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| By Ellie Mae Sitting across from James Intveld in a turquoise leatherette booth at Harry's Diner in Burbank, California, it's easy to imagine that the calendar is turned back to 1966 and the pompadoured rockabilly cat in a black leather motorcycle jacket is my own personal Ken Doll dream date for the prom. I should be so lucky. Well, Rock City News readers, I got 'em here, he's in my clutches, er, I meant to say we're having lunches, so on with the show. ELLIE MAE /RCN: So what are you up to now, James? JAMES INTVELD: I'm going to the Gavin Convention - that's a music chart for the Americana record format. They're having a convention up in Lake Tahoe tomorrow so I'm going up there to perform. It's with a bunch of people like Rosie Flores, Jim Lauderdale, myself, all those kinds of people. (A graying waitress in a starched aqua uniform asks for our lunch order) RCN: James is having a salad, and it's really big. JAMES: I never usually order a salad - RCN: What do you usually get? JAMES: I usually get steak, or - RCN: Meat! JAMES: Yeah, I like to eat meat, or hot turkey samiches, I like to eat those, too. I eat breakfast food, like bacon and eggs. I eat waffles for dinner. RCN: I bet you've done a lot of interviews - this is my first feature interview for Rock City News. JAMES: Yeah, I've done a lot over the last 10-15 years. You figure every time you go to a new town, when you're on the road, a journalist will come see you and interview you and you get to tell them all the things that you've already told everybody. Then they go and come up with some story, put it in the paper and advertise that you're playing in their town. RCN: Do you feel like you want to change your stories sometimes? JAMES: Oh I do - I change them all the time! I make up all kinds of good stuff. RCN: Like what? What's your best story? JAMES: No - I don't make up stories - I usually tell the truth about this kind of stuff. It's not as glamorous as some people think it is. But it's okay - I'm happy with it. RCN: What are you recording now? JAMES: I'm recording some demos right now to get geared up to make another album. I'm going to be making another album at the beginning of the year. RCN: A self-produced one? JAMES: I'm not sure what's gonna happen with this one - right now I'm doing demos myself and it might end up being some of the tracks on the album, I'm not sure, but right now I'm recording all the new songs I've written and basically just seeing what they sound like. RCN: Who are you using in the studio? JAMES: Me.... RCN: Yeah! You play all the instruments? JAMES: Well, I played all the instruments on my first album. But on this record, so far I've used Mike Turner on guitar and harmonies, Eddie Perez on guitar and harmonies and I'll probably end up using different musicians on this album. There are different guys that play with me in different (musical) formats - David Jackson came over yesterday and recorded on one song and that was cool. I do a lot of the recording by myself. RCN: I saw you at the Derby playing drums with the Swinging Sinners and you were setting up the drums and I thought "how nice - James is helping his band set up!" JAMES: No - I was playing the drums. RCN: You play everything? JAMES: Well, just the basic stuff you need - guitar, bass and drums. RCN: But not the accordion? JAMES: Well I had an accordion when I was a kid but never really played it - I was five and it was so big and heavy I couldn't deal with it. RCN: My grandpa used to have an accordion... - JAMES: Yeah, they're beautiful instruments. I've been looking forward to recording this album - a lot of people have been asking me when the new record's gonna come out. I have to give 'em the sob story - "not for awhile" or "I don't know"... RCN: What are the new songs about? JAMES: On my last album the songs were mostly sad songs. But on this new album, they're more inspirational. RCN: A little more...hope? J A M E S: Yeah, a little more awareness, the music's a little bit different. It's the next level for me. RCN: Who do you like on the local scene? JAMES: I really don't know because I really don't pay any attention to the scene. RCN: Oh. Well, what records do you listen to? JAMES: I've been listening to Ella Fitzgerald lately, Chet Baker, Tom Jones. RCN: Tom Jones? JAMES: Tom Jones is rad! He's a bad-ass! He knows what's up. RCN: