Shelby Lynne will release a new record next week titled Tears, Lies and Alibis. I've always been a big fan of Lynne's and bought every record since I Am Shelby Lynne, her breakout hit from quite a few years ago. I particularly loved her last album, the Dusty Springfield tribute Just A Little Lovin'.
Her latest is a wonderful synthesis of the many strengths she's honed over the past few albums. However, I think Tears, Lies and Alibis is her finest set of songs to date, complemented from some lovely and understated production courtesy of Lynne herself. Check back soon for a full review.
Lynne will be mounting a fairly extensive tour upon the album's release, including three dates here in Texas in mid-May (see complete listing at the bottom of this post). I had the pleasure of interviewing Ms. Lynne last week, and here is our conversation in its entirety.
(Photo credit: Randee St. Nicholas)
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Houston Ramblings: So when you’re not touring, you live in Palm Springs, is that correct?
Shelby Lynne: Yeah, in that area, yes.
HR: Do you mind me asking what attracted you to the desert, rather than the coast?
SL: Well, it’s very beautiful here and I don’t mind the heat. And it tends to get a bit chilly on the coast.
HR: I guess you’ll be winding up your first leg of the tour just as it’s getting hot there though.
SL: Well, it doesn’t really get too bad here until, you know, the end of July, August, September. That’s really the only intolerable time. But it’s still beautiful. I’ve stayed here in the summers, and you just kinda read books and stay inside.
HR: So you recorded the basic tracks for Tears, Lies and Alibis in your home studio, correct?
SL: Yeah, I did. Just the simple stuff like me and the guitar and some overdubs, things like that.
HR: And you were joined on the initial sessions by a number of musicians. What’s the space and setup like?
SL: What? My vibe here?
HR: Yeah, yeah.
SL: Oh, it’s just basically a lot of gear in my living room [laughs]. You know, it’s just like “Loser Dreamer” is, um… I wrote “Loser Dreamer” about my buddy Brian [ed. Brian Harrison, who engineered the sessions and played bass, Moog and percussion] but I can certainly relate when it comes to the gear and the stuff and the, you know, it’s just kinda how we roll. If you’re gonna record and have a studio, it’s a lot of mess around your house.
HR: [Laughs].
SL: You get used to it.
HR: Do you still do a kind of sittin-at-the-table songwriting thing, or do you find that you just get your song ideas down on tape as soon as you can?
SL: Anytime I have any kind of idea, I have some kind of tape recorder lying around and try to be handy with pen and paper, yeah. I learned the hard too many times ago that if you don’t take advantage of them, of a moment with a song at that moment, you might lose it. Then it’s a terrible feeling to lose a good one.
HR: Now you did some subsequent recording in Nashville tp finish off some of the tracks?
SL: Uh-huh, I did.
HR: But the album really retains a lot of that really immediate, you know, acoustic feel. Did you have some pretty specific ideas of what you wanted to add to the songs, or was it more kind of a trial and error process?
SL: Well, I mean, the studio is no place for trial and error because you want to be prepared for what you want when you get a musician in there. Not only because of the vibe, but because, you know, it can get costly. But I pretty much knew when I do my basic tracks. The song kinda lets me know this is what I need and this is what I want on it to feel complete, and I just have to listen to the song and see what it tells me to do. So I try to just let it be simple and easy on the ears, and anything I add has to really be complementary to the tune or, you know, it won’t stay around long, trust me.
HR: Now for those Nashville sessions you scored some help from David Hood and Spooner Oldham of Muscle Shoals fame. Being from Alabama, were you particularly aware of the Fame Studios sound early on, or was that kinda something you picked up later in your singing career?
SL: Well, later definitely. I wasn’t really familiar with any of that… hell, I wasn’t familiar with a lot of music until late in my twenties. I had been makin’ my own records before I discovered all the cool stuff. But they definitely have added their magic to a lot of fine, fine records. So I couldn’t resist asking them if they wanted to drive up from Alabama and spend the weekend with me in Nasvhille. So we had a ball, a blast. They’re just truly legendary sweethearts.
HR: Now I’ve already read one review of this record that suggests that it sounds so good, you must’ve learned a few tricks from Phil Ramone, who produced Just A Little Lovin’. Did that experience prepare you to produce Tears, Lies and Alibis yourself?
SL: Well, I mean, the Phil Ramone record’s a wonderful record because Al Schmitt was on the board and Phil Ramone’s the producer, but, you know, I’ve been making records for so long that if I haven’t picked up something by now then I just need to hush. So I just try to keep it really simple, you know? I don’t really like the whole idea of being a record producer, and the times that I’ve done that have been out of necessity, seriously. But that’s why I try to keep it simple. I mean, the worst thing I could do is to go in there and try to produce. That silly – I’m not a producer, I’m a singer. So I just do music that I’d like to hear.
