by Kevin J. Hosey
Don’t think words are important to Beaver Nelson? Just talk to him about them.
The Austin singer, songwriter and musician was recently subjected to my questions via telephone, many of them referring to his 2001 CD, "Undisturbed" (Black Dog Records).
He was asked if his most recent release featured more introspective songs than before.
"I don’t really go back and listen to my other records (but) I don’t feel like the new songs are more introspective. I think that this CD is more condensed in subject matter; several songs deal with some of the same things. I wrote what was on my mind," Nelson said. "On my first two CDs, some were new songs and some I hadn’t been able to record. I took the best of the new songs and cherry picked them with the mood I had. On the new record, they’re all new and written kind of out of the same mindset or world view. I write one song, then write another, maybe some small angle, nook or cranny I didn’t get into another song. Because of that, there is less jumping around; the new songs are kind of keeping the others in mind."
One concept was repeatedly addressed on "Undisturbed."
"Time, that was the underlying element of probably every song on the record, and no real event. I’ve always been pretty aware of it. The subject matter has been written about; sometimes, you can feel every second ticking by, and sometimes, you forget about it," he said. "`Beauty in Store’ was written for my son, Jack Grady, six to eight weeks before he was born; we didn’t know at the time what (gender) he would be."
When I said that my first impression of "Beauty in Store" was that the song was about him as a child, Nelson responded, "That song has been misunderstood primarily by music critics. It is about life and what is to come and what life teaches you. Sometimes, I write with a lot of imagery and detail and not a lot of linear structure. I usually don’t tell a tale in an A-Z structure because I’m trying to capture a mood as compared to describe an event."
Nelson discussed comparisons of his song approach to southern literature: "It is difficult with a book or a play; you cannot write a book without telling a story, like Victorian literature, where the writers take pages to describe every little trinket. I’m a big fan of Cormac McCarthy; there are times reading his stuff where you realize you’ve gone 17-18 lines without a period. He always goes a little deeper, almost as if he is trying to connect with some prehistoric memory." He recommended that a newcomer to McCarthy read "All the Pretty Horses" and "The Crossing" first: "It is the longest and most dense; when I finished reading ‘The Crossing,’ I ate nothing but beans, bacon and corn tortillas for weeks, maybe an orange soda."
Having recorded with Gurf Morlix, Toni Price and a strong cast on "Undisturbed," including guitarist/producer Scrappy Jud Newcomb, keyboardist Ian MacLagan, bassist Michael "Cornbread" Traylor and multi-instrumentalist Malcolm "Papa Mali" Welbourne, Nelson felt pleased working in Austin.
"It has been quite a ride; this is a great town for that, full of good musicians. I am lucky to play with Scrappy, because it is easy for him to call 12 people to get them to play. Half the time, when we go in to record, the band has been playing the songs for six months," he said. "They (musicians he records with) are perfectly willing to hear what the songwriter has to say and want; also, you hardly have to tell them anything. You kind of know what you are going to get with the feel. You are getting a song to feel a certain way.”
Nelson has been busy touring much of the summer: "You’ll probably see me in Buffalo in September; that’s my plan. It is a much, much better touring month than August. I should probably have a new record out by the end of the summer; it is being made in my friend’s little room, not an enormous studio. It will be a very different sounding album. I honestly don’t know how to describe it; it has been a tremendous amount of fun to record. We started to demo out some songs and I liked the way it was turning out."
While the dreaded influence question can annoy some interview subjects and readers, Nelson was happy to discuss some favorite live performers.
"Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen; I will go see them outdoors and anywhere; there aren’t many, and for someone like me, that is an incredible experience, the unmistakable fact that he is real, that he is a human being," he said. "Ron Sexsmith is someone I would like to go on the road with; he’s probably my favorite songwriter under the age of 40. I met him at South by Southwest, and he is a real nice guy."
For tour information, CDs and other items, people can check www.beavernelson.com.