Entrevista de Terry Callier
Entrevista de Terry Callier à Socialist Review UK de Março 1998
Interessante o facto de ter apoiado a greve da UPS.
MUSIC
A new freedom song
Terry Callier's music is a mix of soul, jazz and folk. It is the sort of music that makes you think differently about yourself and the world. Until recently the 52 year old singer was known to only a handful of followers. His resurrection has begun with the response to his new album, Time Peace. Terry Callier talked to Martin Smith.
Tell me about your latest album and single.
The album was made in Chicago and London. It was done mostly at weekends because I still have a day job as a computer programmer. I would leave work on Friday and record the album over the weekend.
The single, 'Love Theme From Spartacus', is based on the movie about the slave rebellion in the Roman Empire. The first line of the song is, 'Can it be? Do you hear? A new freedom song is ringing.' I believe that this song is relevant today. In some respects slavery is still going on in America, maybe not in the absolute sense but we still have racism, sexism and poverty. They're all a kind of slavery. The melody of the song comes from the music in the film. The lyrics were a gift from god, so to speak.
Many of your songs deal with everyday life and working people.
Yes there are more of us than them. There are more people who are non-rich than who have money and power. More wealth is held by an increasingly small number of individuals. I write about what I see and from where I stand, and naturally it is about people who you would meet in everyday life because I am one of those.
Why did you re-record the classic Curtis Mayfield song, 'People Get Ready'?
The area where I grew up is the near north side of Chicago. It was home to some great musicians including Jerry Butler, Ramsey Lewis and Curtis Mayfield. Curtis gained international acclaim before I was out of high school and he was singing about my community! The inspiration was all around. Older guys were into jazz; our parents were into the big band sounds of Nat King Cole, Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald. Young people were interested in doo wop [vocal groups]. Curtis was my inspiration. I hope some of the spirit of his music comes out through me.
Why has Chicago produced some of the most radical black music?
Chicago is a great city, but it is also the most segregated city in the US. That is not by accident, that is by design. As beautiful as it is in the summer with the lake and the parks, there is still in the background a lot of racial tension. Latinos stay to themselves and the white Anglo Saxon Protestants definitely try to keep to themselves. More or less out of necessity Afro-Americans are forced to stay to themselves.
One of the hardest things to break down in America is racism. I read a book about the Southern coal miners' unions in the 1920s. They were integrated, not by accident or in a perfunctory way, but because black and white miners were working under the same galling conditions. Just about the time the union was going to make a push to improve the conditions for all miners, the Ku Klux Klan and the employers set the colour thing up and enforced division.
There is no need for racial segregation. That is what I try to deal with in my music. I want all races to live together in peace. I really supported the recent UPS strike. I thought it was going to have the same outcome as the air traffic controllers' strike. Most of those men and women lost their jobs. Some of them still have not found work. But the UPS strike was well organised. The members stood together - it was fantastic.
What do you think about the situation in the Gulf?
I'm very worried. I am not a politician. I am not a weapons specialist. I don't believe anybody truly knows what weapons Saddam has. But I do remember that the west gave him a lot of arms, because they sought him as an ally in the ever turbulent Middle East, and that's the truth.
Saddam is refusing to go down the path the US wants. This does not make the US happy, so consequently it has to do something about it! People say that it is about patriotism. I don't think there is anything patriotic or honourable in bombing these people.
Who are your musical influences?
If we took time to list everybody we would be here for a long time. I was into rhythm and blues but got into folk music while I was at college. I worked in a coffee house and played the standard folk repertoire until I saw John Coltrane in 1964. I watched two Coltrane sets a night for five days. I stopped playing music for about six months. I didn't want to be Coltrane, but I did want to bring some of Coltrane's dignity and spirituality to my music. So from 1965 until 1979 I brought out six albums and wrote material for Jerry Butler and the Dells.
What music are you listening to at the moment?
I have never stopped listening to music. Charles Stepney, the producer on my Cadet recordings, said, 'You should listen to what is happening in music, but when you get into the studio you should use the truest material you have that will reflect you.' Charles said, if you do this, time will not affect it. Right now a lot of people are using my material. I have recorded with Beth Orton, Urban Species and I might hook up with DJ Shadow.
I would like to say what I think is the most important thing is that we as human beings have more in common than we do differences. It's time to say that straight out.
