Altman called me after that . I remember picking up the phone in my kitchen , and he said in that very straightforward , Kansas City way of speaking , “ This is Bob Altman . You want to be in a movie ?” And I said , “ Well , yes , sir .” It was because of him that I got to act at all . I enjoy it every time because , once again , it ' s getting to learn about how another medium works . He was famous for encouraging actors to improvise . But Altman was such a keen judge of character . He knew who to let out a line , and who not to . With me , he was always very specific . He knew I was looking to him for help . He gave me direction that was absolutely invaluable and helped me to feel comfortable on set and helped me feel like I knew what I was doing . In The Player , for example , he gave Tim Robbins a wide range of options . Bob would come up to me just before we were about to shoot , and he would discreetly lean into my ear and say , “ Do this .” Everything he suggested always worked . Improvising on film is very different than improvising on stage . Most directors , most writers are very particular about the words on the page . Before I ever change something on the page , I talk to the writer or talk to the director and say , “ I was thinking , I might have an easier time saying it this way .” And sometimes they say , “ Sure , go for it .” Or sometimes they say , “ We ' d rather you stay with what ’ s on the page .” Improvising on stage with a live audience is altogether different . When I ' m on stage , I ' m my own director , so I don ' t have to ask anybody ' s permission . The single most fun thing about performing live is feeling an audience , reading an audience , having that relationship with an audience . Whether an audience speaks or not , there ' s a presence that an audience has that ' s undeniable . That presence shapes the entire show .
Joshua : So true . Let ’ s talk about your music for a moment .
Lyle : Sure .
Joshua : You often incorporate country , jazz , swing , folk , gospel , and blues . And one of the biggest challenges in the music industry is that it is built by genre — less so today , but radio stations play certain music , and distributors want to know where an album should live in a store . When executives ask you to define your music , how do you define it ?
Lyle : The beauty of it is that I haven ' t really been asked to do that . My first three records were released from the Nashville branch of MCA records . Legendary producer Tony Brown realized by my third record that it really wasn ' t the country audience who was supporting my records . He helped me get my record deal moved to MCA Los Angeles . I ' ve always worked with folks that have allowed me just to be myself . If I had to assume some sort of character on stage and play one genre of music or one genre influence on my music , I don ' t think I could do it . What ' s been gratifying for me throughout my career is that I just get to be myself , and the record companies that I ' ve worked with over the years seem to be okay with that .
Joshua : You love live performance . What venue do you consider a hidden gem ?
Lyle : There are so many . The place that I first was able to play my own songs — the first serious original music club that I ever played — is a place that still exists . It ' s called Anderson Fair Retail Restaurant . It was started by Gray Fair and Marvin Anderson back in 1969 and has always been run by volunteers . It ’ s a very serious listening room where the requirement to play is that you play your own songs . It ’ s an educated audience , and they come there to see what you have to say . It was a wonderful atmosphere for me , and I still go back and play occasionally . Bill Stains would come down from New Hampshire every year or so . I remember opening for Odetta and Ramblin ’ Jack Elliott and Carolyn Hester and Dave Van Ronk . It also hosted Houston and Texas singer-songwriters on a regular basis , people like Nancy Griffith , Eric Taylor , Vince Bell , and Don Sanderson . When Guy Clark would come to town , he would play there , and Townes Van Zandt would play there . It was a place that was about the music , about the song , about the art of music . Not about commerce , because it only holds 70 people . In my early days , if I had a crowd of 20 people , I was thrilled . I used to open for Lucinda Williams on Thursday nights . There ’ s a film about it directed by Bruce
Ryan from Houston called For the Sake of the Song : The Story of Anderson Fair .
Joshua : Very cool . And now , a very specific question : In your song , “ If I Had a Boat ,” you reference riding your pony on a boat . That ' s a very creative idea , but it ' s also sort of a crazy image . Where did that come from ?
Lyle : I made that song up when I was 20 . I was sort of struggling with this idea of knowing that I wanted to play music and then feeling like it wasn ' t that realistic of an ambition . Why can ' t I be everything that I want to be ? Being the master of your own destiny , that ' s really what the song is about . I started working on it that morning . I remember I had a history class at 11 o ’ clock , and I ended up skipping it , because I needed to keep working on the song . I felt guilty about that . When I was a boy , we had a one-acre pond next to our house . It ’ s still there . I decided one day to try to ride my Shetland pony that my parents had bought for me when I was two . I was 10 , 11 , or 12 by then . I thought it would be fun to ride him across the pond , into the water and go across . When we got to the part of the pond where he had to start swimming , I quickly found myself swimming , too . He got me off his back pretty quick . I thought to myself , we could have made it if we had a boat .
Joshua : You were 20 years old when you wrote that , and you asked yourself , “ Why can ’ t I do it all ?” This whole interview is sort of an example that 45 years later , you sort of can do it all . You can ’ t do it all at the same time , but look — you live in all these worlds . It ' s really inspiring .
Lyle : I ' m really grateful that I ' ve gotten to do things that I love to do . Some people dread going to work and look forward to the weekend . I ' ve been able to look forward to every day , and I get to spend my days with people that I admire and who teach me . I am absolutely mindful of the fact that it doesn ' t get any better than that . n
Lyle Lovett and Lisa Loeb : In Conversation and Song , Friday , May 10 , at 8 p . m . at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center . mahaiwe . org
May / June 2024 BERKSHIRE MAGAZINE // 15