HR: This album sounds to me like it would’ve been a really natural follow-up to Suit Yourself. But there’s that really beautiful curveball you threw everybody with the Dusty Springfield record. Do you see a future where you kinda continue to surprise people with those sorts of projects, or is that just way too hard to predict?
SL: Yeah, you can’t tell what might happen next. But I did the Dusty record just because that’s what I felt like doing at the time, you know? And after that, I really wanted to start writin’ my own songs again. So who knows what the future will bring. I just kinda try to roll with it, you know?
HR: Maybe a Tony Joe White tribute album, or something like that?
SL: You know what? I think that one career is good for one cover record. Because it’s really a, you know, throw one in here every now and then. But doin’ whole albums, I dunno.
HR: You don’t want to become known for that, I suppose.
SL: And I don’t know if I’ll do it again.
HR: “Why Didn’t You Call Me” and “Alibi” on the new album, in particular, sound like songs that would fit pretty nicely into the Dusty songbook.
SL: Hmm.
HR: Did you find that that experience sort of influenced this new batch of songs?
SL: No. I don’t know what influences songs. It’s just that they come, and you grab it and get it down and hope it works for you, you know? Experience in the record business has been, um, quite interesting for the last twenty years. But I’m diggin’ it even more and I’m loving bein’ in control of things.
HR: I was readin’ the press materials for the new album, and it notes that on this record you use a lot of famililar details to invoke specific emotions, and I suppose that’s probably true of a lot of songwriting. Is that something you’re conscious of when you’re writing, or does it only become evident when you kinda step back and look at the songs.
SL: Well, I guess inspiration for songwriting has to come from somewhere. So I just try to observe the atmosphere and the universe every day. Cause I’m always looking for that cool hook or that one line that’s gonna be the beginnings of writing a new song, you know? But they come when they’re ready. It certainly has nothing to do with me. You have to be open for something when it’s there. That’s why I always keep something to record on or write with.
HR: I thought “Something To Be Said” seems like it really works on those two levels. On it’s surface, it’s sort of a tribute to Airstream trailers, but really at its core it’s about hittin’ the open road. And then the album ends with the song “Home Sweet Home” which sorta closes the circle with kind of a desire to return home. Did you specifically have those two songs in mind to mirror one another?
SL: No, I mean, I didn’t have anything in mind. I try not have anything in mind with any record because it’s just not natural for me to do it that way. I just don’t make plans for records because I feel like they should be a breathing, growing, separate entity on their own. They need to have… I mean, I’m the one that’s gettin’ it to where it’s supposed to be going, but the songs and the world and the universe are what lead me. I just try to keep myself open and just not worry about it too much and try not to overthink why the songs appear or what it means, but just make it real pretty and make people want to put it on after they’ve finished listening to it again [laughs].
HR: Both of those songs are very lovely. It sounds like “Something To Be Said” you actually had to be encouraged to include that one on the album by some of your other musicians.
SL: Well, I just thought, “Oh my god.” Here I come off singing some of the greatest songs ever written with the Dusty record, and now I’m singing about Airstreams. So, you know... and see that’s my insecurity ‘cause I’m thinkin’ who wants to hear me singing about Airstreams? But then, when I got to thinking about the song, it’s not really about Airstreams. It’s about, like you say, exploring and bein’ out on the open road and appreciating beauty when you see it and being grateful for it.
HR: I love the line in that song when you allude to the fact that you might stop in your hometown to visit your family. So it’s even got that kinda two levels where you’ve got the open road but there’s this draw back to your home in some ways.
SL: Yeah, I just don’t know why it turned out to be Needles, California, but I always wanted to put Needles in a song [laughs]. So it worked perfectly. It was the perfect time to use Needles, California, in a tune cause I like Needles. There’s something about Needles I like.
HR: Now you’re a big proponent of vinyl records, aren’t you?
SL: I am. I do love ‘em.
HR: Tears, Lies & Alibis is sorta the perfect LP. It’s, like, ten songs, 37 or 38 minutes long. Any chance it will get a vinyl release?
SL: Oh yeah. I’m doing the test pressings right now.
HR: Yeah?
SL: Yeah, it’ll be out on vinyl, sure. I insist on it.
HR: That format and length seems to be kinda a dying art. It requires some discipline, in my opinion.
SL: Well, I don’t know what kind of discipline except you have to get up and turn the record over.
HR: [laughs] I was thinking more of containing the album to that length, now you can cram 75 minutes onto a CD or however many minutes onto a digital album.
