AE:
I’ve read that you’ve gotten some backlash on that
one. What’s that been about?
PB: Well,
it became very political because of the war in Iraq. Certainly
people noticed it; I’ve gotta say it’s by far the
most noticed song I’ve done recently.
AE:
Who’s noticing?
PB: Everybody.
Clear Channel (laughing), the white people…
AE:
How do you approach songwriting? Do you think of it as an autobiographical
process or more of a storytelling one?
PB: It
was at one point autobiographical but eventually you run out of
stories—you know, you have to become a fiction writer. Otherwise,
it’s not possible; you’d be dead trying to get enough
material to write, so it’s more about the storytelling now.
Certainly some of it’s based on personal experience, but
then, that’s much like an actor or a fiction writer.
AE:
When you’re writing songs do you start with lyrics or music?
PB: It’s
different for every song; there’s no formula. If there were
a formula I would write a book about the formula. Sometimes it
can be a melodic idea that starts you off, it can be a lyric idea,
it can be a rhythmic hook, it’s all very different.
AE:
Tell me about your beginnings as a musician. How did you start
out?
PB: Well,
I started out playing the piano at home with my father; he taught
me, he was a jazz musician. So I started out with jazz and pop
and then, junior year in high school I decided that if I was going
to get into a university I had to start being serious, so I started
taking from a college professor—classical music—toward
that end.
AE:
Has that influenced the way you approach jazz?
PB: It
certainly gives you a technique—a technical facility and
a harmonic knowledge.
AE:
Who were some of your early inspirations when you were just starting
out?
PB: Chick
Corea; Return to Forever was one of my favorite groups, was one
of the groups that made me realize I wanted to spend my life in
this music. Certainly Miles Davis is huge—continues to be
maybe the biggest influence overall. And then Bill Evans in a
big way.
AE:
What do you think about the state of jazz today?
PB: I
think it’s going through kind of a narrow passageway right
now. It will emerge but it’s trying to find its way.
AE:
What do you mean by “narrow passageway”?
PB: In
my mind, if I were a DJ, a jazz DJ, I would be having trouble
finding the material that would speak to our time, and also is
interesting and nice to listen to. So I think the combination
of forces—economic forces, the digital downloading, the
record companies all jumping onto a pop bandwagon—I think
have made it a little bit difficult for jazz, but I do think it
will emerge. But it certainly needs individual artists to be cutting
a swath.
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