How old were you when you stared singing and playing mandolin?
I was 10 when I started playing Mandolin, and 16 when I started singing.
Which artists inspired you when you were starting out, and still inspires you today?
Chris Thile was a big inspiration, my dad used to buy his music books and lesson dvds to cheer me along each birthday. I really enjoyed those. Imogen Heap and Enya were my singing heroes. I’ve always had a soft voice and they made that seem like a magic power.
If it were possible and you could cover any song with the original artist singing along with you, what would it be?
Going to California with Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and John Paul Jones.
Could you tell the reader about the band SHEL you are a part of with your sisters?
The sisterhood itself was founded in 1993 when our youngest sister Liza was born. The band was founded in 2001. It’s a joy to be a part of both.
I love the song by SHEL "Lost At Sea." Could you tell us about filming the video and your time in Belfast?
Belfast felt like coming home. Filming at the Dunluce Castle was a dream, though we almost got stranded by the tide coming in, which lead to me climbing a cliff wall barefoot in a large torn up wedding gown.
What have you been working on lately and what would you like the reader to check out?
We’re hard at work on the next SHEL album which is very exciting, you can check out our Instagram to hear how it’s coming along. We’ve just finished filming a music video for our upcoming single in Vrindavan India to help raise awareness for the plight of widows in that area. I’m dabbling in a bit of traditional folk and Irish music as I prepare to launch a solo project called Lady Moon. SHEL’s album should be out sometime this summer, and Lady Moon will debut in 2020.
Joan Jett once said, “My guitar
is not a thing. It is an extension of myself. It is who I am.” It’s easy to see
and hear this in Dani Wilde’s music. The feeling in her voice along with her emotion-filled
guitar playing is a breath of fresh air in the music world today. She’s opened
for Johnny Winter, Foreigner, Journey, and has collaborated with Samantha Fish.
Dani Wilde is a powerhouse in the Blues world today. She is one of my favorite
musicians and someone I believe is making an impact in the art of the Blues.
This is Dani Wilde
Have you always been drawn to The Blues as a musician?
Yes,
although I love all music. I was born in the mid 80s and so pop artists like
Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston really inspired me to become a singer. I
also love country music and Americana- artists like Lyle Lovett and Patty
Griffin. And I really love soul music and Motown- Al Green, Smokie Robinson
etc. But I was brought up being taken to lots of blues gigs and festivals. I
heard lots of John Lee Hooker and Howling Wolf and Muddy Waters on my dad's
hifi at home. When I saw Susan Tedeschi and Sue Foley performing live in the
early 2000's I knew that was what I wanted to do. By 2007 I had signed to Ruf Records
and was on the same label as some of my heroes Sue Foley, and Eric Bibb.
I’ve noticed many of the guitar
players from England don’t use a pick when they play. Starting out, was it a
cultural thing for you to play this way or were you looking for a warmer sound
that fingerpicking gives you?
Neither,
when I was 11, I picked up my brother's acoustic guitar and started to figure
out chords and songs. I didn't aspire to be a great guitarist. I wanted to
accompany myself singing my favourite songs and to be a songwriter. I started
out playing solo gigs in local pubs when I was 13 playing mostly originals and
Bob Dylan covers. There were no plectrums in my house nor any other musicians
to offer me one, and so I played with fingers and my own style developed. When
I was 15 I met bluesman Louisiana Red who also played finger style guitar and
he encouraged me to keep playing like this and taught me a thing or two. When I
gigged with Girls with guitars, I used a pick occasionally, and when playing
back up guitar on Samantha's songs which requires a harder and more heavy rock
tone than my own material :)
If it were possible and you could
cover any song with the original artist singing along with you, what would it
be?
This is such
a hard question to answer. In regards to living artists, I would love to work
with Van Morrison. I love all of his songs. I play "It stoned me" in
my love set. I’d love to sing Tupelo Honey with him. I would've loved to have
performed with John Lee Hooker when he was alive... Boom boom boom or Dimples.
I love everything about John Lee.
I read you opened for Johnny Winter. I
saw him play in 1994 and he put on a flawless performance. How was it to meet
and open for such a legend in the Blues world?
It was a
dream come true. It was at BB Kings club in Times Square NYC. It meant a lot to
me. A week after that show I bumped into Johnny and his band again at a
festival in Spain and we opened for them again. They were kind to me… really
down to earth yet super talented guys.
Could you tell us a little about your
humanitarian work?
