INTERVIEW

Interview: Gretchen Lieberum

Written by Connie Phillips
Published February 13, 2006

Part three of our continuing coverage of Gretchen Lieberum, February's featured artist of the month, is an interview. Gretchen gives us a candid look at her personal life as well as her professional one and shares some of her thoughts on the music industry in general.

You recently had a new baby. Are you finding that your daughter is affecting the tone of your songwriting? The time you have for songwriting?

At this point, I am finding it hard to find time to take a shower! As for how my daughter, Iris, will affect the tone of my writing, I honestly don't know. I imagine that it will to some extent. Having a baby has been such a powerful, amazing experience, and a real lesson on how quickly time passes, and how important it is to live in the moment and appreciate what is in front of you. Those themes will probably worm their way into my next album.


You've worked twice now with your husband. Do you two find it difficult to separate yourselves from the work when you leave the studio?

Because we are both artists without day jobs, our work is constantly a part of the rest of our lives. It is really hard to separate the two. At one point in my life, I was working as a kindergarten teacher, and although I enjoyed my work, when the clock struck three, I was done for the day, physically and emotionally. When I'm working on music, I find it impossible to turn off my brain and focus on something else. I'll often wake up in the middle of the night still trying to figure something out about a lyric or a melody I'm working on. And Jacob is the same way with his work. So, there are a lot of work discussions going on at our house in the middle of the night.

You credit the success of 3AM on MP3.com as a major factor in getting Lakeshore Records to get behind Brand New Morning. Has the Internet, and sites like MP3.com specifically, continued to be a good source of exposure?

Absolutely. Most radio stations play the same twenty or so songs, depending on the station's format. How can anyone else be heard other than on the Internet? You don't necessarily have to be with a label to get your music heard anymore. Almost every success I've had with my music has started from someone hearing me on the Internet. It's incredible to post a song on a music site, and then get positive emails about your song from all over the world.

Someone who describes themselves as "an earnest and dedicated fan" has been reading and commenting on the articles we ran this month at Blogcritics. They have stated a curiosity about the background of "Avila." Would you tell us a little bit about the song?

page 1 | 2 | 3
anotherme
Wife, mother, aspiring novelist, and music editor at BC Magazine, Connie Phillips spends most of her time in a fantasy land of her own creating. In reality, she writes about music, television, and the process of writing, when she's not cheering on her kids at equestrian events. Contact: Phillips.connie@gmail.com
Keep reading for information and comments on this article, and add some feedback of your own!
Buy from Amazon.com
Siren Songs Siren Songs
Gretchen Lieberum
Music,
Brand New Morning Brand New Morning
Gretchen Lieberum
Music,
Three AM Three AM
Music,

Interview: Gretchen Lieberum
Published: February 13, 2006
Type: Interview
Section: Music
Filed Under: Music: Jazz, Music: Popular and Standards
Part of a feature: Featured Artist
Writer: Connie Phillips
Connie Phillips's BC Writer page
Connie Phillips's personal site
Spread the Word
Like this article?
Email this
Submit to del.icio.us Save to del.icio.us
RSS Feeds
All RSS Feeds (240+)
Comments on this article
Articles in this series
BC articles by Connie Phillips
Music: Jazz
Music: Popular and Standards
All Music Articles
Connie Phillips's personal weblog
All Interview articles
All BC articles
All BC Comments

Comments

#1 — February 13, 2006 @ 14:04PM — Eric Olsen

very nice Connie and Gretchen, thanks!

#2 — February 13, 2006 @ 16:23PM — Connie Phillips [URL]

Thanks, Eric, and thanks again Gretchen!

#3 — February 14, 2006 @ 22:56PM — Adebayo Onabule

Awesome Awesome Awesome!!

Thanks to Connie for this indepth look into Gretchen's life, and thanks to Gretchen for sharing with us. I'm over-joyed that the questions I innocently asked were answered. Totally unexpected, but definitely a pleasant and welcomed suprise!
;-) thanks again, Connie!

I've definitely noticed how much work goes into Gretchen's Lyrics, as they are always on point, and rich with imagery. As far as renditions go, I think that Gretchen's rendition of Angel Eyes on the 3AM album totally captures the tragic resolve that the lyrics imply...much better than any other cover I've heard (mark murphy's and Ella's included).

It's a shame though, I'm gonna be outta town on the 23rd, so I'll miss the live set. Hope I can find a rerun somewhere.

Again, awesome interview, looking forward to the last one.

peace

#4 — February 15, 2006 @ 16:23PM — Connie Phillips [URL]

Adebayo Onabule,

Thanks for offering up the wonderful question. I too, enjoy finding out the stories behind songs, and Gretchen has been very willing to share those stories this month.

#5 — July 31, 2007 @ 10:18AM — Jacob

Connie -- In case you didn't see it -- for the UK release of Siren Songs there is a music video.

Thanks!

Want comments emailed to you? No spam, promise! Address:

Add your comment, speak your mind

(Or ping: http://blogcritics.org/mt/tb/43560)

Personal attacks are not allowed. Please read our comment policy.





Remember Name/URL?

Please preview your comment!

Fresh
Articles
Fresh
Comments