City: Austin
State: Texas
Country: US
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[02 Dec 2009 | Wednesday]
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A few years ago,
our native Canadian Gordie Johnson moved
south to Texas for a change of scenery leaving behind his career as
vocalist/guitarist for the blues rock band Big Sugar along with his name. Now
known instead as “Grady” Johnson, he has been spending his time with his new
band also named Grady, while staying connected to his homeland by producing
Canadian artists. Jeff Jodrey recently spoke with Mr. Johnson about his new
album, new drummer, new label, new home and a new version of the Tragically Hip
classic "Boots or Hearts".
Good As
Dead is Grady’s third studio album and first with drummer Nina “the
Queena” Singh. Where and what was the recording process experience? It
happened pretty rapidly. We worked in the same studio that we did our last two
records, Pedernales (owned by Willie Nelson), down in Spicewood, Texas. It was
like making the record at home. You couldn’t be in a more comfortable place to
work. We had been playing most of the tunes in rehearsals and on gigs too, so we
had a pretty clear mandate of what we needed to accomplish.
How did Nina “The Queena” Singh make her way into
Grady? Our previous drummer had some health problems and wasn’t able to
tour anymore. That all happened kind of suddenly, and we had to re-think the
whole thing. Obviously, when you’re a three-piece band, you can’t have any
followers up there, everyone has to take care of their department cause it’s so
stripped down. The new drummer would really have an impact on the personality of
the band, so we chose very carefully. She just walked into the audition and
walked out with the job. I had absolutely no interest in hearing anybody else’s
playing after that.
What is a standout
moment for you on the album? “Whiskey River” is a standout moment for all
of us. We played the riff about twenty times, and it just got heavier and
heavier as we did it. Then the three of us went out on the floor around a
microphone and sang it about twenty times, and we just edited the best three
takes together. What a lot of fun that was. I was producing a record for Tim
Chaisson from Prince Edward Island, and while he was in town I got him to play
fiddle on that tune as well. He and I sat in front of one microphone and did the
verses together. I was really happy with how that whole creative idea came
together.
That song must knock
everybody’s socks off when you play it live. Yeah, that song’s become a
staple in the set. We do it every night. It really tears the place
down.
How did a cover of Tragically Hip’s
“Boots or Hearts” make its way on the album? We never really gave it too
much thought. We were doing little bits of extra stuff we thought might come in
handy for b-sides, the Internet, or vinyl. Big Ben brought that song in one day
and suggested we do this Tragically Hip tune. So I listened to it, wrote out the
words, we played it once, recorded it, mixed it, and it was done. We just did it
the one time. I don’t think we spent twenty minutes on it.
You have one of the heaviest, most saturated
guitar tones I've heard. Can you share the secret behind it? My hands are
dirty! I don’t have an effects rack, or any effects pedals, or anything like
that. It’s just the guitar hitting the amp really hard. I play with a lot of
aggression, and turn up really loud.
Did
you play the Lap Steel guitar on “Alberta Bones”? Isn’t that an awesome
pedal steel solo? That’s Ethan Shaw from a band called Chili Cold Blood here in
Austin. They play guitar, pedal steel and drums. We just absolutely love them,
and love to do shows together. Ethan’s done a lot of session work for me over
the years, and we’ve even covered a few Chili Cold Blood songs.
How often does an acoustic guitar find it’s way into
your hands? I don’t really write on an electric guitar ever. I play a
banjo or an acoustic guitar and sit in my den, or up on my hill under an oak
tree and write that way. I have forty electric guitars, and one acoustic. That’s
the one that I write everything on.
Throughout your career, you have been on various
labels, as well as releasing independent albums. What was it about the Winnipeg
based label C12 that made it a company you wanted to be involved with? I
think it was attitude, really. The people that run the label had way more
enthusiasm than everyone else and they had more ideas about how to get things
done. The record industry is in a slump these days, and this attitude seems to
permeate the entire thing. The C12 people would say “Well, we’re going to have
trouble doing this, so we’re going to do this instead.” as opposed to “Well,
that’s going to be hard” all the time. You hear about how hard everything is all
the time. I was like, singing and playing guitar at the same time is hard, you
know? (Laughs) raising small children is hard (laughs). You’re just trying to
sell records, not save lives or anything. C12 just had a great attitude, and
knew how they wanted to do things.
What
made you decide to relocate to Texas a few years ago? I’ve always taken a
lot of inspiration from that place. I would go down every year anyway to hear
music, enjoy the warm weather and the culture, especially Mexican culture. I’ve
actually worked in Mexico several times during my career, and I have a real
affinity for it. As an artist you have to have some creative input as well as
output. I felt like I had gone through a long period of intense creative output,
where I wasn’t replenishing my inspiration. So, I wanted to go to a place where
I felt free, empowered and inspired all the time by my surroundings. Not just by
music, but by non-related things, such as the landscape, the culture, the
language and the food. And it worked.
Aside from Grady you keep yourself busy producing
other artists, many of whom are Canadian, what are some highlights to date from
that side of your portfolio? Well, I just love working with Joel
Plaskett. I get a great deal of inspiration being around someone that’s such a
visionary and such a talent. I’ve done a few records for Gov’t Mule, who are
friends of mine from over the years, so we always enjoy working together. It’s
very rewarding.
Who can we expect to see
you producing for or collaborating with in the near future? I’ve recently
been writing songs with the Trews, although we’ve been writing together for
years. We’ve written songs together for all of their records. In fact, they
co-wrote “Annie Lee” on Good As Dead. It was nice to finally keep one for myself
(laughs). We’ve got a really nice catalogue of stuff that we’ve done together,
and hopefully we’ll continue to do that.
