PM: What equipment are you using?

JG: It's kind of the house of many formats here, my current center of things is the computer. I'm running out of room and have a little corner of the house for my stuff, so it makes better sense. I also have an analog 8 track recorder, some ADATs, a hard disk recorder...

PM: That is many formats. Do you have the Roland 16 track hard disk system?

JG: Actually, I have the E-MUs hooked up to the Roland DM800, the predecessor of the new 8 and 16 tracks on the market now. It's all synched up together. I'd like to learn to do it all, but I know that the best music you can make is with other people. Things happen in that situation that you could never overdub in your home studio.

PM: And you've stuck with Martin guitars, a tried and true Pennsylvanian.

JG: I had an old one that I've written with, and in the meantime had a Lowden and a Larivee that I liked a lot, they were really good road guitars. The Martin I'm using now, they gave me that a couple of years ago, Dick Boak and Martin. They saw me play at Godfrey Daniels, and schemed it up. They said, "We hope you play it, but you're not obligated to." It wasn't an endorsement deal, but a gift. It was one of those good things that happened, that made me feel like I was doing something worthwhile.

PM: (Since the recorder kept shutting off!) So, I want to make sure I get that model number, it's an OM-28VR.

JG: Right, the vintage reissue.

PM: You play any electric?

JG: I just got an electric guitar, for the home setup. I've been getting away from the technology end, and more interested again in just playing stuff. It's a Musicmaster, I believe, shaped like a Fender bass, single pickup.

PM: I like to play the Gibson jazz boxes, I have an old ES125. For those of us that crossed over from acoustic world, it's worth a look.

JG: I notice that sometimes when I play electric guitar, that I get a pain in the shoulder, I'm not used to having the body of the guitar so close to me, not having to reach out.

PM: I think we're all plagued by the shoulder pains of a life of playing guitar, right, they just never go away. [Commiserating laughter] So, it occurred to me while listening to this recent great CD that you are a spreader of hope, that's a commendable occupation. How do you feel about that?

JG: I'm surprised that it's come to this. I've turned into a hopeful guy, it's kind of a funny thing. In some ways, I feel like I've backed my way into a normal life. I started out a kind of road warrior, the opposite end of the domestic spectrum. Now I'm a dad, and try to spend time with the family, and do things around the house. I'm learning how to do that. [Laughs] I've learned how to fold clothes, after these years.

PM: I'll bet you're pretty good at diapers, too.

JG: Oh yeah.

PM: Do you have special spiritual leanings, Christianity or Buddhism, or something else?

JG: I was raised Catholic, so that did something. I don't classify myself, but I do believe in a God, just...

PM: You don't give him a name.

JG: Right. With music, I've always had a faith in myself that I could do it my own way, even though I knew it would be the hard way. But as far as confidence goes, it's been more absent than present.

PM: Even with all the acclaim, and all the good reviews, it's still like that?

JG: Yeah, I make my living from the live shows, and you're only as good as your last show. If I feel that I didn't do a good show, then I feel like, oh... Maybe that's the general New Jersey attitude, that you're never good enough. And I think that kind of attitude is an asset, you never feel like you've got it made. There's always more to learn, more work to do.

PM: Certainly not the makeup of a person who's going to rest on his laurels.

JG: I have to be reaching new people all the time. People aren't always going to be able to come to the show, especially if they have the obligations of family, and less free nights. So, I have to always be reaching new people, hopefully for as long as I live.

PM: I really liked the production on the new record, two Polish guys and a Ukrainian. [Gorka, Robb Genadek, and percussionist Andy Stochansky.] I think the Ukrainian's contribution is outstanding.

JG: Yeah, I really loved his playing. He's knowledgeable about different kinds of music, as well as visual arts, and movies.

PM: Seems like drummers and percussionists tend to know more about world music that we string players do.

JG: Yeah, it's interesting. He added a lot, just as a presence. He has his own band now, doing his own music.

PM: Under his own name?

