13 QUESTION METHOD: JASON CRIGLER

One of the most sought after musicians in New York City, Jason Crigler is one of the founding members of Goats in Trees and has played alongside renowned artists such as Linda Thompson, John Cale, Marshall Crenshaw, Teddy Thompson, among many others. His first solo CD, Down Like Hail, features bassist Paul Bryan (Aimee Mann, Graham Parker, Sleepy LaBeef) and drummer Dan Rieser (Jesse Harris, Norah Jones, Marcy Playground). Here’s what Norah Jones says about her good friend: “Everyone who has ever had the pleasure of playing with Jason will know how special he can make it feel and sound, and what a magical cast he helps to create within all the music he plays.” His solo CD Down Like Hail is available here.

1. Which was the first record you bought with your own money?
It was either a Huey Lewis album or a Billy Joel record. The Huey record was probably Sports — I remember being into that at one time. The Billy Joel record was probably The Stranger — another good one. Soon after those two guys, I started getting really into blues music and I bought a bunch of Muddy Waters, Albert Collins, Howlin Wolf, and Robert Johnson’s King of the Delta Blues Singers. That’s an amazing record. I actually bought that on cassette when I was in England long ago. The blues has definitely stayed with me over the years. I still listen to it and get inspired by it.

2. Which was the last record you bought with your own money?
Bob Dylan’s Modern Times. I just got it the other day. Dylan sounds great and, as usual, he has a killing band behind him. I love Dylan, and I especially love his later records — Love and Theft and Time Out of Mind. They sound really good, and there’s lots of great, tasteful playing.
I also recently bought Sufjan Stevens’ Illinoise — a great record in a totally different way from Dylan. Really well arranged, and beautiful songs.

3. What was the first solo you learned from a record — and can you still play it?
Well, I was never really so into sitting down and learning people’s solos note for note. It always seemed somehow wrong to me, like I was plagiarizing or something. I preferred to just try and get the essence of what someone was doing — the vibe of it — without learning it note for note.
I have learned some solos here and there, when it’s a really great solo that I just have to know. There’s a live Eric Clapton concert in Birmingham — from 1986, I think — with Phil Collins, Greg Philinganes, and Nathan East. Clapton’s solo on “Crossroads” is incredible, and I did sit and learn it note for note. I think I could still play it now. It’s totally tasteful and super powerful, and it’s got an amazing shape to it. It builds in really cool ways. I was amazed that he came up with that on the spot.

4. Which recording of your own (or as a sideman) are you most proud of, and why?
I’d have to say that I’m most proud of my solo record, Down Like Hail. I love the way it was recorded, which was all completely live to tape. I love that it was recorded to 1/4-inch, 2-track tape, which gives it an old-school kind of vibe. Paul Bryan and Dan Rieser play on it, and they’re both amazing players — so grooving and soulful, and they sound great together. Greg Duffin did a great job engineering.

5. What's the difference between playing live and playing in a studio?
I think there’s a certain kind of energy when you’re performing in front of an audience that is special and unique. It can push you to do things you wouldn’t have thought of. It’s very exciting. There can be great energy in the studio too, of course, but it’s a little different knowing you can always go back and fix things. At a gig, there’s a feeling of “this is it!”.

6. What's the difference between a good gig and a bad gig?
A good gig makes me feel ecstatic, like everything is right with the world. With a good gig I feel like I have a purpose in life, I feel like I’m doing something meaningful, and I can’t wait to do it again. A bad gig totally takes the wind out of my sails. It can get pretty dark — sometimes I just feel like giving up music completely. I’ve had a string of good gigs lately, so that feels nice.

7. What's the difference between a good guitar and a bad guitar?
The interesting thing is, it often has nothing to do with price. I’ve played some rather expensive “nice” guitars that left me feeling flat, while I’ve had some magical experiences on guitars I’ve gotten for not very much money. My Epiphone Casino — which was like five or six hundred dollars — was my number-one guitar for a long time. My main guitar now is a cheap Squire Telecaster that I’ve done a lot of work to. New pickups, different neck, and so on. Basically, a good guitar responds well to what you’re doing and you feel like you have room on it to do things. A bad guitar kind of shuts you down. You feel like you’re getting nothing back from it. It’s like a bad investment — you get no return.

8. You play electric and acoustic. Do you approach the two differently?
Definitely. Because the electric guitar gets plugged in and has an amplifier, you can get a lot more mileage out of doing a lot less. You can play chord fragments instead of whole chords, and they tend to sit better with a band. The acoustic guitar tends to want a bigger, fuller approach — which is great, but not my preferred way of playing.

9. Do you sound more like yourself on acoustic or electric?
Definitely electric. It’s the way of playing that I’ve spent the most time developing. Of all of my musical experiences, I’ve had the most magical times playing the electric guitar. I’ve had fun playing the acoustic too, but I feel like I’m better able to make a statement on the electric.

10. Do you sound like yourself on other people's guitars?
I think so, but sometimes other people’s guitars change you in interesting ways. My friend Rob Price has an old Gretsch Firebird that I love, and I always feel different on that guitar. That’s part of why I love playing it — I feel like it brings out a different side of me. On that guitar, I feel like I’m Chet Atkins or George Harrison.

11. Which living artist (music, or other arts) would you like to collaborate with?
I think it would be really amazing to work with Dylan. That would be cool. He’s been around for so long and seen so much change in music over the years. I guess when I think of an answer to this question, I think of older musicians, like Dylan or Paul McCartney or Joni Mitchell — people who have made records that have really influenced me, who have been around for a while and therefore been through a lot.

12. What dead artist (music, or other arts) would you like to have collaborated with?
I think I’d have to say Jimi Hendrix. He was such a unique force in music, and it seems like music was very freeing and liberating for him. I could see him being a very giving and open person, in terms of collaborating. I don’t think he had anything left to prove to anyone, and that freed him up. I’d also love to play with Charlie Christian. His playing was so intense. It’d be amazing to be right next to him while he’s playing.

13. What's your latest project about?
I’m working on a tribute record to myself! Years ago, my band Goats in Trees recorded a bunch of songs of mine to 2-inch tape. We never got around to finishing them, however, and we recorded a whole other record, Smoke and Mirrors, which became our second record. I eventually took all of my 2-inch songs and transferred them into Pro Tools, and brought them home to finish them, but somehow along the way I started asking different people to sing the songs. It became kind of a cool game to see if I could match the right voice to the right song, and so far it’s turning out extremely well. I’ve got Teddy Thompson, Linda Thompson, Marshall Crenshaw, Neil Casal, Kenny White, Cynthia Hopkins, Amy Correia, Michelle Casillas and Erin McKeown all singing, and everybody sounds great. Plus the basic tracks all sound amazing because they were all recorded to 2-inch. It’ll be cool when it’s finished, I don’t know when that’ll be, but hopefully sometime soon. Goats in Trees is recording a new record, our third. That’s be super fun. We have stockpiled so many songs over the years that need to be recorded. I’m really looking forward to getting that out.

Web site: http://myspace.com/jasoncrigler