The Meadows is not the only big multi-day festival coming to Citi Field this summer. Taking place over the course of two days, The Classic East comes to Citi Field on Jul. 29 and 30 with the same lineup as its Jul. 15 and 16 shows at Dodger Stadium: Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, Steely Dan, The Doobie Brothers, Journey, and Earth, Wind & Fire.
Undoubtedly inspired by last year’s Desert Trip festival in Southern California — which included The Beatles’ Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, Bob Dylan and The Who — The Classic East and The Classic West were put together by Live Nation with legendary music manager Irving Azoff. Said Mr. Azoff to the New York Times of these events: “Classic-rock radio listeners have been underserved by current festival lineups.”
Tickets for the full two-day event — no single-day tickets will be sold to the public — go on-sale today, Apr. 7. Prices range from $150 to $950, not including fees.
Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment is partnering with The Bowery Presents — AEG Presents’ regional partner — to acquire the operating rights and assets to Webster Hall, the legendary music and entertainment venue located in Manhattan’s East Village. The parties will assume the long-term lease to the building, which will continue to be owned by current owner, Unity Gallega.
“We are excited to build on the iconic history of Webster Hall,” said Brett Yormark, CEO of Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment. “Webster Hall provides us with an extraordinary opportunity to connect with artists early in their careers and expands BSE’s venue footprint into Manhattan. We appreciate all that the Ballinger family has done to make Webster Hall an industry leading venue and we are looking forward to working with them, The Bowery Presents and AEG Presents to make it an even greater destination for live music.”
“Partnering with The Bowery Presents and Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment to program and operate this iconic live facility will continue to enhance Webster Hall’s worldwide reputation as one of the industry’s most important venues,” said Jay Marciano, Chairman and CEO, AEG Presents.
Webster Hall has undergone several waves of transformation throughout the past century. In the 1920’s, Webster Hall notoriously held masquerade balls and was nicknamed “the Devil’s Playhouse.” RCA Records purchased Webster Hall in 1954 and renovated the venue to include a state-of-the-art acoustically-treated ballroom. Notable artists who recorded in Webster Hall’s studio during this time included Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan (his recording debut), Harry Belafonte, Tony Bennett, and Julie Andrews.
Beginning in the 1980’s, Webster Hall reemerged as a leading rock venue in the City, hosting artists such as Eric Clapton with Keith Richards, U2 (the band’s first-ever U.S. show), Tina Turner, The Beastie Boys, Prince, Sting, Metallica, Aerosmith, KISS, B.B. King and Guns N’ Roses. The Ballinger family began running the venue in 1989.
Every year when March rolls around, music fans in New York City know to expect a major concert benefit being presented by City Winery’s Michael Dorf. This year is no exception as Mar. 6 brings The Music Of Aretha Franklin at Carnegie Hall, the 14th installment of Michael’s Music Of series. Among the artists slated to perform the works of the Queen Of Soul are Melissa Etheridge, Kenny Loggins, Glen Hansard, Rhiannon Giddens, G. Love, Sam Moore, CeeLo Green, Todd Rundgren, Antibalas, Allen Stone, Taj Mahal, Living Colour, and Bettye LaVette. Arguably the most prominent and impressive lineup ever assembled by Michael and team.
Downtown had the pleasure of speaking with six of the evening’s performers: Kenny Loggins, Sam Moore, Ron Pope, G. Love, Ruthie Foster, and Richard Thompson. Few artists can bring entertainers of all genres together like Aretha Franklin, and this Q&A helps explain why that is. 100% of the net proceeds from the Mar. 6 event are given to music education organizations for underprivileged youth, including Young Audiences New York, Little Kids Rock, and Church Street School Of Music; well over $1 million has been raised through prior events.
More on Michael Dorf and his event series can be found at www.musicof.org. Those looking to catch a public dress rehearsal of the Carnegie Hall event can try finding tickets via the City Winery website.
Do you remember the first time you heard Aretha Franklin? Or at least the first song by her you’d heard?