Yes, I have
visited Kenya many times and have been deeply saddened by the horiffic poverty
that children have to endure in the slum communities. On my trips I worked with
a wonderful charity called Moving Mountains to build classrooms and provide
education and protection for the most vulnerable and poor children. I also
fundraise to help Toto Love Orphanage in Embu Kenya. The orphans there have
HIV. Some of the kids appear healthy and are doing well in school. Others are
clearly very sick. The money we raise at my concerts helps to provide
medicine and to cover hospital fees and food for the children. Ruth Ndwiga who
runs the orphanage is a wonderful lady who works so hard to keep the orphans
safe and loved.
What have you
been working on lately, and what would you like for the reader to check out?
I have an
album out entitled Live At Brighton Road which was released on Vizztone
Records. The album is half electric and half acoustic showcasing the two sides
of my music. It can be bought on vinyl and Cd/Dvd. My friend, filmmaker Philip
James shot a beautiful video of our live in the studio performances and a video
interview with me to accompany the audio recordings. I've recently been on tour
in Europe promoting the record. I'm a mum now. I have a beautiful little girl
called Poppy, and I took her out on the road with me. It was fantastic
fun.
I also have
a new single out. A cover of Joni Mitchell's Case of You recorded with my
brother Will Wilde on harp. Will and I tour as an acoustic duo called The
Wilde's when we are not touring separately with our electric bands. You can
find the music video on YouTube.
Along with an incredible voice, Chloe Feoranzo plays the
clarinet and saxophone. She pulls you back in time with her music. As you
listen you’ll feel like you’re sitting in a 1920s speakeasy enjoying a night on
the town. She’s put hard work and dedication into her craft and it shows. Every
note, whether voice or instrument, shines bright in her performance. Truly a
modern-day link to the past, yet a gem in our musical present.
Chloe studied under Jazz great Charles McPherson. A
friend of mine’s father, Mario Rivera was also a Jazz great. He played with
Tito Puente for many years. He recorded an album with Dizzy Gillespie, Afro
Cuban Jazz Moods in 1975. Over the years, I’ve enjoyed hearing stories from
my friend Mario about his father and that magical time gone by. Chloe’s music is reflective of this
era.
Music from the past is always a treat to look back on and
take in. All of its emotion captured in the recordings of the musicians from
years ago. But there’s something special when you see the past alive and well
here in present day. Chloe Feoranzo is that present day musician making a
lasting mark on the Jazz world.
This is Chloe
Feoranzo.
How
old were you when you started playing clarinet and saxophone?
I
was about 9 or 10 when I first started playing the saxophone in Elementary
school band. I was around 12 or 13 when my middle school teacher needed an
extra clarinet player and I said why not? Haha.
Have
you always been drawn to Jazz as a musician?
I
definitely grew up around Jazz even before starting to play an instrument. My
parents used to swing dance and loved to listen to the songs they heard in
classes at home so I got a taste of it then. After starting music, I was drawn
to the older styles of jazz after hearing it live for the first time at the San
Diego Jazz Fest. So yes, but I’ve also been drawn to other forms of music as
well such as classical, Brazilian choro, old R&B, Irish music, and even
pop.
Which
artists inspired you when you were starting out?
A
lot of my inspiration came from the musicians I heard growing up live in town
(I grew up in San Diego), especially the ones that would take me under their
wing such as Ron Hockett, Chris Klich, Zzymzzy Quartet, Charles McPherson and
practically any group that went to the Traditional Jazz Festivals. Recording
wise I loved Billie Holliday, Peanuts Hucko, Lester Young, Gerry Mulligan, Ella
Fitzgerald, Louis Prima, Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman... I could go on.
I
watched a clip of you playing on “The David Letterman Show.” How was the
experience for you?
It
was a pretty crazy day! A few of the highlights for me was finding out they
kept TV studios extremely cold so no one sweats on television, so I basically
walked around with my travel blanket for most of the time. Another is right
before we did our take (and we were really only allowed to do one even though
it wasn't live) Paul Shaffer sees me with my clarinet and goes "Oh! A
clarinet!" and proceeds to play a polka beat. To which I then, of course,
start playing some vaguely polka-like improvisation and we just jammed on this
improv polka for a little bit before the TVs were filming. Lastly, right as we
ended our take and Letterman walks off I look down on my mouthpiece to see my
reed had completely shifted almost off the mouthpiece, which thankfully waited
until after the take to do so or else there would have been some serious
squeaks haha. In my excitement to perform I had forgotten to tighten my
ligature enough (the thing that holds the reed in place) and luckily the reed
cooperated. Whoops.
