9 Questions with Ian Fitzgerald: Newport Folk, New Album, and Old Folk Inspirations

On three separate occasions, Ian Fitzgerald has been mentioned in American Songwriter‘s ‘Writer of the Week’ feature by three different songwriters. Quotes such as “He is easily one of the best songwriters I’ve ever heard.” and “He’s got a rare gift” coming from a magazine are nothing to shake a stick at, but when those words come from the mouths of your contemporaries, well then that’s when folks should really be paying attention.

With Ian playing the Museum stage as part of the Wildwood Revival-curated stage this year at the Newport Folk Festival, I am certain many more of those quotes from songwriters will be floated around folk singer circles and interview featurettes. With a new record on the horizon, a growing tour circuit, and an increasing interest in improvising with friends in full band, duo or in the round formats, I am sure that a larger portion of the world will be saying “wow, this Ian Fitzgerald guy just became my favorite songwriter”. For now, here is an interview with my favorite songwriter, Ian Fitzgerald…

Red Line Roots: How many years have you been attending the Folk Festival? Have there been any pinnacle or standout moments that made you say “I need to play this festival at some point?”

Ian Fitzgerald: I’ve known about the Folk Festival for more or less my whole life. Growing up in southern Massachusetts, there’d be commercials for the Newport Folk Festival on the local channels. It wasn’t until after I’d grown up a bit that I learned about the historical significance of the Festival. My first time attending the Festival was in 2002 when Bob Dylan returned for the first time since 1965. I’ve gone on and off since then, and I’ve begun attending annually over the past few years. I’ve been amazed by how much it has evolved in that time. Seeing Brown Bird on the Harbor Stage in 2011 was a huge moment. That was the first time the people I knew had been on the bill. And it was clear that they belonged. I didn’t begin thinking at that time about playing the Festival; that would have seemed unrealistic then (as opposed to now, when it just seems unreal). I can trace a line, though, directly from that performance to mine. More broadly, in terms of where or what festivals I’ve wanted to play, Newport has always been *the one.*

Regarding Newport: you are a veteran of sorts in attending the festival and playing the Late July tent and Newport Eve show last year, and then the Museum this year for the Wildwood Revival curated stage. Do you have any pointers for first timers in optimizing the time they spent at Fort Adams? What to spend time worrying about and what not to?

It’s important to accept that you can’t see everything, and you will miss great moments and performances; accepting that is key to avoiding disappointment. That said, the probability is that you will be missing those things because you are elsewhere seeing great moments and performances. I’d recommend assessing the schedule; deciding on your must-sees; and allowing yourself time to see some acts you’ve never seen or even heard of before. You’re all but guaranteed to find new favorites. Also, I’m not the most tech-savvy person in the world (I found out what a “push notification” is at least year’s Festival), but I recommend using the Festival’s app: if you’re worried about missing some of the surprise performances and special moments, that’s a great way to stay informed. And, of course, I strongly recommend that everyone going this year find a spot in the Museum on Friday and hunker down for the Wildwood Showcase.

Do you have a particularly memorable set from folk fests past you’d want to share with folks? Or, if it’s a bit more feasible, narrow that down to 3 that really moved you?

I know that it wasn’t a hit with everyone who saw it, but Father John Misty’s set at the 2013 Festival really hit me and has stuck with me. When I saw him earlier this year, he spoke about that set and suggested that he feels some regret about his attitude that day. I thought it was bold, though, to walk out with an acoustic guitar; acknowledge where he was and what this music means to him with a beautiful performance of “East Virginia;” then bring out his band, present his music unapologetically, and allow them to place that in the context of the Festival as they may. Sunday morning of the 2009 Festival was one of those times where I was forced to choose between two sets near the top of my list: Josh Ritter on the main stage or the Dave Rawlings Machine on the Harbor Stage. The Machine, which consisted only of David and Gillian at that point, won out, and I have no regrets. Friend Of A Friend hadn’t yet been released, but we were treated to previews of, among others, “Bells Of Harlem,” “Ruby,” and a slow version of “It’s Too Easy” sung by Dave that mirrored the arrangement Gillian had sung on the main stage the day before. And since you opened the door for me to pick three, I’ll go with Steve Earle’s set from 2004. He was just about to release The Revolution Starts Now, a collection of highly political songs, and he opened with a number from that album called “F The CC.” He was alone with his acoustic guitar and harmonica, and I remember bolting straight up in my seat from the energy of it.

More recently, you have been experimenting with live shows in different capacities. You have previously performed in a duo, occasionally have Smith & Weeden as a backing band, and performed duets on other occasions as well. I recently heard you say you prefer performing solo, but have you also found that performing in these other capacities has made a mark on you as a performer at all?

My various collaborations have certainly influenced my solo performances. As you mentioned, Courtney Gallagher sang harmony with me for a number of shows over a two-year span leading up to and then following the release of my last record. That type of performance requires a different type of discipline: I had to be locked into my parts because her part required that, and likewise in the other direction. The songs weren’t written that way, but they were shaped that way for that type of performance. Performing those songs solo has allowed me to be freer with them and to explore them a bit more, but I’m also able to snap back into those parts if someone joins me to sing harmony, and I can transfer that discipline to other songs if I’m joining others. Working with Smith&Weeden has been a different animal. I’d never played with a band before, so I was lucky not only that all four members are so talented but that they work so well as a unit. They’ve welcomed me to join them on stage a number of times, and they picked right up on the new songs that I brought to them. I’m still learning the dynamics of that type of performance, and I hope to do more of it. While playing solo is what I’m used to and probably best at, I wouldn’t want to cling to it stubbornly if the songs demand something else.