Does producing Canadians keep you away from your new
home in Texas for long periods of time? A lot of times the guys will want
to fly down to see me, especially during the Canadian winters when it’s pretty
easy to coax Canadian writers to come down and sit in a hammock in the shade of
a big oak tree, drink some Mexican beer and write some songs. Sounds pretty
tough doesn’t it? (Laughs)
By Jeff Jodrey
Photo By Allen McEachern Photography
http://tuesdayguidemusic.blogspot.com/2009/12/all-things-new-about-grady.html
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[25 Nov 2009 | Wednesday]
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For someone who once wore nothing but Hugo Boss suits and derided bands who took
to the stage in denim and flannel, it's still surprising to see Gordie Johnson
sporting a cowboy hat and leather vest as part of his everyday attire. Yet,
since he put the lid on Big Sugar for good over five years ago and relocated to
Texas with former Phantoms bassist Big Ben Richardson to form power trio Grady,
Johnson has taken to the Lone Star State like a horse to water. The band's brand
new third album, Good As Dead, confirms Johnson's commitment to the
brain-melting blooze that now in hindsight Big Sugar only hinted at. And while
at one time his former band could be seen virtually any night of the week
somewhere in Canada, Johnson's return visits with Grady are rarer occurrences.
It was therefore a treat for Exclaim! to meet Johnson in one of his old
haunts in Toronto's Little Italy, and catch up on many of the changes his life
has undergone since he's left.
First off, it's probably safe to say
that you've put Big Sugar firmly behind you with this third Grady record. Before
we talk about that, I have to admit I'm still a little confused why the first
one (Y.U. So Shady?) was mostly new versions of Big Sugar
songs.
We did that almost as soon as we got to Austin. We needed to make
a demo and those were all the songs we knew. It was done live in the studio in
pretty much a day. A radio station down there started playing tracks from it and
the next thing we knew it was being released all over the world. We never really
intended it to come out in Canada, but now that we've done three records, I
think that yeah, people don't really expect to hear the old stuff. We still get
the odd request, which we're happy to do if we can, but it doesn't happen that
much anymore.
Good As Dead is being released in Canada on C12 Records,
which is known for its metal roster. I know that you wanted to gear Grady's
sound toward metal fans, but when did you make that decision
exactly?
That stuff has always been the foundation of everything I've
done. I wanted to play a double-neck Gibson because of Alex Lifeson, not Jimmy
Page. But it was around the time when we were making the last Big Sugar record
(2001's Brothers And Sisters, Are You Ready?) that I went through a
pretty serious Black Sabbath phase. We'd listen to nothing but reggae on the
road, which I'll always love too, but by then it was really time to put that
aside and take things in a new direction. What people who don't really know the
scene in Texas don't realize is that hard music is basically the norm when it
comes to rock down there. There are bands doing that kind of stuff that have
huge followings that often don't even play outside the state. Sometimes I think
we're not heavy enough to play some places like San Antonio.
What I
found interesting about Grady when I first heard it though, is that this still
seemed like a blues band playing metal, just like Big Sugar was a blues band
playing reggae.
Listen, I've always wanted to get myself as far away from
the blues scene as I possibly can. No offence to guys like Kenny Wayne Shepherd
and Joe Bonamassa, but that's not what I've ever aspired to be. And I'll argue
with anyone who thinks that the blues came from Africa. The ancestry of the
blues dates back to the folk music of the British Isles, and was adapted by
musicians in America. Reggae's origins are the blues too, so to be labeled a
"blues" musician has never made any sense to me. As far as I'm concerned, the
blues died when the last of the old artists that Fat Possum [Records] was
working with passed on.
I have always felt that a lot of what you were
doing with Big Sugar, especially early on, predated what bands like the White
Stripes and the Black Keys eventually did.
I liked that stuff a lot when
I first heard it. You could tell right away that those guys were informed by a
lot of different kinds of music going back to Charlie Patton and Son House,
which is all that I've ever tried to get across to people too.
So, to
keep getting Canadians accustomed to the new Grady approach, you've chosen a
couple of interesting covers for the new album. "Whiskey River" is pretty much
the national anthem of Texas, and to do a stoner rock version takes a lot of
guts. Has Willie Nelson heard it?
I don't know, but if he didn't approve,
I'm sure we would have heard by now. I feel very fortunate for the contact I've
had with him. We got him on our last album [2007's A Cup Of Cold Poison]
telling a joke, and getting to do so much work at his studio in Pedernales has
been such a trip for me. But the decision of whether or not to do "Whiskey
River" made me think of my dad who told me that if you're going to get into a
bar fight, always go after the biggest, baddest guy first. If you can knock him
out, then nobody else will mess with you. I see "Whiskey River" as the biggest
song we could have gone after, so if we've knocked it out, then I think we're
pretty much able to do whatever we want.
There's also your version of
The Tragically Hip's "Boots Or Hearts," which is near and dear to a lot of
Canadians.
That was actually [bassist] Ben [Richardson]'s idea. Honestly,
I didn't know anything about the Tragically Hip's music before Ben suggested we
try that song. Obviously, I knew of them and that they were an important band,
but while they were making their records, we were making Big Sugar records and
listening to reggae. None of what was popular at that time ever registered with
me. Then Ben played me "Boots Or Hearts" and I was like, a-ha, I see what all
the fuss is about now. Gord Downie's a great lyricist.
