Jarrod Dickenson Interview by Christian Lamitschka for Country Music News International Magazine & Radio Show
Lamitschka: Music has many new fans throughout Europe who may be hearing about you for the
first time. How would you describe yourself and the music you play to someone who has never seen
or heard you?
Answer:I am a 32 year old, ginger-bearded, hat-wearing, storytelling Texan. My music could be
described as a mixture of various roots genres. My songs are equal parts blues, folk, rock and roll,
soul and just about anything else that strikes my fancy.
Lamitschka: What is your latest CD and how’s it doing?
Answer:My newest project is called‘Under A Texas Sky’. It will be released on March 8th via
Continental Records. I’m excited to share it with the world!
Lamitschka: How did you choose the title for the CD? Is there a story behind the name?
Answer:‘Under A Texas Sky’is a collection of songs by fellow Texas-born artists.
The idea
behind the project was to celebrate and pay tribute to the incredible music and musicians from my
home state. I chose 5 songs by various artists who hail from Texas, and recorded my own, unique
versions. I’ll likely do a few volumes of these EPs over time,
as you can’t even begin to scratch the
surface of the brilliant artists from The Lone Star State, but for this first edition I did songs by Roy
Orbison, Esther Phillips, Willie Nelson, Doug Sahm and Guy Clark.
Lamitschka: What is the difference between your last CD and your current one?
Answer:The biggest difference between‘Under A Texas Sky’and my last album‘Ready The
Horses’is that the songs on UATS are all covers. I’d
never really done a project where the songs
weren’t ones I’d
written myself until now.‘Ready The Horses’is a ten-song record consisting
of all
original material.
Lamitschka: You did a duet with your wife, Claire. How did that happen to come about?
Answer:Yes, on my last album,‘Ready The Horses’there is a song called“Your Heart Belongs To
Me”, which is a duet with my wife, Claire. I wrote that song while
we were dating long-distance
between New York and Belfast (Northern Ireland), where she’s from.
As I was writing it I knew it
would be perfect as a duet, and I slowly convinced Claire to sing the female part. It took some
doing to coax her up on stage, but now she absolutely loves it, and we sing together every night.
She’s very much a part of the band these days. It’s
pretty special to not only be able to travel with
your wife, but sing with her on stage every night. We’re definitely
a team in every possible way.
Lamitschka: How much creative control do you have over your music?
Answer:I have absolute creative control over my music, and I wouldn’t dream of having it any
other way. Music is too important, too personal and too sacred to let someone else decide what you
should say through your own songs. I think the moment an artist starts letting outside forces
influence what he or she creates is the moment they should give it up.
Lamitschka: What has been your greatest challenge in music business?
Answer:I think the biggest challenge for any artist is finding a way to make a living through your
art without sacrificing integrity. It’s a difficult task, and
one that I’m constantly trying to figure out,
but one thing is certain; I’d rather be broke and satisfied with
the art that I am creating than to have
plenty of money, but feel I’d been untrue to myself as an artist.
Lamitschka: Any thoughts of retirement ahead?
Answer:I’m just getting started. I’ll
retire when I’m dead.
Lamitschka: Is there any place you haven’t played that you would like to?
Answer:There are plenty of places I’ve never played that I would love to visit. I’ve
never been to
Italy or Spain, Austria, Russia, Australia, Japan, South America…this list could go on and on.
Lamitschka: When you’re on tour, do you have time to play tourist?
Answer:The big joke among musicians is that we travel the world, and only see hotel rooms and
music venues. Every now and then we’ll be lucky enough to have
a day off, and get the opportunity
to explore a bit, but the majority of the time, life on the road doesn’t
allow for much usable
downtime.
Lamitschka: What message would you like to send your European fans?
Answer:I’d simply like to say‘Thank You’. Your support means the world to me. It’s
humbling
and inspiring to find that my music has connected with someone. When you buy my record, stream
my song, come to my concert, etc. it gives me the fuel to keep this crazy dream of mine going. So
again, thank you.