You have a new record coming out soon. What can we expect from this one that differs from your previous work? I also heard that you have Smith&Weeden backing on some tracks, but not others. Was that by design or just what the songs called for after getting in the studio?

The most apparent difference will be the involvement of Smith & Weeden and the sound of some songs. Other differences that might not be so apparent, particularly in the style of writing, led to my decision to ask them to join me. I knew early on in the writing process that this record would have to sound different from the last one, which involved very little beyond two voices and some acoustic guitars. I knew that Smith&Weeden would not play on the whole album and thought I knew which songs they would play on. Getting into the studio led to changes in both directions: approaching some of those songs without them while having them tackle some I hadn’t planned on originally. I’ve been lucky to have Eric Lichter by my side again, producing and contributing musically; I know that he has remained mindful of the record’s cohesiveness, bringing together the varying musical parts that we have. I’ve also been extremely fortunate that every person who’s played on this record, whether they know it or not, has contributed to it and helped me in ways that go well beyond what was committed to tape.

It seems that you are deeply entrenched in a folk revival of sorts around the northeast and beyond. Since you started with open mics and such years back, how have you seen the evolution of that community? Do you see it growing? Do you see it as a positive thing?

That’s an interesting idea about a folk revival. It’s hard for me to assess how that’s changed since I started because I wasn’t fully aware of the music that was being made around me at that time. I’m also unsure sometimes how much the performers around me think of themselves as folk singers or of what they play as folk music. I don’t know how far back their roots go. I’d be interested to talk to more performers about that, to hear from them what they think of when they think of folk music. I hope that folk music continues to spread and that more people embrace it. It helps to look back.

Staying on that theme of “other folks” and being that Newport itself is big on community and a “folk family”, are there artists that you gravitate towards in your own community? People you admire for their craft that you might want to let readers become more aware of?

In terms of people who are playing the Festival this year: I’m always excited to see Joe Fletcher’s name on any bill. He’s such a skilled and charismatic performer that I think people may not realize how great a songwriter he is. I could write pages about “Haint Blue Cadillac.” I can’t wait to see Haunt the House take the stage and then watch the crowd fall in love with their music. Will, Bessie, and Amato are creating something special. And I know that everyone who has encountered Christopher Paul Stelling is thrilled by the success that he has seen recently. I’m excited for him, excited by his record, and excited to see him at Newport. In terms of folks who I feel could fit at Newport over the next few years: Krista Baroni made a wonderful record last year and is coming into her own in a way that’s really fun to watch. Molly Pinto Madigan is fluent in the ballad language and writes in a way that that not many people are able to. I think the upcoming records from Zach Schmidt and James Maple are going to be knockouts. And, of course, I’d love to see Smith & Weeden on the Newport bill.

You have been called one of the most gifted contemporary “roots” or folk songwriters, not just from this publication but others  as well. There is no denying that you take great care with each and every line in your songs. In knowing you not just as an artist but also a friend and occasional music-making cohort, I have found that you truly take the time to listen to a song. If you could give someone who perhaps is a good songwriter, but needs an extra push to be a great one, what would it be? Are there certain details to a song that you find make or break it for you, personally?

It’s important to find your voice as a songwriter, to identify the line between inspiration and imitation. It’s natural and probably unavoidable to start writing in the style of the writers you admire most, but it’s necessary to move away from that to something that is your own. One way to help that process along is to vary what you listen to; even if you listen to one style of music consistently, there are lessons to be learned from the varying approaches of different writers. It also helps to be judgmental: this may be a subjective exercise, but you need to decide what writing you consider better than others, then work on figuring out why you think so. The writing that you consider better may not be the same as the writing that you feel speaks to you; confusion between the two can lead to taking cues from weak writing that successfully conveys a certain feeling. If you are able to distinguish the good writing from the weak writing *and* the writing that you connect to emotionally from the writing that fails to connect, you can then use the cross-section as models to work towards while examining the rest to determine why they failed to meet both standards (or either standard). With the caveat that I don’t consider myself a great writer and I still have more work ahead of me than behind me toward that end, I hope some of that would be helpful to someone who’s working toward the same goal.

So, what does the future hold for Ian Fitzgerald?

I should be finishing the next record soon, so I’ll be working on getting that out to people in some form or another. I’m hopeful that there are some folks who will want to hear that. I’ll also be playing as many shows as I can, in some new places and some familiar ones. And I hope that once this record does get out to people that the songs will start coming to me for another. As I said, I have more work ahead of me than behind; with any luck, my best work is ahead of me, too.

Fitzgerald takes the stage at Newport on Friday for the Wildwood Revival set. Individual set times are not yet released and Wildwood occurs in the museum from 2;30-5:30, but as Ian suggested, it is in your best interest to get there early to stake your claim and hang in the Museum for a long while Friday at Fort Adams.