Big Sugar had
almost as devoted a following as the Hip during its heyday, which I imagine
still has those fans wondering why you relocated to Texas.
Well, it was
really something I'd been mulling over for a long time, even back to the very
start of Big Sugar. We did a gig opening for the Arc Angels [featuring the late
Stevie Ray Vaughan's rhythm section], and those guys loved us. Tommy Shannon and
Chris Layton told me that night that I should move down to Austin and we could
get something started. But I'd just signed a record deal and got a booking agent
in Canada, so that was pretty much out of the question. When I finally got the
opportunity to move there, it almost felt long overdue because of that. Everyone
there accepted us right away; we had a gig literally as soon as we got off the
plane. I'd grown up in Windsor so adjusting to an American way of life wasn't
really an issue. I'd lived for a long time in Alberta too, which is very similar
to Texas in a lot of ways. The only big difference is learning Spanish. My kids
speak it now without an English accent, which is a beautiful thing to
me.
You've still maintained a strong presence within Canada, through
producing artists like Joel Plaskett and the Trews. Do you try to bring some of
that Texas attitude to their music?
No, not intentionally. I've done some
work with them in Pedernales, just because there's a great atmosphere there. But
I see my role as a producer, especially with someone like Joel who I think is a
visionary, as being the person with the capability to turn their ideas into
reality. I'm also a songwriter first and foremost too, so I try to bring that
point of view to every project I work on. Sometimes I don't have to though; I
did the latest Nashville Pussy album, and we'd recorded twelve tracks before I
realized that Blaine [Cartwright] hadn't written any lyrics. When I told him I
was ready to do vocals, he just went into another room with a big joint and came
back a couple of hours later with some of the best, cleverest stuff I'd ever
heard. Almost the same thing happened with Warren Haynes on the new Gov't Mule
album. When you're working with guys like that who are so good and have doing it
for so long, you sometimes just have to stay out of the way.
You did
earn a reputation for having strong opinions about the Canadian music scene. Has
that changed at all since you've left?
I've actually been really excited
about a lot of the music that's been made in Canada over the past five years.
All of these bands with fifteen members playing every instrument you can think
of ― that to me is what music is all about, people just doing what feels right
and not worrying about what's considered cool. I mean, Big Sugar started out
playing jazz, which was, and still is, about the least commercial path you can
take. But that's what I was into at the time, and the band naturally evolved
from there based on what I felt like doing. Whether people consider Grady cool
or not doesn't concern me at all. This is what I want to do, and I'm having a
good time doing it.
So now that the scenario has flipped where you're
playing more in the States than in Canada, does coming back here take on more of
a special significance?
Yeah, it does. Big Sugar got to a point where we
were doing 300 dates a year, so there's always going to be that legacy there.
But I never had any expectations for Grady to just automatically pick up where
that left off, nor did I want that to happen. I wanted this band to establish
itself entirely independent of everything I'd done in the past, and I can
honestly say that I don't have any regrets.
By Jason Schneider - Exclaim! Canana's Music Authority
http://www.exclaim.ca/articles/multiarticlesub.aspx?csid1=139&csid2=946&fid1=42683
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[24 Nov 2009 | Tuesday]
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Photo by Shaun Alden
Thought I would share this for those that might not know. I saw Gordie Johnson's
name when he produced Gov't Mules last 2 records. So I get around to checking
him out and this guy makes some great music, very heavy guitar tones and raw
brutal guitar playing. Not a flash guy at all but just a real good player. The
guitar sounds just kill, lot of low end and grunt and distortion. Looks like he
uses a Garnet Herzog which is like a Champ with a dummy load and adjustable
output, and runs that into big Ampegs or Fenders. Played with a Canadian band
called Big Sugar for awhile and now has another band called Grady out of Austin
TX. Check it out if you like rock and roll guitar. Can't believe I never heard
of this dude.
By Steve K - http://www.ax84.com/
http://www.ax84.com/bbs/index.php?id=400509
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[18 Nov 2009 | Wednesday]
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Photo by Richard Estabrooks
Even though it’s been almost seven years
since he packed up his guitars and gear and moved down to Austin Texas, Canadian
born guitarist Gordie Johnson hasn’t forgotten his roots, even if one does
detect more of a southern drawl in his voice these days. In addition to getting
back his second home in Alberta a couple of times a year, he’s also been
crisscrossing our fair nation on an almost annual basis with his power trio
Grady. While Gordie and his fellow transplants, bassist Big Ben Richardson and
drummer Nina Singh, have been slowly establishing themselves south of the
border, up here in the great white north Gordie’s name certainly needs no
introduction. He fronted the influential rock / reggae band Big Sugar for
thirteen years before they finally packed in and called it a day in 2004. Now
touring across Canada to promote their latest release, and third overall, Good
As Dead, the band made a pit stop at the Cabaret club in Montreal with local
favorites The Respectables in tow.
Photo by Richard Estabrooks
The Cabaret club is an ideal place for
live music. It’s an intimate venue with good acoustics, unobstructed sight
lines, and with a maximum capacity of approximately five hundred, there isn’t a
bad seat in the house. However, on this relatively quiet Monday evening the club
couldn’t have been more than half full.
