Good morning from London! I am here for two weeks working on the musical. I have a feeling it will be very much like working in NYC where there is very little time to eat, let alone see things. That's ok though. I’ll shoehorn something in. Today will be meeting the UK cast and seeing the show with movement for the first time! I can’t wait. There will also be a lot of sitting in an empty room writing lyrics, which, in all honesty, is my favorite thing to do. No shade to the other elements or humans involved, they are pure gold, there’s just something about scratching away on your paper until you start a little fire on your page. That’s where it feels like inventing a crossword puzzle backward. What a thrill!
London is also lovely in the fall, in the rain! On collaboration: I'm working with an artist who is illustrating our book as a graphic novel. It is SO MUCH FUN. I've been at this craft for a long time, and I appreciate the isolation of world building and sometimes I think it's why I write. But to let someone else in, and to see them UNDERSTAND and get as excited about it, and the world expands around us ad infinitum. It's another facet of being creatively attuned that I feel so grateful for.
I often feel I have lived a life in England at some point. Although I’ve never even visited, I feel so at home with all things British: humor, comportment, accent. All except the food.
Glad you’re getting to take in the people and work on your music.
I loved collaborating in theater the most. So many elements and people to work with and consider. So hard. So rewarding. And when it all comes together pure magic. Can’t wait to see, hear, feel the result of your work on this. Also, those tiles are fantastic!
I love to collaborate on landscape design. Oh I can't design, but I'll tell whether or not your plan will work. "No you just can't put roses in the shade. How about early blooming Camellia? Flowers in the snow." That kind of collaboration. 💐
This is gonna be amazing!! I hope you sit there wearing a beret and chomping a French inhaler. My favorite parts of collaborations are the points along the way where you can tell, "yeah, this project is going to be way better now," whereas maybe at the beginning, collaborators are maybe overattached to their own ideas.
Damn, this has been quite a journey for you, hasn't it? Thanks for bringing us along for the ride and teasing as much info about the project as you're able. As a longtime fan, I am STOKED for the big reveal and to find out when and where we can witness this labor of love. Cheerio!
How exciting! Congratulations on being at this delightful stage in the process. Can’t wait to see the result.
Last week I was on a trip in Colorado with my husband and two couples that I know from college. I rediscovered one of my favorite collaborations, which is crossword puzzles. Lewis and I used to do them together all the time when printed newspapers were a thing in our home. On Sundays, when we were first married, we would get the Sunday crossword started and then leave it on the picnic table in our backyard under a rock for our neighbors to come by and work on it a bit with their coffee and dog.
On this trip, it was me in the back of, a giant rental car on my phone working the New York Times crossword. I would read the clues and see who came up with the best option fastest. It was delightful!
One across, eight letters, starts with N. Writer, artist, composer, singer of songs that move me. 🤗
I have a ticket and a hotel for Virginia 10/13 … so psyched… it will only be my 3rd time Live and I’ve never seen Virginia before.
Found an airline that is all Airbus and that’s where I will be buying my plane ticket because I am not flying That One B airpmane maker ever again. JFC!!! Don’t read about it if airplanes bother you like they bother me. Oh well ~ what’s life if you don’t take a fee chances? 🫨
I’m so excited! I just bought a ticket to Neko Case at the Royal Oak Theater in Michigan in October! Weeeeee! Also watched your video with the amazing Rosanne Cash discussing many wonderful things. You people give me hope😊 and all you do is greatly appreciated. Enjoy London :)
Well, I used to love to collaborate on songwriting. This being 1985 to 1996 when my long departed pal Larry Ortiz and I had this homegrown 4 track Fostex cassette endeavor.
Kind of a Taupin and John esque thing where whatever words I had already cobbled on a yellow legal pad perfectly fit whatever new instrumental noodling of his I'd hear. Or he would take my existing words and weave new music to fit within.
And whatever orphan instrumentals he had I could create totally new words and lyrics for, often depending on the specific mood his music bubbled up inside me. If twangy-ish, then id conjure a country western tableau of some sort.
Ahh, it was spookily heavenly at times.... I could also hum a few bars of a melody id heard in my head, and he'd fully flesh out a new instrumental track.
After he gave up on our musical endeavour and split town never to be seen again, I channelled all the anger I felt into an energy and determined to continue writing lyrics. It evolved into my best ever content.
The irony being that now I had no one to put music to my words. He'd of loved these words I'm damn sure. But with no split then my words may not have evolved as they did. So, since 1996 I've amassed words but without music, other than what I hear in my head and sing out into words-only structured demos on cheapo recording software.
I still consider this creation and expression of heart and mind and soul a bliss. Nowhere near the ecstatic bliss that once was, but it's a bliss nonetheless... Hell, even after three and a half years of being a homeless bum and living out of my vehicle, to have the gumption to remain creative is something I'm so grateful for...!
An unexpected collaboration: Picture it. Me in the local market buying necessities for me and Bobby McGee ~ my canine Boon Companion. The earworm of the day ~ Bracing for Sunday. Me, forgetting that I never sing out loud in public, for good reason. The lyrics I was singing out loud? “I Shot him in hisJelly Eye..” Thanks a lot, Neko. People looked at me Funny ~ 😃
I wish I had a collaborator to work , I'll keep an eye out for possibilities. Your writing catches fire on my page and today after a pretty bad day at work I need that ember to catch.
