Dani Wilde

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.

Broke Disc Blues

Loretta

Colleen Rennison

Colleen Rennison is a singer, songwriter, and actress. She’s worked in films with Bruce Willis, Michelle Pfeiffer, Minnie Driver, Tom Arnold, Rachael Leigh Cook, Kathleen Turner, Mila Kunis, and many more. None of this I knew when I first heard her voice. A voice that is simply stunning.

I stumbled across Colleen on YouTube. Her band “No Sinner” was under recommendations. My first thought was, what a cool name. I found out later it’s her last name “Rennison” spelled backwards. I clicked the video and the music began. Within the first few notes I could hear those Delta Blues, muddy and smeared with life dripping from the guitarist’s amplifier. Then came Colleen’s voice soulful, strong, and raw with emotion.

I sat watching song after song, blown away at the sound of an old soul singing in this almost forgotten style. I say almost, because in our overstimulated world flooded with perfectly polished music, real talent is hard to find. So when you run across someone of Colleen’s caliber you instantly take notice.

The next morning waiting to clock in for work I looked her up on the web. I followed her and within a few hours she followed me back. A few weeks passed and I decided to reach out and see if she would do an interview. The next day she wrote back and agreed.

So this is Colleen Rennison.

Have you always been drawn to the blues as a musician?

I think so, I’ve always been drawn to anything with soul and pain... I’d say the blues has a lot of that.

  

When writing lyrics do you pull from journal entries or is writing songs a more spontaneous action for you?

I definitely go back into old journals if I manage to keep my hands on them. Sometimes it’s painful but it’s worth it. When you’re in the throes of a feeling you might not be in the position to sit down and write a song about it, but to jot down something is key, even if it doesn’t seem significant at the time it can be very valuable in the future when you have time to reflect and write.

Which artists inspired you when you were starting out, and still inspires you today?

I listened to a lot of Etta James, Aretha, Martha Reeves, Nina Simone... still do. My musical tastes have expanded slightly but never really changed.

I noticed you ride a motorcycle. What kind do you have, and how long have you been riding?

I’ve been riding for about 3 years now, taught myself after a bad breakup and I moved to Saskatoon. Haven’t looked back since.

  

While riding your bike and enjoying the open road do lyrics or lines for songs come to you?

I started riding to clear my head, but turns out it just spins in circles like your wheels. When I’ve got nothing but my thoughts sometimes they’ll start to sound like a song and end up writing themselves into one.

What have you been working on lately in music or film that you would like the reader to check out?

I just came back to Vancouver from Austin for The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) where a film I was in called “Kingsway” showed. It’s a dark comedy about a dysfunctional family where I play Lori, a pregnant singer who rides a motorcycle (the only real stretch was on my T-shirt for that one). I wrote a few songs that made it into the film, and I’m hoping to flesh them out into an EP soon. Also, Colin James just released his new album and I’ve got some backup vocals on it. You should check it out! It’s a great album!

Blue

Poem, Dirt Worker Blues

Oh, will it ever stop raining
At least long enough for the sun to shine
For my tools to finally stop rusting
For my tools to finally start working
The dollar is slim on these long wet days
When you make a living working in dirt
Too much rain is far from refreshing
When the crops sour in the mud soaked ground
As I look out the window into the black and blue clouds
Watching flashes of light and ice fall from the sky
I remember the year, the year of the drought
When the sun scorched all in its path
Cooking in relentless waves of heat
The crops stood in the fields lifeless and brown
Roasting in the midday sun
Day after day we watched the earth dry up
It cracked and flaked then blew in the lonely wind
Blew over equipment and rented out land
Blew over barbwire fence-lines and cattle moaning for food
Hopelessness called out in the life taking breeze of sand
Then the shadows crept in and covered the ground
As clouds finally started to form
The windmill creaked as the cool wind picked up
Finally rain came and gave us relief
The worry fell from my father’s face as he looked in the sky
If only there was a balance for the dirt worker blues
　


Published at Indigo Rising Magazine April 4 / 2011