If
it were possible and you could cover any song with the original artist singing
along with you, what would it be?
I'll
Be Seeing You - Billie Holliday version. Her version is so hauntingly beautiful
and perfectly captures the message of the song.
What
have you been working on lately and what would you like for the reader to check
out?
I
have an all women traditional jazz group called the Shake 'Em Up Jazz Band that
is based in New Orleans, also where I currently live. Our newest album called
'A Women's Place Is In The Groove' is an album dedicated to women composers of
the 1920s-30s. We have done a couple overseas tours and various festivals
around the country. You can find more about the band on our Facebook page
( https://www.facebook.com/ShakeEmUpJazzBand/) and at our website(www.shakeemupjazzband.com) I really love these ladies
and the way we make music and hope your listeners enjoy us too!
Like Loretta
Lynn and Neil Young, Lilly Hiatt sings from the heart. Her lyrics and style are
reminiscent of the greats I grew up listening to in The Seventies. Yet she also
has that rocking edge that rolls along in rhythmic chords much like the bands I
loved in The Nineties. Lilly is someone special, someone whose spirit soars
high when she picks up her guitar and sings. Truly an original.
From the
first time I heard her, I was enthralled with her music. The more I heard the
more I wanted to hear. As time went by I would find myself singing her songs as
I went through my day. So, after work one afternoon I messaged her and asked if
she would do an interview. I put my phone down and collapsed onto the couch. I
started to drink some coffee and watch TV. A short time passed and my phone
buzzed. It was Lilly. She agreed to do the interview.
This Is
Lilly Hiatt
How old were you when you started
singing and playing guitar?
I have sang
for as long as I can remember! And 12 for the guitar.
With your father also being a
singer/songwriter, music had to be a large part of your childhood. When writing
songs today do you reflect back on the songwriters and storytellers you first
heard in your youth?
I certainly
do. I remember Prince being a soundtrack early on. Purple
Rain. That stuck with me, as did Neil Young's Harvest Moon. Liz
Phair's Whipsmart, that's what my mom jammed when she was letting loose. They
all crept in and influenced me amongst the many things I discovered on my
own, I think also just seeing the shows with all kinds of
musicians. Ya know my dad toured with Hootie and the Blowfish, he toured
with BB King, Jackson Brown...they all became a part of my musical
journey. My brother was obsessed with Slayer and hip hop, my sister loved
Weezer and the Spice Girls. Everyone was bringing something to the table.
You have a wide range and very unique
style of music you write. Who have been your biggest influences over the years?
Why thank
you. Well, I could write a book on it, but I won't. At least not
now. It's hard to reduce it to just a few folks, but big writer
influences I'd say would be Liz Phair, Bob Dylan, Lauryn Hill, Neil Young, Eddie
Vedder, Prince, Conor Oberst, Lucinda Williams and my dad of course. But,
different eras have occurred and I am an avid fan of a lot of music.
You’ve covered “Guy Clark” with Aaron
Lee Tasjan and “The Beatles” with Margo Price. If it were possible and you
could cover any song with the original artist singing along with you, what
would it be?
See, I am
already stressed I left John Lennon out of that last question haha! Well, I
want to sing "Daughter" with Eddie Vedder. I plan on it. I also badly
want Cardi B to sample a song of mine, and I would happily sing that with
her.
On your third and latest album
“Trinity Lane” you worked with Michael Trent and Cary Ann Hearst from the band
“Shovels and Rope.” How did that come about?
I knew them
both, and liked them very much as people. When Michael was suggested to
me as a possible producer, I was intrigued and began a musical conversation
with him. We vibed quickly and I knew he would push boundaries with me
without pushing my buttons. I like working with people that are willing
to go to the edge and beyond, and he is! Yet with such a chill and respectful
attitude. Great listener. We had a blast if ya can't tell!
What have you been working on lately
and what would you like for the reader to check out?
I am writing
up a storm planning to make another record. Excited to be in a creative
haze at the moment. Next up tour wise is a fun run with Margo Price that
goes through New Year's Eve. Should be a fun way to ring in 2019!
All Youtube clips are poems written and read by Jason E. Hodges. The photos within the clips were also taken by him of the world he walks around in each day.