Hometown favorites The Respectables,
which have been around since the early 90’s kicked things off at precisely eight
o’clock, and for the next forty minutes proceeded to deliver an energetic set of
gritty, 70’s era Stones influenced rock. The band pretty much concentrated on
material from their most recent album Sweet Mama, which is their first English
disc in almost a decade. The intensity factor was turned up significantly about
halfway through their opening slot when they invited guitarist Paul Deslauriers
, another longtime seasoned veteran of the local blues scene, to sit in for a
few numbers. His chemistry with the other members of the band was certainly
noticeable, as he calmly took his place onstage, strapped on his Gibson Les Paul
and served up some truly electrifying slide work, which in turn seemed to
inspire the other two guitarists onstage to raise their game on tracks like
“Quick As Thieves” and “Devil In The Launderette”. His lengthy, outro solo on
“Say Yes, Say No” would almost have been worth the price of admission alone.
Gordie even got into the act by shuffling onstage at one point with a quart
bottle of Labbat’s Blue, to lend a hand for the vocal duet on “Sugar”, a song he
co-wrote with the band. All in all The Respectables turned in a pretty solid and
impressive opening set of music.
After a brief changeover of equipment
Grady hit the stage running, although the surging burst of adrenaline was
curtailed briefly when Gordie broke a string on his guitar on the first note of
the first song “Whatchwedid”. He calmly switched to the heavy artillery,
strapped on his Gibson double neck, and tore into a plethora of face melting
slide riffs as the trio delivered a savage one two punch in “Whatchwedid” and
“Whiskey River” off the new album Good As Dead. These two songs would set the
tone for the rest of the evening and serve as a warning to all who didn’t bring
earplugs (unfortunately this included myself) that this was going to be a loud
evening of in your face, shredneck metal. Without so much as a second to catch
their breath they segued straight into a searing take on “Ride Like Hell”, which
in its current state of sludge infested riff madness, bears little resemblance
to the original version recorded by Gordie’s previous band Big Sugar back in the
mid 90’s. Johnson was flanked to his left by longtime cohort ‘Big’ Ben
Richardson, who held down the bottom end superbly all night on his Thunderbird
bass, while drummer Nina Singh, who might be small in stature, certainly played
big behind her cow skull adorned double bass kit.
 Photo by Richard Estabrooks
The people who did bother to venture out
on this evening were treated to an absolutely magical evening of music. Over the
course of the ninety minute plus set the band seemed pretty intent on delivering
as much bang as they could for the $15 ticket price by cramming in as much
material as possible, so while there wasn’t a lot of room for too many extended
jams, the audience got a hearty cross section of material from Grady’s three
albums. Newer songs like “Blackass Woman”, “When The Boots Come Off” and the
title track of their most recent effort Good As Dead, were well received and
sounded great coupled with “Chilli Cold Blood”, “Bad Old Days”, “West Coast Hobo
In A Boxcar Blues” and “On The Wagon” off their sophomore release A Cup Of Cold
Poison. I think the only minor letdown or surprise if you will, of the evening
was the conspicuous absence of Big Sugar material, save for the aforementioned “
Ride Like Hell” and “Hammer In My Hand”. They also didn’t play their current
single, their amped up cover of The Tragically Hip’s “Boots Or Hearts”, although
what’s a single these days anyway. However I have to say this didn’t bother me
much in the long run and all was forgiven by the time they scorched their way
through Hound Dog Taylor’s “Gimme Back My Wig” in one of the
encores.
This was my first time seeing Grady live
and it had been ten years since I last witnessed Gordie Johnson weave his magic
onstage with Big Sugar. However, watching him and his Grady band mates up close,
and really going for broke with every song, brought back that same magical
feeling I had when I attended those late era Big Sugar shows; shows that I still
count as some of the best I’ve ever seen, by any band period. That being said,
Grady is certainly a different animal, but the man at the helm is still in my
opinion one of the most underrated musicians out there today. Gordie has always
surrounded himself with great talent and Grady is no exception. Sure the band is
a fixture on the Austin scene, and every time Gordie sets foot on Canadian soil
seems like it’s a cause for celebration, but if these guys ever hit your neck of
the woods, make sure you check them out because as a live act Grady is in class
all by themselves.
