Posts Tagged T. Bone Burnett

Interview to Read: T Bone Burnett

Posted by admin in Film, Music on October 8, 2011

O Brother, Where Art Thou

I did not realize until reading this  T Bone Burnett  interview, but there’s been a re-release of the O Brother, Where Art Thou soundtrack, a two-disc edition in fact. But thanks to this No Depression interview, my ignorance of the release ended. I have to tip my hat to No Depression for the interview contest they held. Readers that submitted questions for Burnett, that he picked, would win a copy of the re-released special edition soundtrack.  And the website’s readers brought some quirky and informed questions to the mix.

It’s hard to pick my favorite interview snippets. The fact that he once worked in the studio with Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer, and Michael McKean? Maybe. But I think this non-Townes Van Zandt connection really alarmed me (in a good way).

“I will say that he did most of his recording at Sound Emporium where we have done most of our recording in Nashville including O Brother, Where Art Thou? I’ve seen at least an album of unreleased multitracks in the tape locker.  I hope those will see the light one of these days. I’d be more than happy to help that happen.”

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Interviews Elsewhere: Sam Phillips

Posted by admin in Music on January 20, 2010

It’s been awhile since musicians Sam Phillips and T. Bone Burnett divorced. In fact, I believe they divorced around the time of my divorce. I have not listened to Burnett’s music from around the time of their divorce, but I did listen to (and enjoy) Phillips’ work from that period (in the mid-2000s).

I ran across a recent interview with Phillips in OutSmart magazine. The subject of her divorce came up at one point and I was quite struck by this quote.

“I don’t want to go into the gory details but … it’s just that for us it was really complicated. It wasn’t like, ‘Sign a piece of paper and it’s over.’ It was a ripping apart, that’s the only way I can describe it. And I wrote about it. T-Bone wrote a little bit about it on his record, but not as much. I just kind of tore open my heart and laid with it as politely as I could. And I didn’t want to tax my listeners, but I felt that it was the most honest thing to do, because it was really an intense time for me. The last two years have been great, but I think the five years before that were very, very tough. But I think in a funny way I feel that we’ve had a successful marriage and a successful divorce, because we still have great affection and respect for each other and are able to work together to raise a child. In a broken situation, that’s the best you can do, or hope for or ask for.”

I really admire the way she discusses the impact of the divorce (and the importance of working together) for their child. Not every divorced parent thinks that way, but fortunately I can say for my son, working well together is something that my ex-wife and myself aim to achieve.

Phillips is allowing folks to subscribe to her music, and gain access to her digital EP releases. Here’s a YouTube sampling of one of those digital EPs, Hypnotists in Paris.

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