Basic Folk

• John Hiatt is Actually Not Scared to Talk about His Feelings (REISSUE), ep. 313

  (Editor’s Note: Welcome to our Reissue series! For the next several weeks, Basic Folk is digging back into the archives and reposting some of our favorite episodes alongside new introductions commenting on what it’s like to listen back. Enjoy!)This episode featuring Cindy Howes interviewing John Hiatt originally posted on August 5, 2021.In 2021, John Hiatt released 'Leftover Feelings' (which is still his latest album, by the way), a collab with bluegrass great Jerry Douglas as producer and his band as backup. Hiatt's digging into some serious past memories for these songs, which include one about his older brother, Michael. Michael died by suicide when John was only 9 and it's only recently that he chose to write about the experience with the track, “Light of the Burning Sun.” Jerry knew that the material was very serious and approached it lovingly with John and band. On Basic Folk, John expands on his grief and talks about giving himself the time and space to mourn. We also chat about the importance of radio in John's young life: he would listen to WLAC from Nashville as a kid around 11 years old. There was a gospel show on Sunday night and the station would go to a different Black church every week to broadcast services. As
Hiatt has said, “Those gospel shows used to scare the shit out of me." That opened his world to a completely different way to relate to music, in terms of faith.Hiatt picked up the guitar at 11 years old, partially to cope with the trauma resulting from being an overweight child. This was especially hard because he was a bigger kid at a time when it was rare for a child to be heavier. He discusses how music and, surprisingly, how drugs and alcohol helped him overcome his weight issue. Then, of course, the drugs and alcohol led him to new problems in his adult years, requiring overcoming that addiction to live a sober life. John also talks about his kids, which includes musician Lilly Hiatt. Lilly said in an interview once, “I was crying over the fact that my career seemed stalled and I wasn’t the flavor of the month, and dad said, 'Lilly, we will never be hip. We’re just not those people.'”John Hiatt has been a steadfast songwriter since the '70s who's written many well loved songs – like "Have a Little Faith in Me," "Cry Love," and, of course, "Thing Called Love." The writing on 'Leftover Feelings' spans several decades and confronts some of his most vulnerable feelings. To be able to talk to John Hiatt about this project was a sincere privilege and we hope you enjoy!Follow Basic Folk on social media: https://basicfolk.bio.link/Sign up for Basic Folk's newsletter: https://bit.ly/basicfolknewsHelp produce Basic Folk by contributing: https://basicfolk.com/donate/Interested in sponsoring us? Contact BGS: https://bit.ly/sponsorBGSpodsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

  --------  

  51:06
• Anaïs Mitchell: 2019 Pre-Broadway interview on Hadestown, Lamb Rearing, and Untangling Third Wave Feminism (REISSUE), ep. 312

  (Editor’s Note: Welcome to our Reissue series! For the next several weeks, Basic Folk is digging back into the archives and reposting some of our favorite episodes alongside new introductions commenting on what it’s like to listen back. Enjoy!)Listening back, I feel like this 2018 interview with Anaïs Mitchell holds up. Originally published on January 10, 2019, 'Hadestown' was about to debut on Broadway, the pandemic was still over a year away, and we were young and full of autumn. Our Basic Folk interview includes a really interesting discussion about feminism (with just one squeamish reference to fourth-wave being about “non-binary” from yours truly. Eeek!). Anaïs talks about her childhood on a sheep farm in Vermont. She unpacks her love for and loyalty in her collaborations and the mystical way she found her visual artist (Peter Nevins) for 'Hadestown.'We also talk about 'Hadestown' receiving some “viral” attention in 2016, thanks to a Tr*mp campaign promise to build a wall on the southern border. People latched onto her 2006-penned song, “Why We Build the Wall,” which is one of the pinnacle tracks from her Tony Award-winning Broadway musical. Anaïs opens up about how she met her husband, Noah Hahn, and her early musical beginnings in Boston at Club Passim.This episode was recorded just as 'Hadestown' was set to open at the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway in March 2019. This was also a year before her band, Bonny Light Horseman, would release their debut album. I’m proud of our conversation, which includes some chiming in from Anaïs’ guitarist Austin Nevins, who was on tour with her at the time of the recording. We three are old friends and we were trying to record the interview and hang out at the same time. I’ll leave it up to you to decide if we succeeded!Follow Basic Folk on social media: https://basicfolk.bio.link/  Sign up for Basic Folk's newsletter: https://bit.ly/basicfolknews  Help produce Basic Folk by contributing: https://basicfolk.com/donate/ Interested in sponsoring us? Contact BGS: https://bit.ly/sponsorBGSpods Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

