We first interviewed singer/player/producer/writer Daniel Lanois last November.
(7 Grammy Awards. Juno Winner. Order of Canada)
At that time he had recorded his next album Heavy Sun but only the first single (Under a) Heavy Sun had been released.
That was all the new music we could talk about so we headed off into his amazing influence on a wing of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
U2, Dylan, Neville Brothers, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, and many more. (Neil Young. Emmy Lou Harris, The Killers, Willie Nelson, Brian Eno,)
This coming week he’s headed for a gig on the 10th in NYC with his band to perform The Songs of Red Dead Redemption 2, the soundtrack to the popular game.
They’re playing in The Battery and it’s sold out.
Now that Heavy Sun is released we decided to go back and re-cut the full interview and include several of the new tracks from the amazing album.
Tree of Tule
Dance On
Mother’s Eyes
Along with the great single (Under a) Heavy Sun
Meet the man who has shaped a huge amount of the music many of us grew up with. And he’s Canadian.
How many radio stations in Canada are lucky to get to be 93?
None actually.
There’s only one. CKUA. A musical oasis in a sea of radio sameness.
And it’s donor-supported. Impressive, even for those who call it home.
So. We celebrate those 93 years with music
Black Pumas, Kurt Vile and John Prine, Ray Charles, Blind Boys, Bowie and Queen, Wilson Pickett, Flo, and The Machine, Stevie Wonder and Herbie Hancock, Ben Harper, Ry Cooder, Dylan and U2 and more.
The guest is Daniel Lanois.
Grew up in Montreal, then Hamilton where he and his brother built a studio in their mother’s basement…
10 years later people were taking notice.
Off to Mexico and LA and fame.
Once he got into the same studio as Brian Eno things took off…working with artists such as
U2 (Joshua Tree. Achtung baby)
Leonard Cohen (Thanks for the Dance)
Bob Dylan (Most of the Time. Love Sick)
Peter Gabriel (Sledgehammer)
Neville Bros (Yellow Moon)
Emmylou Harris – Slingblade
Robbie Robertson Somewhere down the Crazy River
Neil Young – Peaceful Valley Blvd.
Many Grammys later Daniel is releasing another solo album in April.
Called Heavy Sun.
We’ll talk about the single (under a) Heavy Sun and his work with Leonard Cohen, Neville Brothers, and Robbie
Happy Birthday CKUA and Leona Stumbo – turning 90 in Camrose.
We’ve been long-distance friends since the ’60s but like many, I’ve followed his amazing career.
Best known for his producing work on landmark albums like Joshua Tree, Wrecking Ball, and Time out of Mind. His work with Peter Gabriel, Neville Brothers, EmmyLou, Willie, Robbie Robertson, NeilYoung. Tinariwen etc earned this praise from Rolling Stone Magazine.
“His unmistakable fingerprints are all over an entire wing of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”
In April he releases his next solo album Heavy Sun with a joyous/soulful band that blends gospel call and response, soul harmonics, and deep grooves. The intent is to “lift people’s spirits”. Lifted mine.
Because the album doesn’t drop until April 2021 this interview covers the first single (under a) Heavy Sun. Then Daniel takes us through his work with Leonard Cohen, Robbie Robertson, and that moment when Bob Dylan walked in on a NevilleBrothers Yellow Moon session to hear their version of With God in our side.
I used to see musician Daniel Lanois at least once a year as he toured Canada with various bands..pedal steel was his specialty.
I can’t begin to explain the joy I had watching his career explode.
From his music-filled home growing up in Hull, Que to his Mothers move to Hamilton Ontario
Daniel and his brother Bob were born to play and sing.
They built a small studio in her basement and that became their light at the end of the tunnel.
Daniel produced enough music with local bands that the one and only Brian Eno asked to meet him and they started working together.
This lead to Grammy-winning albums with U2, Bob Dylan plus Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, Emmylou Harris, Neil Young, The Neville Brothers, Willie Nelson.
Think about the body of work…Unforgettable Fire, Joshua Tree, Oh Mercy, Time out of Mind, Wrecking Ball, So & Us just as a starter.