Sam Moore: I’ve known Aretha since she was a teenager playing piano for her father the famous Reverend C.L. Franklin. That’s around 60 years ago.
Ron Pope: There was never a time in my life before Aretha. Her voice was always there. I remember singing along to “Respect” as a really little kid. Sometimes I’d sing lead, sometimes I’d sing the background parts. I remember when I learned that she was singing the word “propers” in that song; when I was little, I always thought it was “popcorn.”
Ruthie Foster: I grew up listening to Aretha. Her gospel recordings with her father, Reverend C.L. Franklin, were a mainstay in our house when I was a little girl.
G. Love: I’m thinking that I surely grew up listening to the sounds of Aretha on the radio my whole life. I do remember my parents being crazy about the soundtrack for this movie The Big Chill, and I’m pretty sure “Natural Woman” was on that cassette. They wore it out! As I grew up and into music my Uncle Billy turned me on to Booker T & The MGs, who were the Stax Records backing band and recorded many of Aretha’s hits with her. So I always loved Aretha and the sounds behind her.
Richard Thompson: It would have been “Respect.” I was at school over in London, and that must have been 1964? It’s the first record of Aretha’s that got much airplay.
Do you have a favorite Aretha song?
Kenny Loggins: “What A Fool Believes” — I totally went to school on her reinvention.
Sam Moore: Well, she won the Grammy for my song “Hold On I’m Coming” in 1981, and I’ve stolen her arrangement done by the brilliant Arif Martin for my live performances. I recorded one of her big hits written by Ahmet Ertegun, “Don’t Play That Song For Me,” and I’ve heard her performing it and her shows with my arrangement.
Ron Pope: “Baby, I Love You” is my very favorite song of Aretha’s; it has everything I want in a record. Her lead vocal is lights out, the harmonies she sings with her sisters are interesting and effective, Jimmy Johnson’s guitar is so damn smooth driving it all along, they have King Curtis and those horn parts that feel iconic but are still understated. The recording is absolutely everything. The Swampers and King Curtis!? Unreal! And it’s like two minutes long! You want to explain to someone why she’s the Queen? Play them that!
Ruthie Foster: Her rendition of “Amazing Grace” is my favorite!
Richard Thompson: I love her version of “You Are My Sunshine.”
Where was the first gig you ever played in New York City? What do you remember about it?
Sam Moore: Oh my goodness. The Apollo Theater on the package as an opening act in 1963, I believe. I remember legendary female comedian Moms Mabley telling me, after Dave [Prater] and I sort of phoned in a performance because there were very few people in the house at the time we went on, “not to be lazy on stage and to get out there, even if there’s only three people in the audience and give them the show they paid their money to see! Do your best don’t ever shortchange the house, even if it’s just the waiters and waitresses at a club you’re playing as your career progresses.” Her words have never left me since and every time I walk out on stage I strive to give the audience 100% or more of me and my vocal gift.
Ron Pope: My first real gig in New York was at The Bitter End when I was about 19 or 20, playing with my band The District. I remember feeling excited. Here I was, just some kid from Georgia playing a stage Bob Dylan had been on! Lots of our friends came out since it was our first show — and we begged them. Afterwards, Paul and Kenny from The Bitter End were so complimentary of the band, and we established a relationship that put us back on that stage at least 200 times over the next few years. No matter how many times I go to that club, I’ll never forget that first night.
Ruthie Foster: My first gig in New York City was at a place called Terra Blues, just off Bleecker and Thompson in The Village. The blues artist — and actor — Guy Davis was playing and took a break, I talked to him for awhile about music and told him that I played and sang to and had just moved from Texas. He let me play during his breaks that night. I had a gig two nights a week at that venue for three years afterwards!
Kenny Loggins: Two months before I played for the first time in New York City, I was there as a tourist. When I walked past Carnegie Hall, I said to my girlfriend, “Maybe someday I’ll get to play there.” Ironically, two months later I played there with Jimmy Messina as the opening act for Delaney & Bonnie and Billy Preston.
