A Conversation with Patty Griffin (continued)

PM: Do the tunes from Children Running Through come from the period just before the record, or from various times?

PG: Most of them do. I think "Burgundy Shoes" is the oldest one. I think I remember doing that on the road for the Impossible Dream tour. I might have just written it then. I think that's the oldest song, so that's probably about three years old. Everything else was -- really, that "Up To The Mountain" song to me is like the first one in my mind, and that was written the week before the tsunami, I remember. Marking time by disasters...

PM: Yeah. Was there anything special going on in your life at the time that you wrote this batch of songs, or just life at large?

PG: I don't think there's any one specific thing. I just think time passing, you know, life at large.

PM: Are you still in Austin? Is that where you're living?

PG: Yes, still in Austin.

PM: I understand from the press release that a musical is going up based around your music in May, with the Atlantic Theater Company.

PG: Yeah.

PM: How did that all come about? That's pretty amazing.

PG: I was approached by this very talented playwright, Keith Bunin. He sent me a play that he'd written that had been performed. He said that the songs were so visual to him every time he listened to them, that he came up with scenes and characters and activities, and different things within the song that had happened.

PM: Wow.

PG: And he wanted to try to start from scratch on something new. I just haven't really had that kind of time. That really takes a huge chunk of time. And I had to put him off and put him off and put him off, and finally he started writing something around what was already out there. I was really skeptical about it, but I saw a run-through, and I thought it was really good, and that the performers were good, and I was excited about it. So I've written something since then for it, specifically. And yeah, it's fun. I'd like to do more of that.

PM: So did he pick tunes from different periods and weave a story around them?

PG: Yeah, that's exactly right.

PM: And then you say you contributed new songs?

PG: Yeah, a couple of new songs.

PM: Is Tom Hulce coming on as producer, and is he getting personally involved?

PG: Yes. He is very hands-on as producer.

PM: Wow. What kind of a guy is he?

PG: He's sweet. He's Amadeus!

PM: Right, he's Amadeus.

[laughter]

PM: But also, did you ever see him in Dominic and Eugene? That was amazing.

PG: Yes. He was great in that. And Animal House, of course.

PM: Right, right.

[laughter]

PM: I can't remember him in that. I have to go back and check that out.    continue

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