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3 days ago
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Grace Potter discusses the 'lost' soulful album ‘Medicine' and Otis Redding
Grace Potter discusses the 'lost' soulful album 'Medicine' and Otis Redding originally appeared on Goldmine. In 2008, Grammy nominee Grace Potter recorded the solo album Medicine in Los Angeles, produced by T Bone Burnett, but its release was sidelined by the commitment to her group Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. On May 30, the album was finally released by Hollywood Records. Also last month, close to 18 million people watched the Kentucky Derby on NBC and Peacock, the largest viewership since 1989, and Potter kicked off the race with a stunning look and equally classy performance of the national anthem, stretching lyrics and notes with emphasis. That compelling delivery style is heard throughout Medicine. Goldmine spoke with Potter about songs from the album, plus we also kick off Black Music Month by discussing the inspiration of Otis Redding with her, and we'll continue our Black Music Month coverage in the coming weeks with the music of Sam Cooke, The Flirtations and The Chiffons. GOLDMINE: Welcome back to Goldmine and congratulations on the new album. You are a family favorite with a connection; both you and my daughter Brianna were born in the spring of 1983. She recently shared your version of Neil Young's 'Cortez the Killer' with me. Like songs on your new album, you gave it such a soulfully dramatic treatment. Speaking of soul, I hear an underlying tone of Otis Redding in your work. I was reminded of his version of 'That's How Strong My Love Is,' which was originally released as an A side, but was deemed to be the flip side, after 'Mr. Pitiful,' the original flip side of the single, outperformed it on radio. GRACE POTTER: Otis' music feels like home to me. As I imagine Brianna growing up in a house of music with you and your wife, my parents had a great record collection. I remember when I heard Otis Redding's voice for the first time. I thought that if I was a guy, that is what my voice would sound like. I was fully aware that the timbre of my voice did not match his, and I couldn't aspire to it, so I just had to sit back and enjoy it, but there was a fire and a humanity in his voice that is spine tingling and you don't know why. There were animal instincts and no phobia in sharing his emotions. It doesn't feel like there are any walls between you and what came out of his soul. Otis Redding Fabulous Flip Side: That's How Strong My Love Is A side: Mr. Pitiful Billboard Hot 100 debut of 'Mr. Pitiful': February 20, 1965 ('That's How Strong My Love Is' debuted three weeks prior) Peak position: No. 41 for 'Mr. Pitiful' and No. 74 for 'That's How Strong My Love Is' Volt V-124 'I remember when I heard Otis Redding's voice for the first time. I thought that if I was a guy, that is what my voice would sound like. I was fully aware that the timbre of my voice did not match his, and I couldn't aspire to it, so I just had to sit back and enjoy it, but there was a fire and a humanity in his voice that is spine tingling and you don't know why. There were animal instincts and no phobia in sharing his emotions. It doesn't feel like there are any walls between you and what came out of his soul.' – Grace Potter GM: 'Money' is very soulful. There are many instruments, trumpet, sax, trombone, plus background vocals, on the recording of this song that you co-wrote with David Poe. GP: Working with David was one of my favorite co-writing experiences that I had up to that point because he was such a New Yorker and I had never really hung out with true New Yorkers. His personality was what I envisioned in a college roommate, had I gone to school there, lived in a loft, reading Nietzsche, and being dead broke. I had romanticized that lifestyle, and he had lived it. As we wrote 'Money,' he told me, 'I lived that lifestyle, and I promise you that having no money and being broke is not romantic. The desperation can lead to some amazing art, but if you weren't starving, and you had a full stomach, maybe the lyrics would be better.' GM: Speaking of lyrics, yours are captivating on 'Colors,' describing 'clocks spinning backwards.' GP: I wanted to share with the listeners what it would be like to be on the inside of my head. At a young age I would observe the world around me and I thought that if the clocks spun the other way maybe my life would make better sense to me. I felt like I was part of another place and time versus what I saw around me. The more I existed on the planet, the younger I felt I was becoming. I was quite nonverbal as a child and later found my medium for communication through my lyrics. T Bone Burnett, as a producer, created the wonderful soundscape that was already the landscape in my mind for 'Colors.' GM: Regarding a different place and time, 'Colors' reminded me of Percy Sledge's '60s recordings, and with 'That Phone,' I feel it has the edge of Dusty Springfield's classic Dusty in Memphis album with Marc Ribot's guitar and the sax sounds from four players. Adding to that Southern sound, you give it some Wynonna Judd