G. Love: My first gig, aside from busking in Washington Square Park a couple times in 1991 on a road trip down from Skidmore College — where I went to school for a year — would’ve been The Grand for our showcase for the New Music Seminar. I remember the crowds were a bit tougher than the amorous crowds we had achieved at the Irish pubs in Boston but we kept our head down and played that shit proper. Right after that things started clicking and we played Brownies, Cafe Sinead, The Bottom Line and CBGBs Gallery, where we scored our first deal with Epic Records in 1993.
Richard Thompson: It was the Fillmore East, 1970. The bill was something like Fairport Convention — my band — Savoy Brown and Traffic. Bill Graham was at the side of the stage as we came off, and said, “Wow! I’ve never seen that before.” We were feeling quite pleased with ourselves, till he added: “I’ve never seen a band go onstage not knowing what the second number was going to be!”
Do you have a favorite restaurant in New York?
Sam Moore: There are so many great ones. I haven’t really been in New York a lot in the past couple of years.
Ron Pope: Awash on 6th Street, for sure. As I tour, I try to find Ethiopian food that good all over the world, but it never stacks up to Awash! When I lived in The Village, I’d eat there at least twice a week. When I come home to New York from the road, that’s the first place I want to eat.
Ruthie Foster: I recently visited and played New York City and had a great experience at a wonderful restaurant called Khe-Yo in TriBeCa, that’s become my favorite! It’s has a lot of Laotian-inspired dishes which are great for sharing with friends.
G. Love: That’s a tough one, but I sure love Joseph Leonard’s and The Diner in Brooklyn.
Richard Thompson: I love Avra, the Greek seafood restaurant. I think it’s at 48th and Lex.
What’s coming up for you besides this show at Carnegie Hall?
Sam Moore: On Thursday night, the 9th, I will be at the Beacon Theater with a bunch of amazing artists at the God’s Love We Deliver fundraiser, and then I’m going to Scottsdale, Arizona the weekend of Mar. 18 at the Celebrity Fight Night tribute to a dear friend who we lost last year, Muhammad Ali. I’m also in the studio recording an album project actually a couple of album projects with the award-winning and most amazing producer, an artist Rudy Perez. Rudy has an album launching in the next couple of weeks, and the single from that album is a duet I was humbled to participate on, a little song written by Charlie Chaplin called “Smile.”
Ron Pope: I will be back in October to play at Terminal 5. I can’t wait for that one; I’ve never played there but I’ve seen so many incredible bands on that stage.
Ruthie Foster: I have U.S. and European tours coming up with my new CD on the horizon! Joy Comes Back is the title; it’s a celebration of all the transitions in my life, love and music since my last recording.
Kenny Loggins: My new children’s book: a reimagining of Footloose in which Jack, now a zookeeper, secretly lets all the zoo animals out of their cages to dance under a full moon.
G. Love: I’m writing this in Byron Bay, Australia, where I performed last night at the Byron Bay Surf Festival. Next stop is NYC, and the day after Carnegie Hall, I fly to Phoenix to start a month-long West Coast tour with my band Special Sauce. The original trio is still going strong closing in on 25 years!
Richard Thompson: I’m out the whole of April, and I’ll be fairly local a couple of times — Tarrytown on Apr. 14 and Port Washington Apr. 19. I’m also releasing two acoustic records, Acoustic Classics 2 and Acoustic Rarities, probably in May.
Finally, any last words for the kids?
Richard Thompson: Listen to Aretha! There is such a thing as musical intelligence. Her voice is at the service of the song, not the other way ’round. She doesn’t show off, she uses her extraordinary vocal gifts sparingly to emphasize the emotional peaks of the songs.
Sam Moore: I actually working with my wife on a project with Florida International University developing curriculum to teach kids grades K through 12 the great and rich histories, legacies and contributions of the amazing American-born talented musical artists of past decades and generations who brought — to not only American culture — but the world the gift of music all of the joy it brings.