http://www.classicrockrevisited.com/concertsGrady.htm
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[14 Nov 2009 | Saturday]
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BIG SUGAR BIGWIG CHANGES ADDRESS, GENRE WITH NEW BAND
When Gordie Johnson decided to pack in Big Sugar — a band that became Can-rock
icons by condensing a whole mouthful of styles like blues and reggae into a
loud, over-the-top and uber-rock sound — many Canadian music fans were worried
that their guitar-slinging hero had left them alone in the cold. After all,
whether they were entirely your cup of tea or not, there was a time when Big
Sugar was like a ray of sunshine emanating from the radio when compared to the
utterly stale and boring state of most commercial music. But it got even
worse for Big Sugar addicts: in addition to breaking up his much-loved band,
Johnson rubbed even more salt into the wounds by ditching out of Canada for
Texas — and tossing the radio-friendly blues-rock for (gasp!) Grady, a dirty
punk rock band featuring some heavy metal riffage. But for Johnson, the
drastic change in both scenery and style was absolutely necessary for him to
continue on as a musician. “Things ran their course creatively,” says
Johnson. “Every Big Sugar record had sounded different, but everyone in the band
and the label wanted it to sound the same. I didn’t want to do that because it
was lazy and comfortable, and I had some new things to say and learn. I wanted
to keep rocking. I didn’t want to be someone who just sat on a tour bus and
waited for the call to play — I wanted to test myself. Thankfully, with Grady, I
can do that.” Johnson still retains the same old scratchy,
cough-drop-blues-voice that fans of Big Sugar sucked down like lozenges on a
minus 40 winter day — except now that voice ambles off into the desert, where
musicians like Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age fame go to die. And while
he’s still playing six-string like a man possessed, Johnson now revels in guitar
sludge and bass fuzz, pulling it all together into a tuneful mess. On
their second — and newly-released — album, entitled A Cup of Cold Poison, Grady
plow through their songs like a drunken Texan cowboy at the helm of a careening
18-wheeler. Of course, that’s not to say the band rely solely on brutish,
nitro-fuelled power: this particular cowboy has been drinking for so long that
he’s as nimble at the wheel of a big rig as a ten-year-old ballerina is up on
points. Songs like “One of These Days,” for example, provide some striking
contrast to the rest of the Grady canon, featuring as it does a slide-guitar
drawl along with a haunting, yet anthem-like, chorus that hints Johnson might
not be entirely done with the sounds of his previous work.  Noticeably
excited about the upcoming Canadian tour, the Manitoba-born Johnson is also
optimistic about the future of Grady — and his belief that his new band, despite
being based in Austin, Texas, will find a healthy Canuck fanbase. Interestingly,
Grady have recently gained a new member in Nina Singh—a drummer whose
nationality Johnson is quick to point out makes her an ironic addition to the
band. “The way she plays is really inspirational to us. We’ve learned a
lot of new things from Nina. Plus, she’s Canadian. We looked all over Texas to
find a Canadian drummer,” says Johnson with a chuckle. Grady may be a
different diet for Big Sugar fans to digest, but in the end, this new project
reaffirms the fact that Gordie Johnson is simply a compelling singer/songwriter
for those who adore him, no matter what moniker he’s currently strutting
under. “With Grady it’s so far so good,” says Johnson. “People who were
familiar with Big Sugar might compare our new stuff to the albums of the past,
but that’s human nature. I don’t think it would be a comparison with much
integrity, however. And if [those] people don’t like us now that’s fine because
there are plenty of new people.” By Chris Moran - http://planetsmag.comhttp://www.planetsmag.com/content.php?vn=6&is=8&an=541&sc=9
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[14 Nov 2009 | Saturday]
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Grady are a "heavy,
cowboy hat wearing band" based out of Austin Texas and fronted by Canadian
guitarist / vocalist Gordie Johnson. The trio, which includes fellow transplants
‘Big’ Ben Richardson on bass and Nina Singh on drums, is currently touring
Canada from coast to coast in support of their just released third full length
disc Good As Dead.
I caught up with
Gordie from the road, a few days in advance of the bands scheduled
club appearance in Montreal. He gave me the lowdown on the new album, and how
the diverse musical climate of the lone star state influenced Good As
Dead, which was tracked at Willie Nelson's studio in Spicewood TX. We also
talked a bit about his former band Big Sugar, his love of vintage Dodge
Charger's, as well as the recent casino show in Alberta where the promoter
pulled the plug on Grady after just four songs.
Ryan: Over the
course of three albums now you’ve established Grady’s so called cow-metal or
shredneck brand of rock ‘n roll, whatever you want to call it, but at the same
time I think Good As Dead is your most eclectic disc yet. You’ve
obviously added some new flavors into the gumbo this time
around.
Gordie: Yeah
it’s real reflective of our natural surroundings. It wasn’t a case of throwing
these random flavors of instruments in there, it’s just representative of the
music that we hear every day and the people that we play with on a regular
basis. It’s a little peak into our world.
Ryan: Would I be
correct in suggesting that the diverse, musical melting pot that is Austin
played a vital role in this?
Gordie:
Absolutely. Not even just Austin, but the whole state of Texas. Mexican and
tejano culture is a such a big part of the landscape there.
Ryan: You’ve
also highlighted the talents of some of fine Texas musicians as the album
features guest appearances by Dale Watson, Ethan Shaw of The Moonhangers and
Michael Ramos. You managed to corral some of your friends to come into the
studio and contribute.
Gordie: Yeah
exactly. We didn’t have to call anybody, these are all people that we know and
do shows with. We covered one of Dale’s songs (“Truckstop In La Grange”) and got
him to come and play on that. Of course we all go hear Dale play strictly
honky-tonk country every Monday night at the Continental Club. We all go and
hear him play even though his music is quite different than ours. There’s a
mutual respect, and he loves our band too, but you’d never think that to listen
to him play. That is kind of what Austin is about.
Ryan: Yeah but
you’re talking about a state like Texas which is bigger than some countries,
where you have all of these different musical styles co-existing in one
place.
Gordie: Yeah,
that’s why we’re there.
Ryan: You
recorded this at Willie Nelson’s studio. I heard you talk about the magical
songwriting vibe in that studio. How do you explain it, is there something in
the air?
Gordie: Well the
thing is you’re standing in the shadow of a giant when you’re in his place.
Willie Nelson will probably go down in history as one of the greatest American
songwriters and song stylists ever, and yet I have a key to his studio, you know
what I mean? We use the same bathroom [laughing]. It raises the level of your
game no question. I don’t know anybody who doesn’t respect Willie Nelson,
whether you’re a country artist or not it doesn’t matter. Punk rockers come in
there and when they realize they’re in Willie’s place, they love him because
he’s such a rebel. Metal dudes will come and be like “Oh yeah Willie man, he
smokes lots of weed, he’s badass!” So it doesn’t matter what style of music it
is. You bring people into the studio and they revere him so much, and also the
legends that have been in that studio, it makes you wonder if you could ever do
something as great as that and be remembered that way. They rise to the occasion
that’s for sure.