Interessante o facto de ter apoiado a greve da UPS.
MUSIC
A new freedom song
Terry Callier's music is a mix of soul, jazz and folk. It is the sort of music that makes you think differently about yourself and the world. Until recently the 52 year old singer was known to only a handful of followers. His resurrection has begun with the response to his new album, Time Peace. Terry Callier talked to Martin Smith.
Tell me about your latest album and single.
The album was made in Chicago and London. It was done mostly at weekends because I still have a day job as a computer programmer. I would leave work on Friday and record the album over the weekend.
The single, 'Love Theme From Spartacus', is based on the movie about the slave rebellion in the Roman Empire. The first line of the song is, 'Can it be? Do you hear? A new freedom song is ringing.' I believe that this song is relevant today. In some respects slavery is still going on in America, maybe not in the absolute sense but we still have racism, sexism and poverty. They're all a kind of slavery. The melody of the song comes from the music in the film. The lyrics were a gift from god, so to speak.
Many of your songs deal with everyday life and working people.
Yes there are more of us than them. There are more people who are non-rich than who have money and power. More wealth is held by an increasingly small number of individuals. I write about what I see and from where I stand, and naturally it is about people who you would meet in everyday life because I am one of those.
Why did you re-record the classic Curtis Mayfield song, 'People Get Ready'?
The area where I grew up is the near north side of Chicago. It was home to some great musicians including Jerry Butler, Ramsey Lewis and Curtis Mayfield. Curtis gained international acclaim before I was out of high school and he was singing about my community! The inspiration was all around. Older guys were into jazz; our parents were into the big band sounds of Nat King Cole, Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald. Young people were interested in doo wop [vocal groups]. Curtis was my inspiration. I hope some of the spirit of his music comes out through me.
Why has Chicago produced some of the most radical black music?
Chicago is a great city, but it is also the most segregated city in the US. That is not by accident, that is by design. As beautiful as it is in the summer with the lake and the parks, there is still in the background a lot of racial tension. Latinos stay to themselves and the white Anglo Saxon Protestants definitely try to keep to themselves. More or less out of necessity Afro-Americans are forced to stay to themselves.
One of the hardest things to break down in America is racism. I read a book about the Southern coal miners' unions in the 1920s. They were integrated, not by accident or in a perfunctory way, but because black and white miners were working under the same galling conditions. Just about the time the union was going to make a push to improve the conditions for all miners, the Ku Klux Klan and the employers set the colour thing up and enforced division.
There is no need for racial segregation. That is what I try to deal with in my music. I want all races to live together in peace. I really supported the recent UPS strike. I thought it was going to have the same outcome as the air traffic controllers' strike. Most of those men and women lost their jobs. Some of them still have not found work. But the UPS strike was well organised. The members stood together - it was fantastic.
What do you think about the situation in the Gulf?
I'm very worried. I am not a politician. I am not a weapons specialist. I don't believe anybody truly knows what weapons Saddam has. But I do remember that the west gave him a lot of arms, because they sought him as an ally in the ever turbulent Middle East, and that's the truth.
Saddam is refusing to go down the path the US wants. This does not make the US happy, so consequently it has to do something about it! People say that it is about patriotism. I don't think there is anything patriotic or honourable in bombing these people.
Who are your musical influences?
If we took time to list everybody we would be here for a long time. I was into rhythm and blues but got into folk music while I was at college. I worked in a coffee house and played the standard folk repertoire until I saw John Coltrane in 1964. I watched two Coltrane sets a night for five days. I stopped playing music for about six months. I didn't want to be Coltrane, but I did want to bring some of Coltrane's dignity and spirituality to my music. So from 1965 until 1979 I brought out six albums and wrote material for Jerry Butler and the Dells.
What music are you listening to at the moment?
I have never stopped listening to music. Charles Stepney, the producer on my Cadet recordings, said, 'You should listen to what is happening in music, but when you get into the studio you should use the truest material you have that will reflect you.' Charles said, if you do this, time will not affect it. Right now a lot of people are using my material. I have recorded with Beth Orton, Urban Species and I might hook up with DJ Shadow.
I would like to say what I think is the most important thing is that we as human beings have more in common than we do differences. It's time to say that straight out.
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