Also, my great-niece Courtney Trice is going to be duetting with me at Carnegie Hall. Not bragging or prejudice, she is amazing! I am so proud to have the pleasure and joy of introducing her to the world the right way and I want to thank Michael Dorf and his entire organization for affording me the opportunity to pay honor and tribute to my “Ree Ree” and do my portion of her salute justice with Courtney and her powerful vocal abilities at my side performing my duet version from my Overnight Sensational album of “Don’t Play That Song.”
Ron Pope: 10 years ago, I sang on the subway platform to make a living, and now I’m playing at Carnegie Hall. Whatever you decide to do with your life, stay focused and do it with your whole heart. You’ll end up where you’re supposed to be.
Ruthie Foster: My words for the kids would be to stay true to who you really are and when times get tough remember that music is a healer. It’s definitely been my light!
G. Love: Be original, be passionate, bring enthusiasm, energy and love. Make a connection and expect magic to happen. Leave it all onstage every night and stay on the hustle. It’s about the journey in music there’s no top to the mountain — you just gotta keep on climbing and enjoy the view! The best thing about music is that every night can be your best show ever, and that’s what I say the minute I wake up on show days, “Tonight I will play my greatest show ever.” Then I beat it the next night.
Kenny Loggins: Follow your dreams. They will always take you somewhere fun.
The Church Street School for Music and Art — as located in Tribeca — is the area’s only non-profit school for the arts. The institution has served the downtown and outer community since 1990. On Jan. 4, City Winery will be hosting a fundraiser for the school with plenty of stars present. Performers are scheduled to include Sugarland vocalist Jennifer Nettles, Sonic Youth guitarist Lee Ranaldo, screenwriter/producer Ed Burns, actor Harvey Keitel, DJ Spooky’s Antartica Symphony, and actor/author Eric Bogosian.
Downtown had the pleasure of conducting Q&A with not only Eric Bogosian in advance of the event, but also City Winery owner Michael Dorf and its marketing director Jillian Santella. Other performers at City Winery include Teddy Thompson (Jan. 1), Buster Poindexter (Jan. 13), Alejandro Escovedo (Jan. 19-21), Bettye Lavette (Jan. 29), and Marc Cohn (Feb. 14-15). Michael will also be presenting his annual benefit at Carnegie Hall on Mar. 6; this year will be a tribute to Aretha Franklin including performances by Todd Rundgren, Taj Mahal, Living Colour, Allen Stone, Kenny Loggins and Melissa Etheridge.
For tickets to the benefit show, click here. The Music Of Aretha Franklin at Carnegie Hall has a home at www.musicof.org. Eric Bogosian can be followed on Twitter via @Eric_Bogosian.
You have written and starred in plays, produced plays, written multiple published novels, appeared in a lot of film and television projects, and have even produced dance-related events. Do you have an easy way of describing how you earn a living?
Eric Bogosian: I describe myself as an author and actor.
Is there a particular project of yours that you are most proud of?
EB: The website 100monologues.com — currently featuring over 60 videotaped monologues by New York’s best actors — is a huge project we’ve been working on for over three years. I’ve very proud of it. We will keep building the site through 2018 when all 100 monologues will have been posted. The site is free and like I say, features many of the most popular and exciting actors who live and work in New York City. Take a look!
Do you remember the first show you ever attended at City Winery?
EB: I have never been to a show at City Winery. Michael and I go back to The Knitting Factory days. Because I don’t drink alcohol, City Winery has been off my beaten path.
EB: I will perform a couple of monologues from the 100 Monologues.
City Winery is known for hosting a lot of benefits. Do you have specific criteria for when it comes to getting involved with a cause?
Michael Dorf: No criteria, there are so many issues in the world today. It is balancing out how we can spend our resources helping out. We have a platform to both raise money and awareness — I feel it is our responsibility to try and make the world a better place.
A lot of huge artists have played at City Winery in New York. I remember reading about Billie Joe from Green Day performing on-stage there. Gregg Allman had his recent residency…Is there anyone you’re still hoping will perform at City Winery?