sass. GP: I'll take it! I love those combinations because I was just realizing at that time that country music was basically soul and R&B with a banjo and a fiddle. The cages and categories of genres are not for me. This was an opportunity to be a genre bender. Soul, R&B, and blues is a deep well to pull from, find a voice, and stand up strong. Every day, when we were in the studio with T Bone, Marc would switch guitars three or four times per song trying to pin down the sound. GM: In 2007, T Bone produced the Grammy winning album Raising Sand for Robert Plant and Alison Krauss. I saw them and T Bone perform at Lake Tahoe in June of the following year. Robert spoke on stage about the underlying rhythmic sound of the songs, which I also hear on 'Losing You.' GP: Yes, that T Bone sound is very much heard on 'Losing You' and the title song 'Medicine.' I have described it as tribal, but I think it is biological. The beat of the drum matches our heart. We call it tribal because there are places in the world where music did not need to evolve beyond that. I have heard bands taking that African influence with lyrics woven like a web around those sounds, making for such a beautiful combination, and one that I had never had an opportunity to sing over until that point. T Bone brought his experience with Robert and Alison to the session, trying to make the song sound as primal as possible. What I learned from T Bone then was also reflected in future records that I made. GM: Drums are a key part of that sound. Growing up, while listening to albums, I would read the credits like the post-Beatles recordings, John Lennon's Imagine and George Harrison's The Concert for Bangladesh, both from 1971, and see the name Jim Keltner on drums, who certainly comes through on 'Losing You.' GP: Other than The Band's Levon Helm, the biggest drum influence in my experience as a songwriter is Jim, the drummer that I hear in my head when I am writing a song that I know is going to feature drums. All my drummers would give you a similar list of influences: Led Zeppelin's John Bonham, The Band's Levon Helm, and Jim Keltner. For studio recordings, Jim is more than a pilot of the airplane. He is the shipbuilder and then he's steering the ship. He is speaking with the tempo, engaging with it, like the thermal pressure that might lift you and bring you back down if you were in a glider airplane. I felt like a glider flying over the band the whole time that I was in their capable hands. GM: When I played Brianna 'To Shore,' she said your delivery reminded her of another Grace, Grace Slick, along with Jim Morrison's poetry with The Doors, which may explain why this seven-minute dramatic image filled piece is my favorite song on the album. GP: I was into Ry Cooder and his approach to the Paris, Texas soundtrack. At this time in my life, I was actively pursuing scoring films. I have always been a multi-denominational songwriter. The song is just the medium that I am choosing for that moment. That song is an expression of my filmmaking history. I was a film major at Sarah Lawrence College and with this song it comes to life, which is why the lyrics are so vivid. There is a sinking boat but also an opportunity to save yourself and not be dragged under by it. This allowed the band to take any number of liberties because I didn't need to anchor it with the lyrics, the words would stay on top of the water, and I think the band became the ocean. There is a mysticism to that track and it becomes a movie in a song. GM: I look forward to having 'To Shore' in my Fabulous 100 Songs of 2025 list, now that the album has finally been released. GP: In 2008, I was upset when it wasn't released. It was gut-wrenching to work so hard and bond with T Bone and the musicians. It had a lot to do with the forward momentum of my band, The Nocturnals, at the time and my blind loyalty to that, to make sure I didn't do the whole Big Brother & the Holding Company – Janis Joplin goes solo thing, because it was built into the band's atmosphere that I would be unflinchingly loyal, but behind the scenes, making that solo album was exactly what I was ready to do, yet the loneliness of being a solo artist didn't appeal to me. GM: You carried on with The Nocturnals and 2012's The Lion The Beast The Beat included your Top 100 single 'Stars,' which my wife Donna and I heard being performed on this season of The Voice by Naomi Soleil on Michael Buble's team. You received a lot of praise from fellow coach Adam Levine. GP: My guitarist, Indya Bratton, sent me that link. Leave it to my Generation Z girl to let me know what's going on. I wrote 'Stars' in an emotional time in my life when I lost one of my dearest friends. It has surprised me how much this has resonated with so many people, and never misinterpreted, always hitting in the same place in people's hearts. GM: You have touched many hearts and have helped a lot of people. In 2015, you received the ASCAP Harry Chapin Vanguard Award, carrying on his mission of fighting world hunger, also a long-time passion of Donna's, and inspiring positive change and fostering social justice. On June 4, Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo will follow in your