Richard Wayne Interviews SF Urban Cowboy, Minstrel, Legend, Hang Jones
Howdy, readers! Meet Hang Jones–a storyteller for the proletariat in the vein of Springsteen and Cash, a wandering troubadour in the vein of Van Zandt and Dylan, a soft-centered scoundrel in the vein of Han Solo. You may already know Hang as Stephen Grillos, frontman for San Francisico outlaw rock’n’roll band, Del Bombers. But now he’s mounted his steel horse with his six-guns at his sides, ready to set forth on a solitary adventure into the territory of the concept album. And this ain’t no tumbleweed of a record—The Ballad of Carlsbad County, set in 1887 New Mexico amidst a three-way battle of the hearts, is classic Americana driven by tales of humankind’s two greatest forces—love and death.
The album and its first conceptual video will be available on October 22 via the Hang Jones website. If you’re in the San Francisco area, be sure to catch Hang playing live on October 1 at El Rio, on October 11 at Café International, and then once again on October 21 at Hotel Utah.
RW: First off…Hang Jones: one man or a band? Or both?
HJ: When I began writing the album it was a solo project. I had spent over 10 years in a band (Del Bombers), and I really wanted to try music on my own. However, I didn’t want to go by “Stephen Grillos” as there are so many singer/songwriters out there these days. I wanted a name that could be for either an individual or a group. If I am up on stage performing solo people will think I am hang Jones, but if I have the entire band up their, then we must be Hang Jones. It is ambiguous, and that is by design.
While I consider Matt and Mayumi (Matt Cunitz: bass, piano, pump organ. Mayumi Orgino: fiddle, backing vocals) very much a part of the band, they are both very busy with other groups. So live shows will be the group at times, me solo others, and sit in players here and there. Should make each show unique in it’s own way.
All that said, as I get deeper and deeper into the characters of the story, I am digging taking on the identity of the minstrel Hang Jones.
RW: I don’t claim to know much about San Francisco, having only been there once, but my impression of the music scene there has been cultivated from listening to bands like VSS, Pleasure Forever, Vue–bands that I would consider to possess a much flashier and more urban sound and image. With that in mind, I found your music and your image to be quite out of the ordinary. Do you feel like you’re a loner in your local underground music scene? And if so, do you think that has any impact on the music you write considering that it conveys a sense of the old west and the solitary cowboy life?
HJ: I think like any urban center, San Francisco attracts them in all shapes and sizes. And while I wouldn’t say roots music is the dominant scene in San Francisco, it certainly has a long tradition in this city. Since the 60s, San Francisco has been famous for its Bluegrass and Folk artists, and the musicians here are serious about keeping that heritage alive. So thankfully I am not coming out of left field being a San Francisco artist that sings Americana music. As for the solitary sound of the songs, I think a lot of that comes from the fact that I holed up in my apartment for around a year and a half writing this record. For the first time I didn’t have a band to bounce everything off of, although my wife played that role well. Also, I had moved around a lot, and hadn’t been in the SF music scene for a number of years. So yeah, I definitely feel like not many people around here know who the hell I am.
RW: Your songs are sung in first-person and so it seems that you have taken on this character of Jacob Powell (NOTE: Jacob Powell is the bad guy, the hero is William Bishop).. Was that a conscious decision? What made you decide to tell this particular story from the point of view of someone who’s living your lyrics? Why not some omniscient third-person observer?
HJ: I like to think of my role here as the storyteller - like I am traveling back east from the Wild West with tall tales of murder, tragedy, and romance. But you’re right, these songs are all sung in the first person, so that line got blurred somewhere along the road.
I will say that, in writing this album, I became very attached to all these characters. I had some major issues to work through, especially with William. He begins the record getting mixed up in a gunfight and killing someone, then later beats a guy to death, but he is supposed to be the hero of the story. Trying to make him a strong yet sympathetic character took a lot of time to flush out and lead to a really deep understanding of him and his motivations. I guess after going through all that I found it easier to sing the songs from their perspective. I think it makes the songs that more personal, and haunting.
RW: You and I have only conversed briefly and so I know little about you. One thing I do know is that you have lived all over the country. This may also tie in with questions 2 and 3, but do you think your roaming past has allowed you to identify with such ‘western’ characters?
HJ: I think a lot of the fixation with Western characters comes from my upbringing. I’ve always had a fixation with the Wild West. I grew up watching Spaghetti Westerns with my Dad, and have read a bunch of books on the subject. But you’re right, I think moving around a lot has influenced my songwriting greatly. I only lived in Texas for a short time, but it happened early enough in my music career to have a huge impact on my writing style. Two of my biggest heroes came out of Texas (Steve Earle and Townes Van Zandt).
Also, as far as traveling around goes, a lot of isolation comes with it. When you spend a lot
of time in strange places where you don’t know a single soul you get in a lot of conversations with yourself. Having a guitar helped keep me from going crazy a lot of the time.
RW: In the ‘Legend’ section of your website, you refer to the songs you’ve just finished as chapters. Do you plan to write your future albums in the same manner, or even as subsequent volumes of this story? Does this make it, in a sense, a ‘concept album’?
HJ: The original plan for release was to have a song and a video for each chapter, so listeners could learn the story as it evolves through a cool visual medium. As an indie artist I quickly learned that would not be possible. I just don’t have the budget. So the Legend page can fill that need.
Also, I was going to release song at a time, but I got so many emails from people that wanted to buy the CD I decided to hurry up already and release it. So the album is coming out next month, and I’ve got two videos finished, but I will continue on with releasing Legends for each song so people can get into the characters and learn more about them. I am also trying to get together the cash to complete the video series, but that will end up being 5 chapters, not 12. So the videos will focus on the William - Caroline - Jacob triangle of love and murder, while the legend and album fills in the back story of those three characters.
RW: Lastly…Han Solo: perhaps the ultimate cowboy?
HJ: I am a huge Star Wars geek, so for my money there is no “perhaps” about it. Han Solo is my biggest hero (sorry Townes). On the surface he is selfish and arrogant, but when the chips are down and you need someone watching your back he’s the best friend a man could have. I wouldn’t leave him alone in a room with my wife though.
all photo and flyer design by lisa marie grillos
More Hang Jones:
http://www.hangjones.com
http://www.myspace.com/
http://www.youtube.com/
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