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Gibson Branches Out: An interview with Michelle Branch by Courtney Grimes Gibson artist Michelle Branch has accomplished so much in her relatively short time in the musical spotlight - a Grammy Award, two chart-topping albums and yet another U.S. tour under her belt, and all before she could even drink legally. Her debut album, The Spirit Room, was released on Maverick Records and went platinum, with hits like "Everywhere" and "All You Wanted" eating up national radio airwaves. Her sophomore release, Hotel Paper, hit last year with tracks "Are You Happy Now" and "Till I Get Over You" camping out at the top of the charts. Wise beyond her years, Michelle exudes the "old soul" of a seasoned musician, while bringing young, fresh ideas and lyrics to her songs. She took some time to chat with Gibson about her pirate fetish, mail-order Grammys and being insta-cool. CG: You helped to begin a fresh, new wave of pop music by writing and performing all the songs on your first album. What was it like to help pave the way for other female singer/songwriters wanting to break the current pop mold? MB: Wow, the first line of your question is pretty flattering and sad all at the same time! It sounds like I was the first person in popular music to ever write my own stuff. I know that when my first album came out, the only young female artists you heard of were the ones shaking it to songs 40-year-old Swedish guys wrote. It's nice for me as a music fan alone to know that I helped make it okay again for younger artists to actually be artists. CG: What was going through your mind, the night of the Grammy Awards in 2002? MB: I was nominated for two awards but I actually only came home with one, which was fine enough for me! I do feel in a way like it never happened though. I got caught in a traffic detour on my way to the ceremony and I missed my award. The first time I finally got to hold it was when it arrived in the mail many months later. Maybe I'll have another chance to get up to the podium and make a fool of myself… CG: When did you first start playing guitar and writing? Why did you want to learn? MB: I was always writing as a kid. When I received my first guitar on my fourteenth birthday, the two came together very quickly. It was easier for me to remember the chords I was learning in my Mel Bay's guitar book if I put melodies to them. I had always wanted to learn and thought it impossible until one day I couldn't take it any longer. I thought it would make me insta-cool. It didn't. CG: Tell me about your Gibsons, old and new. MB: I don't even think of my new Gibson's as being new. Ren Ferguson (Gibson master luthier) at Gibson Montana did such an amazing job recreating my 1968 Hummingbird. I was using it for all of my recording and writing and started having anxiety attacks at the thought of having to take it on the road with me. I didn't want it to somehow end up under an airplane or in a drunk roadie's hands, so he created two replicas, added a pickup in each, and now I don't have to worry as much about my guitars on tour. They all have a thinner neck that is great for my small hands. My J-160E was a purchase from Chambers Guitars in Nashville. I like to let the strings get really dead on it and record it. It has a really beautiful lower register. I also just acquired an early '70s Hummingbird on my last trip to Japan. It had a broken neck and was pretty beat up. A friend of mine, Isao Yuhashi, has a guitar shop called Figaro Guitars in Tokyo, and he had fixed it and brought it to a gig of mine for me to sign. I started playing it and refused to sign it. He didn't understand why I would want it. I had to explain, "I'm a writer not a collector." I think the language barrier worked to my advantage because I took the guitar with me promising I would find something good to send him in return. It was truly "Lost in Translation." As far as electric guitars go, I have an old SG that is more sentimental than playable. It was my late uncle's that he tried to rebuild. I like to tinker around on it from time to time, but again, I would never feel comfortable bringing it on tour with me. When I really need a great Les Paul or SG I just try to call John Shanks, a friend and producer of my first two albums, and bribe him to let me borrow one. I'm just entering the world of electric guitars. It's very intimidating to me for some reason. I always feel the most comfortable with an acoustic. CG: Which guitar is your absolute favorite? MB: Without a doubt my '68 Hummingbird. The smell, the wear on the neck, the tone, even the stamps from the original stores on the inside. It reeks of personality and is so much fun to play. If there were ever a fire, I would grab it and my cats. CG: Who is your favorite artist that you have collaborated with? MB: Sheryl Crow and Santana. You try to pick. They were both awesome. CG: Who are your musical influences? MB: Neil Young, Cat Stevens, Joni Mitchell, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Queen. I never really know where to stop when people ask me that question. CG: I hear you have a pirate fetish. What's that about? MB: They remind me of Keith Richards. What can I say? CG: If you could meet any other artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why? MB: John Lennon. I hear he likes Asian girls.