It's cold here and we are surrounded by people getting sick, so get some good kip Neko and may London nourish your soul.
London is also lovely in the fall, in the rain! On collaboration: I'm working with an artist who is illustrating our book as a graphic novel. It is SO MUCH FUN. I've been at this craft for a long time, and I appreciate the isolation of world building and sometimes I think it's why I write. But to let someone else in, and to see them UNDERSTAND and get as excited about it, and the world expands around us ad infinitum. It's another facet of being creatively attuned that I feel so grateful for.
Well said!
I often feel I have lived a life in England at some point. Although I’ve never even visited, I feel so at home with all things British: humor, comportment, accent. All except the food.
Glad you’re getting to take in the people and work on your music.
I concur. I just so happen to be re-re-reading Pride and Prejudice at the moment. Yay.
I loved collaborating in theater the most. So many elements and people to work with and consider. So hard. So rewarding. And when it all comes together pure magic. Can’t wait to see, hear, feel the result of your work on this. Also, those tiles are fantastic!
I love to collaborate on landscape design. Oh I can't design, but I'll tell whether or not your plan will work. "No you just can't put roses in the shade. How about early blooming Camellia? Flowers in the snow." That kind of collaboration. 💐
🤣
Keep charging! Any collaboration with my partner is tops!
This is gonna be amazing!! I hope you sit there wearing a beret and chomping a French inhaler. My favorite parts of collaborations are the points along the way where you can tell, "yeah, this project is going to be way better now," whereas maybe at the beginning, collaborators are maybe overattached to their own ideas.
Damn, this has been quite a journey for you, hasn't it? Thanks for bringing us along for the ride and teasing as much info about the project as you're able. As a longtime fan, I am STOKED for the big reveal and to find out when and where we can witness this labor of love. Cheerio!
Can't wait to experience the musical. Maybe a stroll around Kew Gardens once the lag wears off would be nice treat.
I love the idea of writing as scratching away on the page until you start a fire. You can’t do that on a device!
How exciting! Congratulations on being at this delightful stage in the process. Can’t wait to see the result.
Last week I was on a trip in Colorado with my husband and two couples that I know from college. I rediscovered one of my favorite collaborations, which is crossword puzzles. Lewis and I used to do them together all the time when printed newspapers were a thing in our home. On Sundays, when we were first married, we would get the Sunday crossword started and then leave it on the picnic table in our backyard under a rock for our neighbors to come by and work on it a bit with their coffee and dog.
On this trip, it was me in the back of, a giant rental car on my phone working the New York Times crossword. I would read the clues and see who came up with the best option fastest. It was delightful!
One across, eight letters, starts with N. Writer, artist, composer, singer of songs that move me. 🤗
Gosh… so many typos. Oh, well about that too.
Language used to be my strong suit, too. Hm.
I have a ticket and a hotel for Virginia 10/13 … so psyched… it will only be my 3rd time Live and I’ve never seen Virginia before.
Found an airline that is all Airbus and that’s where I will be buying my plane ticket because I am not flying That One B airpmane maker ever again. JFC!!! Don’t read about it if airplanes bother you like they bother me. Oh well ~ what’s life if you don’t take a fee chances? 🫨
I’m so excited! I just bought a ticket to Neko Case at the Royal Oak Theater in Michigan in October! Weeeeee! Also watched your video with the amazing Rosanne Cash discussing many wonderful things. You people give me hope😊 and all you do is greatly appreciated. Enjoy London :)
Well, I used to love to collaborate on songwriting. This being 1985 to 1996 when my long departed pal Larry Ortiz and I had this homegrown 4 track Fostex cassette endeavor.
Kind of a Taupin and John esque thing where whatever words I had already cobbled on a yellow legal pad perfectly fit whatever new instrumental noodling of his I'd hear. Or he would take my existing words and weave new music to fit within.
And whatever orphan instrumentals he had I could create totally new words and lyrics for, often depending on the specific mood his music bubbled up inside me. If twangy-ish, then id conjure a country western tableau of some sort.
Ahh, it was spookily heavenly at times.... I could also hum a few bars of a melody id heard in my head, and he'd fully flesh out a new instrumental track.
After he gave up on our musical endeavour and split town never to be seen again, I channelled all the anger I felt into an energy and determined to continue writing lyrics. It evolved into my best ever content.
The irony being that now I had no one to put music to my words. He'd of loved these words I'm damn sure. But with no split then my words may not have evolved as they did. So, since 1996 I've amassed words but without music, other than what I hear in my head and sing out into words-only structured demos on cheapo recording software.
I still consider this creation and expression of heart and mind and soul a bliss. Nowhere near the ecstatic bliss that once was, but it's a bliss nonetheless... Hell, even after three and a half years of being a homeless bum and living out of my vehicle, to have the gumption to remain creative is something I'm so grateful for...!
An unexpected collaboration: Picture it. Me in the local market buying necessities for me and Bobby McGee ~ my canine Boon Companion. The earworm of the day ~ Bracing for Sunday. Me, forgetting that I never sing out loud in public, for good reason. The lyrics I was singing out loud? “I Shot him in hisJelly Eye..” Thanks a lot, Neko. People looked at me Funny ~ 😃
I wish I had a collaborator to work , I'll keep an eye out for possibilities. Your writing catches fire on my page and today after a pretty bad day at work I need that ember to catch.
It's cold here and we are surrounded by people getting sick, so get some good kip Neko and may London nourish your soul.