DOG DAYS FORUM Transcript of a Live Web Chat from August 8, 1996

Moderator: Recording artist Jimmie Dale Gilmore is here with us tonight. Moderator: Hi, we're 30 minutes away from our Dog Days Forum with Jimmie Dale Gilmore. ming: i can't wait!!! Moderator: so tell me a bit about yourselves so i know how to moderate this beast.... hipbone: Anyone know if Global Chat has a log feature, or whether the whole thing is being logged somewhere and will appear on Jimmie Dale's web pages? Moderator: yes, this whole thing is being logged. the transcripts will be on the www site Moderator: Hi, we're 10 minutes away from our Dog Days Forum with Jimmie Dale Gilmore. Meff: hey guys, meff is here Gian: We've got meff's in stereo here! Meff: how is everyone tonight jstawav: Greetings from the wet 'n' windy west coast of Ireland, Jimmy Dale! nottwtr: hi meff Meff: well, jimmy should be around in a little while guys! nottwtr: could somebody ping me please Fisch: Hello. I'm a little early. Anyone here, yet? nottwtr: hi fisch Moderator: Hey everyone. We've got Jimmie Dale here. Feel free to send questions and we'll start answering them shortly! Thanks for joining us! Fisch: Hey, Jimmie! Casey is out at the pool. I'll go yell at her and Mickey to come CHECK IT OUT! Vashon: Hey you guys started early. Moderator: Monsterbit Media, Inc. and Elektra Records are proud to present the 1st chat in a 3 part series. hi jimmie. let's get this thing going. JimmieDale: Hello, it looks like we are up and running! JimmieDale: Hi everyone! We already have questions coming and I'm still learning how it works. This looks like fun! jstawav: Greetings from the wet 'n' windy west coast of Ireland, Jimmy Dale! sk11244: hi, from the gulf coast JimmieDale: I'll bet it's cooler in Ireland than it is here right now. jstawav: It's 3am and kinda sultry j: hi from the most eastern point in Canada Gian: hi from soon to be stormy Long Island! hipbone: Hello there from Los Angeles, too hot to be cool... JimmieDale: I see a bunch of questions happening at once, so give me a little while to sort out the order. We are sitting in sweltering Austin at the Monsterbit Media studios. Janet and I had a picnic on the floor a little while ago. Lot's of garlic! (Good that's not online.) Gian: You've got your own web site, as I saw from clicking on the banner -- do you think these will become the liner notes of the future? JimmieDale: I think they will be even moreso than they are already. nottwtr: how did the mudhoney collaboration come about ? Moderator: jimmie's typing a bit slow ;) JimmieDale: We actually had mutual friends from very different corners of the world. Faith Henschel (from Seattle) and Peter Blackstock (from Austin) were I think, the original instigators of that interesting trip. Vashon: What do you do when you want to write a song and it's not flowing...the inspiration's not there? Moderator: now introducing JANET...jimmie's wife..she types quickly! JimmieDale: Sometimes inspiration is automatic and sometimes it is nowhere to be found jstawav: Hi: Has Jimmie any plans to return to Ireland in the near future? JimmieDale: I have a great desire to return to Ireland at any time, but I don't think there are any firm bookings there right now. We have a lot to do in the US right now. JimmieDale: Back to the inspiration question -- Isn't that the question almost everybody is almost always trying to find the answer to ? nottwtr: I remember seeing a tv program with you,butch hancock and kinky friedman sitting on a porch exchanging stories and songs ? What was this and is it available ? Moderator: hipbone....you've got it right JimmieDale: This was done by the BBC and I actually never saw the finished product -- it aired over here on Bravo or something and was recorded on Mike Crowley (my manager's) back porch. Vashon: Jimmie, Joy here on Vashon. Last time you were here you sang a really beautiful song about someone named RosaMaria. What was the name of it and who wrote it? I really loved it. JimmieDale: That's a song by Steve Young called Silver Lake. Meff: if you could play with anyone in a live setting, who would you most likely be? JimmieDale: Living or dead? Meff: doesn't matter! JimmieDale: Hank Williams, Elvis Presley and John Lennon would be great! Moderator: Now there is a show. Jimmie, I have a question. Meff: all at the same time? JimmieDale: Of course! Moderator: Who are these bands opening the braver newer world tour? JimmieDale: Scud Mountain Boys, Dale Watson and the Old '97's will be opening various dates. Moderator: I know you are leaving tomorrow for the first dates of your tour. where are you headed? JimmieDale: We'll be at Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA on Monday, July 15th opening or Willie Nelson. RonT: Will you play NYC? Fisch: From Casey, "When is the next river trip!". JimmieDale: Yes, on August 21st -- see the web site for details. I'll also be doing a songwriting workshop at the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies in Rhinebeck, NY July 22 - 26. Moderator: Tell us about the river trips! JimmieDale: Hi Casey! I think we need a lot more rain before we have anymore river trips. Moderator: I know a lot of the imagery from your last record was west texas imagery. that seems to be a theme, eh? who are the photogs? JimmieDale: The river trips we're talking about are in the canyons of the Rio Grande in the Big Bend of West Texas. The river is slow right now because of the drought. RonT: Oh, my God, I was in Rhinebeck Sunday, visiting a friend who lives a mile away from the Omega institute (I passed it). Is this a public show? JimmieDale: The current album, Braver, Newer World has highway photos by Weyman Meinzer and Spinning Around the Sun had photos by Keith Carter. JimmieDale: No. The Omega Institute is sold out. Vashon: Jimmie, we all'd like to know what music you listen to when you're not singin' your own songs. Who's on your stereo at the moment? JimmieDale: Son Volt has had the most recent play at our house. j: What about a current "living" artist , who would you want to play with. JimmieDale: I've been wanting to work with Phillip Glass. Foil: Are you still working with Butch Hancock? JimmieDale: Not as much as I'd like to. We seem to running in different circles. jstawav: Who would you cite as your main influences JimmieDale: Probably Hank Williams, Elvis Presley and John Lennon. Vashon: Who's Son Volt?? JimmieDale: Their debut album "Traces" is available at the record store -- go get it! I particularly like the song "Tear-stained Eyes" jstawav: Can Butch Hancock really dance like the dickens to the West Texas Waltz? JimmieDale: Yes, I have seen him! Meff: When you write a song, do compose the music first, or the lyrics or both at the same time? JimmieDale: They usually come together. Gian: Which performer would you most like to have open for you? JimmieDale: Wow that's a hard one to answer. Moderator: pausing....we really stumped him :) Fisch: I heard Son Volt got their name from the two (old) record companies (actually, Sun). They figured this was a sure fire contract! True? (at least, its a good story!) Moderator: yeah, that's what i heard. they really are quite good. JimmieDale: I don't know if that's true, though. Vashon: From Richard - Any chance of a Flatlanders tour (without the saw)? JimmieDale: A chance, but the same small chance it's always been. JimmieDale: We all want to do it but the organization and scheduling is virtually impossible. jstawav: If you had to choose one song that best defines your ethos, what would it be? JimmieDale: Every Grain of Sand (by Bob Dylan). Fisch: How is touring Europe different from US? When I was there, a lot of good names were doing small clubs. Oh, and we LOVE the saw :) JimmieDale: The trains are much better in Europe. JimmieDale: Also, almost everyone speaks good English. Moderator: ahhh. but the biscuits! davemc: How was it working with T-Bone Burnett? JimmieDale: T-Bone is fun to work with. His mind operates in a totally different manner from mine. Moderator: i know it has been quite a while since your last record. what have you been doing? JimmieDale: Lots of touring, then lots of recording. Moderator: do you prefer the live setting or the studio? JimmieDale: At different times, they both can be wonderful or frustrating. Moderator: now, being the creator of your web site....i know you LOVE to take digital pictures. let's talk about how technology has influenced your music! JimmieDale: An earlier form of technology called the guitar has defined my music. But the digital camera is allowing me into a new world. davemc: Who is in your band? JimmieDale: Mary Cutrufello, Rob Hooper, Rob Gjersoe, Brad Fordham. Meff: What led you to kind of "revamp" the players in the band? JimmieDale: The old band evaporated and the new one coalesced. Moderator: what's it like playing with a bunch of generation X'ers? JimmieDale: I think musicians have always been weird -- in every generation. Moderator: what was your earliest memory! JimmieDale: I remember the song "Harbor Lights", which still has a strange power over me. Moderator: um, who did that? JimmieDale: I think the first version I heard was, no not the Platters, an even earlier group. Fisch: The new band is an interesting mix of Generation X and Jimmie's Generation WHY! JimmieDale: How can I answer