(unedited version --- for the edited/printed version, go to The Wave Magazine )
So you’re drivin’ away these miles… So far away from your Southern home… Takin’ your charms and dreams to the Golden State… Make your way… Seal your fate…”
When Birmingham, Alabama’s native son and American Idol winner Taylor Hicks wrote “West Texas Sky” for his 2005 independently released CD, “Under The Radar,” he probably had no idea that these lyrics would be describing his own future. And what a “future” he’s had the past couple of months. Since winning America’s most watched reality show competition, Hicks has gone on to become a Billboard #1 artist, a Ford Motor Company spokesperson, People Magazine’s ‘hottest bachelor,” and a soon-to-be best selling author, having just signed a deal with Random House’s Crown imprint for the Spring 2007 release of his life “to date” entitled, “Heart Full of Soul.” But what many people don’t realize is that when Taylor came to the September 2005 Las Vegas auditions for Idol, he already had 10 years of performing under his belt… 10 years of crafting songs with his unique branding of blues and soul… 10 years of trying to break through the entertainment industry’s pre-conceived notion of what today’s music scene should be comprised of. As Hicks and the other American Idols are now more than halfway through their sold out, whirlwind tour across the U.S., I had a chance to catch up with him prior to the upcoming August 30th Idol tour stop here in San Jose.
Talking with Taylor is like putting on a comfortable pair of slippers – no airs, no attitude – definitely NO ego – kind of like making a new friend that feels like they’ve always been in your life in some form or fashion – and that pretty much describes how his music touches people, and is perhaps a significant element to why he has such a loyal and growing fan base. So… after exchanging our pleasantries over our respective phone lines, we jumped into our chat about music, his life and “the muses…”
Loni: Whenever I listen to “West Texas Sky” from your CD, “Under the Radar,” I picture you sitting in the front of the Idol tour bus with the driver as you ride cross-country, quietly staring out the window onto the lines of the road as they blur from pieces to solids… Do you kind of view your life that way up to this point --- in “pieces," when you struggled over the years to have your voice heard – and now “solids,” with a promising future pretty much intact?
Taylor: WOW! Yeah, you know it’s funny – I was actually driving somewhere across Texas when I wrote that song, and you’re very right - although at that point in time I really had no idea where my life was going. When you apply that thought to now, being in the tour bus, it is very similar – I am traveling cross country, but what’s so cool about this particular deal is that I’m not driving myself and I’m not having to pay for gas!
Loni: And given today’s gas prices, that’s probably a very good thing! It’s interesting - many musicians knew from Day One that music would be the path they would follow – yet you didn’t really decide to get serious about music until your college years – what was the catalyst for you in choosing that road?
Taylor: In choosing the musical career in general?
Loni: Yes.
Taylor: You know, I guess what happened was – is that I started playing harmonica to air conditioners and planes – you know, and once that started happening, when I was a kid, I started repeating the harmonica sounds on the Supertramp album, “Breakfast in America.” And then when I got older, I started to play in clubs, but it didn’t really click – and I didn’t really want it to click until I wrote my first song on the guitar that I taught myself how to play. Once I started getting a positive reaction from some of the music that I was writing when I was around 17 and 18 years old, then I realized that nobody taught me how to do this and I knew then that it was a gift. So I knew kind of deep down inside that this was what I was supposed to be doing. And I haven’t looked back ever since.
Loni: So as a hard-working musician who loves to take a word and some great riffs and creatively fuse them together, tell me, which of those comes first for you – the words or the music? Explain a bit about your songwriting process.
Taylor: You know, it’s different each time --- the music will come to you at one point in time or the words will come to you in the next point in time. So it’s like, it all depends on what hits you first: a lyric that you really like or something that you’ve done on the guitar that you think is really cool. So it’s different each time.
Loni: No set pattern?
Taylor: No… it kind of tends to happen when the muse visits me, or hits me – that’s kind of what my idea of what a ‘muse’ is. I wish she was better looking though! (mutual laughter!)
Loni: Hey, just conjure one up!
Taylor: Yeah, that’s true!
Loni: Where have you written most of your songs? Indoors? Outdoors? On the road?
Taylor: Well you know, I’ve been inside a few times – I’ve been outside a few times. I don’t know - it’s just interesting, you know… Usually indoors.
