INTERVIEW: Taylor Barton enters the ‘House of Light’
Photo: Taylor Barton’s new album is called House of Light. Photo courtesy of the artist / Provided by KG Music Press with permission.
Singer-songwriter Taylor Barton has had a successful career bringing her soulful acoustic music to numerous audience members. Her efforts have paid off with several well-regarded projects, including her new album, House of Light.
The recording features Barton and her frequent collaborator, husband GE Smith, plus Tony Shanahan (producer as well), Sarah Jarosz, Tom Brislin, Bill DeBrew, Josh Dion and Jenni Muldaur. The songs offer a tapestry of emotions and thoughts centered on Barton’s relationship with her mother, all delicately interwoven with skill and beauty.
Several singles off the album have tracked well online. Whether it’s “Chaos” or “Lost Horizon,” Barton’s songs seem to have touched a nerve in her listening public.
In addition to recording and playing music, Barton is also the producer of GE Smith’s Portraits, based in East Hampton, New York. The project features rare couplings of musicians in the intimate venue of Guild Hall; past performers have included the Avett Brothers, Roger Waters, Carter Burwell, Ethan Hawke, the Bacon Brothers and Billy Squire, among many others. She met Smith while he was playing in the Saturday Night Live house band, and together they formed the independent label Green Mirror Corp.
Her upcoming concerts include gigs at City Winery in Boston (March 15); the Katherine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center in Old Saybrook, Connecticut (March 16); and Narrow Center for the Arts in Fall River, Massachusetts (April 12). On all dates she is opening for Masters of the Telecasters.
Recently Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Barton about her musical career. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
What inspired your new album, House of Light?
I needed a secret place to funnel my own thoughts, devastation and confusion around my mother’s death. We had a very complicated, difficult relationship, and while she was alive I tried, in vain, my whole life to connect to her. She was unreachable, and I was crushed when she died, knowing I would never receive her love that I so perversely desired.
Mixed in the record was a reconciliation with the loss of the state of Maryland (where I grew up), which I no longer had ties to, once my mother died. (Many songs have metaphors of horses, as my grandfather was a steeplechase rider, and I spent a lot of time around hunts and riders.)
It was like being an emotional refugee while writing this record. My world was turned upside down. No more home to go to, so very hard to dig out from, but my songwriting and music guided me through. And ultimately I found ‘my house of light’ right inside my heart.
What’s it like to collaborate with your husband and fellow guitarist GE Smith?
GE is the most consummate musician, and he knows just how to arrange, elevate and furnish the correct tones and tenor for any songwriter. He is magic. The man is so finely tuned, he can create subtle atmosphere, with long electric chords, or cut it up, better than any axeman out there. He is very supportive of the songwriting process, never giving up on a song that others might toss. I have noticed when he sleeps, he twitches, always hearing music whether awake or asleep. Anyone is lucky to have him by their side.
When did you first fall in love with music?
When I was 5 or 6, my father had a massive record collection, and after work we would dance to Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole, Herb Albert and the Tijuana Brass, or Johnny Mercer. I segued to The Doors, The Rolling Stones, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young. These were my prophets. I bought every record from 1969 to 1979 and lined them in alphabetical order along our third floor. I loved and still love music! There is always music playing in the Smith household!
How was Tony Shanahan as a producer?
Tony Shanahan is the greatest as a producer. He knew how to strip down a song, and I credit him with finding the sweet spot in my voice. He is so honest and is full of integrity, and won’t let me get away with lame lyrics or lame deliveries. Plus he is a gorgeous guitar player, singer and bass player. He also tells the best of the Irish jokes and many other great stories.
What can your fans expect at the City Winery show?
A very intimate set with two people who are very intertwined. GE, my sideman, will join me. … We will play new songs from House of Light. We bring a lot of history to the stage, and cumulatively we weave a musical tapestry of all that has transpired in an industry that obliterates artistry for celebrity — raw, confessional, naked and honest.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Taylor Barton’s new album is House of Light. Click here for more information.
