SONG OF THE DAY

And now we present Ms. Ani DiFranco with "32 Flavors" from her Canon album.

SIMPLY SIX: Kelcy Mae

Kelcy Mae is a singer/songwriter from New Orleans.
>

1. For many artists, they cite a defining moment for themselves when they knew they wanted to be a singer. For many it was the appearance of Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show, to another generation it was the Beatles’ appearance on Sullivan half a decade later. Is there such a defining moment for you?

My mom had me singing in the preschool choir when I was four years old, and though it was probably due to her motherly bias, I sang my first solo in church at five years old. I think that’s probably when I decided to be a singer, though I forgot about it during high school and the early part of college. Fortunately (I think), it came back to me a few years ago, and the bug hasn’t left. Nothing else is fulfilling in the way that songwriting and performing are for me.

2. When you’re not creating music what are you listening to? Who are some of your favorites?

The music I listen to always changes, but some of my standard go-to artists are: Chris Pureka, Bon Iver, Gregory Alan Isakov, Jason Anderson, and Sufjan Stevens. Some recent artists I’ve found that I love are The Tallest Man on Earth, Great Lake Swimmers, Chris Bathgate, Okkervil River, Little Gold, and Damien Jurado. For some international flavor, I’d check out Tinariwen or Manu Chao. On days when I’m down, I’ll set my Pandora radio to Kermit Ruffins for some good New Orleans music. WWOZ is good for that as well.

3. What would you say is your greatest moment so far as an artist, either on record or live?

It’s hard to think of one great moment because great moments are constantly reinventing themselves. Usually for me the greatest moments are when I feel some connection mid-song with either the audience, the rest of the band, or both. A specific, and different, moment I recall is once when I was performing “Mr. Leopold” live in New Orleans, and it only occurred to me in the process of singing it what the song actually meant both to and for me. So, I guess sometimes it’s when I feel a strong connection to my own songs. That kind of connection is not always immediate.

4. Do you believe music can change the world or is just something to listen to? How much can music influence current events?

For me, it’s just something to listen to… it’s an escape from the world. For others, music drives them to make big changes. There are political songs that affect me, sure. Ani DiFranco’s “Self Evident” comes to mind, but I’m not one of those large-scale movers and shakers. I want to change the world by telling people to read more poetry. And you can imagine how well that goes over.

5. How has technology affected the music industry? How has technology affected your career as a musician?

That’s a pretty loaded question, and one you could spend hours upon hours discussing. It created the music industry, it destroyed the music industry, it re-created the music industry, and so on. It’s certainly easy to get your music out there, and I’ve taken advantage of that. While it’s great to have a million platforms with which to share my music, it’s also a huge pain to constantly be updating show schedules on several different websites. That’s the price we independent musicians pay, though. Technology is one of those things…like a day job…that I wish I could quit. I try to make my music as accessible as possible, but sometimes I have to remove myself from the computer and pick up the guitar instead. It’s easy to forget your priorities when you get caught up trying to anticipate the next big thing, making sure you’re covered from every angle. I’m all over the web but recently had a guy tell me he couldn’t find me anywhere. Turns out he was spelling my name wrong. I just had to laugh. Sometimes you can’t win no matter what you do, and then sometimes you find out you’re being played on the radio somewhere over in Germany. It’s hard to know how far-reaching your efforts can be.

6. Now for my Barbara Walters question: If you were a pair of shoes what type of shoes would you be?

A pair of cowboy boots, scuffed up, worn in, a little dirt caked to the sides. Ready to go anywhere.

SIMPLY SIX: Melissa Ferrick

Melissa Ferrick is a singer/songwriter from Boston.

For many artists, they cite a defining moment for themselves when they knew they wanted to be a singer. For many it was the appearance of Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show, to another generation it was the Beatles’ appearance on Sullivan half a decade later. Is there such a defining moment for you?
1,....Probably the first live show i saw which was Culture Club and everyone turned on their lighters and i was in the cheap seats and it looked so cool and there was a universal feeling i remember everyone singing along and swaying and i thought,..I want to feel like this every day for teh rest of my life.

