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A conversation with Tucker Martine. Listen to program
Each time I make an episode of the Spark, I take something valuable away in pocket to use as I go looking for my own work. Kiki Smith taught me that expectations are not supposed to be met, that they must meet the world and mingle to be born. Marc Ribot reminded me to practice hard and then throw practice away at the right moment and rely on my gut instinct. This particular episode of the Spark is very special because not only was I able to talk with my guest Tucker Martine, but also to work along side him.
Tucker Martine would not tell you this himself, but he was recently named one of the top ten producers of the decade by Paste Magazine. He’s worked with everyone from The Decemberists, Bill Frisell, and The Long Winters to the many great records of his partner Laura Veirs. And now lucky me. For the past month or so, I’ve been learning from Tucker everyday while the band and I worked on a new record, which he produced. The things I find myself short on, Tucker has plenty of. Patience. Confidence to go slowly. Faith enough to explore, to reach deeper in. I watched him pull more from my band and from me than we were even aware was there to pull from. His gentleness and kindness made us willing and eager to open and give, rather than tightening as if we had somehow disappointed or failed if we had not yet arrived at an answer. So many times in a studio, or on a stage, or on any given morning in life, there is simply no time to not have the answer. The answer must be had now, and it must be the right answer and we must stick to it. Even if, perhaps, it isn’t really the answer. Tucker was completely comfortable, even right at home, in the space of not having the answer. Until we had the gut checked, stomach tested, heartfelt answer in hand, why proceed? Tucker never flinched on that search. I imagine he would only have flinched if we took a wrong turn for a wrong reason.
I wrote a note to myself some months ago about a different kind of creativity that I wanted to explore. The note said something like, “Not so much pinning something down as opening it up and letting it go.” Tucker’s work brings that idea to life. There is plenty of space, within us and without us, still uncharted, if we only have the patience and courage to let go and let them fly.
I spoke to Tucker in his kitchen, above his studio where he was hard at work mixing our record while I was goofing around listening to vintage Anne Murray records. Check it out.
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