JG: Right, up in Canada, outside Toronto. He's done some tours in the US. He's very innovative. And Rob Genadek was much more than an engineer, he helped bring together a group of people that really made it happen. Aside from knowing all about mic placement and the treatment of sound, he was a very creative element in the process.

PM: Fatherhood considered, have you any time for reading?

JG: Mostly, I'm just reading the Harry Potter books right now. And The Real Frank Zappa Book, it's sort of an autobiography. It's mostly compiled, edited interviews, I don't think he wrote a lot down. But they were done with a book in mind.

PM: Do you think that folk is on the rise, at a plateau, or shrinking as a market?

JG: That's a good question. I think that there's more and more people doing it. It goes underground from time to time, and occasionally a big success will pop through commercially. But I think it's still going strong. Maybe they'll have some data on that after this Folk Alliance Convention is over in Vancouver this weekend. The Internet is changing things a little, but performers still have to become known first from their shows, and then build on that. And I think that will only become more important, it's the thing that can't be virtualized. That's where the magic always was. There were records that moved me without end, but it was seeing people perform live that made me want to do it. Godfrey Daniels is celebrating 25 years next month.

PM: That's amazing. Did you do a video for this record, is that part of the Red House budget?

JG: No. The way we did the first video, I did it with Chris Rogers, he's a Nashville guy. He liked the I Know record, and we did it for the cost of the equipment. "When She Kisses Me" got quite a lot of airplay. If there was another opportunity like that, I'd do it, of course. But there really isn't a budget for stuff like that, the main thing is still getting the word out by doing as many live shows as I can without wrecking the balance of family and career.

PM: How many folk acts out there are making a good living, in your opinion? I know that depends on what one means by a good living, but are really more than a dozen?

JG: And also on what you consider folk. I'd have to think about that. I'll bet there are more than you might imagine.

PM: I'd like to think so. I'd like to think there are 25, but then I try to count them. But there are many people willing to make a meager living to do the thing they love.

JG: Sure.

PM: I didn't notice anything in the liner notes about publishing. Are you your own publisher?

JG: Yes. I wonder if they forgot to put that in there.

PM: Do you ever try to write for other artists, or always for yourself?

JG: I try to write for myself, and then see if anything might be a good fit for someone else.

PM: Have other artists picked up on your material, folk or otherwise?

JG: A few, Mary Black has recorded quite a few songs. Maura O'Connell covered a few songs, and Edwin McCain covered "Let Them In."

PM: Edwin McCain? That had to do pretty well.

JG: Yeah, that helped.

PM: He sold hella records.

JG: Yeah.

PM: I like that guy, 'cause he's not a poster child for anything but good singing.

JG: Exactly. And I thought he did a really good job on the song, too. He called it "Prayer for St. Peter" or something, on his last record.

PM: So, I'll ask you one more thing, and I pray to God that this piece of shit recorder actually worked. What goals are still on the horizon?

JG: [laughing] Well, I still want to keep working on songs. There are so many places you can go with a song, and for me it's still all about that. Chasing down the songs, and trying to make them as good as I can.

PM: Well, John, it was lovely to talk with you, and I hope to see you around the bend.

JG: Yeah, Frank, same here. Have you run into Steve Kimock at all? [John and I had talked some about my music, which I don't include here. Steve Kimock and I were bandmates in the Goodman Brothers, which was a band John liked back in his PA days.]

PM: Yes, it's interesting that you ask. I'll be reviewing a record of his in the same issue where you'll be featured.

JG: Oh, good. [After this, we reminisced about some old days, about Steve Kimock, talked about Ken Burns' Jazz program, different things...]

PM: Well, I hope to see you again in Nashville before too long. I notice that Ani Difranco is playing the Ryman soon, I'd like to see you there.

JG: Yeah, I opened for Mary Chapin Carpenter there once. Thanks a lot for doing this, and I'll check out Puremusic. Say hello to your brother Billy for me.

PM: OK buddy, take care.

JG: You too, Frank. See you soon.

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