Kyle Meredith speaks to Juliana for Consequence of Sound and Louisville's 91.9 WFPK:
The veteran singer-songwriter discusses her forthcoming Olivia Newton-John tribute record, the 25th anniversary of her debut album, and the possibility of another collaborative record with Paul Westerberg.
In an article by Ed Symkus for Wicked Local, Juliana talks about her band line up for next week's Somerville show showcasing the Olivia Newton-John album:
“Usually at my shows it’s me, bass, and drums,” said Hatfield. “But this time I’ve got more people than usual. I’ll be singing and playing guitar, and there’s Ed Valauskas on bass, Magen Tracy on keyboards, Mike Oram on guitar, Eric Edmonston on drums, and a couple of other guests. We’ll do a lot of the new album, but not every song. And we’ll probably go as far back as my first (solo) album ‘Hey Babe,’ which was just reissued for its 25th anniversary.”
There's also reference to planning her next album.
Juliana, interviewed by Robert Ham for Billboard about the new album:
RH How was the process of recordings these songs? To hear the album, it sounds like it was a lot of fun to put together.
JH It was actually very challenging, especially after coming off of my last album. With Pussycat, the recording of that was really fast and seamless. This stuff was really challenging. The songwriting, for one thing. Some of it is pretty complex. A lot of chords and melodies. I wanted to do as many songs as I could in the original key she sang them in. Some of the melodies are just so sick, a lot of stuff is really high in my range which is kind of a weak spot for me. It was hard. There were moments where I thought, “I don’t know if I can do this.” I almost wanted to quit because it was so challenging. For me, it was just a puzzle. What do I want to reinterpret? What do I want to copy?
Then there was the problem that some of the songs were so iconic, like “Hopelessly Devoted To You.” My first instinct was to just copy all of her vocal inflections exactly. But then I thought, “I can’t because it’s too iconic. There’s no way I’ll ever measure up.” It’s a little bit my own but I’m not disrespecting the original.
RH Were there songs you wanted to do but had to abandon because they were too hard to pull off?
JH There was the duet with Cliff Richard, “Suddenly.” That one has like a billion chords. It’s kind of nuts. We recorded the basic tracks and then there’s the question of who can sing it with me. I asked a few people. One person said, “No,” and a couple of others were interested. Then other songs needed my attention so I ended up abandoning it because it was just going to be too complicated. I hope to get back to it eventually and finish it.
The interview also touches on the Hey Babe vinyl reissue, Become What You Are, and Pussycat.
For Womens History Month, Juliana has written an article for Tidal about Olivia Newton-John's impact and influence throughout her life:
Olivia was sweet and strong. Quietly confident from the very beginning, she did the work on each stage and in every appearance, without any hurried desperation for attention.Some people don’t understand that Olivia is a soulful singer. They think she is a sugary confection, empty calories. That this is not serious. That her songs don’t acknowledge the dark side. But they do. There’s darkness all over the place. It’s just that she doesn’t aim for it and stew in it like some of us do. She gives it a nod and then turns away from it and toward the light.
Juliana has various handmade works of art for sale at Etsy:
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/JulianaHatfieldArt
She says on Twitter that part of the sales money will go to community animal rescue shelters.
There's no tour, but there is a show.
"Celebrating the release of Juliana Hatfield sings Olivia Newton-John performing songs from that album...and other stuff too", Juliana plays ONCE Ballroom in Somerville, MA on Friday April 6, 2018.
The second song to be released from the forthcoming Juliana Hatfield Sings Olivia Newton-John album is Physical, and it's wonderful.
There's a video, again directed by David Doobinin, which premiered today at Stereogum, and where Juliana commented:
Olivia Newton-John’s lusty “Physical” is a groovy, bouncy song, but my take on it is darker, more aggro, because I don’t think of lust as fun or funny; I think it’s dangerous and disruptive and mostly unwelcome. So that is my interpretation of “Physical”: the human condition is a bummer, and desire a frustrating impediment to serenity. My visual take on the song is not as conceptual as Olivia’s 1981 colorful workout video. Mine is more of an impressionistic exploration of my own awkward and self-conscious physicality (especially self-conscious in front of the camera/other people).
The first song, A Little More Love, was released in January.
The album is due for release on April 13, 2018 via American Laundromat Records.
