You might remember Grant-Lee Phillips as the frontman of Grant Lee Buffalo, who made four critically-acclaimed albums back in the 90s, including Fuzzy and Mighty Joe Moon. Since the band folded, Grant-Lee has released seven solo albums and also found time for a recurring cameo on US sitcom Gilmore Girls as the town troubadour. As he prepares to head to the UK for a co-headline tour with Giant Sand’s Howe Gelb, we caught up with him.
Hello Grant-Lee. Where are you and what have you been up to this week?
I’m at home in Nashville, catching my breath after a great week of Americana Fest. It’s always fun catching legends like Loretta Lynn. It’s also invigorating to see guys like Jason Isbell and Sturgill Simpson. I was on a bill with Robyn Hitchcock, Joe Henry, Laura Cantrell and Rodney Crowell, and that was a big highlight for me personally. Now it’s back to writing, changing strings and moving the sprinklers.
You’re heading to the UK with Howe Gelb in October to play some shows together. How did the two of you come together and what will you be playing?
Giant Sand joined up with Grant Lee Buffalo back in ’93 or so. Howe and I just hit it off. He’s one of a few people that I seem to have a common orbit with. As far as the show goes, we’re each playing our own sets and then joining forces at some point in the evening.
Other than clothes and musical instruments, what are your essential to take on tour?
I’ve gotten better at travelling light. The essentials are basically: my passport, cell phone, wallet, guitar, strings, sleeping pills and the clothes on my back. The psychological essentials include a book or two, a note pad and usually a good drawing pen, a drawing pad. I’ll bring along a set of paints now and then and that’s a good way to pass the time.
Your last album was partially funded through fans via a PledgeMusic campaign. Is it liberating to be able to release music on your own terms without a record company interfering, or would you prefer to have the support that comes with being signed to a label?
I’ve been spared all this meddling I hear about. I keep waiting for the boss to poke his head in but it hasn’t happened yet. Maybe it’s more a case of label neglect, which is almost worst. The last time around PledgeMusic made the most sense. I recorded an acoustic album at home, played just about everything on it myself and I simply needed the means to master, manufacture and distribute it. PledgeMusic was a great way of going about it. The real reward came from connecting with the very people who’ve embraced my music for a long time. And I learnt how to work a postal scale.
You’ve been a solo artist for longer than you were in Grant Lee Buffalo, though you’ve played a number of shows with your old band in recent years. Would you consider recording another GLB album?
It’s a kick to step onstage these days with Joey and Paul and to play all of these GLB songs that were written and recorded twenty years ago. Playing live stills feel vital and volatile. We set a certain bar for ourselves with those albums. They were the product of many years, developing a sound, gelling as band, spending every waking minute together on the road. It’s another lifetime to be honest. I can’t be sure that a new GLB album would pick up where we left off. I don’t know that it could. It’s one of those things where you can’t force it. When we did a few reunion dates we had a lot of people asking about a new album. You hear it lot – if you put out a new album, then you can do a big tour, which will then push the new album that doesn’t exist yet. All the carts and horses seem to wind up in a traffic jam.
Your 2006 album of covers, nineteeneighties, featured a number of songs by British bands. If you were to record an album of nineties covers, which songs by Brit artists would you choose?
I guess nineteeneighties was pretty Brit-heavy. Mmmm, next time around maybe Elastica’s ‘Connection’… or ‘Hey Now!’ by Oasis.
What was the first album you bought, when and where did you buy it, and do you still listen to it?
Changesonebowie by David Bowie was one of the first, if not the first. And yes, I still listen to those songs. Can’t recall the name of the store. It was at the mall just across from Orange Julius.
What have you been listening to recently?
A lot of things… Parker Millsap, a kid from Oklahoma. His debut album is phenomenal.
Other than music, who or what inspires you to write songs?
I turn to music. Like some people turn to a bottle, I turn to music in times of doubt, loss, celebration. It’s how I process it all. Whatever life throws at you, there’s probably a song. There’s a melody for your malady.
What are the biggest challenges you face as a musician?
The fracturing of this industry, the devaluing of creative content. The internet has become a highway of stolen goods. Who owns this highway and profits from the tollbooth? Freedom of speech, artistic expression, political dissent – all of it’s in danger. These challenges hit us all, though, not just musicians.
Finally, what’s next for you after the European tour?
I’ve recently recorded a new solo album here in Nashville. It’s a more amped up kind of record. Cut it live on the floor as a trio. I would love to see this thing out in 2015.
Grant-Lee Phillips and Howe Gelb are touring the UK and Ireland from 7-13 October. Details on venues and dates can be found here.
Paul Sng
@sng_paul
Paul Sng
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