-Needless to say, I hadn’t seen Daniel for many years – 21 to be exact – when I found him backstage at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival of a couple of years ago.
We started trying to figure out where we last saw each other…
It was a studio in Calgary recording a charity single called Land – with The Tragically Hip, Midnight Oil, Crash Vegas, Hothouse Flowers, etc.
The single was Land – to bring awareness to clear cut logging in Clayoquot Sound.
Let’s meet one of the world’s greatest producers Daniel Lanois backstage in Edmonton.
Today at 5PM…Mulligan Stew is LIVE at the edmonton folk festival.. 5-7PM Mountain time. 4-6 Pacific. Streaming live click here: LISTEN LIVE!
Right at 5pm its one of the hottest emerging acts anywhere.
2 nights ago Nathaniel Rateliff and the Nightsweats earned and received a standing ovation from the Jimmy Fallon studio audience..for their killer single SOB. (check out the video)
5 years ago Daniel would have shown up as a solo act in edmonton..just a guy, a guitar and his songs.
Now he brings a serious R&B band..with horns, B3 organ and tunes you’d swear came from the golden days of Stax.
Best of all, they kick off the show..right at 5PM. Don’t miss these guys..
530 brings the pride of New Brunswick Matt Anderson.
Matt brings the whole package..A voice that can switch from a whisper to a growl. Complete mastery of his guitar and ever improving songs..the latest from his best LP ever – Weightless.
It seems he’s never not on the road but one of the highlights of his year is playing this festival in Edmonton. Not bad for a guy who has stubby fingers…
Theres a really fine story by Tom Murray in todays Edmonton Journal that details the difficult formative years of EFMF. How they almost went under 30 years ago and how a band of dedicated volunteers and music types pulled together to keep it alive..
They included Holger Petersen & Tom Coxworth from CKUA. Then along came Terry Wickham.who took over leadership and he/they began to build the outstanding event we enjoy today. Terry Wickham guests right at 6PM. He brings the stories with him.
630 brings Danny Michel…who, after moving to Belize and recording with local musicians released an amazing album called BlackBirds are dancing over me.
It received so many plays on so many shows that it was declared the album of the year on the CKUA Top 100.
We’re going to talk to him about his latest project – the smaller calmer School Night Mondays at the Dakota Tavern in Toronto. and jamming with astronaut Chris Hadfield.
and then two highlights from last years Festival. Daniel Lanois and Dan Mangan and Blacksmith
Welcome to our new re-tooled Stew website.
Web master Corey Wood and myself will try and keep you up-to-date on everything coming your way on The Stew.
For example..
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THIS WEEK..
The usual two hours of great music and when we stop to talk..we don’t babble or turn it into a classroom. Its talk from the heart. T Nile was at the Edmonton Folk Festival but I didn’t get a chance to talk to her on air..so we found each other for a follow up. Her wonderful new release is called Tingle and Spark. Its very good. A game changer for her. Co-Producer Matt Rogers from The Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer allowed Tamara to move away from folk and into a more mainstream feel. (T says she’ll always be a folkie)
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A number of you let me know that they missed the Edmonton Folk Festival Broadcast and especially the last two guests. Daniel Lanois and Dan Mangan/Blacksmith. So..I’m going to recut the Daniel Lanois interview and add some music to it (U2, Dylan, etc) The RAW interview will be posted here by Corey, so you can get a true sense of the man. The STEW Daniel Lanois interview RAW
It was amazing to hear him talk about his past and especially his future..(no more studios)
Daniel is considered by a great many people to be one of the World’s best producers.
Lets just check out the credits http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Lanois [line] The last guest on the show was Dan Mangan and his group of merry pranksters Blacksmith. Just as we were wrapping up the show I lamented that they brought no instruments so as to play us out..but I did ask if they had any acapella tunes..why YES they did.. So..here’s the tune right after the T Nile Interview. OH and one more thing..I somehow got going on a STOP set. Tunes that had the word stop in the title or the lyrics..Um..I got carried away. Hope you like it (If you haven’t already, please add me on twitter) @tdmulligan
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