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| News - Greek Jazz and Tzaz interview |
1. How did the group name come up?
We were trying to think of a name that would fully identify the band as a group concept rather than as being led by one or the other of us. Dylan's lyrics are full of vivid imagery-the possibilities are virtually endless for finding a name for a band from them. Jewels and Binoculars is from the song Visions of Johanna and has the enigmatic and open-ended feel to it that we were looking for. The full name of the band is Jewels and Binoculars/Lindsey Horner, Michael Moore, Michael Vatcher play music of Bob Dylan. Actually, the names can be in any order, we change it all the time.
2. Quite a few jazz musicians started doing Dylan covers since the ‘60s. How did you decide to create a Dylan tribute group in 2000 that has already recorded three albums?
Actually, as far as I know, not that many jazz musicians have done covers of Dylan tunes until recently. We don't consider what we do to be "covering" Dylan's tunes but rather, instrumental, improvisational interpretations of his music. As jazz musicians, we are more concerned with finding the kernel of the song on which to improvise rather than just giving a rendition of the song the way a pop musician might-and there have been many, many "covers" of Dylan tunes by pop artists and there are more every day.
We also don't consider it to be a "tribute group". We were and are motivated by our love and respect for the music of this crucial artist and the way his music, words and artistic persona has inspired and influenced us. Bob Dylan really doesn't need a tribute group partly because he is still out here breaking new ground and is as vital an artist as he ever was.
The group came about when I was living in Brussels, Belgium in the late 90's and I began to get together with Michael Moore and Michael Vatcher both of whom live in Amsterdam. We played a lot of different music: mine, Michael Moore's, Duke Ellington's, Monk's, a standard or two and Dylan's of course. We felt that the Dylan material was special and that we had something to say on it that was unique and original. It was also a lot of fun! We decided to make that our focus and it has worked out well.
3. The two thirds of Jewels and Binoculars reside in Amsterdam. Do you think that the group has an inclination towards a European sound?
That's a great question. Though both Michael Moore and Michael Vatcher have lived in Amsterdam for many years, they are originally from California. We got together when I was living in Brussels for a two year period, but I am from New York where I am now back living again. I've always felt that the European jazz concept, generally speaking, differs from the American one in that the European jazz performance has a beginning, a middle and an end; a more compositional approach than the American one which is more concerned with soloing on a set of chord changes. I speak very generally. I do think that Jewels and BInoculars does have a compositional approach and we try to decipher what each tune "means", not only in the general sense, but from night to night. Anyone who has seen Dylan himself would probably say the same about him as he changes his own music and interpretation of it constantly.
So, to answer the question finally, I would say that we are three Americans who have our own version of a European sound.
4. Dylan’s career has been through some radical changes and transitions. Sometimes he has been under controversy. Do you like his whole artistic course or do you prefer some certain periods of his career?
I personally value his entire output. While I may like some things more than others, he is one of those truly great artists of whom it can be said that even his "lesser" works are important.
5. A few years now a talk has been started concerning the making of the new standards out of the modern repertoire. Do you think that there are potent compositions among the recent and current songs that will be played by the next generations in a similar way that ‘30s and ‘40s songs are continually been played for more than half a century now?
I think there may be some, but not to the same extent. The whole definition of "popular song" is so different now than what it was through the first half of the 20th century. And it changed largely because of Dylan and those who followed him: he re-defined what it was possible to say in a popular song. I think we may eventually see the music of Gershwin, Porter, Kern, Van Heusen etc. as being from a "Classic" era and more recent music and the styles in which to play it as being more latter day. Time will tell.
6. Dylan’s music is mainly based on his lyrics and the expressive prowess of his voice. How do you deal with that working his music in an instrumental setting?
We work with the lyrics and the images and associations they evoke, very much in mind. For example, on the latest CD, Ships With Tattooed Sails, we play a version of "It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding), with guitarist Bill Frisell as a guest. The original song has a cascade of rhymes, images, and cadences that are still astonishing today, forty years after it was first recorded and which at the time (1965), was downright revolutionary and shocking. We tried to keep that breathless, headlong feeling while playing it in a completely different way-and of course, by using the expressive prowess of Dylan's voice to guide us.
7. How do you see Jewels and Binoculars in the future? When are you planning to record a fourth album?
We'd love to do some more playing for people who would like to hear us. Maybe we can even come to Greece sometime!
It's no secret that it's getting more and more difficult to play and record any kind of independent, creative music, but we're going to keep trying to do it. I think it would be fun to do something with guest vocalists; again, not to "cover" the songs, but to work with real improvising singers who could bring their own sensibilities to the vast music of Bob Dylan. But that's well in the future, if at all- we need to pay for this last one first!
Vangelis Aragiannis
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