Juliana, announcing the sale of two new t-shirts at julianahatfield.com:
I won't be touring my new "Juliana Hatfield sings Olivia Newton-John" album, so we won't be selling them on the road.
Orders are now being taken on her official site:
Here's a set of photos by David Young taken at last weekend's Hot Stove Cool Music event at Boston's Paradise Rock Club.
With Freda Love Smith on drums, Juliana peformed a set featuring Some Girls songs together with a preview of her upcoming Olivia Newton-John tribute album. UPDATE - with thanks to Charlie P, here's the full set list:
Thanks as always to David (Dry Eye Photography) for sharing his work here.
There's further photos of the event by Joshua Pickering at Innocent Words and a short review with a photo at the Boston Globe.
Prior to the concert, Juliana spoke to Jay N Miller for The Patriot Ledger, where she touched upon the new album:
“I’m not able to conceptualize going in a particular direction, I just have ideas and follow them,” Hatfield explained. “When I have ideas, I make them come to life. I keep moving and keep working. You have to keep working - you’re only here a short time and you have to be open to new possibilities. The idea of doing an Olivia Newton-John record popped in my head, so I went and did it. Unconsciously, I guess it might have been a reaction against the feelings surrounding ‘Pussycat,’ which were disturbed and full of anger. You could see it as the pendulum swinging back. I just wanted to do something that felt good.”
Juliana also talked to Brett Milano for the Boston Herald:
“It’s hard to say why I like her, but I’ve always had a visceral reaction. Something about the sound of her voice and the melodies really hits a pleasure center in my brain,” Hatfield said. “I think there’s also an innocence about her that I’ve always related to. In most of the relationships I’ve had in my life, I tend to be drawn to complicated, troubled people. I saw something in her that was different from that, so I felt an affinity — she was more like the light in the darkness. Her songs are really gorgeous and sweet, and they match my affinity for melodic pop songs, but she acknowledges that there is a dark side.”
Hatfield conceived of the album after a Newton-John concert she’d planned to attend last year was canceled due to the singer’s illness. She’s made the album a partial benefit for Newton-John’s cancer foundation, and received a nice tweet from her in response.
Thank you @julianahatfield for the tribute cd to my music & for donating a portion of the sales to my @ONJCancerCentre - which will so help cancer patients on their journey. Enjoying her versions & grateful for her kind donation. Love & gratitude! https://t.co/Gq3pQrHyOf
— Olivia Newton-John (@olivianj) January 30, 2018
“I really appreciated the welcome from her camp, but I really did this for myself. I love the songs and wanted to record them. That’s really the only reason I ever do anything I do. But I didn’t know how many chords she has in her songs. In terms of their being impressive and challenging to play, there’s some pretty sick songwriting going on there.”
Juliana's new video and first song from her upcoming Olivia Newton-John covers album is released today, via a premiere at npr music.
It was filmed and directed by David Doobinin in NYC, and as this Instagram post from a couple of weeks ago shows there's another one to come:
A post shared by David Doobinin (@davedoobinin) on
Juliana has announced her new album of Olivia Newton-John covers. Marvellous!
It will be released on April 13, 2018, via American Laundromat Records, titled "Juliana Hatfield Sings Olivia Newton-John".
Juliana:
I have never not loved Olivia Newton-John. Her music has brought me so much pure joy throughout my life. I loved her when I was a child and I love her still. Her voice and her positive energy and her melodies have stood the test of time and they give me as much pleasure now as they ever did. Listening to her is an escape into a beautiful place. She has inspired me so much personally and I just wanted to give something back; to share some of these tremendous songs, reinterpreted, with love, by me
American Laundromat Records:
One dollar from the sale of every album will be donated to the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness & Research Centre (ONJ Centre), a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing patients with cancer access to leading medical treatment, breakthrough research, and the best in wellness and supportive care.
*Track 14 is not on the vinyl LP but included on the digital download card.
The release date is scheduled for April 13, 2018.
Vinyl, CD, and Cassette versions are available via a multitude of ordering options at American Laundromat Records, with some options also available through Cargo Records UK.