Ryan: You’re a
full blown Texan having been there for six years now, yet there’s still a
Canadian connection on a song like “Alberta Bones” and the raunchy cover of The
Tragically Hip’s “Boots or Hearts”. I understand you’ve been getting some
ribbing for not having heard much of the Hip’s material is that
true?
Gordie:
[laughing] Yeah I’d never heard any of it. It was all kind of new to me. The
whole time I lived in Canada and was in Big Sugar, all we listened to was reggae
music. I’d never listened to any Canadian rock when I was in that band. I mean
we were out rocking Canada but no one was rocking us back [laughing]. We weren’t
listening to Canadian bands; we were strictly listening to reggae. I kind of
went a whole decade where I wasn’t really aware of what else was happening out
there.
Ryan: I can
understand that. You were in your own world and just doing your
thing.
Gordie: Yeah I
was busy [laughs].
Ryan: The last
time we spoke was when Y.U So Shady had just been released independently
I believe, and when you spoke about your former band Big Sugar’s lack of
acceptance in America you mentioned that “Americans like to have things more
streamlined” and that “they like to be able to put their finger on something,
things have to be very compartmentalized”. That being said I’m not sure Grady
fits into a particular mold do you?
Gordie: Well
there are lots of bands like us back home. We’re one of a number of cowboy hat
wearing, heavy bands in Austin. My comment wasn’t so much about Americans, but
more about the American music industry at the time. Even now it’s gotten better
because the industry has sort of been blown to bits and they’re trying to
reconstruct it, but at that time you had to be categorized into what kind of
radio station could play you and what section of the record store you would be
in. It’s like you couldn’t mix the flavors on your plate, like small children
who don’t let the food touch each other, you know what I mean? [laughs] So my
comments were more from the viewpoint of the industry. No one listens
exclusively to just one thing.
Ryan: As you
mentioned you threw some pretty diverse sounds into the mix. You’ve got
accordion on one song and pedal steel guitar on another. While this diversity
might be normal for Austin, do you think that people in other parts of the
country, and even in Canada, are going to necessarily get it?
Gordie: Well I
think the difference is maybe not in the industry; it’s how much I actually care
to bend to that notion, because I don’t really care to. All you can do is be
honest and give people music that you really love, and these are all the things
that we love. If I send you a postcard from someplace, if you live in New York
and I live in Australia, why would I send you a postcard of New York? [laughing]
You can get that at home, so I’m going to send you something exotic. So this is
kind of like our postcard from Austin Texas, for the people that don’t get to
wake up there every day. This is what we dig about where we live and this is
what can happen to you.
Ryan: If I think
of most of the music that I enjoy, I like having those little curve balls thrown
at me. You know what I mean?
Gordie:
Personality counts for a lot there as well. You want to hear something that’s
individual and not like other stuff.
Ryan: Having
had a record company behind you all those years in Big Sugar, Grady has operated
more independently. You’ve got more freedom creatively but on the other hand you
have to be a lot more hands on. Are you more comfortable operating on this
level?
Gordie: I was
pretty hands on before as well. I suppose they tried to constrain me but they
weren’t really successful at it [laughs]. Obviously a heavy rock band full of
reggae musicians and a blues harmonica guy wasn’t a recipe for success [laughs],
but it sure was successful. I continue to think along the same lines in that I’m
only going to do what I like to do. This is what we’re going to be doing anyway,
whether the industry is paying attention or not. We do have a little more self
determination in terms of how much to spend on the record, and how long we spend
doing it, that’s entirely up to us. It doesn’t have to go before any kind of
committee.
Ryan: It’s
interesting that someone like Jello Biafra got involved in distributing the
band’s music because on the surface he might not appear to be your typical guy
associated with Grady.
Gordie: He’s
someone I would pick. Again it looks so exotic to everybody else I guess, but
where we live Jello and Willie, their names get uttered in the same breath.
We’ve got lots of punk rockers in Austin. Everybody in Austin is kind of a punk
rocker in their own way.
Ryan: He called
you guys the missing link between Black Flag and Junior Brown. That’s a great
quote right there.
Gordie:
[laughing]
Ryan: He got you
on his label Alternative Tentacles. Are they handling the U.S. release for
Good As Dead?
Gordie: No, not
yet anyway.
Ryan: You should
give him a call.
Gordie: Yeah I
speak to him all the time. He recently asked us to open some shows for him but
we couldn’t do them because we’re out here on our own tour, so that was kind of
a drag. We’ve got a new manager and the record label we’re with in Canada has
been really great so I think we all want to see what happens, because they do
have a US counterpart.
Ryan: Can you
tell me a bit about the casino fiasco?
Gordie:
[laughing]
Ryan: That must
have been the weirdest thing that’s ever happened to the band. Have you
ever…
Gordie: Had the
plug pulled?
Ryan: Yeah I
mean I know you guys play loud but…
Gordie: Someone
had to have known that before they hired us. Unless somebody was really that
stupid that they just looked at our pictures, saw cowboy hats and thought we
were going to sound like George Canyon, which of course we dont at all [laughs].
Just the subject matter of the songs themselves, even if we played them with
drinking straws, there was no amount of making it quiet that would have made it
ok with the casino crowd. The funny thing was there was a crowd to see us and
the person who fired us, fired us over the phone, she wasn’t even there. They
weren’t making any kind of sound judgment at all, it was a knee jerk reaction to
the one gambler who left the black jack table.
Ryan: Did you
get a chance to give them a hearty dose of “Blackass Woman”?
