Dianne Reeves
By Alex Teitz
Grammy winner Dianne Reeves has a heart of gold and a deep understanding of music. Originally from Detroit, Reeves has established herself in Denver, and tours worldwide. Her 2000 Blue Note release, In the Moment, brought her a Grammy. Prior to publication, Reeves was nominated for another Grammy for her 2001 release, The Calling: A Celebration of Sarah Vaughan. The Calling was recorded in a short amount of time, and reunited Reeves with George Duke and Billy Childs. FEMMUSIC was honored to have a few minutes to speak with Reeves. For more information visit www.DianneReeves.com
FEMMUSIC: Can you describe your songwriting technique?
DR: A lot of times the music is the first thing that happens, and I’ll write the music, then a lot of times what I’ll do, cause the lyrics are sometimes the hardest, I’ll have it on a CD or a tape over and over just repeating, and just like live with it until the lyrics start to come. I’ll have a general idea. The music will usually say what it’s about but then it’s just a matter of trying to craft the lyrics.
FEMMUSIC: What was the best experience making The Calling?
DR: I think the best experience was being surrounded by friends that made it a celebration. All the musicians, including the string players, interestingly enough, they came in to do it, they really didn’t know what the project was but one of those strings players said, “This reminds me of projects that we did with Sarah Vaughan.” And we just laughed and said, “Well this is dedicated to her.” So everybody gave me over a hundred percent and they made it into a celebration so it was really, really hard to leave the studio when it was over.
FEMMUSIC: What was the biggest challenge making The Calling?
DR: I think the preparation of all of the music so that the arrangements were perfect so that we could into the studio and just do this record in four days.
FEMMUSIC: How was it working with George Duke again on this project?
DR: He was definitely the captain and pilot of the ship. (laughing) He’s so great to work with because you always want to believe that you have the utmost faith in your captain. And everybody did. It’s a very, very secure and easy feeling working with him.
FEMMUSIC: The other person you worked with on this was Billy Childs?
DR: Well Billy and I go back a long way. We kind of came up together musically in bands and worked together since we were twenty years old. And working with him it was like, you don’t even have to speak English, you can kind of (laughing) say, “Oh yeah. That’s cool.” You don’t even have to speak in a way that anybody else would ever be able to interpret it, and that’s because we know each other so well. It was fun because sometimes I would be on the road, and I would get a call. I’d be walking down the streets of New York and he’d be at his piano playing a part that he had, and I’d be, “Yeah. Okay.I feel that. I see…but maybe we could do this, and I was hearing more of this whole thing…” It was a very organic process, but I think the only reason it could have been done like this is because we know each other so well.
FEMMUSIC: What one thing would you like to change about the music industry?
DR: While there are some artists who really need someone to help them find their voice, I would just hope the ones that do really know who they are. Could have the freedom to express it. As well as an audience or radio format that would embrace, you know, this kind of uniqueness.
I guess in a nutshell I wish that there was music without any boundaries.
FEMMUSIC: As a woman in the music industry, have you been discriminated against?
DR: Sometimes indirectly. Sometimes there are certain minds that sometimes…with leading my own bands and so forth I’ve had the pleasure of working with great musicians who really respect my leadership which is good. But I’ve been in situations where people don’t know me, and look at me like just “the chick singer.” And would have to quickly let them know that I know what I’m talking about.
There are a lot of things in life that you don’t even know that it’s a kind of discrimination because of the way you view things. For me, I’ve always taken the high road and dealt with things as they come.
FEMMUSIC: What advice would you give to an artist just starting out?
DR: To work diligently on their artistry. To really cultivate it. To really be strong in their own expression and fight for their own expression.
FEMMUSIC: My final question is, now that The Calling has been out for a while, what’s next?
DR: You know, there are a lot of things that I want to do. Right now I’ve just formed a new group and we’re going to go out and experiment a little bit. And I think I could better answer that in about six months.