Looking at your resume , you ' ve worked with some pretty talented and amazing musicians over your career . Do you all connect on some basic , fundamental level or does everyone have their own unique vibe that they bring to the table ?
I think it is a little of both . Insightful musicians can pretty much know where the direction of a song is going after a few listens . As the producer ; I start off the musicians to play what they are feeling or hearing in their head . In this way ; the song may take an unexpected creative turn , that I may not have thought of . I only start coaching a studio musician if they are playing totally out of context with my musical vision , but that rarely happens .
Have you ever worked with an artist and thought , " Wow . This person is truly one of the greats ?" and just been blown away ?
Actually , I say that every time Tony Novarro plays a guitar solo ! But outside of the two of us ; I had those very thoughts of Ivan Elias . I only heard a little bit of his work with Patty Smyth and Scandal ; but when he started playing our songs and slapping out that funky bass work ; I couldn ' t believe my ears . What a diverse , magnificent talent he was !
Getting back to the album , you lost Johnny Jace . Is there one song that you feel really captures his spirit ? His creative force ?
I would have to say from this new album : " Ring Around Rosie ". Johnny liked to have people think he was crazy and unpredictable . But underneath that exterior ; he really was a romantic . That song to me , was the essence of what he truly was underneath . But " My Name " from our debut CD ; ' Red Hot ' also was a song that captured his internal conflict .
One of the things that I like most about your music is that it is so varied , yet so clearly ITP . I really admire that , and I think you do it really well . How do you manage to create so many interesting and compelling pieces while still maintaining the continuity of your sound ?
Thank you for saying that . I ' m not really sure exactly how we do it . Tony and I grew up listening to so many styles of pop and rock music in the 60s , 70s and 80s . When you think about groups like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones ; they went through so many changes of musical style , yet as soon as you heard the vocals or a guitar riff ; you had a good idea who the artist was . And I guess that is what helps us to keep our identity as ITP ; my vocals and Tony ' s guitar work .
Congratulations on the nominations from the Nashville Universe Awards . What was it like , hearing you had been nominated in FOUR categories ?
Thank you ! It really is an honor to be nominated . There is so much great talent out there , and it is humbling when you find out that your peers recognize your musical work . We will probably never win a Grammy ; but to me this is just as satisfying .