Glad Tidings

Just back from New Haven Conn. where I was honored to play last night a full set of my 30's Chinese pop arrangements from my 2001 album "The Edge of Heaven" after a farewell dinner for my good friend Nancy Chapman, the director of the Yale-China Association for the last 14 years, who is leaving Yale and decamping with her Chinese husband to Hong Kong soon...

Gary pays tribute to Nancy Chapman, head of the Yale-China Association for fourteen years, by playing at her request his celebrated album "The Edge of Heaven--Gary Lucas Plays Mid-Century Chinese Pop", Yale Law School Courtyard, New Haven Conn, 6/13/08

Gary and Ernie Brooks rock out at Yale at the Farewell Dinner for Nancy Chapman, Departing Head of the Yale-China Association, Yale Law School Courtyard, New Haven Conn. 6/13/08

Gary Lucas is the featured performer at the Farewell Dinner for Nancy Chapman, Departing Head of the Yale-China Association, Yale University, New Haven Conn., 6/13/08

Gary and Ernie Brooks rock out at Yale at the Farewell Dinner for Nancy Chapman, Departing Head of the Yale-China Association, Yale Law School Courtyard, New Haven Conn. 6/13/08

Gary with his 1928 National steel guitar performing "Songstress on the Edge of Heaven", Yale University, New Haven Conn., 6/13/08

Gary Lucas with members of the Yale-China Association student body, Yale University, New Haven, Conn. 6/13/08

Gary Lucas and Ernie Brooks lift the bandstand, Yale University, New Haven Conn. 6/13/08

Gary and Ernie tear down the walls, Yale University, New Haven Conn. 6/13/08

Gary and Ernie synchro system, Yale University, 6/13/08

Gary greets his old friend Nancy Chapman at the conclusion of his set honoring Nancy's 14 years as head of the Yale-China Association, Yale University, New Haven Conn. 6/13/08

photos by Michelle Averitt | Click to enlarge

The setting was the Yale Law School courtyard, on a beautiful, moonlit, warm summer's night--and it was a dream gig all the way around, thanks to ace sound man John Young (who plays in the excellent indie band Spottiswoode and his Enemies), who sent these crystalline melodies (a strange and beautiful amalgam of Tin Pin Alley, jazz and blues, and traditional Chinese motifs) skirling across the greensward in the fading twilight (I got a wonderful natural reverb bounce off the imposing Gothic Revival Yale Law School buildings which encircled me and the glittering and elegant crowd of Nancy's friends and colleagues, including the stately white-haired former US Ambassador to China James R. Lilley who was in Beijing during the Tienanmen Square crisis, and who in his after dinner remarks praising Nancy also praised the backdoor diplomacy of private organizations such as Yale-China for keeping Sino-American relations on a firm and even keel over many years)...the Old Boy and Girl network was out in force, and so I'd driven specifically up there with Harvard man Ernie Brooks to help swell the ranks, Ernie's uncle Preston Schoyer was actually one of the early directors of Yale-China, and in fact knew Nancy, as did Ernie's late mom, who was a trustee of Yale-China for years--and Ernie joined me on bass for a couple numbers from that album and a couple of tunes from our Gods and Monsters songbook. I received a very gracious introduction from Nancy at the dinner, and very much enjoyed meeting her lovely friends and colleagues and students (especially a young student guy from Hong Kong whom I sat next to at the dinner and who it turned out was a big fan and was quite familiar with much of my oeuvre)...special thanks to Trudy Loo for all logistical help for planning this gala event for Nancy Chapman...

I absolutely loved playing these art-deco 30's Chinese songs again--little jewels, little knippels, all of them-- especially in such a beautiful locale, it was one of the best gigs I've played in years--and I received an extremely warm reception from the crowd, many of whom had grown up with these songs in China. Very best wishes to Nancy Chapman and her family, and I thank her so so much for bringing me back to this gorgeous music again after a hiatus of a few years performing it in total in a concert setting--music which I will be performing more of again hopefully very soon, please keep checking my website for further details...

