Joanne Shaw Taylor
The Gift
Blues From the Black Country
Joanne Shaw Taylor is a stone
prodigy who has taken the blues to another level. She has toured with the
Eurythmics leader and resident genius Dave Stewart and earned her stripes
through constant touring with some of the greatest musicians in the world
including Mudbone, Jimmy Cliff and Candy Dulpher (Prince) as well as the
aforementioned Stewart. She performs regularly at a club owned by Roy Wood (the
Move) and Noddy Holder (Slade). She grew up in the Midlands, a part of England
that has a ferocious musical reputation that is favorably compared to Detroit,
rock city of the world. Joanne is somewhat shy and a bit cautious yet we hit it
off nicely during a brief interlude before the show at White’s Bar. We had some coffee and a bite to eat. She seemed to size
me up, quietly. Later that evening
I listened to her opening song and I
knew immediately…she’s got the gift
When did you first pick up the guitar?
I began taking classical
lessons at my school when I was about 8 years old. My father and brother both
played so there were always guitars around the house to strum. I was probably
about 4 when i first picked one up but it wasn't till a little later that I
really started to play. I started playing electric when I was 13 after getting
in to the Blues Via Stevie Ray Vaughan and Albert Collins.
Do you feel that growing up in The Midlands – the industrial blight of the Black Country – with all of the attendant racial and ethnic
conflict provides the necessary conditions for creativity in music and the
arts?
I don't think I was ever really
that aware of it growing up to be honest. I think Birmingham and the Black
Country’s rich musical history had more
of an Influence on me than anything, Bands like Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin,
ELO and Slade. I like to think of it as the Rock City of England.
Your home seems to have a similar spirit as Detroit,
Chicago and Memphis where blacks and whites, despite racial tensions joined
together to create incendiary forms of music. Do you share a sense of that
experience?
Yes I think so, This will be my
first visit to Detroit needless to say It's somewhere I've been eager to visit
for some time. There's certainly a similar spirit to the cities you've
mentioned, The music scene here is less grounded in the Blues obviously than Chicago
or Memphis.
As a girl from the Black Country you must have heard
about Roy Wood and the Move. Did Wood leave a powerful legacy from his rocker
days? Did Wood or the Move influence
you?
I wouldn't say he influenced me
directly The Move obviously had most of their hits before I was born. That said
his presence is still felt on the Local music scene. He and Noddy Holder
(Slade) actually co-owns the best Club in the Midlands, The Robin 2. I play
there frequently.
How was it that you were “discovered” at the
tender age of 16 by rock icon Dave Stewart? What was it like for you to
pass the audition, so to speak?
I did a charity show in aid of
Breast cancer awareness in Birmingham organized by the band UB40. One of Dave's
close friends was there and he passed along a demo to Dave who phoned me the
next day and invited me to London. I remember sitting in Dave's Kitchen and
playing him a slow blues song while he filmed it because he wanted to show it
to Quincy Jones. Luckily being only 16 at the time I don't think I realized the
gravity of the situation and was just glad to be out of school.
The quote from Stewart …”last year I heard something I thought I would never
hear…a British White Girl playing
blues guitar so deep and passionately it made the hairs on the back of my head
stand on end”…is that hard
to live up to? Pressure to be perfect?
(Laughing) I never thought of
it like that until you mentioned it!. I don't think that comment was ever a
"burden" obviously it's been quoted heavily in any press i've had but
i always just took it as a wonderful compliment. Obviously i was very young
when dave made that comment (16) so I knew I had a lot of growing still to do
as a guitarist and musician in general but was just pleased that I had such a
talented and established musician offering me encouragement.
It must have been a daunting task to perform with
seasoned pros like Mudbone, Stewart, Candy Dulpher (Prince) and Jimmy Cliff in
D.U.P. How long were you with them? What was the D.U.P. tour like for you?What
did you learn from that experience?
I toured with D.U.P on and off
for about a year. That was an incredible experience to have at any stage of
your career but to be 17 and touring Europe with that many diverse and talented
artists was a huge blessing. I learnt so much and they were a great bunch of
personalities to work with. I think the main thing at that period in time was
that I was being encouraged and receiving advice from as you say seasoned
pros. Working with Dave, the thing he
installed in me the most was the importance of working on becoming a songwriter
and singer as well as a guitar
player, that those two crafts were equally important in Blues as the big guitar
solo.
What was it like to record your CD White Sugar with
Jim Gaines, a legendary producer who had worked with one of your idols Stevie
Ray Vaughn?
That was fantastic, Jim was
someone I've been wanting to work with for years - as you mentioned he produced
many of the first Blues artists I heard about including Albert Collins, SRV and
Luther Allison. Jim was always my first choice of producer to work with and I
think we worked together really well, He had some great ideas regarding some of
the song arrangements and about different guitar tones.
Did gains teach you anything new about creating
sounds or recording in general?
He was really helpful with the
guitar tones. Obviously over the years he's worked with some of the genre's
best players and he's picked up quite a few tricks. I spent quite a lot of time
in the studio harassing him to tell me stories about Albert Collins Amps setup
etc
I’ve listened
to several of your songs and I was struck by the stunning sound of Going Home – that big full bodied sound you create with your
Telecaster. Your melodic and powerful notation is reminiscent of late sixties
Peter Green. Going Home could have fit nicely on Then Play On as a companion to
his masterpiece Oh Well. Do you hear the connection? Was it a conscious
tribute?
I can't say as I ever heard the
connection to be honest so I can't say
it was a conscious one. I am a big Peter Green fan. I love his version of Freddie King's
"Same old Blues". "Oh Well" is one of my favorite
Blues/Rock tracks I'd probably record it if Kenny Wayne Shepherd hadn't already
beaten me to it.
I don’t mean to push the early Fleetwood Mac angle to far… but… I swear
that your tuneful Black Country electric
folk pickin’ on Just
Another Word reminds me of those sweet sepia tones of Danny Kirwin with just a
touch of vibrato. Are you familiar with Kirwin’s work?
I'm afraid I'm not actually
that familiar with his work.
I love your sensual smoky singing. Were you inspired
by anyone in particular?
Well firstly thank you very
much, Early on I was a huge Janis fan, then Dusty Springfield, Etta James. I
would love to be able to sound like Mavis Staples but most of my singing
practice is just trial by error. 10 years of singing in smokey Blues clubs has
given me a little bit of rasp.\
Have you released White Sugar in the U. S.
Yes it was released on May 12th
This is a tough market to crack especially for blues
artists (typically our blues cats do better overseas than in the United
States). Do you have a strategy to awaken this sleepy giant from its musical
torpor?
I've heard the U.S. is a tough
scene to break into. Obviously given its history with the Blues it's a big
desire of mine to be able to tour here consistently. No strategy as such, Right
now I'm just focusing on putting on a good show that said I would love to break
into the festival scene over here. You've got some of the best Blues Festivals
in the world.
Any last comments
Just to thank people for their
continued support and I hope you like the album, Keep supporting the BLUES!
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