friends?” It was also “Okay, let me get a vibe
on this demo you just sent me, and I’ll send
you back a work in progress, a template of
how I think it would sound cool.” That’s how
we started the record, and he loved it. And
there was a lot of those great influences there,
like E.L.O., the early Bowie stuff, the T. rex
stuff. It was a lot of fun.
at it, either. But I’ve gotten to a point right
now ehre I understand myself. I understand
both of me, and I can figure out a way to curb
any of my neuroses that happen. Which does
happen. It definitely does happen, where you
end up going, “Oh, shit — I’ve got to step
away from this!”
Photos: Phil Chester & Sara Byrne
06•2020
IE: E.L.O.’s unsung classic is Time.
BW: Yeah. I’m a big fan of Jeff Lynne’s. I
loved his last stuff, too, like “When I Was a
Boy.” What a great song. But “Out of the
Blue”? That was a game changer, a life changer
for me.
IE: When you finally get around to recording
your own stuff, are you like Terry
O’Quinn in The Stepfather after he’s murdered
one of his many families — “Wait a
minute! Who AM I here?”
BW: Ha! That’s wild!
Well, yes. Yes. And I want to kill both of me
by the end of it, because it’s very hard sometimes
just to get out of your own way and
stop being and stop being an artist and start
being a producer, and vice versa. But I’ve gotten
better at it over the years, and I think
that’s just from growing up and making my
own records. And I don’t think everybody is
great at it, and I don’t think I’m always good
IE: “Everything White” on your album actually
sounds like Pablo Cruise.
BW: Totally! Of course! Those are the influences
on that record. It starts from late-‘70s
yacht rock turning into early ‘80s stuff.
Those are the records I heard on the radio
growing up, and “American Love Story” is a
rock opera set to that soundtrack. It’s loosely
based on when I was growing up in the
South, and I saw the good, the bad and the
ugly. So whatever I heard on the radio at that
time is kind of what this is about. And with
every single song on the record, I could tell
you what song influenced it, sound-wise.
IE: Is there salvation for the protagonist at
the end?
BW: Definitely. Definitely. It’s a love story that
has a very bittersweet ending, because not
everyone lives. But what does live is love, an
unconditional love. Just a little life lesson to
learn in the story, that there is definitely a
way for people to turn things around. And it
all starts just by having a conversation, and
not always attacking. And that’s tough. We’re
in a bumper-sticker nation now, where everybody
just takes everything at face value and
in one general statement. It’s something that
I want everybody to listen to and hopefully
walk away with something from it that’s not
a bummer or something too offensive to
them. I’m sure I’ll lose a few people, but that’s
okay. I’m okay with that.
Tom Lanham
10 illinoisentertainer.com june 2020