News
Harmony with Gabe Dixon on Jimmy Kimmel This Thursday 9/8
Here’s me singing with Gabe Dixon on his new single, “My Favorite,” which we wrote together. We’ll be doing it again on The Jimmy Kimmel Show this Thursday 9/8. Gabe’s fantastic new album, “One Spark,” is streaming here.
ASCAP Interview in Austin
This interview with ASCAP isn’t really about Austin or South By Southwest, in fact it was more about the last ASCAP Songwriter Expo that I spoke at. I remember the Songwriter Expo as the occasion on which I told the audience of several hundred songwriters that if they sent or gave me a CD of their songs, I would likely not listen to the CD, but I would be sure to recycle the jewel case. Anyway, back to this interview, I thought the questions were interesting and they touched on some things about collaborating that I don’t usually get to talk about on camera. The loud and bluesy music in the background is a good emblem of what SXSW is like all the time – usually, though, wherever you go you can hear three or four loud and bluesy bands at the same time. Unfortunately, I find the sound of three or four simultaneous loud bands of any type to be very depressing, so Sixth Street in Austin during SXSW is not the greatest setting for my mental health. Luckily, there’s just the one in the background of this interview.
Lefteris Pantazis, Greek Singer, Covers “Breathless”
How lucky am I? Lucky enough that I get to watch my song “Breathless” being sung on Greek TV, in rolling Greek-accented English, as though it’s an old standard.
“Closing Time” rendition by The Five One
Here’s a joyous hip hop rendition of “Closing Time” by The Five One, a DC-based hip hop group. I love the video and am honored by the version. Check it out.
Adele & DW’s “Someone Like You” is #1 in UK!!
After this performance last week on the Brit Awards, “Someone Like You” shot to the #1 (live version) and #4 (album version) spots on the iTunes chart in UK. Adele’s label quickly made the song available as a single, and this week the song is #1. My first number one song in the United Kingdom.
Are You Lonely Tonight, Mrs. Claus? – New Song
Happy holidays! I’ve made a new recording of a new song, “Are You Lonely Tonight, Mrs. Claus?” I used my rapidograph pen to make some illustrations and write out some of the lyrics, thus this Youtube video. I hope you all have a happy holiday season and a beautiful 2011. If you like this, please send a link to your friends.
Dan and Matt Wilson “Minneapolis 2010” Album
The Dan and Matt Wilson show at the Pantages theater in Minneapolis was one of the highest high points of a very eventful year for me. Matt and I hadn’t planned to record the gig, probably thinking that a live recording might add stress to a potentially challenging show – just the number of lyrics to remember was slightly intimidating to us. (See the various false starts of “Hello Stranger,” for example.) But in the end the preparation was fun and lighthearted, though hard work, and at the last minute I called engineer John Rausch and asked him to haul his live rig to the gig. (Sorry for the complete lack of advance notice, John!) And the recording actually turned out beautifully, especially thanks to the mix by Brad Kern.
Everything Green
I’m writing a ton of new songs and making super-simple recordings of them, mostly with just guitar and voice. Tommy Stone came to the studio where I work and filmed me while I recorded one of the new songs, “Everything Green,” and then he created this movie.