Loni: So do you have quite a few songs “in the vault” waiting to be recorded?
Taylor: Well, I’m starting to break out songs from way back when and I’m starting to collaborate with some people – and I’m very excited about moving forward in the writing process. Just being able to have these opportunities – this opportunity to be able to experience everything that I need to put a great album together. It’s such a blessing – I’m so blessed in that regard. I really get to expand on some ideas that I’ve always had, but not necessarily had the means to do them.
Loni: It’s nice having those “means” now, huh?
Taylor: It is – very! I’m very thrilled to be able…….. you know, here’s my deal. I just want to be able to play good, live music. That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do, and in some form or fashion, I’ll always be doing it.
Loni: Well that makes ME happy, because I’m really looking forward to hearing you LIVE in the future.
Taylor: Well cool – you know I’ve been working on my craft for a long time and the general public probably hasn’t seen that side of me, you know, but…
Loni: Well that’s one of the things I’m trying to communicate via this article. For you, it wasn’t just a matter of showing up on Idol – you’ve been a working musician for ten plus years now, fine tuning your craft and performance and as mentioned in my intro – trying to break through this pre-conceived notion that the industry has about what America wants coming out of the music industry today.
Taylor: Well Great! That’s exactly what my mentality is and I’m very happy – that is what I want people to know and I am very happy that you are able to put that idea out there!
Loni: Consider me your “official messenger” in that regard!
Taylor: Hey, man --- GOOD… Let’s keep getting the message out there!
Loni: We will definitely do it! Now, I realize that legalities might prevail when I ask this question --- the music from your 2001 “Nashville Music Sessions” – will the public ever be graced with an authorized release of these three songs? And if so, when do you think that might happen? “The Fall” is brilliant – and, I might add – has “Number One” written all over it!
Taylor: Oh wow!!! You know, yes, I’m not going to go into any detail about that particular recording session, although I will say that I invested my time AND money in that session as well. I’m just very happy to know that I wrote that song… it’s there… it’s still there and I’m going to be able to expand on it in what I think that song should be… and soon. I’m glad the song is there, you know? I’m hoping to release it soon, but at the same time, I’m also just glad that the song is there, because everything is about the song. This whole situation is nothing but about the song.
Loni: It’s all about the music, man!
Taylor: Yeah, and you know, this album that I’m doing – I thought I had a snobbish approach about somebody sending me music – and you know, that barrier has been completely broken by some of the great songwriters who have sent me music in the last couple of weeks.
Loni: Well I know you’ve been hanging with John Mayer and other talented artists, who have been down this road with their own careers, and I’m sure they’ve probably shared their knowledge and experiences with you – it all has to be beneficial and they probably have some interesting insights.
Taylor: Yes, they do. You know, I’m so very thrilled to just be able to even talk to them and work with them – and they do have some great insight – and there’s some great music on the way.
Loni: When the tough get going, the muses visit me… the blues come out to play and jazz leaves her number… (for those of you unfamiliar, these are a few random lyrics from another Taylor Hicks song, “It’s a Soul Thing”). Some of the best music comes out of adversity. Now that the good times are here for you and appear to be staying for the long haul, what will you need to do to conjure up your muses in the future?
Taylor: You know, I think I just need to tap in, man. I think they’re out there. I think you just have to put… maybe I just need to raise my antenna a little higher!
Loni: Is that because of all of the Idol hoopla that is going on right now? Is it just a little harder to find those quiet moments where you can tune into that aspect of yourself?
Taylor: Yeah – you know - right now, quiet moments are like Powerball numbers in this gig. It’s pretty tough to have those, but I find time on days off to just relax and pick up the old guitar – I’ve got some ideas workin’.
Loni: I’ve heard you’re traveling with a really interesting, smaller six string guitar on the bus – a backpack version, if you will.
Taylor: Yeah, we have one on the bus, but it’s Bucky’s so we all kind of take turns playing it.
Loni: You cite your musical influences as Ray Charles, Van Morrison, Michael Macdonald, Al Stewart and Bob Seger, just to name a few – and anyone familiar with your style can clearly hear this reflected in your delivery. Have you given any thought to doing a “Duets” style album at some point with these artists? (sadly, Ray’s would need to be a ‘technically engineered’ performance – I can only imagine how you would have loved to perform with him live!).
