Katie Noonan performs at QPAC Friday 19 and Saturday 20 December 2008.
Katie Noonan has been hard at work recording an album of Beatles’ covers in New York City. Working with a smattering of modern jazz veterans, Katie takes the Lennon/McCartney songbook and turns the tunes ‘you’ve known for these years’ on their collective ear. Katie has called the new album, Blackbird.
Joining Katie on her odyssey were Joe Lovano, who co-produced the album, double bassist Ron Carter, drummer Lewis Nash, guitarist John Scofield and Melbourne-based keyboard player Sam Keevers.
“About 18 months ago, I was asked to put in a proposal for a jazz fellowship proposal. And that just got me thinking about how I might combine my two major musical loves – pop and jazz.”
“Fortunately I was able to secure Joe’s involvement. I thought that he would be perfect for this project and he was. He's such an incredible jazz musician [he played saxophone on the album] and I knew he would help me breathe new energy into these incredible songs. I put out an energy that I wanted it to happen and happily it just fell together.”
Once Katie, with family in tow, arrived in NYC, the album was recorded at a lightning pace. A long-time fan of the Beatles' work, Katie decided early on to restrict her album to John Lennon and Paul McCartney compositions.
“I am a great fan of George Harrison's songs,” she explains, “but I felt that his body of work would be more effectively represented in a separate project which I hope to record someday. For now, I thought we would be better served by sticking with the incredible Lennon-McCartney songbook.”
“I don't think there's a single musician on the planet who hasn't been influenced by the Beatles in some way,” Katie continues. “Their songs are just perfectly formed little stories. They have the universal themes of love and friendship and communication and loneliness and passion. They contain all the themes that are still so relevant. It's hard to describe but these really are the perfect pop songs.”
New York was always considered to be the logical recording base for this project.
“Most of the great jazz players made their records and played gigs in New York City. The energy is so full on – it's such an electric city. It's so pulsing and throbbing with energy all the time and that definitely fuelled the record,” admits Katie.
The sheer urgency of the sessions amazed even Katie.
“We did 15 tracks in a day and a half. We worked so fast,” she noted. “I gave these guys complete creative freedom to move because I respected their musical instincts so much.”
Blackbird out now through Sony BMG.
Katie Noonan performs at QPAC Friday 19 and Saturday 20 December 2008.
by Tim Wenner
Check out the video of footage from the making of Blackbird in New York.