He's a great showman. JAMES: Yeah, and a great singer. But I listen to all kinds of music. Different stuff. I listen to all the old music, from the 20's, 30's, stuff like that. RCN: Robert Johnson? JAMES: Yeah, I have a bunch of blues albums at home - I have a lot of old country recordings. I don't focus in on one specific thing that much. How's your salad? RCN: Salad is good. Mine has turkey in it, but don't eat the turkey, James, 'cause you'll fall asleep. Tryptophane! You look really tired, James. JAMES: I only slept for a few hours last night. When I get into the studio and start working, I forget about time and I just keep working and ten hours later I think "Maybe I should take a break." That's how I am. Time goes by so fast when I'm in the studio - it's amazing... RCN: Are you recording in Burbank? JAMES: I'm working at a studio in Chatsworth, but mostly working at Mike Turner's house and I do some of the work at home, I have a little bit of equipment at home to do the overdubs. I'm working at different places. This morning I was working at Bruce Witkin's studio in Hollywood, mixing down a song - so I'm all over the place - where ever I can get studio time. RCN: I hate going into the studio, it takes too damn long! JAMES: Usually by the end of the album you're pretty tired. You've got to focus for two or three months and it takes a lot out of you. But it's fun to do. RCN: Do you travel a lot? JAMES: I have traveled a lot in my life - the last couple of years I've traveled a lot just promoting my album - I'm used to being gone a lot. RCN: Do you like playing in Europe? JAMES: Playing in Europe is fun - I really like playing in the States, though. I've been lucky that I've been able to go to Europe a bunch of times - I've had some pretty cool opportunities. I did a TV show in Germany last year, a one-half hour special on Americana music. RCN: In English? JAMES: No - they had an interpreter right there on the set - so they would ask me a question, translate it to English and I would answer back, and they would translate back into German. RCN: How does one get to play in Europe - do you have an agent? JAMES: Yep - I have an agent and I used to be on Bear Family Records in Germany. RCN: Russell Scott & The Red Hots are on Bear Family Records! JAMES: I brought them over one year with me and the whole combo actually played with me in Europe - they opened all my shows for me and then backed me up on my shows and then they were asked by Bear Family Records to do an album. It was good for them. RCN: That's really cool - I find that a lot of Los Angeles bands aren't so generous - not much camaraderie happening.... JAMES: It doesn't hurt me to help anybody else out - that's the way I feel about it. I do what I do, and if I can help somebody else I usually do whatever I can. RCN: What are the "Theater Rats"? JAMES: The Theater Rats is a theater group that I have with a bunch of my actor friends - in fact, we're getting together tonight after I leave here. We get together to write plays and perform and do a lot of acting work - we don't have a teacher, we just work out together and develop different plays. Eventually we want to make some small films and do it all on our own.... It's kind of important to me.... The people in it are very talented. RCN: Have you been to Nashville lately? JAMES: I went to Nashville about two months ago - I played at Robert's Western Wear. I love the bluegrass scene in Nashville. RCN: Did you play with Red Volgard? (Red Volgard plays extraordinary guitar for renegade country Merle Haggard) JAMES: I knew Red when he lived in Los Angeles, he's from Canada but he used to live here years ago. When I go to Nashville I see many of the same people who used to live in L.A. RCN: There's a whole L.A. contingent out there now. Would you ever consider moving to Nashville? JAMES: I like Nashville. But I'm from California and I love it here. RCN: Do you think there are more opportunities for songwriters in Nashville than in California? JAMES: Well, the way I look at it is that just because you live in Nashville doesn't mean you're gonna write better songs. There might be more business opportunities - no - I don't even know if that's necessarily true. I think a lot of people go there to pursue stuff, but I think you have to be aggressive in general in the music business. That's one thing I'm not good at - at promoting myself. So I don't