When you’re not creating music what are you listening to? Who are some of your favorites?
2....i actually don;t really listen to much current current music outside of
friends of mine who make records and my probabaly obvious favorites like jack Johnson, D.M.B., Ani, Tori Amos, Death Cab, Tegan and sara...etc... etc...popular singer singwritters mostly,..though i listen to NPR classical and jazz...

What would you say is your greatest moment so far as an artist, either on record or live?
3...i am lucky to feel like i've had a few,..but the most recent was at the 100th anniversary of Progressive Magazine on stage with
Ani DiFranco, THe Indigo Girls, Dar Williams, Hammel on Trial, Catie Curtis, and Peter Mulvey,....Nice hang,..great voices,....great magazine!

. Do you believe music can change the world or is just something to listen to? How much can music influence current events?
4....well,..i think people change the world,..and music reflects and mirrors life, i don't think music itself can change the world but i do believe a great song can make people feel united and "in sync" and from there people do it.,...i think it is more likely that music reflects current events,..its a back and forth thing,..sometimes its hard to know which came first,,ya know,..the song or the movement..

. How has technology affected the music industry? How has technology affected your career as a musician?
5....wow this is a HUGE question,..how hasnt it,.is really the question i guess,...more interestingly for me is the way music is still an organic thing for me ,..becasue it starts with a guitar adn a lyric,.not a beat,.although,..even beats can be organic,.so,.i guess the only thing technology hasnt changed is the fact that someone has to write it...:)
Technology has only Positively affected my career certainly in its ability to turn more people onto my stuff and the ability for people to access my music and information.

Now for my Barbara Walters question: If you were a pair of shoes what type of shoes would you be?
6....black Vans with a big toe hole.

Blind Boys of Alabama

I’m not much of a church-going man, but strangely I find the music of the church has a soothing effect. The call and response of the Spiritual infuses me with an almost religious feeling of joy and happiness. There is so much emotion in the musical shouting of these songs. This week’s voice to hear is a veteran gospel group of over sixty years. Also along with a voice this week we’re also going to talk about a specific song.

The group is the Blind Boys of Alabama. The group was formed in 1939 at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Blind. Two founding members, Clarence Fountain and Jimmy Carter are still performing with the band. They’ve added a few newer members in the years following their debut. The Blind Boys of Alabama worked the traditional gospel circuit for over 40 years, releasing albums that primarily found an audience with the Christian following.

In 1982 they made something of a cross over between the religious audience and the secular one with their appearance at the World’s Fair in Knoxville. The next year they appeared in a smash musical drama off-Broadway The Gospel at Colonus. During the nineties they released a couple of albums that had some cross over potential, but never quite made the reach across between the pop audience and the religious one.

All the changed in 2001 when they released Spirit of the Century. Their booking agent and producer decided to self finance the album that he knew the group could make. This album brought them to the attention of the music world outside the gospel one. It was the start of a string of Grammy Awards for them. The music on this album mixed traditional gospel songs with contemporary songs by such writers as Tom Waits, Ben Harper, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. Their version of “Amazing Grace” was sung over the tune of the traditional blues “House of the Rising Son.”

“Amazing Grace” has become one of those songs that has become more than just a standard. Everyone from gospel singers to jazz to rock to punk rockers have covered this song. This song is so ingrained into the fabric of our musical heritage, but what do we know of it?

The song was written by a former slave trader, John Newton, who reformed and became a Christian minister. Newton was captured and held prisoner on Plantain Island off the African coast for close to a year. After being rescued he converted to Christianity on the trip home. Years later he wrote the hymn after he became a minister.

They hymn crossed the Atlantic in the early 1800s and was put to the now familiar music by a singing instructor from South Carolina. The song spread throughout the South with the growing revival tents that moved from one Southern town to another.

Today the song is heard performed by everyone from Elvis Presley to KC and the Sunshine Band to Tori Amos to Ani Difranco to Dropkick Murphys to…well the list is just about endless.