Gordie: I think
it was during “Blackass Woman” or shortly thereafter that the phone was handed
to us [laughing]. Being in a casino we all had bets on how long the set was
going to last anyway [laughs]. I think Big Ben won the bet.
Ryan: When you
went out there and saw the stage right in the corner on the floor of the casino,
you had to have second thoughts.
Gordie: It was
so badly planned.
Ryan: Well I
guess that was Grady’s Spinal Tap moment right there.
Gordie: We went
on the radio that day and the station was hyping the show and giving away
tickets. Everyone from the station was at the gig looking just dumfounded. All
the Dj’s mouths were open and wondering what had happened.
Ryan: Were you
laughing at the absurdity of the whole situation?
Gordie: I had to
laugh at the absurdity of it. I wasn’t about to fight or get into a screaming
match about it. We were real polite about it. We were paid; we had already
eaten, so we were like “Ok four songs are plenty”. So off we went. However, I
took a guitar and a bottle of tequila to the radio station I sat in there for a
few hours and got to have my rebuttal on the air, which then caused an even
bigger shit storm. As it turned out the casino was one of their major ad buyers
[laughing]. When the boss got in the office the next day he freaked, so
everybody came out a winner there [laughing].
Ryan: Last
question for you Gordie. Did you ever bring your Charger down to Texas from
Alberta?
Gordie: Oh I’ve
got one there as well [laughs].
Ryan: So you
still divide your time between the two places?
Gordie: A little
bit. I do come up in the summer to the farm, and Christmas as well. My ’70 has
stayed in Alberta, but my ’66 lives in Austin.
Ryan: That must
be a sweet ride.
Gordie: It’s
pretty awesome. We’ve got a pretty good R.V out here that has most of the
comforts of home, minus the Mexican food and the warm weather.
Ryan: You picked
a good time to tour across Canada. I hope you brought your tuque
buddy!
Gordie: Oh shit
I’m ready. So far we haven’t seen any snow. I know that isn’t going to last but
it’s just been at our heels the whole tour. All the towns we’ve played so far
have just been dumped on.
Ryan: Looking
forward to seeing you here in Montreal. I’ll be willing to bet that you do more
than four songs here.
Gordie: I’m
pretty sure they’re tough enough [laughs]. Good talking to you.
By Ryan
Sparks - http://classicrockrevisited.com
http://www.classicrockrevisited.com/interviewsGrady.htm
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[06 Nov 2009 | Friday]
|
 Photo by Matt Hartwick
The Merchant Tap
House’s Speaker System got put to the test as Grady and The Spades took
to the stage Halloween night.
This was probably
the best show that I have watched from the Spades and Grady, and I can’t
even count how many times that I have seen The Spades play. This was the
sixth show that I have seen Grady play, to date I haven’t missed a Grady
show since they have started to play Kingston.
The Halloween costume
of the night wasn’t too shabby. If I had to award a winner of the best
costume it would definitely go to all of the waitress that worked at the
Merchant Tap House, if you were not there then you missed out, even Gordy
at some points couldn’t take his eyes off the waitress’s either.
First up were The
Spades, this is the second time in Kingston that they have supported Grady.
The last time was a few months ago at Barnone. The Spades are partially
out supporting their new EP that is now available at their shows. If you
have been to a Spades show recently then you have probably heard all of
the songs off the EP. The Spades played their usual set of songs but in
a shorter form then normal. When I first got to The Merchant I noticed
that Grady already had their gear setup on stage so I was surprised that
they were able to cram The Spades on the stage as well. There wasn’t very
much left at all James probably had a radius of about three feet. Chachi
was pretty much stuck in one spot behind his keyboard and pedals. The Spades
added a new background “Instrument” on stage with them which had
a slight impact on their songs. It is a antenna that is wired up and when
they put their hands close to the antenna it gives off a small feedback
sound. This is the first time that I have ever seen this done before, James
also had a small slide guitar that he used as well. The guys came to the
stage wearing different masks(see the pics for the masks). It only took
a couple of songs before they were overheated from the masks and took them
off. After about the second song they had the entire place up and on the
floor. It didn’t take long for people to be jostling for a better place
in front of the stage. My favourite song from the new Ep that they played
was Stanley Kubrick, everyone knows or should know that hearing live music
is better live then the album version. When The Spades play this song live
it becomes a total new song compared to the album, Stanley Kubrick live
just destroys the album version of the song. I found that the song was
a lot heavier live and you really pick up the energy that is written into
the song as well.
By this time I was
pumped for Grady to come to the stage mostly because at the Merchant you
feel as if you are on the stage with any band that plays there. Once The
Spades backed up the rest of their gear I made my move and stood right
in front of the stage and didn’t move from the spot until the end of the
night. As I said before this was the best Grady show that I have seen yet.
