Exclusive Premiere: Keaton Simons' 'Crane City'
January 25, 2018 – 10:19 AM – 0 Comments
By Laura B. Whitmore Parade @laurabwhitmore
More by Laura
Check Out Laura Dreyfuss and Jamie McDell as They Perform Live This Thursday
Lucas Hoge Brings Us Home for the Holidays with "Christmas Without You"
Need a Reason to Get Off the Couch This Winter Solstice? Make Music!
Here's a catchy, light feeling Americana song with a serious message, performed fantastically over a cool mandolin bed. It's "Crane City" from Keaton Simons. The tune is from this artist's new EP, 123 GO, releasing March 2.
Simons shares this insight about the song, "'Crane City' is reality. I do a lot of touring and see a lot of gentrification. I want the song to open hearts and minds and help provide a voice for people everywhere who are being displaced by the epidemic of greed."
Simons has performed his original music on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Last Call with Carson Daly and The Ellen DeGenereres Show. Keaton's music is also regularly placed in feature films and TV shows including Sons of Anarchy, Private Practice and NCIS. In 2015, he also supported Chris Cornell on his new album promo tour, playing guitar and singing background vocals.
Listen to "Crane City" here:
We had a few minutes to catch up with Simons and got the insight on this latest project.
There was a live album plus several singles and numerous placements, but since your full-length studio album release in 2013, how has your musical perspective changed?
I've become more focused on the creative side. I find tremendous happiness there these days. I played every instrument except drums on the "Beautiful Pain" album and released it on my own label. I'm glad I did it, but I'm better at letting go now.
Share a bit of how the new EP came together and what its focus is.
After spending a few years focused heavily on side projects I felt the desire to revisit myself as a solo artist. I wanted to sing my songs again.
As soon as the name Marshall Altman came up I saw the whole thing in my mind! I would spend a month in Nashville and find this record with Marshall. What we found feels real and true.
If there's a focus or a flavor to this EP it would be true musicianship, natural vocals, hopefully affecting, moving compositions that you'll end up hearing in some favorite films & shows, because the songs all tell stories in which we can't help but recognize ourselves.
You toured with Chris Cornell. I saw his last tour and it was amazing. One of my favorite shows of all time. Can you share what it was like to work creatively with Chris?
From our first conversation, Chris and I felt creatively connected. If there's one word to characterize that relationship, it was "easy." We weren't trying to do anything, except make good music and honor his songs with the best interpretation we all could give them each time we played them.
I rehearsed with Chris and the incredible musicians we played with…There were only a few of us…We rehearsed, and we flew round the country and played on Ellen and Good Morning America and Kimmel and those sorts of shows. We did an acoustic session on Sirius that just felt like four friends, sitting down and playing. Little did we know we'd blow the minds of tens of millions of people just playing from our hearts, appreciating each other, never tiring of listening to each other.
Through all this, Chris and I would often fall into conversations about love, family, relationships, life. We were so happy to have found each other. With all his success, and time in this "business," he was as open as a guy with a guitar who loved to sing and had no worries about whether there was anyone there to listen.
How I ended up playing guitar and singing with Chris is one of those humbling, uplifting stories. He was handed my music on the set of one of his music videos. His family was on set with him. He had a bit of time on his hands and so they all listened, and then he "took a Keaton Simons tour" (his words) on the internet. He said to me that the next best thing to being able to "play guitar like that" would be to have me with him "playing guitar like that." I mean…Talk about music to your ears! One of the most incredible things I've ever heard, from one of the most incredible people I've ever known.
You work in a lot of different genres. Do you find yourself leaning more in one direction on this upcoming EP?
This EP has more of a roots/americana vibe to it. I wanted to celebrate the fact that I was making the record in Nashville with some of its best musicians.
"Father Song" is about one of our original relationships and how it makes us who we are.
There's "Yet," which is that aching, longing beginning.
"Crazy in Love" is the bright anticipation that goes on in the beginning.
"123GO" is that time between the beginning and the middle.
"The Sound of Impatience" is the time when fear sets in and we need to transcend it.
"Crane City" is about our relationship to the world, and to our community.
Any other comments you'd like to add?
I'm really interested in hearing from people out there, people reading this, people I hope will listen to 123 GO, my new EP, and use the myriad of ways we have these days to share their comments with me! I'll be listening.
Find out more at www.keatonsimons.com/
More, More, More! We're Counting All the Easter Eggs We Can Find in the Sex and the City Reboot, And Just Like That...
Rose Maura Lorre, EditorParade
60 Wilderness-Worthy Camping Recipes to Make On Your Next Outdoor Adventure