know if being in Nashville would help me or not. RCN: Nashville's such a highly concentrated area of the music industry.... JAMES: That's true, and that's kind of the good thing about it. RCN: When I was there it seemed like everyone was in Nashville for the express purpose of songwriting. JAMES: I know what you mean, but I like California. I spend so much time on the road it's like I don't really live anywhere. This (Los Angeles) is just where my clothes stay. R C N : James is eating a Melba Toast cracker now. JAMES: I'm eating Melba Toast! RCN: Yes, you are. This interview is just the facts - you have to start somewhere on your . adventure. JAMES: Like "Pee -Wee's Big Adventure"? RCN: Yes! Pee -Wee has his - bicycle and I have my truck.... JAMES: Cool! RCN: Wasn't the Rock City News Awards Show great? [James Intveld won for Rock City News • Best Solo Artist).. JAMES: Yeah, Ruben's the best! It looked so nice me way you guys did it up - with the name centerpieces for the tables - I still have mine, I took it home with me [The 3rd Annual Rock City News Awards Show was held at the Reseda County Club] . I remember playing the County Club in the 80's. RCN: When it was called "Wolf & Reismiller's Country Club?" JAMES: Well, that was before (I played), in the 70's..... RCN: Rock City News is having another big party on New Year's Eve. What are you doing on New Year's Eve, James? JAMES: Some years I want to go to bed at 10 o'clock and wake up the next year. Instead of just passing out at 5 o'clock. RCN: But you'd miss the countdown. JAMES: What would happen if one year I missed the countdown? I don't know what that's like. RCN: You could always lapse into a coma and wake up five years later, you know. JAMES: I'll probably be playing somewhere on New Year's Eve. RCN: Well, you're invited to the Rock City News party. We're gonna party like it's 1999. Because it will really be 1999. JAMES: Thank you. RCN: Do you think all the computers are gonna crash in the year 2000? JAMES: I've heard stuff like that - I don't know much about computers. I've had a computer for a year and _ and I just learned how to turn it on three weeks ago. My friends showed me a few things and how to use it. RCN: It's not that hard. [Hey Beavis - she said "hard"!) If you can play an instrument, it's almost like that, like math. RCN: I want to be a recluse and paint in the desert like Georgia O'Keefe. Hey, I'm making the quotes here, sorry. JAMES: Well, it is nice to have some time to yourself. It's an important thing. I'm starting to learn as I get older that you need to have some time to chill out. For years and years I just hit it hard every single day and never took a break - playing a show and then the nights I wasn't playing I was out in a club. Every night was a party. It was fun, but it's nice to take a break once in awhile and chill out. RCN: Music and acting - that's demanding for you. JAMES: And see how tired I look right now! RCN: Oh no, James - you look very handsome. JAMES: Thank you. RCN: Ladies and gentlemen, he is still very handsome. He's got that sleepy-eyed look, but that's okay by me! JAMES: I'm looking forward to playing with my friends in Tahoe - it's nice to have a forum to play Americana-type music. It's not exactly hard-core country and not necessarily what you would call rock 'n' roll by today's standards. It's like folk music, too. A lot of elements mixed together, and now there's a format [Americana] where you can be recognized, which is really good. RCN: In the past there wasn't anything like that. JAMES: Right - and now it's so good that this format exists. RCN: It was a long time coming. I know you've been playing your style of music for a long time and it must have been frustrating. You were ahead of your time. JAMES: I used to be frustrated by a lot of stuff that was going on. But I'm pretty much over that now. I look at it as I'm playing music that I love to play. I'm getting a chance to record, I play shows and people show up, I feel good about it. So what's for desert? James Intveld is on the menu at various venues in Los Angeles and Orange County and you may purchase his album at your favorite music emporium for your listening pleasure. Ellie Mae pens the Ranch Roots Rally column in this newspaper and writes songs for and performs with her alternative country band ELLIE MAE'S BISCUITS. |
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