[Sonne]

http://laist.com/2009/07/22/jewel.php

Interview: Jewel Releases Soothing Seventh Studio Album



Photo by Kurt Markus
Jewel is an artist whose insatiable curiosity has led her to thrive in many creative areas. Though her list of accomplishments is dizzying—multi-platinum recording artist, actress, New York Times bestselling author—she's refreshingly down to earth. She takes the time to give back and is active in many charities, including her own Project Clean Water, which she founded to provide villages around the world with safe drinking water.
This year has been a busy one for Jewel. She recently released her first independent album, Lullaby, which is an ethereal collection of three classic tracks and 10 originals. The self-penned material holds its own among the standards, and after listening to this disc, it's hard to imagine a voice better suited for lullabies than Jewel's. Last week, LAist spoke with her to learn why she hopes her new album appeals to adults and children alike, and what she has in store when she takes the stage at the Hollywood Bowl this Friday and Saturday.
LAist: Now that you've written so many of them, I was wondering—how should one approach writing a lullaby?
Jewel: For me it's just creating a mood, and the song can be about anything. It can be whimsical and I love the idea of making lullabies for adults. I think we use albums like that and we just don't realize it, such as Sade's albums or Enya's music. You come home, put it on and relax to it.
It's interesting because when you think of lullabies, you often think of dumb kids' songs, and that's tragic because I think they can also be intellectually driven, interesting and artistic.


I think the only approach I used was that when I was recording, I actually imagined a baby sleeping. I tried to sing in such a way that wouldn't wake the baby. When you have a song like "Over the Rainbow," it's especially important to keep that in mind, because that song can get so big that you may break the reverie if you're not careful.
You've been writing lullabies for most of your life. What led you to release this collection?
This project was a real passion project for me. I've been writing lullabies over the years as a way of comforting myself. I moved out on my own when I was 15 and it was really stressful. When I was 16, one of the first songs I wrote was "Raven," because singing and writing that style of song—the physical act of doing it—just calmed me down. It was like forced meditation.
When I was homeless, I was scared to fall asleep and I wrote "Angel Standing By." I liked feeling that maybe there was somebody watching over me. It just comforted me and I realized, "If I'm an adult and I enjoy these kinds of songs, there must be other people who enjoy them."
How did this fit into your schedule among all your other projects?
I've had it in mind to do this album forever and finally got a deal that when I went to my new label, I could do an independent release as long as it didn't compete with my country radio stuff. I knew it wasn't a commercial album because there aren't really any uptempo singles, but I felt there would be an audience for it if I could get it out there. This was the first album I produced by myself. It was really fun, and rather than thinking about hits or genre, I could just focus on creating a mood.
What was your favorite lullaby as you were growing up?
Hmm. I don't remember the name but there was this odd, comical song about a chicken who laid an egg. (laughs)
Was one of the tracks on your album, "Daydream Land," something you heard a lot as a kid?
Yeah, my aunt actually wrote it.


Photo by Kurt Markus
Wasn't she only 13 when she wrote that?
Yeah, my family is so talented it's silly. Our family reunions are the best talent shows! My grandmother was an aspiring opera singer who left Germany during World War II and gave up her career to come to America and have kids in a free land.
She taught them all—home-schooled them—in the wilds of Alaska and taught them to sing. And it was such a pure environment. They just made up little songs in such an innocent way and my aunt's album is one of my favorites. It just continues to blow me away, because it's so pure and beautiful and unique.
I've heard that song since I was a kid. In fact, my dad and I incorporated it into our bar shows years ago. I've been singing it forever and was so glad to finally get it out there.