna be where the guitar players
really kind of do their thing and there's a lot of wonderful singing guest
guest vocalists it's it's a country record and many and really very deeply _
what what shaped the vision for that record what what what made it turn out
the way it did?
Well it actually I started thinking of a Bill and I were
gonna collaborate Bill Frizzell and then I was in the studio with with sitting
next to Mark Rebo for about three weeks working on the second _ the follow-up to
Raising Sand which didn't happen but we got to hang out a lot and I loved his
playing and I just wanted to make a record of you know out of our love for
old country songs and and that's kind of where it started and I thought at
first it would be instrumental but then we all just wanted to hear people singing
them.
And this these are guitar players who really are very different.
Mark Rebo
is kind of a postmodern he can be very noisy very very avant-garde and very
unusual and angular and Greg Lease is a steel player and lap steel player from
way back who can lay behind a vocalist and make this luscious thing happen.
Bill
Frizzell is an amazing jazz lead guitar player one of my favorites and you're an
aggressive guitar player it must have been interesting kind of finding a role
for all those guitar voices.
It was a great week just hanging out in the house we just
had a great time and every day different singers would come over and and we cut
the whole thing live with us all just set up in a circle including the singer
was just you know four feet from the drums and everything went down live it
was a it was a blast.
Great record.
What are you working on now yourself either
as a artist or producer?
_ I've got something brewing with with our friend
Jim Lauderdale I'm producing also just finishing up a band called the Carolina
Chocolate Drops.
Oh really?
Their next record.
Oh my gosh.
We just finished that up it's a great
record and they're they're great bunch and and and great folks so finish that
up and then.
That coming out this winter or spring you know what the release is?
I don't know when it's gonna come out it's done so I'm guessing it'll be
early next year.
Oh superb they have caught fire in a way that just has been
gratifying to me that I didn't think that a band with that string you know
sort of string band vision could just become a big big deal but they really
are.
Yeah and they really are great.
They're great.
And working on a few other
things that hopefully will figure themselves out.
Great well we'll be
watching and listening buddy that we appreciate everything you do.
Buddy
Miller folks.
Thanks.
We're very lucky people here at Music City Reads.
Thank you sir. _