MD: So many. We have a long list. I want Bonnie Raitt. We did a private show with Neil Young, would want that every night if we could. [Bob] Dylan, Bruce [Springsteen], oh yeah, Ryan Adams, how amazing would that be. How about a special night of Rihanna?
Before City Winery, you had The Knitting Factory. Do you see City Winery as a continuation of The Knitting Factory? Or are they entirely different venues in your eyes?
MD: Well, people have said, City Winery is a Knitting Factory for grown-ups. Yeah, there is some overlap. We had all standing shows mostly with a beer in-hand…That worked great then. Now being more calorie-conscious and having achey knees, I’d rather sit. It will be 30 years since I started The Knitting Factory and I guess both have worked in the lifecycle of myself downtown, serving many friends.
City Winery has locations in multiple cities. How involved are you in other cities’ locations?
MD: I run them all. And of course, when I say run, it is a great team running currently 750 employees growing to 1,000 employees in a year — take that Trump, that’s real job creation! I picked the name “City” so we could grow to many markets. Our business is very scalable and I am planning on aggressive growth over the next few years to more than 10 locations.
MD: A great burger goes with Bordeaux. But somedays I’m more in the mood for a white wine, so I go for a piece of fish. Our menu was really designed to complement your wine, not wine to go with your food. We inverted the typical process of ordering.
EB: My non-fiction book on Armenian assassins, Operation Nemesis, will come out in trade paperback in February via Little, Brown. Also I am guest starring in numerous episodes of The Get Down and Billions this coming season.
Jillian Santella: As always, we have music almost every night of the week! Some musical highlights in early 2017 include Art Garfunkel, Shawn Colvin’s January residency featuring Graham Nash, Richard Thompson and Patty Griffin, Josh Ritter and more. We’ve got a fantastic New Year’s Eve Party in our Barrel Room, featuring entertainment from Wasabassco Burlesque, open bar and light bites. In addition, we are open in the Barrel Room restaurant for dinner and drinks every day, lunch on weekdays and Sunday brunch — including a bottomless brunch drink option. We also have some exciting wine classes coming up, such as “Wine 101: Brunch & Wine Pairing” on Sunday, Jan. 8.
Will you be hosting another March benefit concert at Carnegie Hall in 2017?
MD: Yes, March 6 is the music of Aretha Franklin. It will be my 14th year raising money for music education programs, there are nine different organizations this year getting funds.
When not busy with work, how do you like to spend your free time?
EB: Gardening, jigsaw puzzles and model airplanes. But I don’t think of my time as free or not free. It’s all one to me.
MD: I love giving interviews. I spend time with my family, kids. Two are now in college and one still in school downtown. She still likes me… I will admit that I like to golf when I can early mornings, hiking and being upstate when possible.
EB: I have lived in Tribeca for over 30 years. Our neighborhood was built on music, dance and art. It is our lifeblood. For me, children playing music is a symbol of peace and love between neighbors.
MD: Shit, does that mean I’m suppose to be an adult? I don’t feel like one. Nah. I think what Lisa [Ecklund-Flores] is doing at Church Street School is critical for the community. It is more than an after-school music program and also more than just serving a rich Tribeca community. In fact, I think being in Tribeca hurts the perception of them needing funding. They offer many scholarships and the teaching staff give much more time and effort than they are paid for. They are teaching kids to practice, giving them self-confidence, unleashing an inner creative streak that they might not have developed at home or regular school. They serve a very important role in our community, especially as more music programs get stripped away from public school budgets. Add to that the very challenging Tribeca real estate issues, which really don’t allow a non-profit — or many creative for-profits — to exist. Rent and getting enough space is a huge challenge for the arts, especially downtown. Right now, they are seriously-challenged and I hope this benefit helps them through part of it. I encourage all to come.
It’s been more than 50 years since “Satisfaction,” “Get Off My Cloud” and a lot of musical gems by The Rolling Stones first hit the charts. Yet unlike many of the band’s 1960s peers, there is still new music coming out from The Stones. Earlier this month, The Stones’ Blue & Lonesome debuted at #4 on the Billboard charts.