that -- the earlier answer still goes. Moderator: hey jimmie....i think i just got a message from a long lost friend!. hipbone: My wife tells me it's unfair of me to hide behind "hipbone". Charles Cameron here, Jimmie. Glad you're on the planet. JimmieDale: Hi Charles! The feeling is mutual. Send me your address. Moderator: planets.....what do you think about astrology? western? eastern? JimmieDale: The study of harmonics will one day influence all of psychology and physics, to boot! Moderator: physics and psychology? elaborate JimmieDale: You can't have one without the other. Gian: Are you a big believer in synchronicity? Moderator: physics...that's pretty heavy. do you study it much? JimmieDale: I notice it happening all the time. I like to read about modern physics, but I don't like to study it. Moderator: what do you think about the fact that western culture often denies synchronicity? Vashon: Joy: What's Harmonics, Jimmie? Enlighten us, please JimmieDale: It's a more mathematical approach to determining the commingling influences of the heavens. Moderator: > FROM hipbone: Archbishop Temple said, "when I pray, coincidences happen, when I don't, they don't." JimmieDale: Isn't it strange how people will say "There's no such thing as coincidence"? davemc: Who is Al Strehli Jr. JimmieDale: Al is a friend of mine from Lubbock, TX who writes some of the most beautiful music I've ever heard. I've recorded several of his songs. By the way, the real dog days start on July 23rd. Moderator: speaking of dog days....why did you name these chats dog days? JimmieDale: It seemed like good timing. Moderator: it's hotter than a pancake on a griddle too! Moderator: Does he perform in Texas? JimmieDale: Are you talking about Al? He doesn't perform at all that I know of. jstawav: Did you ever get any reaction from Townes Van Zandt to the Mudhoney "Buckskin Stallion"? JimmieDale: Yes, he told me he liked it. Moderator: ok...just a few more questions y'all. davemc: What are some of your favorite websites? JimmieDale: I like the Round Top Register. And Robert Anton Wilson's home page, and the related Principia Discordia. Fisch: Mickey has a book for you - "Tao of Chaos". It looks for similarities (fractals) between all levels of life (molecular, dna, etc.) and spirituality (I Ching). It shows their similar mathmatical structures. (Whew!) Believe it or not, its right up your alley! A lot of left brain/right brain stuff! Read it? JimmieDale: Yes, it was a very interesting book. jstawav: All artists strive for sublime moments. For me "Another Colorado" is one of many you have achieved. (Thanks!) What do you consider your greatest songwriting accomplishments JimmieDale: Right now, I like Braver, Newer World. Moderator: well...that figures...i think we all like it too, eh?! Moderator: before we go....here is what's coming! July 18-JDG's Favorite Books and Authors... be here....same place same channel. next thurs 10pm EST jean: I like the saw, too, in fact I was just listening to the Flatlanders tape while I mowed my lawn. But I'm wondering- does public life ever drive you nuts? I really appreciate the way some of your songs say things about me better than I could ever express them myself, but is it ever hard to live with all that soul-bearing? JimmieDale: Public and private life drives me nuts, about like everyone else. Moderator: ok....y'all can talk at will pakeha: am I on? Beau: can we smoke if we got 'em? RonT: Here's to anarchy. Thanks to Jimmy Dale for joining and sharing Vashon: Absolutely without a doubt a great album jstawav: I look forward to Braver Newer World. It has yet to reach these shores :o( JimmieDale: This is not like a radio interview, but it is kind of. But, where are we? Vashon: We're in cyber-samsara, Jimmie. Beau: - beautiful south Austin davemc: why is it that we work with computers all day and mess with them all night? Fisch: But since you don't know where you're goin', your NOT lost! JimmieDale: That is beautiful. I guess it is virtual jstawav: ACTION is still wet n' windy West Coast of Ireland..with Dawn fast approaching.. hipbone: Newer, Better... still haven't heard it: but your voice has a track of its own in my inner ear ... JimmieDale: I wish I was in Ireland jstawav: Not as much as I wish you were *smile* JimmieDale: Are you going to Miami, Hipbone? Vashon: It's about sunset here on the west coast of Vashon Island. hipbone: Unlikely. How soon is it? And are you coming to LA? Meff: so long all, had fun and thanks jimmy for hangin out! JimmieDale: Well, everyone, I have to go to a radio interview on KUT and then leave early tomorrow for Miami. Thanks for joining in!

Archives || To the Top