SL: Yeah, and who wants to hear 75 minutes of whoever you love? I mean, that’s too damn long. I’m sorry, but I don’t get that. You don’t get paid for but a few of the number over, I don’t know what the number is, however that works. But I don’t know why people think anybody wants to hear ‘em that long.
HR: I guess I like the occasional double album, but yeah, there’s something magical about the ten-song format.
SL: I think so. [pause] Well, I’ll tell you what, a double album – you better have some badass songs on there because that is ridiculous.
HR: There’s a few of ‘em. I guess I like my Drive-By Truckers albums as much as the next guy.
SL: Me, too.
HR: So the initial tour to promote the new record, is that you performing acoustically solo?
SL: No, I’m taking two boys with me but no drums.
HR: Do feel like that’s gonna be a radically different experience than your previous tours?
SL: No, because I’ve always just done it different, you know? All my tours are different. I just gotta do what will represent the record the best and still be able to throw in my other stuff. You know, people really like to hear it stripped down. I can’t go to some crazy festival and do that. So I have to make some adjustments sometimes. But I like it to be low-key sometimes, too. Sometimes I get tired of hearing drums. You know, I just wanna play calm and it kinda draws the audience in.
HR: Yeah, I think it will be a great experience for fans.
SL: Yeah. I mean, that’s what it’s about – giving them an experience, you know, doin’ things that’s gonna turn them on and give them their money’s worth.
HR: I’ve seen quite a few pictures of you with some pretty nice-looking Gibsons. Are you much of a guitar hound?
SL: Oh, it’s ridiculous. I mean, I have too many guitars, but I can’t help it. I’m a musician, and dammit, that’s my collection. So it’s not a good idea for me to go into too many guitar stores.
HR: You seem to favor square-shouldered, mahogany Gibsons, which for my money, that’s the best acoustic guitar you can buy. Do you have any favorite guitars or gear that you really depend on?
SL: Well, I mean, my Gibsons are my workhorses. You know, they’re just so sturdy for the road. I have a really, really old… I have a ’65 Southern Jumbo and then I have a new Hummingbird that I’ll be taking out on the road. But, shoot… I’ve got a little Blues King I like to sit around and write on here. I just recently found an old 12-string acoustic Fender that they didn’t make many of, it’s a ’68 that I picked up on the road. You know… and my Fender Deluxe when I play electric. When I play electric, I like to use my Deluxe amp… you know, that’s just the basics. And when I play electric, I usually just take my Telecaster, but I’ve got several electrics that I love to…
Please, I could go on forever talking about guitars. It’s ridiculous.
HR: [laughs] Maybe a second interview sometime.
SL: Okay.
HR: Well, thank you, Shelby, so much for taking the time to chat with me.
SL: Sure.
HR: Good luck with the album and tour. We’ll be waitin’ for you down here in Texas when you get here in May.
SL: Oh, absolutely. I look forward to it. And you’re in Houston?
HR: I am.
SL: Okay, good. I look forward to that. I don’t know that gig. I think I played that gig one time before.
HR: It’s actually the smaller venue at the Warehouse [Warehouse Live Studio], and it’s a great listening room. It’s a really nice space. So I think it’s gonna be a great show.
SL: Okay, cool. Well I’ll see you there, man, and thank you very much.
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Tears, Lies and Alibis will be out on April 20 on Lynne's own Everso Records. You can pre-order a copy from one of the following outlets:
- Amazon (only $9.99!)
- Barnes & Noble (includes exclusive bonus track "Don't You Know")
- iTunes (includes exclusive bonus tracks "Laugh Out Loud" and "Love Song")
- Newbury Comics (includes autographed booklet)
A very positive review from BlogCritics.
Another interview with The 9513.
UPDATE: Josh Hurst reviews TLAA here.
Lynne's tour itinerary includes the following stops:
4/22 West Hollywood, CA The Roxy Theatre
4/23 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
4/26 Portland, OR Doug Fir Lounge
4/27 Seattle, WA The Triple Door
5/1 Minneapolis, MN Dakota
5/2 Milwaukee, WI Turner Hall
5/3 Ann Arbor, MI The Ark
5/4 Chicago, IL Martyrs’
5/5 Cleveland, OH Beachland Tavern
5/7 Northampton, MA Iron Horse Music Hall
5/8 Somerville, MA Johnny D’s
5/9 Philadelphia, PA World Café Live
5/10 New York, NY The Concert Hall
5/11 Alexandria, VA The Birchmere
5/13 Nashville, TN The Belcourt Theater
5/15 Atlanta, GA Variety Playhouse
5/17 Dallas, TX Granada Theater
5/18 Houston, TX Warehouse Live
5/19 Austin, TX St. David’s Episcopal Church
5/25 Solana Beach, CA Belly Up Tavern