Taylor: You know, it’s interesting that you mention that – of course, of course I’ll be interested in doing that, but for the time being I’ve really got to create a really GOOD first record.
Loni: I hear that you aren’t releasing your album in November as was first announced, correct?
Taylor: Practically? No. If you look at it, it’s just going to be really tough. I’m hoping and pushing for Christmas – I’m pushing as hard as I can to get it out as quickly as possible, but also, to uphold the quality and integrity of my artistry because that’s the most important thing.
Loni: That’s so important – especially given how the “fast food” approach to getting an album out never seems to do the work OR the artist justice.
Taylor: I’m into “quality” over “quantity.” That might not be what the record label wants to hear, but that’s what they’re going to have to hear.
Loni: It’s totally refreshing to hear an artist who takes that mantra to heart, as I know you do. You know, it’s obvious to anyone who’s ever watched you perform that you are thoroughly consumed and moved by music – actually becoming the music – perhaps to the point where you might not even realize that you’ve become this conduit - a lightening rod for the energy of the beat, flowing from you in the form of dance moves which perplex some and thrill others - but which ultimately signify the pure joy and passion that you experience when performing. Now that’s “my” evaluation and observation – what’s yours when you watch tape of yourself?
Taylor: Probably the same thing – I’m just havin’ fun, you know? I mean, especially the last year. Finally, in this last year, finally to be able to get to the place you’ve always wanted to go in your dreams. You know, it’s a dream come true for me and I think it makes performing each night just that much more fun.
Loni: As mentioned in the intro to our little ‘fireside chat’ we’ve got going on now, you have a book coming out next Spring called “Heart Full of Soul” --- obviously it’s going to be a collection of your personal ‘musings’ and life’s observations – your journey as an artist and as a person and what inspires you. What else can you tell me about the project that I might not already know? What kind of surprises are in store?
Taylor: Of COURSE they’ll be surprises - ALWAYS – and I if I told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise!
Loni: Well can you at least tell me, will you be doing a book signing tour once it’s published?
Taylor: Probably so – yeah. I’m sure, I’m sure they’ll want me to do a book signing tour and I’m really excited about that aspect too, because any way that will allow me to talk about the music, you know, I’m up for. Any way that I can be able to let people know that, “hey this has been a ten year – decade overnight success story” and some of the ideas I’ve had in trying to get here can be applied to not just to the music business, but to ANY business, or ANY thing or ANY life experience. You know, I’m into helping and I think this will be a good way for people to really find out some interesting things about me that let’s say, that some of the major news channels forgot to ask, you know? I think this will be a great insight into the mentality and musicality of where I’m going.
Loni: Well, as you have probably found out, everyone has an agenda – some people want to talk about Idol, others want to talk about the “Bachelor” thing, and I want to talk about the music. So when you mention these ‘news channels’ not asking the right questions, exactly what question would you want to ask yourself if YOU were interviewing YOU?
Taylor: My question would be, explain a little bit more about what you have been doing in some of the years other than --- you know, I think the years between like 21 and 25 might be interesting - as opposed to like the “as a kid, growing up” and now “what’s happening in my life now in this past year” aspects --- there’s a lot of things that are in-between there from 21 to 28 that haven’t really been discussed. So I would ask myself, ‘What were those years like?’ What did you learn about the music business?” You know what I mean?
Loni: Yes – I see where you’re coming from. There’s a HUGE part of your life lived during those years, and that you didn’t just start to exist during the past 6, 12 months. Okay, so now we’ve identified the questions – so how about an answer to the questions?
Taylor: I’ve learned A LOT!!! You know, putting the band together (Little Memphis Blues Orchestra, formerly known as the Taylor Hicks Band) --- you know, how did you just go from being a guitar player, a singer, a vocalist – to putting a band together that sold some tickets each night? Now that would be a good question too.
Loni: Well, I’m sure you had a sound in your head when you were putting the band together, hand picking each of them – you knew exactly what you were looking for when you were pulling the guys together.
Taylor: It took me ten years to do that.
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Subject: TAYLOR HICKS the music the movement and the "muse 
Sat Apr 05, 2008 12:12 pm