Photo: Darren Paltrowitz
Hosted at Industria in the Meatpacking District, Exhibitionism is a decades-in-the-making exhibit featuring almost everything Stones-related that someone would want to see. Beyond behind-the-scenes video and rare audio content, Exhibitionism includes instruments, studio equipment, and costumes of the band members. Without giving too much away, it also includes a recreation of the apartment where several members lived together in the Stones’ early days.
Now if only more legendary artists would follow the lead and make their own version of Exhibitionism — I’m looking at you, Paul McCartney, Brian Wilson and Bob Dylan…
Accomplished in multiple musical fields, Rob Mathes is a noted singer, songwriter, arranger, music director and producer. As an arranger, he has worked with Bruce Springsteen, Tony Bennett, Elton John, Bono, and Panic! At The Disco, to name a few artists. As a producer, he has worked with Sting, Rod Stewart, Carly Simon, and Beth Hart. As a music director — or “MD” — he has overseen high-profile performances at the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, Madison Square Garden and the Super Bowl. Rob has also released several solo albums, which has led to him having two television specials on PBS. In turn, it is not particularly surprising that he is an Emmy winner and the recipient of Grammy, Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations.
On Dec. 18, Rob Mathes brings his annual holiday concert — 23 years and concert — to the Schimmel Center. Rob’s shows are known to feature world-class musicians, as including musicians from Saturday Night Live, The Late Show With David Letterman, and Paul Simon’s band. Rob spoke to Downtown about this year’s event, what else he has coming up for him, and plenty more. More info on all things Rob can be found at www.robmathes.com.
Where did the idea for the first Rob Mathes Holiday Concert come from?
Rob Mathes: My parents raised me as a Christmas kid. Once Santa came into view, I went into a kind of heat every year almost as if I was on a new anti-depressant. I loved the cold, the dark and the lights — everything — and I always saw the Christian part of the Holiday as this story about humility and grace entering the world right when it wanted a warrior. So from my teens I wrote Christmas songs. I admit a few were cheesy early on, but many came from the better tradition of Christmas music — i.e. the Bruce Cockburn record, the Ray Charles records. I grew up as a Pete Townshend and Beatles fanatic but who also listened to Stevie Wonder, Motown and Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite. It was schizophrenic but wondrous.
Eventually I started to accrue real credits and started working with great musicians in studios thanks to the legendary producer Phil Ramone, who hired me regularly as an arranger, guitarist and piano player. I decided to collect the best of this music, released a few independent CD’s, put some of these musicians together and started giving this concert. Eventually an amazing Rabbi from Stamford, Rabbi Mark Golub — who hosts a talk show on Shalom TV — started coming to the concert regularly and I promised him some music. It became a true holiday concert, the Menorah, the Manger, the sleigh and reindeer.
Did you know that it was going to become an annual tradition?
RM: I had no idea. People loved the first concert and grew attached to a few of the songs that became our “hits” so to speak, the song “William The Angel” — which I eventually ended up singing with The Boston Symphony at Symphony Hall years after the Holiday event became a perennial — and the blues-oriented “When The Baby Grew Up.”
For someone who hasn’t attended before, what should be expected? Are there particular things that happen every year?
RM: It is an odd one, Darren. The original songs fall firmly into the singer/songwriter tradition. I grew up on Dylan, The Band and Stevie, so I write an equal amount of music around both the piano and guitar and it is the kind of singer/songwriter stuff that you might hear on WFUV. On the other hand, I grew up being raised equally by my mom and aunt, identical twin sisters both of whom were classical musicians who married men they met at Yale Music School, my uncle who played with big bands and was a composer/arranger and my dad, who was a classical clarinetist but who secretly was a folk music fanatic.
Because of this, I also adore Ellington and Gil Evans, Vaughan Williams and Mahler and have written hundreds of arrangements for various horn sections and string sections. So we do straight up swing versions of some carols and even a couple of Instrumentals for my six-piece horn section — full of brilliant virtuosos — that groove like music by The Meters and The JB’s. It is quite eclectic.
