Martha Wainwright
Canadian singer/songwriter Martha Wainwright grew up in a bohemian household. The daughter of folk legend Loudon Wainwright III, the late Kate McGarrigle, and the younger sibling of baroque pop exponent Rufus Wainwright, her music blends folky elements into a contemporary setting.
In the past few years, Wainwright has been kept busy, releasing her most recent album, 2021’s Love Will Be Reborn, as well as an engaging memoir, Stories I Might Regret Telling You, in 2022. Wainwright has a love affair with Australia, having been a regular visit to our country. Next month, she returns for her eighth Australian tour.
“For me, it’s been a very strong and important part of my musical career and life,” says Wainwright about her connection to Australia.
“I’ve had a lot of incredible experiences and made some incredible friends there.
“My eldest son has been there twice too, as we had brought him from when he was a baby.
“The first time I went there, it was with my mum and my brother before my first record came out, to do that Leonard Cohen tribute at the Sydney Opera House.
“This upcoming tour is a big deal for me because it’s been six years since I was last there, so it’s one of the longest times apart.”
While many artists shy away from performing shows in regional centres, Wainwright does not, with regional shows always part of her tour schedule.
“I absolutely enjoy doing those regional shows,” she says.
“There are people who live outside the cities who just keep having me back — and these great audiences keep returning.
“That’s the kind of relationship and fabric that, hopefully, I have created in the last twenty years of going there.
“Another reason I find them fun is because, when you tour Australia, you are flying everywhere as that’s the nature of the continent, but when we get to do the regional shows, we get into a car or a van and see a bit more of the country, something you usually miss when you only do city shows.”
Nearing the 20-year mark since she released her debut album, Wainwright feels she has become more self-conscious with her songwriting.
‘In my younger years, I wasn’t as self-conscious as I was pretty out there,” she says.
“Now I’m more about, does this make sense, is this good, what am I adding, those are the questions I ask myself.
“Once you start to express yourself in a way that’s true, none of that really matters.
“It just becomes music, and it’s an expression and art form, and it is fundamental in some way to all of us, so I just try and go with that.”
Finally, Wainwright has one dream collaboration she would love to achieve.
“I’ve had a life where I got to meet a lot of famous artists through my family,” she says.
“And my own career has brought me to a lot of incredible places and stages, too, but as a songwriter, I have to say Bob Dylan is my favourite.
“As a young person he was certainly a huge influence on me, and wouldn’t that be amazing?”
For more on Martha and ticketing info, go to www.marthawainwright.com
Music News
Legendary American group KISS has sold its music catalogue, brand name and intellectual property to a Swedish company, Pophouse Entertainment (who are also behind the ABBA Voyage virtual concert project), in a deal reputedly worth $AU456 million.
John Oates from 80s synth-pop duo Hall and Oates announced a new solo album titled Reunion this week, which is scheduled for release on May 17.
The music of the late Tom Petty is getting a country makeover with a country music tribute album titled Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty set for release on June 21. It will feature country greats such as Dolly Parton, Luke Combs, Willie Nelson and Lukas Nelson, Steve Earle and George Strait putting their own touch on some of Petty’s classic songs.
Billie Eilish has announced the release of her third studio album, Hit Me Hard and Soft, which will see its global release on May 17.
Cryptic message? Was the social media post by Motley Crue’s Nikki Sixx last week about the band’s new music being “a powerful cross between country and hip-hop” simply a joke? According to a new post by Sixx, he affirmed it was indeed a joke but added, “Our new music is actually kinda reggae EDM. But with a bit of Dylan”.
Book Review
Revolución To Roxy by Phil Manzanera
Revolución To Roxy is one of those rare memoirs that eschews the usual rock ‘n’ roll route and focuses solely on the subject’s life and musical career, in this case, famed Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera. Not that Roxy Music was the kind of band that fitted into the sex, drugs, and rock and roll box, far from it. One of the more surprising revelations made in the book is when Manzanera states that he earned more money from an old guitar riff he had composed and recorded for the title track to his 1978 album K-Scope when it was sampled by rappers Kanye West and Jay-Z for their 2012 hit, No Church in the Wild than he earned in the entire time he has been a member of Roxy Music.
The book begins with Manzanera recalling his early years spent in pre-Castro Cuba before at age seven, witnessing firsthand the revolution by Castro, leading to a move to Hawaii and later onto London, where he eventually joined Roxy Music and where the rest, as they say, is history.
Along the way, interesting tales abound, from his time working with Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour to Split Enz and Tim Finn to Bob Dylan to his many collaborations with Latin American artists and musicians, all in between. It’s a riveting read with an honest and down-to-earth tone throughout, which perfectly sums up the man himself. One whose passion for the guitar and music has brought him a life like no other — the best read of 2024.
This Week’s Global Music Charts
US Billboard Hot 100 No.1: Like That — Future, Metro Boomin and Kendrick Lamar
UK: Top 100 Singles No.1: Texas Hold ‘Em — Beyonce
Australia ARIA Top 50 No.1: Beautiful Things — Benson Boone
Fun Fact
The very first Gold Single given out by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) was earned on March 14, 1958, with Perry Como’s Catch A Falling Star and four months later the cast album for Oklahoma! Sung by Gordon Macrae, it became the first Gold Album.
Joe Matera is a local singer/songwriter, recording artist, guitarist and music journalist providing readers with all the latest music news.