Gibson Branches Out: An interview with Michelle Branch by Courtney Grimes Gibson artist Michelle Branch has accomplished so much in her relatively short time in the musical spotlight - a Grammy Award, two chart-topping albums and yet another U.S. tour under her belt, and all before she could even drink legally. Her debut album, The Spirit Room, was released on Maverick Records and went platinum, with hits like "Everywhere" and "All You Wanted" eating up national radio airwaves. Her sophomore release, Hotel Paper, hit last year with tracks "Are You Happy Now" and "Till I Get Over You" camping out at the top of the charts. Wise beyond her years, Michelle exudes the "old soul" of a seasoned musician, while bringing young, fresh ideas and lyrics to her songs. She took some time to chat with Gibson about her pirate fetish, mail-order Grammys and being insta-cool. CG: You helped to begin a fresh, new wave of pop music by writing and performing all the songs on your first album. What was it like to help pave the way for other female singer/songwriters wanting to break the current pop mold? MB: Wow, the first line of your question is pretty flattering and sad all at the same time! It sounds like I was the first person in popular music to ever write my own stuff. I know that when my first album came out, the only young female artists you heard of were the ones shaking it to songs 40-year-old Swedish guys wrote. It's nice for me as a music fan alone to know that I helped make it okay again for younger artists to actually be artists. CG: What was going through your mind, the night of the Grammy Awards in 2002? MB: I was nominated for two awards but I actually only came home with one, which was fine enough for me! I do feel in a way like it never happened though. I got caught in a traffic detour on my way to the ceremony and I missed my award. The first time I finally got to hold it was when it arrived in the mail many months later. Maybe I'll have another chance to get up to the podium and make a fool of myself… CG: When did you first start playing guitar and writing? Why did you want to learn? MB: I was always writing as a kid. When I received my first guitar on my fourteenth birthday, the two came together very quickly. It was easier for me to remember the chords I was learning in my Mel Bay's guitar book if I put melodies to them. I had always wanted to learn and thought it impossible until one day I couldn't take it any longer. I thought it would make me insta-cool. It didn't. CG: Tell me about your Gibsons, old and new. MB: I don't even think of my new Gibson's as being new. Ren Ferguson (Gibson master luthier) at Gibson Montana did such an amazing job recreating my 1968 Hummingbird. I was using it for all of my recording and writing and started having anxiety attacks at the thought of having to take it on the road with me. I didn't want it to somehow end up under an airplane or in a drunk roadie's hands, so he created two replicas, added a pickup in each, and now I don't have to worry as much about my guitars on tour. They all have a thinner neck that is great for my small hands. My J-160E was a purchase from Chambers Guitars in Nashville. I like to let the strings get really dead on it and record it. It has a really beautiful lower register. I also just acquired an early '70s Hummingbird on my last trip to Japan. It had a broken neck and was pretty beat up. A friend of mine, Isao Yuhashi, has a guitar shop called Figaro Guitars in Tokyo, and he had fixed it and brought it to a gig of mine for me to sign. I started playing it and refused to sign it. He didn't understand why I would want it. I had to explain, "I'm a writer not a collector." I think the language barrier worked to my advantage because I took the guitar with me promising I would find something good to send him in return. It was truly "Lost in Translation." As far as electric guitars go, I have an old SG that is more sentimental than playable. It was my late uncle's that he tried to rebuild. I like to tinker around on it from time to time, but again, I would never feel comfortable bringing it on tour with me. When I really need a great Les Paul or SG I just try to call John Shanks, a friend and producer of my first two albums, and bribe him to let me borrow one. I'm just entering the world of electric guitars. It's very intimidating to me for some reason. I always feel the most comfortable with an acoustic. CG: Which guitar is your absolute favorite? MB: Without a doubt my '68 Hummingbird. The smell, the wear on the neck, the tone, even the stamps from the original stores on the inside. It reeks of personality and is so much fun to play. If there were ever a fire, I would grab it and my cats. CG: Who is your favorite artist that you have collaborated with? MB: Sheryl Crow and Santana. You try to pick. They were both awesome. CG: Who are your musical influences? MB: Neil Young, Cat Stevens, Joni Mitchell, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Queen. I never really know where to stop when people ask me that question. CG: I hear you have a pirate fetish. What's that about? MB: They remind me of Keith Richards. What can I say? CG: If you could meet any other artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why? MB: John Lennon. I hear he likes Asian girls.