footsteps and receive the annual award. GP: It's been said that I am a big walking around, breathing, singing heart. When I have even a moment of time where I can share something that transforms somebody's life, raising money, and doing good, it is the least difficult decision to make, and is the least that I can do. Whenever those opportunities arise, I find myself begging for more. Music for me has been a bit of a public service. When I was young, people would always ask me to sing to cheer someone up. I can provide that for others in a way I still don't understand. My time is short on this planet, and I want to do as much as I possibly can to contribute. I am so honored that you took the time to have me in your Goldmine series and to share your thoughts. I am impressed and blown away by the associations that you made. No one has ever drawn those threads together quite as accurately as you did and I appreciate it. Thank you so much. Related link: including upcoming shows with Johnnyswim and Chris Stapleton Fabulous Flip Sides is in its eleventh year For related items in our Goldmine store (see below): Click here for the Goldmine store This story was originally reported by Goldmine on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
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4 days ago
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In Memoriam May 2025: Rick Derringer and others
In Memoriam May 2025: Rick Derringer and others originally appeared on Goldmine. May's music losses include Rick Derringer, members of The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, The Amazing Rhythm Aces, The Spinners, and more. Rick Derringer Singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer Rick Derringer, born Richard Zehringer, passed away May 26 in Florida at age 77. The Ohio native first achieved success in 1965 as a member of The McCoys with the No. 1 hit 'Hang on Sloopy,' since recognized as the state's official rock song and has become a staple at The Ohio State University football games. The Midwest band's version of 'Fever' followed in the Top 10. In the early '70s, Derringer was a member of Johnny Winter's group called Johnny Winter And, with his composition 'Rock and Roll, Hootchie Koo' appearing on a studio album and a live album. Derringer also worked with Winter's brother Edgar, most notably producing the album They Only Come Out at Night, featuring a pair of Top 40 hits in 1973: 'Frankenstein' and 'Free Ride.' The following year, as a solo artist, Derringer hit the Top 10 with his version of 'Rock and Roll, Hootchie Koo,' complete with the Johnny Winter-style growl. In the mid-'70s, he formed the band Derringer and in the late '70s, it included fellow Ohioan guitarist Neil Giraldo, who went on to work with, collaborate, and marry Pat Benatar in the following decade. Over the years, as a guitarist and producer, Derringer worked with many artists including Steely Dan, Alice Cooper, Cyndi Lauper, 'Weird Al' Yankovic, Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band, and songwriter Jim Steinman's slew of artists: Meat Loaf, Bonnie Tyler, and Air Supply. Derringer stated that his guitar solo on Air Supply's "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" was his favorite of all the solos he had recorded. Click here to read and hear about Goldmine's Top 20 Rick Derringer Songs Ranked Larry Lee The Ozark Mountain Daredevils' drummer and vocalist Larry Lee passed away May 10 at age 78. Lee was with the Springfield, Missouri group from their 1971 beginning through 1982. Their Top 40 debut happened in 1974 with Steve Cash's harmonica driven 'If You Wanna Get to Heaven,' which reached No. 25. The following year, the group achieved their biggest hit with 'Jackie Blue,' which reached No. 3, co-written by Cash and Lee. Billy Earheart The Amazing Rhythm Aces' keyboardist Billy Earheart passed away May 13 at age 71. The Knoxville, Tennessee country rock group debuted in the pop Top 40 in 1974 with 'Third Rate Romance,' which reached No. 14 and did a bit better on the country chart, peaking at No. 11. The group's next single, 'Amazing Grace (Used to Be Her Favorite Song),' became a Top 10 country hit, and the single after that, 'The End is Not in Sight,' reached No. 12 on the country chart, helping the band secure a Grammy award for Country Vocal Group. Renaissance Records has just released Alive in America, a double album on green vinyl. The label's founder and president John Edwards told Goldmine, 'First of all, Billy was my friend. He helped organize the licensing of the live recording, and we also bonded over music and baseball cards. Billy was a huge baseball fan and he and I always discussed the great players of the '50s, '60s, and '70s. I will really miss him, he was one of the good guys in this business." John Edwards The Spinners' lead tenor vocalist from 1977 through 2000, John Edwards, passed away May 11 at age 80. Edwards was heard singing lead on the early 1980 gold single 'Working My Way Back to You/Forgive Me, Girl.' The medley format of a 1960s hit blended with a new composition from Michael Zager worked so well with the Top 5 hit 'Working My Way Back to You/Forgive Me, Girl,' that it was