Who is in your backing band this year?
RM: It is the same group that has played with me for 20 years. Will Lee, the legendary bass player and studio session star from New York City, who played on the David Letterman show since the very, very beginning, is playing bass. We have two drummers, the great Shawn Pelton from Saturday Night Live on drums and Joe Bonadio, who is also an astonishing percussionist. Billy Masters, who played with Suzanne Vega and Dar Williams for years and who was often a part of my Kennedy Center Honors band, is my guitarist. Ricky Knutsen, a composer and keyboardist from Brooklyn, has played every single show since 1993. The six Horn players are Jeff Kievit and Don Harris on trumpet, Aaron Heick and Andy Snitzer on saxes, Mike Davis and Jeff Nelson on bones. Between the six of them the credits are insane. From Sinatra to Aretha Franklin to Springsteen to Paul Simon to Nile Rodgers to The Rolling Stones, these are six of New York’s finest.
Vaneese Thomas and James “D-Train” Williams are also unsung heroes of the vocal scene in New York. D-Train had big hits in the 80s but, along with Vaneese, became one of the first calls for any background vocal session had on major records over the last 20 years. Between them they have sung with Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder, Natalie Cole, Luther Vandross, Alicia Keys, Sting, Michael Jackson, Eric Clapton, etc. It is a great band and, while the show can be said to be about music that people the age of 35 to 60 will relate to, it is not staid and tired. This is a muscular evening musically, emotionally resonant and alternately funky, warm, resonant and meditative. To say it is appropriate for all ages is both true and somewhat self-serving. That said, it is an evening/afternoon I am very proud of and a focal point in my year.
Aside from the Holiday Concert, what is coming up for you?
RM: I have been doing a lot of work with the David Lynch Foundation, having produced the Music Of David Lynch record, recorded at the ACE Theatre in L.A. last year. There will be a big David Lynch event at the Kennedy Center in the new year and I think I will MD that event. I am hoping to do some more arrangements for both Twenty One Pilots and Panic! At The Disco who I have worked closely with for years and produced one of their records. I will musically direct a tribute to Jimmy Webb at Carnegie Hall next spring. When Sting finishes touring the new record with his long-time band late next year, there are plans for a London production of his musical The Last Ship, which I orchestrated and musically directed. Other things are floating.
You are a singer, songwriter, arranger, music director and producer. Do you identify with any of those categories more than others?
RM: I always wanted to be a singer/songwriter 24 hours a day, but I was so obsessed with music and it was coming at me from all sides at home. My uncle playing Sinatra and Ellington, my dad playing Dylan and Pete Seeger, my mom and Aunt playing Gospel music and Beethoven. I wanted to understand Mahler’s 9th, Sinatra’s In The Wee Small Hours, Stevie’s Songs In The Key Of Life — my favorite record ever made — Duke Ellington’s Blues In Orbit, and Radiohead’s In Rainbows. Therefore all four of the monikers above stand and I can’t pick. Schizophrenic indeed.
You have been honored with Emmy, Grammy, Tony and Drama Desk Award honors. Which was your first nomination of note?
RM: The country artist Kathy Mattea won a Grammy for her Christmas record, the title track of which was my song “Good News.” That was not a personal Grammy nomination like my production of Bettye Lavette’s Interpretations, but it was the beginning and meant a lot. I won my Emmy Award for musically directing and arranging the Kennedy Center Honors show. That year I had done a massive multi-genre arrangement of “Here Comes The Sun” for Chris Thile, Edgar Meyer, The Silk Road Ensemble, Emanuel Ax and Jamie Laredo and James Taylor, all conducted by John Williams. That was easily one of the most astonishing moments of my life. The point was to illustrate Yo Yo Ma’s musical playground and how he crosses borders. He was one of the honorees that year. Wow!
Awards aside, is there an accomplishment that you are most proud of?
