© Liza Renee
Welcome to Hard Times as a prediction for 2020. Interview with Charley Crockett for the release of his 8th album. This Texan has been celebrating the American country heritage for many years and all around the world, with legendary covers and original compositions. As he puts it so well, what works best than “turning sorrows into rhymes” ?
"I play Charley around my Grandma, my kids, and a wide variety of friends. They all can't help but clap and sing along" This youtube comment reveals that people listen to your music and come together, is that what you wish to achieve with your music ?
Coming from being a street performer, I learnt how to play different styles of American music on the streets of Louisiana, Texas, New-York, all over ! I do music for young people, old people, people that are into different types of music and I hope they can all find something in what I do. I got a lot of times when kids and their parents came to my shows and told me "this is the only thing we agree on".
You started playing music in the streets all over America and Europe. What led to the switch between busking and touring?
I was playing with a band in the subway in New-York. We were known as The train robbers and were discovered by a major label. I signed a record deal in New York City but that cinderella deal did not work out so well. It was a combination of different things, the artistic integrity was lacking and also not being in the right headspace to take that step. I kept playing in the streets and I got in trouble with the law. I realized I would either stay on the street and go to prison or I would start recording myself and play the game to the best of my abilities. I remember meeting this musician, in Metropolitan Avenue in Brooklyn, telling me I needed to sell CDs to make money. That what I did. I was staying with another artist in an apartment in the Bronx and she had a laptop and I just started recording the songs on the laptop speaker and throw that on CDs. When I started doing that, making my first album, playing in bars in Texas, that's when the Nashville music business really took notice of me.
Then I got a label and an agent.
You said once "My whole career is about turning trouble into a win", what kind of difficulties did you face in the music industry ?
My struggle with the business in general, is being able to create my art and have an artistic freedom. I was able to do that by moving around and playing around the world as a street performer. The only reason I've been able to get to where I'm at, is by recording myself and making records the way that I want to. I've been doing everything related to the business: marketing myself, recording myself, having my own label, Son of Davy in partnership with a distribution company, Thirty Tigers. You either owned by a company or you live by yourself, that is the only way in America.
© Lyza Renee
You sang quite a lot of existing songs: That's how I got to Memphis, The Race is on, the party's over. Is it important for you to honor country music singing legends ?
Yes for sure ! They were the best regarding songwriting and the dedication to their art was at the highest point in that era. I know that because it's hard to sing it, otherwise everybody would be doing it. I think it says a lot about society and where we're at. Back then, you sang the best songs. Nowadays, there's so much ego and everybody tries to write original songs. The ironic thing about that is that these folks are writing songs without any connection to history or knowledge about the great soul, r'n'b and country music. But they call me a "purist" anyway so maybe I am naive, I don't know.
One song that changed the way you play music ?
Drivin' Nails in my Coffin from Ernest Tubb.
"Welcome to Hard Times" has the same title as the Western 60s movie. Why ?
I watched a lot of old films and as I watched this one, I just wrote down the title and it stayed with me for quite a while. There is this uncontrollable bad man who owns the town and terrorizes the sheriff and the town's people who can't do anything to stop him. It is really surreal how insane this guy is because he could easily be shot by others but they can't do it. I appreciate how dark and humorous this film is. 2020 has been a very tremendous and eye-opening year and I started realizing that the songs and this year really reminded me of the movie (laughs). Time really makes the artist.
You recorded this album with the producer Mark Neil, how would you describe his type of music production?
He is the greatest living producer in the world in an authentic classic American style. I know that because I met them all. The story is that I kept hearing his name for several years. He was that mysterious man people whispered about. I found out he had mentored the man that had recorded most of my albums down in Texas, named Billy Horton. He was like a ghost to me and then, several years ago, he reached out to me and said he wanted to work on my next album. We had a conversation and he was just speaking my language. I am currently in Georgia where his studio is to start working on my next album !
Coming next ?
There is a man from Texas, James Hand, who is a tremendous inspiration to me. He was a friend of mine and passed away in June. I promised him before I died that I would record a song and so that record is being finished and will be released in a few months. Also, I believe we are coming to France next year. For now, it is scheduled for June and September, most definitely Paris. Paris is my favorite city to play in Europe because. When travelling in Europe, I realized people were more tolerant of street performers and really responded to the type of American music I was doing.
Discover Charley Crockett's instagram for more infos.