Just back from Europe the day before, a wonderful trip indeed, the Jeff Buckley Tribute at the Hard Rock in Paris on June 3rd went off like a charm, the place was packed with fans who'd come from far and wide for the event, and of course, excellent musicians from all over world that hard-working organizer Danielle Schuppert had invited there to pay homage to this fantastic legendary musician, including Jeff's bassist Mick Grondahl who flew in from Copenhagen, and cool new friends Claudia Macori from Italy, Glasgow's Billy Bates, Jonah Serene (Patt and Matt from London), Massimilliano Lalli from Italy, Andy McKay from London (who stepped up to the plate to belt out a fantastic "Hymne a L'Amour" with me to pinch-hit for the lovely Elli Medeiros, who was so great in rehearsal the day before at Campus Studios--thanks Gilles Ypremian and Jean-Francois Paubros for hooking that up for me--but alas had come down with a bad flu the day of the gig), and the excellent K.E.V.Y.N from Paris and his band...my friend Ninet Tayeb had flown in specially from Israel for the tribute, and our version of "Mojo Pin", with Mick and his drummer, brought the house down...the lovely Hoody Goody (Sophia Queret) did an estimable version of "Dink's Song" with me, and my friends the filmmakers Ania Friendorf and Jerome de Missolz were there independently filming highlights (Jerome is the French director who has been working on a tv documentary for the Arte Channel entitled "Wild Thing", and who was in NYC earlier this spring and filmed me playing and speaking up at Gibson before heading off to shoot Iggy Pop in Miami for the same documentary)...speaking of interviews, the day before I flew over to Paris from NYC I was interviewed at the Knitting Factory by Yaron Ben-Ami of the European Jewish Congress for a new website they are starting aimed at young Jewish people, Yaron told me that I was the first interviewee he had sought for this new site as has for years been a tremendous fan of my "Busy Being Born" album on Tzadik (a Jewish-themed album for young people), and so had tracked me down (blush blush)...

One of the absolute highlights of my Paris sojourn was collaborating with Yael Naim on new songs in her flat near the Bastille where much of her amazing hit album was recorded on home studio equipment--and so effortless it was, and so phenomenal the results!

I approached these sessions the same way I worked with Jeff Buckley, providing Yael with finished guitar instrumentals for her to embellish with her own lyrics and melodies--and Yael proved to be one of the most creative partners I've ever worked with since writing with Jeff--so adept, so intuitively able to create beautiful and memorable parts sparked off my music, she flawlessly improvised memorable lyrics and multiple vocal parts right on the spot, before my astonished eyes (and ears)...
and I cannot wait for you, dear readers, to hear our new songs!

Caroline absolutely flipped out when I played them for her shortly after I got home two days ago--as did my old friend Anne Warin, a wonderful Parisien singer in her own right who first introduced me to Yael back in NYC in the late 90's (the two of them were then starring all over France in the traveling musical "Les Dix Commandments"), and who showed up at Yael's flat on her motorbike right as Yael was singlehandedly mixing down our tracks...Anne gave me a ride on the back of her bike through the beautiful misty Parisien streets later that night around 2am, and we kept getting lost, and it took us an hour to find Menilmontant-- but I didn't care, it was a lovely midsummer night's dream, and I was buzzing--and am still buzzing-- from my mystic collaboration with Yael earlier that evening--there was real magic afoot that night...

I'm playing a big Gods and Monsters gala concert with special guests this Friday June 20th (my birthday! shhhhhh) at the Bowery Poetry Club at 10pm...and then I'm sitting in with Yael and her guy David Donatien and their band at Central Park Summerstage free concert a week from Sunday night on June 22nd, and if you're in the NYC area please come on down and check it out, Yael is an incredibly vivacious, engaging performer, who exudes sheer happiness in the joy of being alive...opening is Piers Faccini, another friend, and another excellent singer/songwriter I've written about previously...

"God is Alive, Magic is Afoot"

xxLove

Gary