RM: There have been moments that transformed me: Accompanying Al Green on piano when he sang “Amazing Grace” at the 9/11/02 Concert For America I musically directed for NBC. Writing and conducting a full orchestral version of “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking” for an African Choir, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Bono and The Edge at Carnegie for Bono’s Red Charity last year. The first studio session writing string charts for Bruce Springsteen. He came up to me in the middle of the session at the old MSR Studios on 48th Street and told me “you’re my guy from now on.” Huge!
Musically directing and arranging the Obama Inaugural at the Lincoln Memorial. Co-producing a few records with Sting, who was a huge influence on me when I was young. Writing the National Anthem arrangement for Renée Fleming for the 2014 Super Bowl. Having Lou Reed personally thank me on his album The Raven for a simple string arrangement I did — a first. There are many more but these stand out.
Your list of credits is essentially a who’s who, between Beyonce, Bono, Elton John, Sting, Panic! At The Disco, Twenty One Pilots, Tony Bennett, Yo-Yo Ma…All sorts of genres, to say the least. How does work usually come to you? Do you have a manager or agent pitching you? Is it more word of mouth?
RM: My manager is Jonathan Daniel at Crush Management. He manages Sia, Lorde, and Fall Out Boy, among others. He has saved me in that most people like myself get called for “Adult Contemporary Music.” He has hooked me up with Butch Walker and Panic! At The Disco and Fall Out Boy and many others. He has single-handedly kept me young — to a certain extent (laughs). He is smart and unpretentious. Super-important. But a LOT of my work comes from word of mouth.
Is there anyone you haven’t yet worked with but still hope to?
RM: I would love to work as an arranger with some younger hip-hop artists, because whenever I have written string or horn charts on those records, most of which were produced by my friend Just Blaze, he TURNED THAT SHIT UP! There is a spirit in that community and that music which just will not be denied. It is the center of popular music and has been for a while. So much of it is so vital, passionate and intense that when you bring in ideas coming from an arranger’s head, they get channeled in a way very unlike just a sweet string arrangement on a pop or rock ballad you can hear in the background.
I would love to produce a record of spirituals for Mavis Staples with a big gospel choir, orchestra and rhythm section. Mavis was great to me through the years when she came to sing some of my arrangements at the Kennedy Center. We performed a concert together in Connecticut. I think it is a long shot but I would love it.
When not busy with work, how do you like to spend your free time?
RM: With my three daughters and wife — Emma, Sarah, Lily and Tammy…Studying music, I want to look at every note in Elgar’s Violin Concerto and Stravinsky’s Le Sacre VERY closely. Reading the late and long Charles Dickens novels and re-reading The Brothers Karamazov. Writing my OWN music, one of the reasons the Holiday concert is such a joy).
RM: I am completely floored by the new Bon Iver record. I don’t listen to Beyonce’s Lemonade all the time but recognize both its power and its brilliance. Solange’s new A Seat At The Table record is beautiful and vibey and my daughter and I have listened to that a lot. I just discovered the band Fink from England and love the Jules Buckley arranged record they did with the Concertgebouw Orchestra from Amsterdam. Maybe my favorite though is A Moon Shaped Pool by Radiohead. The new Lisa Batiashvili — brilliant violinist — recording of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto conducted by Daniel Barenboim is ridiculously great.
Finally, Rob, any last words for the kids?
RM: By kids you must mean young people. I say “get busy.” You are a better generation than we were, more talented, quicker and with more passion than I can even remember…I can’t wait to hear your music. Come to my holiday concert. You may dig it and, if you don’t, tell me what sucked and I will LISTEN. I am NOT one of the old, cranky musicians who says, “It ain’t Aretha. It ain’t the Beatles!” The talent out there is ferocious right now. I am blown away and, don’t forget, by the time Bob Dylan was 25, he had written “Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall,” “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” “Chimes Of Freedom”, and “Blowin’ In The Wind,” not to mention the albums Highway 61 Revisited, Bringing It All Back Home and Blonde On Blonde. A word for the kids? “GO!”