They played songs spanning all three of their albums, they also included
a couple of covers including “Groundhog Day”, and Their version of Boots
Or Hearts and also slipped in a couple Big Sugar songs as well during the
encore. Grady Started off the night playing Whatchewdid and followed with
Whiskey River. Blackass Woman was introduced in a different way this time
however, Gordie introduced the song by saying that there wasn’t anybody
dressed as his favourite costume. There was a couple of times proved that
I was pretty much on the stage with Grady because Big Ben had to lift his
bass and play it over my head a couple of times (which to me was a awesome
experience!!). This was also the first Grady show where I could still hear
after their show. I will never forget my first run in with Gordie in Big
Sugar I couldn’t hear for two days. I mean I had ringing in my ears for
two entire days. But this time I was prepared with my ear plugs but the
amperage was low enough that I didn’t need to use them. In addition
to their Skull which they keep on the front of Nina’s drum set they have
added a smoke machine that has a tube wired up into the skull and Nina
has a button to run the smoke machine. At the back of the stage they added
their Candy Skull Banner to the back of the stage. Every time that I see
Grady Gordie never seems to bring the same guitar rack with him. There
are new guitars that I have never seen before and ones that he didn’t bring
along that I was looking forward in seeing. My favourite guitar that I
used to like watching him play the most was his White double neck that
has the Canadian Flag taped to the back of it. During “Diggin
A Hole” Nina sung pretty much all of Sharp Dressed Man in the middle of
the song, which got the crowd riled up pretty good. The break that Grady
also puts near the ending of the song still gets people thinking that it
is the end of the song every time that they do it. For the first time that
I can remember Grady played Dear Mr. Fantasy to finish out their show.
Again this was the best Grady show that I have been to and this was my
sixth Grady show.
http://www.partyinkingston.com/music/streetbuzz/2009-11-03.html
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[06 Nov 2009 | Friday]
|
Austin, Texas blues rockers Grady are currently traversing Canada, promoting
their newest record Good As Dead and are hitting Moncton and Fredericton clubs
with the hopes of blowing out your eardrums.
The band has rightfully earned their stripes with leader Gordie Johnson's
powerful mastery of the electric guitar being front and centre. For a trio,
these guys (and girl) make a whole lotta noise.
Canadian fans will recall Johnson as the guitarist-singer from Canadian band
Big Sugar. After their demise approximately seven years ago, Johnson relocated
to Austin with the hopes of inspiration striking him.
"I wasn't running away from Canada by any means. I was moving towards new
inspiration and a culture and way of life that seemed a little more familiar to
me for whatever reason. I felt more at home in those surroundings," Johnson
says.
The benefit of relocation offered Johnson the chance to pursue creative
opportunities that might not have come his way had he stayed in Canada.
"Austin offers much in the way of creative opportunities," he affirms. "The
business side, not so much," he laughs.
"And it was the exact opposite in Canada; business opportunities were ripe
while the creative ones weren't so much so. At the end of the day, it is hard to
separate the two worlds though."
In addition to his own work as a musician, Johnson has been filling his
schedule with a slate of production work for bands and artists including Joel
Plaskett, The Respectables and The Trews, among many others.
"In a big way, I feel like the recording studio is one big instrument. I see
production work as a natural extension of what I do otherwise."
Johnson oversaw the recording and production aspects of Grady's new record,
which was recorded at Willie Nelson's Pedernales Studio in Austin. Johnson
actually elects to record many of the bands he works with there. And there's a
simple reason for it:
"The studio is tucked into the hill, in the country away from everything. The
only distraction to be had is that of the great American music has walked
through the place," Johnson says. "Willie's platinum records hang on the walls
there and when bands realize that they are walking in the shadow of Willie
Nelson, they tend to step up their game.
"I swear the studio is inspirationally haunted though," he says. "People come
in and if they can't quite find the right part or whatever for their song,
they'll find it in that place ... I saw Warren Haynes disappear into the dark
reaches of the studio and come back with a book full of songs. It's really
something to be a part of."
Grady will be playing Nicky Zee's in Fredericton on Thursday November 12 and
at the Manhattan in Moncton on Friday November 13.
Bring your earplugs. You've been warned.
By Ken Kelly - here, New Brunswick's Urban Voice
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[06 Nov 2009 | Friday]
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A blast of thundering drum beats, rumbling guitar chords and howling vocals will
shake the walls of Nicky Zee's next week as cowboy-metal kings Grady return to
Fredericton.
Former Big Sugar frontman Gordie Johnson, who sings, plays guitar and is the
chief songwriter in Grady, said the band is touring in support of its new album,
Good As Dead.
He said they're having fun playing the new material in front of
audiences.
"This record really sums us up pretty accurately," he said.
"It's the ongoing development of our sound and it's the stylistic statement
we wanted to make. I think the first two records were evolutionary records and
this one is kind of like, 'We're home. We're good. This is us.''
Songs like Whatchewdid and Alberta Bones capture the spirit of boozy barrooms
across Texas, while new takes on Willie Nelson's Whiskey River and The
Tragically Hip's campfire classic Boots or Hearts are pure fun.
Johnson said Grady's version of Boots or Hearts found its way onto the album
after an impromptu jam session in the studio.
"I'd never heard the song before," he said. "Our bass player (Big Ben
Richardson) brought it to the studio and was like, 'Hey, what do you think of
this song?' I hadn't heard a lot of Tragically Hip songs before, so I was like,
'Why don't you play me one?' and I thought that sounded really cool. I thought
we could make that into a Grady song."
He said living in Austin, Texas gives him access to some of the best music
happening today and allows him to record and produce albums by other artists at
the famous Pedernales recording studio - a place owned by Nelson.
"I love bringing artists into that studio. Willie Nelson's studio has a
spell," he said.
"When artists get in there, they get so inspired and it brings the best out
of you. I've seen that happen to every artist I bring in that place."
By Adam Bowie - The Daily Gleaner
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[04 Nov 2009 | Wednesday]
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Due to unforseen circumstances Grady has regretfully had to cancel our show at The Tudor Lounge in Buffalo tonight (Nov 4). We apologize to our Buffalo fans for the inconvenience and hope to reschedule the show in the spring, but want to reassure everybody that the rest of the tour is continuing unabated.
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