Quick Q and A with Marshall Crenshaw
 by Kathy S-B  ·  14 November 2011

I’ve been a Marshall Crenshaw fan since the first time I heard “Someday, Someway.” No turning back. He’s a fantastic songwriter with a real knack for quirky and very interesting lyrics. Hope you agree! To learn more about Marshall’s impressive history, refer to his website.

As much as I love this video of Marshall being interviewed on American Bandstand, here’s a clip of him playing the aforementioned “Someday, Someway.” And here’s a more representative video of Marshall Crenshaw as a solo touring musician!

Your self-titled debut album has to be one of the most beloved albums of all time. It’s one of those feel-good albums. It brings smiles all and is so uplifting. Do you find that despite all the music that you’ve recorded since then that that album is your most recognized?

In my own mind I’m not defined by it; it happened a long time ago and I’ve been on some kind of forward-going path ever since. But yes, my first album is beloved, and I’m glad about that. I always play a few songs from it at every show.

One writer says that your music is rooted in classic soul, British invasion, Burt Bacharach, and Buddy Holly. Did you listen to that kind of music when you were growing up in Detroit?

Yes, all of that and everything else you can think of. One of my favorite albums during High School was “Emergency” by The Tony Williams Lifetime, which is kind of beyond category. . . .

Were you being compared to Buddy Holly even before you were cast as him in La Bamba?

Yes, and I was surprised when it happened at first but now I’m surprised that I was surprised. I’m a lifelong fan; I’m even old enough to say that I saw him on the Ed Sullivan Show when I was 4 years old, which I did.

Tell us about the book that you wrote, Hollywood Rock: A Guide to Rock ’n’ Roll in the Movies. Is it a survey of all kind of music that is both on screen and included in the scores of movies?

That was an offbeat project for me but I threw myself all the way into it; it was fun. And I think the book is funny, interesting, and has a point of view; it isn’t just dry descriptions of stuff.

You recently had a big three-day gig at the famous Iridium Jazz Club to honor your favorite Les Paul players. What was it like playing with the Les Paul trio and what kind of tunes did you play?

That was the second thematic multi-artist thing that I put together this year; hopefully I’ll do more. The Iridium is still mainly a Jazz club but it’s also now sort of a shrine to Les Paul; he played there every Monday for 20 years or so. I consider myself a guitar player first at this point; it’s the thing that I’ve been working at the longest. So I was always a big Les Paul fan. At our show we saluted some of the early users of the Gibson Les Paul, like Freddy King, George Barnes, Fran Beecher, et. al. I actually had to borrow a Les Paul to use but am about to get one of my own. The show was a blast, an honor, all that good stuff.

I’m sure that gearheads will want to know about what you play and how you write. Do tell!

How I write? I don’t actually know how or why I’m able to do it; it’s just a matter of concentrating and being patient. As far as gear goes, for the solo shows I use a Guild or Gibson hollow body, like a Jazz box, and also a Danelectro baritone guitar. My amp has a 15” spkr. which is good ‘cause I like a nice big sound on the low end.