A post shared by American Laundromat Records (@americanlaundromat) on
Here are unofficial Apple Music and Spotify playlists of all but one of the original Olivia songs Juliana is covering. (I made this using songs licensed for streaming in the UK. Hopefully they'll work worldwide)
American Laundromat Records:
We cannot be more excited to reissue Juliana Hatfield's debut album "Hey Babe" on vinyl to celebrate its 25th Anniversary. We took great care to have our friend and long-time collaborator, Sean Glonek at SRG Studios newly master from the original 1/4" analog tapes. The artwork has been recreated from the original LP art but with a little twist thanks to the skill and creativity of award-winning designer, Aaron Tanner of Melodic Virtue. This exclusive limited-edition pressing, in a single-pocket gatefold jacket, was pressed by hand at Burlington Record Plant in Burlington, VT.
Pressing Information:
Mystery Wild Card Color Vinyl (50 pressed) Label Exclusive
Clear Vinyl (100 pressed) Label Exclusive
Translucent Green Vinyl (175 pressed) Label Exclusive
Virgin Black Vinyl (325 pressed)
Translucent "Amethyst" Purple Vinyl (350 pressed)*Please know due to licensing restrictions, we are unable to include digital downloads.
The release date is scheduled for March 23, 2018.
There are all sorts of ordering options based around the aforementioned colours at American Laundromat Records.
Also, Cargo Records (UK) are offering the translucent purple version.
check out this luscious purple vinyl! my debut solo album, "hey babe", is being reissued...you can pre-order it here: https://t.co/q7CKQa4wiu pic.twitter.com/Bu70kIMxXn
— Juliana Hatfield (@julianahatfield) January 15, 2018
Juliana Hatfield performing at Hot Stove Cool Music in January 2015. Photo © David Young
Mark Shanahan, for the Boston Globe reporting on an upcoming live appearance on February 3, 2018 at Boston's Paradise Rock Club, and a return to an event Juliana played in 2015:
...the benefit for Paul and Theo Epstein’s Foundation to Be Named Later will no doubt be a rocking good time. The show, which takes place Feb. 3 at the Paradise, will feature performances by Juliana Hatfield, Band of Their Own (including Kay Hanley and members of Belly and the Blake Babies), former Red Sox pitcher Bronson Arroyo, and Peter Gammons and the Hot Stove All Stars featuring former Yankees center fielder Bernie Williams and Cubs broadcaster Len Kasper.
Hot Stove Cool Music returns to the @ParadiseRockClub Boston on February 3rd - don't miss your chance to be a part of the excitement! @pgammo @willdailey @kayhanley @GregAmsinger @julianahatfield @bronsonarroyo @bw51official Tickets are on sale now: https://t.co/u6oeMfMmHL
— Hot Stove Cool Music (@ftbnl) December 21, 2017
FYI,,half of my set on feb. 3rd will be Some Girls (with Freda [@fredalovesmith] on drums) https://t.co/tCfzcITfEt
— Juliana Hatfield (@julianahatfield) January 25, 2018
Jan 1, 2018 - New York City, NY - City Winery (opening for Joseph Arthur)
Thursday last week saw the first of 3 consecutive nights at Paradise Rock Club, Boston where Blake Babies opened for Letters to Cleo.
Photos courtesy of David Young of Dry Eye Photography.
There are also photos at Vanyaland and YouTube clips across all nights including Out There, Girl In A Box, Baby Gets High, and Star.
Video bumpers for St. Louis local access cable program "Velocity", filmed behind Mississippi Nights, 1995.
Thanks to Carlos for spotting that this random vintage clip was recently uploaded to YouTube
Here are the first new recordings I've made public in over a decade, side one of an album I'm making. Enjoy and feel free to share. https://t.co/ch6Got3zDi
— John P. Strohm (@johnpstrohm) November 14, 2017
John P Strohm has a new job:
The music industry is changing almost daily with technological advancements, social media and the shifting population of music fans, and no one knows that better than John Strohm. Strohm, a former Birmingham resident and graduate of the Cumberland School of Law at Samford, recently was named president of Rounder Records in Nashville, after years as a musician himself and an entertainment lawyer. But Strohm made a name for himself musically as a member of bands such as the Lemonheads, Blake Babies and Antenna, and help launch the careers of some of today's most successful musicians - including Alabama Shakes, Sturgill Simpson and the Civil Wars.
Patch caught up with Strohm to discuss his new gig as a record executive, what brought him here, and where music is headed as an industry.
