Thomas Conner
  • thomasconner
    • Bio
    • Professional: Resumé
    • Academic: CV
    • Teaching
    • Blog

Wry songwriter Wainwright talks about new, sly career moves

6/18/1998

 
By Thomas Conner
© Tulsa World

Loudon Wainwright III isn't bitter. Nominated for two
Grammy awards, he lost both times ('85 and '86) to the same
dead guy — the equally humorous and compassionate folkie
Steve Goodman.

For his latest album, "Little Ship" — his 17th — Wainwright
worked with John Levanthal, who just won two Grammys with
his songwriting and production partner Shawn Colvin.

"He was very gracious and did not flaunt his trophies,"
Wainwright chuckled in an interview this week, "though I
suppose he's got one for each ear."

Wainwright is the oft-overlooked wry songwriter once
hailed, among many others, as the New Bob Dylan (also, the
Woody Allen of Folk or the Charlie Chaplin of Rock). He
couldn't quite live up to that title, though, because he's
got too great a sense of humor.

That same sense of humor also cursed him with his one
and only "hit" song, 1972's "Dead Skunk," which remains a
perennial favorite on Dr. Demento's radio shows and CDs.

"It was a novelty. People thought it was funny, and they
played it. It surely had more to do with payola than
anything," Wainwright said. "I'm being facetious, but not
entirely. If you recall, Clyde Davis was kicked out of
Columbia for the payola scandal not long after my song got
around. Thing is, we start this leg of the tour in Arkansas
where 'Dead Skunk' was No. 1 for six weeks. So surely it
wasn't all payola."

Today, radio support for Wainwright's confessional,
sometimes cheeky folk music is tough to find, though
Wainwright said a few major cities boast acoustic-oriented
stations.

"There's still college radio and NPR stations, and
there's this format called triple-A. That's the Automobile
Association of America, as far as I'm concerned.
Fortunately, I am a member, but it doesn't guarantee me
airplay. In fact, that's why I joined ..."

Wainwright, though, is one of those artists with a
devoted cult following. Since his eponymous debut in 1970,
he has crafted albums with laissez-faire care and
razor-sharp wit, frequently turning out deeply personal
songs with the ability to touch the heart and bust a gut --
sometimes within the same verse. His small but mighty
legions of followers have charted his course through minor
novelty hits to sorely underappreciated masterpieces
(1988's "Therapy") and his occasional acting whimsies, such
as his three appearances on "M*A*S*H" as Capt. Calvin
Spaulding, the singing surgeon.

Still, he keeps in mind the goal of branching out to
attract new audiences, and he said he hopes that his work
with Levanthal on "Little Ship" — one of his most fully
realized records — bolsters a few new fans.

"I've been only marginally successful in my career. It
actually helps me to be fairly flexible when recording,"
Wainwright said. "For instance, the song 'Mr. Ambivalent'
(on the new record). I went to John with a lot of songs --
things I'd thrown out, forgotten about, old stuff I hadn't
gotten to — and just played him stuff for days. 'Mr.
Ambivalent' was one I wouldn't have recorded, but John
liked it because it had a chorus and a hook and was fairly
catchy. I decided to try something different, you know.
Whether or not we fooled some new people, I don't know."

Teaming up with Levanthal came about as most musical
collaborations do: they were mutual friends of someone — in
this case, Colvin — and after several years of casual
suggestions that they should work together, finally
mustered the time and energy to do it.

"I've known Shawn for 15, maybe 20, years since she came
to New York City. They were living together in those days,
and I'd heard he was interested in working with me,"
Wainwright said. "His contribution to this record was
substantial. He has his stamp on the way it sounds, and
it's a way that I like very much. It was a different way of
working for me.

“John's got this little funky East Village pad with
foam rubber gaffer-taped to the door, and he records in
there hoping all the while that the people upstairs stop
stomping around and the buses don't go by. It's primitive,
I suppose, but it's relaxed. He works in his own way, too.
You record with him, and then he sends you away. You come
back in a few weeks and hear what he's done to your songs.
He's kind of a mad scientist kind of guy."

Wainwright continues touring this summer in support of
"Little Ship."
 

Loudon Wainwright III
When: 8 p.m. Thursday, Old Fort River
Festival, Ft. Smith, Ark.
Where: Harry E. Kelley Park near
downtown. Admission: $5 at the gate, with children under 12
free.
When: 8 p.m. Saturday
Where: City Arts Center in Oklahoma City (at the
fairgrounds, gate 2-26 off of May Avenue). Tickets: $8 in
advance or $15 on Saturday. Call (405) 951-0000.


 


Comments are closed.

    Thomas Conner

    These online "clips" reproduce a self-selection of my journalism (music etc) during the last 20+ years. It's a lotta stuff, but it only scratches the surface. I do not currently possess the time or resources to digitize the whole body of work. These posts are simply a bunch of pretty great days at the office.

    (Caveat: I didn't write the headlines, and formatting varies wildly.)

    For more, see my home page, resumé, CV, blog, or just contact me.

    Archives

    September 2024
    October 2023
    September 2023
    May 2014
    June 2013
    May 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    March 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    October 2009
    September 2009
    March 2009
    November 2008
    October 2008
    August 2008
    July 2008
    June 2008
    May 2008
    April 2008
    March 2008
    September 2007
    August 2007
    June 2007
    May 2007
    February 2007
    November 2006
    October 2006
    September 2006
    June 2006
    March 2006
    January 2006
    December 2005
    November 2005
    October 2005
    August 2005
    July 2005
    June 2005
    May 2005
    April 2005
    June 2004
    April 2004
    August 2003
    June 2003
    February 2003
    December 2002
    November 2002
    September 2002
    August 2002
    July 2002
    March 2002
    February 2002
    September 2001
    August 2001
    July 2001
    July 2000
    June 2000
    May 2000
    April 2000
    March 2000
    February 2000
    December 1999
    November 1999
    October 1999
    August 1999
    July 1999
    June 1999
    April 1999
    March 1999
    January 1999
    November 1998
    October 1998
    September 1998
    August 1998
    July 1998
    June 1998
    May 1998
    March 1998
    January 1998
    December 1997
    November 1997
    October 1997
    August 1997
    June 1997
    May 1997
    April 1997
    March 1997
    January 1997
    November 1996
    September 1996
    August 1996
    July 1996
    June 1996
    March 1996
    January 1996
    December 1995
    September 1995
    August 1995
    June 1995
    April 1995
    August 1993

    Categories

    All
    9/11
    Album Review
    Arizona Republic
    Art Review
    Blues
    Books
    Chicago Sun Times
    Chicago Sun-Times
    Classical
    Column
    Concert Review
    Country
    Dwight Twilley
    Fanboy
    Feature
    Film
    Folk
    Gospel
    Great Conversations
    Guthries
    Hanson
    Hip Hop
    Hip-hop
    History
    Interviews
    Jazz
    JFJO
    Leon Russell
    Lollapalooza
    Music & Society
    Obit Magazine
    Pitchfork
    Pop
    Punk
    R&B
    Reggae
    Rock
    SXSW
    Tea
    Travel
    Tulsa World
    TV
    Virtuality
    Wainwrights
    Washington Post
    Woodyfest

    RSS Feed

Home

Bio

Professional

Academic

Blog

mine, all mine © 2000-now
  • thomasconner
    • Bio
    • Professional: Resumé
    • Academic: CV
    • Teaching
    • Blog