repeated with their next single, 'Cupid/I've Loved You for a Long Time,' and again, it became a Top 5 hit with Edwards singing lead. James Lowe The Electric Prunes' lead vocalist James Lowe passed away May 22. The Los Angeles psychedelic rock band reached No. 11 in early 1967 with 'I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)' followed by the intense 'Get Me to the World on Time,' which reached No. 27. Jill Sobule Singer-songwriter and guitarist Jill Sobule passed away May 1 at age 66. Sobule's 1995 song 'I Kissed a Girl' reached No. 66 for the Denver native and was accompanied by a fun video featuring male model Fabio Lanzoni. The same year as 'I Kissed a Girl,' Sobule's 'Supermodel' was part of the Clueless film soundtrack, and the video included scenes from that film. Johnny Rodriguez Country music singer-songwriter and guitarist Johnny Rodriguez passed away May 9 at age 73. From 1973 through 1975, Rodriguez topped the country chart a half dozen times with songs including his composition 'Ridin' My Thumb to Mexico,' which spent two weeks in the top spot. Mark Greene The Moments' original lead vocalist Mark Green passed away May 20. In 1968, the New Jersey R&B trio debuted in the pop Top 100 with 'Not on the Outside,' featuring Green's falsetto lead vocals. The single became an R&B Top 20 hit. After this first single on the Stang label, the team at the record company replaced the original trio with three other singers, Harry Ray, Al Goodman, and Billy Brown, who later recorded as Ray, Goodman & Brown. Simon House Violinist and keyboardist Simon House passed away May 25 at age 76. House was with Hawkwind in the mid-'70s and David Bowie in the late-'70s. Cleopatra Records founder Brian Perera stated, 'Simon wasn't just a musician, he was a sonic architect who helped shape the sound of a generation. He shared the stage with legends: David Bowie, Lemmy-era Hawkwind, and Nik Turner, always leaving his unmistakable mark. From the art-rock brilliance of Bowie's 'Boys Keep Swinging' era to the boundary-pushing tours with Nik and Cleopatra in the '90s, Simon's electrifying violin and cosmic keyboard work lifted every track, every show, and every moment. His vision brought depth, texture, and soul. He simply made everything better.' James Baker Hoodoo Gurus drummer James Baker passed away May 5 at age 71. Baker was with the Australian group from 1981 through 1984, including playing on their debut gold album Stoneage Romeos. In April of this year, bassist Kimble Rendall, who played with the band in 1981 and 1982, also passed away. Roger Nichols Songwriter Roger Nichols passed away May 17 at age 84. Nichols co-wrote the Top 100 singles 'Someday Man' for The Monkees, 'Out in the Country' for Three Dog Night, 'Times of Your Life' for Paul Anka, and three Carpenters' hits, 'We've Only Just Begun,' 'Rainy Days and Mondays,' and 'I Won't Last a Day Without You,' the latter also charting for Maureen McGovern. Charles Strouse Songwriter Charles Strouse passed away May 15 at age 96. Strouse co-wrote 'Born Too Late' with Fred Tobias for the Poni-Tails, a pop female vocal trio from Brush High School, in the Cleveland suburb of Lyndhurst, Ohio, which became a Top 10 hit in 1958. Strouse followed this success by co-writing many Broadway musicals including Bye Bye Birdie and Annie. Al Foster Jazz drummer Al Foster passed away May 28 at age 82. Foster played with Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins, Herbie Hancock, and many other jazz musicians over the years. In 1978, he released the first album under his name, the jazz fusion Mixed Roots. Michael B. Tretow ABBA sound engineer Michael B. Tretow passed away May 20 at age 80. Singer-songwriter, guitarist, and author Joe Matera has written a book on ABBA's self-titled hit filled third album, publishing later this year as it celebrates its 50th anniversary. Matera told Goldmine, "The Beatles had George Martin, who was considered the band's 'fifth' member, and Swedish pop group ABBA had their fifth member in Michael B Tretow. The pioneering sound engineer was the sonic architect of the group's signature wall of sound. The chemistry between Tretow and the four members of the group was such that together they created a signature sound that has forever been etched into the music history books. Tretow, who was also a musician himself, worked with the band on all their albums, except for the group's 2021 album, Voyage. Paying tribute to Tretow, ABBA's Benny Andersson summed it up best when he said, 'You meant more to the four of us in ABBA than anyone else, and the finest sound engineer the world has ever seen.'" Joe Louis Walker As May began, we learned that singer-songwriter and electric blues guitarist Joe Louis Walker, born Louis Joseph Walker, Jr., passed away April 30 at age 75. Over the years, Walker was a featured guitarist on many albums, including B.B. King's 1993 Grammy winning Blues Summit album which included a duet of Walker's composition 'Everybody's Had the Blues.' For related items you may enjoy in our Goldmine store (see below): Click here for the Goldmine store This story was originally reported by Goldmine on Jun 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