  --------  

  51:22
• Morgan Toney on Circles, Elders, and Phil Collins, ep. 311

  Circles have played a huge role in fiddler and singer Morgan Toney's life thus far: from drum circles, to talking circles, to the Earth itself (a circle!). In our Basic Folk conversation, Morgan talks about his L'nu (also known as Mi'kmaq) heritage and growing up on what's now called Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, where his ancestors have lived since time immemorial. He elaborates on the significance of the terms 'Mi'kmaq' and 'Nu,' explaining the shift in terminology among his people. As a teenager, he discovered his Indigenous heritage and cultural roots from his elders after he moved to Wagmatcook (a First Nations reserve) and learned about how the power of music could shape his life. He shares the story of first hearing Phil Collins at his uncle's house after school, which inspired him to take up the drums. He soon discovered First Nations drumming by directly learning the songs from elders in talking circles. Morgan also talks about his transition from a shy teenager to a confident musician deeply immersed in both Mi'kmaq and Celtic musical traditions, creating a unique fusion which Morgan calls "Mi'kmaltic."We also talk about Morgan's emotional connection to his community and the importance of music in rediscovering and celebrating his Indigenous heritage. He recounts how his exposure to traditional Mi'kmaq songs and ceremonies as a teenager was a transformative experience that reignited his cultural pride; in music and in our conversation Morgan pays homage to his family members, especially his elders, who played pivotal roles in nurturing his musical talents and helping him embrace his cultural identity. Finally, Morgan reflects on his musical collaborations, including his close partnership with producer Keith Mullins, and the creation of his new album, 'Heal the Divide.' He further explains the innovative process of blending Mi'kmaq and Celtic musical elements, the album's thematic focus on community and healing, and his aspirations to inspire the younger generation of his community. This was truly an inspiring conversation exploring the intersections of culture, history, and music with a very special musician!Follow Basic Folk on social media: https://basicfolk.bio.link/Sign up for Basic Folk's newsletter: https://bit.ly/basicfolknewsHelp produce Basic Folk by contributing: https://basicfolk.com/donate/Interested in sponsoring us? Contact BGS: https://bit.ly/sponsorBGSpodsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

  --------  

  1:00:58
• Kris Delmhorst: Inching Forward through Sleepless Nights, ep. 310

  Kris Delmhorst is not a good sleeper. The Western Massachusetts songwriter is usually awake from 2 or 3 am to about 4 or 5am. Sometimes it feels nice and floaty, but other times she is wide awake worrying about anything her brain can get a hold of. This is similar to a feeling with which she ended her tenth record, 'Ghosts in the Garden,' with the song "Something to Show." Thankfully, she set us straight and explained that, indeed, the track is a hopeful prayer that she will have something to show for all the questioning, trying, pushing through, and general work that she and fellow humans are doing. Too bad it can't happen in the daylight hours. In our conversation for Basic Folk, we talk about this and the other themes and songs on the new album, like the unbearable emotional density of summer ending, ambient restlessness during destruction, carrying unresolved loves, and, of course, death.Kris experienced a great loss in 2021 with the death of her dear friend and collaborator Billy Conway. Her husband, Jeffrey Foucault, memorialized Billy in his 2024 album, 'The Universal Fire,' which he called "a working wake" for their friend. He appeared on Basic Folk and spoke at length about Billy and what he meant to the Boston music community. I encourage you to listen to that conversation and Jeff's record. Kris had known Billy for many decades, he produced a couple of her early albums and had been a huge presence in her life. The title track, "Ghosts in the Garden," addresses Billy's death, which sounds like it was a beautiful one, something that not very many people experience. He was surrounded by a houseful of friends and family celebrating his life and keeping him company up until the moment he passed.There are many types of ghosts on the album: lost loves and past mistakes, roads not taken, and our possible futures too. It was recorded at Great Northern Sound in rural Maine, which is inside an 1800s farmhouse that must keep its own ghosts. Kris, a great lover of collaboration, brings in many guest vocalists like Rose Cousins, Anaïs Mitchell, Ana Egge, Taylor Ashton, Rachel Baiman, Anna Tivel, and her husband, Jeffrey. I was surprised to learn that she had not actually planned for any guest vocalists. She made the decision, recorded some reference mixes in Maine, and listened on the drive home. She was startled to discover that she heard each guest vocalist on the track with her in the car, which prompted her to write some emails and get them all on the record. The songs want what the songs want, so you better give it to them or else... more ghosts?Follow Basic Folk on social media: https://basicfolk.bio.link/  Sign up for Basic Folk's newsletter: https://bit.ly/basicfolknews  Help produce Basic Folk by contributing: https://basicfolk.com/donate/ Interested in sponsoring us? Contact BGS: https://bit.ly/sponsorBGSpods Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

  --------  

  52:20
• Sara Watkins on I'm With Her's Witchy AF New Record, ep. 309

  Sara Watkins joins Basic Folk to talk about 'Wild and Clear and Blue,' the new album from I'm With Her, her band with Sarah Jarosz and Aoife O'Donovan. The new LP was inspired by looking back on your life in order to move forward, with a very witchy manner of speaking that encompasses the ancient, mysterious, and spiritual. Sara shares insights into the unique telepathic connection they feel within the band, which was palpable from their first public appearance in 2014. Watkins is at it again with her incredible vocal performances on this album, bringing to mind Fiona Apple – especially on the "Sisters of the Night Watch."A longtime Angeleno, Sara gets into the meaning of another song, “Standing on the Fault Line,” which finds her reconsidering what’s safe, what’s permanent, and what is essential in order to remain in California. She also explains how the group's tight-knit sisterhood and collaborative efforts have strengthened over the years. Elsewhere, we also talk about the meaning of a "supergroup" versus a cohesive band, artistic processes, and how personal history and motherhood have impacted their music. Additionally, we explore the challenges of balancing life on tour, the importance of small talk, the necessity of doing music as a hobby for personal fulfillment, and the massive annual band party that inspired "Year After Year." Thanks to Sara, who you might also know from Nickel Creek and The Watkins Family Hour!!Follow Basic Folk on social media: https://basicfolk.bio.link/Sign up for Basic Folk's newsletter: https://bit.ly/basicfolknewsHelp produce Basic Folk by contributing: https://basicfolk.com/donate/Interested in sponsoring us? Contact BGS: https://bit.ly/sponsorBGSpodsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

  --------  

  54:09

More Music podcasts

Trending Music podcasts

About Basic Folk

Basic Folk: Podcasts in Family