Tune In, Turn On
With Doug Deutsch
Joseph Arthur is an American singer who’s also recognized for his skills as a painter. Arthur, who will be performing solo with 1adam12 at Anchor Rock Club 7 p.m. Sunday, May 4, was first spotted by rock legends Lou Reed and Peter Gabriel in 1996.
He’s at the origin of several bands including The Lonely Astronauts, Fistful Mercy (which he founded with Ben Harper) and RNDM, formed with Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament in 2012. Arthur’s song, “In the Sun” was covered by R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe and Chris Martin (Coldplay), as well as by Peter Gabriel.
Here’s an interview we recently did with Arthur.
DD: What’s behind the song, ‘Will Rise Again,’ that you wrote for the people who suffered through the LA Fires?
JA: My old publisher, Rob Boses, asked me to write that song. He came up with the idea of writing something to help the LA Fires. With an idea like that, there’s sort of an automatic resistance to it, as it can seem opportunistic. When he first suggested I do it, I resisted, but then I thought, ‘hey, why not try.’ Same thing when I did the Lou Reed tribute album. I had a strong inner resistance and then it came out great. So I thought, ‘okay let’s just try,’ and the song came out effortlessly.
DD: How does your solo show, which you’ll be playing at the Anchor, differ from when you perform with your full band?
JA: With my solo show I do something I actually pioneered in the mid-’90s: sampling myself live looping onstage. I used drum pads and keyboards and my voice to create orchestration, so there’s a lot of improvisation. When I’m playing solo, I’m free to go in any direction I want. There’s more of a sense of freedom when I’m playing solo.
DD: You were the first artist signed to Peter Gabriel’s Real World Records. How did you and he connect?
JA: I was the first American-based artist signed to (Real World Records). I was working at a guitar shop in Atlanta, Georgia, and was a member of the 12-step community, you could say. I made demo tapes of the acoustic songs I wrote. The first tape I made I gave to a friend in one of the 12-step groups, interestingly, who had no music business connections. He ended up giving it (demo tape) to a record company in Atlanta; that label guy in turn sent the tapes to Harvey Schwartz in New York. He (Schwartz) knew Peter Gabriel; when Gabriel came through town, Schwartz ended up playing him my cassette. He put on the first song and (Gabriel) said, ‘that’s kind of interesting,’ and then Gabriel said, ‘play me another song.’ That song had the lyric, ‘your history acts as your gravity.’ That struck Peter; he’s a lyric guy. He listened to my cassette on his plane ride home, then called me and said, ‘I want to give you a record deal.’ So it was kind of like lightning striking, honestly.
DD: Can you discuss your involvement with World Central Kitchen?
JA: That was the organization that Rob Boses, the music publisher, decided to go with to help with the LA Fires. It turns out you picked the location you wanted the funds to go to, and it seemed like a great organization to contribute to and to use for the proceeds of ‘We Will Rise Again.’
Doug is the owner/operator of Doug Deutsch Publicity Services, which since 1995 has been servicing nationally touring acts, and working record release campaigns for clients. Doug also hàs experience writing for the one time shore-based weekly publication, Whoot! He also was a team member with Chip Braymes Advertising. Doug loves bicycling and aspires to bring the Blues to Atlantic City. He can be reached at ShoreLocalDoug@gmail.com and www.facebook.com/dougdeutschpublicity.
