Gary James' Interview With Singer / Songwriter
David Bromberg
David Bromberg has not only enjoyed a career of his own, but has performed on albums with music's biggest stars. We're talking Bob Dylan, Jerry Garcia, Willie Nelson and the list goes on and on. He even wrote a song with George Harrison. Just days before he was entering the studio to record, we spoke with David Bromberg about his career.
Q - David, you're no stranger to Upstate New York. You used to perform in that area for the longest of time and then you sort of disappeared. What happened?
A - I stopped playing for twenty-two years.
Q - That would explain it.
A - There you go.
Q - You just got tired of the road?
A - I got burnt out and I was too dumb to realize it was only burn-out. All I knew was that I wasn't practicing, writing or jamming when I was off the road and I couldn't see anything of a musician there. Musicians do those things. And if you don't do those things are you really a musician? I didn't want to be one of these guys who gets onstage and does a bitter imitation of something he used to love. So, I felt the best thing to do was to stop.
Q - When you stopped, is that when you opened up this violin shop in Wilmington, Delaware?
A - Well, I went to a violin making school first and learned to make the thing. When I moved to Wilmington I opened up a violin shop, but the mayor here told me the street I live on and that my little shop is on, used to have live music. He wanted to see that again and I figured the only thing I could do to help with that would be to start some jam sessions. So, I did that. I started a couple of jam sessions. One was an acoustic thing and the other was a Chicago Blues. Some really good musicians started showing up and I started enjoying playing again, so I decided what the hell.
Q - Do kids come in the shop to buy instruments and lessons?
A - We don't give lessons. We sell instruments.
Q - Just violins?
A - Violins, violas, cellos, bows and everything you could want from a violin store.
Q - You play violin, don't you?
A - Yeah. I used to play it onstage, but I don't do it that much anymore.
Q - How did you know a violin shop would work in Wilmington? Did you do some research?
A - No. I just assumed there would be. I was lucky. I was right.
Q - Are you from Wilmington?
A - No, I'm not.
Q - You did get lucky then.
A - Yeah.
Q - You appear on so many albums. You could almost have made a career as a session musician, couldn't you?
A - Well, I was a session musician for awhile.
Q - How does that work? Did you have to have an agent who approached the producer of these albums? How did people hear about you?
A - From other records or from live performances. It's not the easiest business to break into.
Q - I would think it was almost word of mouth.
A - It started more with people hearing me play live in New York City 'cause that's was where I did most of the sessions I did. I'd get calls for sessions and I really liked that.
Q - You're going into the studio soon, aren't you?
A - I'll be in the studio in about three days (April 27th, 2019).
Q - You're putting out a new CD or maybe vinyl which has gained popularity?
A - Both. And there's gonna be more. There's gonna be video with it too.
Q - That's a DVD you're talking about?
A - I'm not sure. It probably will be a DVD, but I suspect at first people will download it from the Internet.
Q - You had an album out in 2011 called "Use Me".
A - Yeah.
Q - And Linda Ronstadt was on it. What was she doing on that album?
A - Actually, she didn't sing on it. I don't think so. She pretty much stopped singing before she did that. She's an old friend. Wait a minute, she did sing on it and it was the last thing she ever sang on.
Q - You're really lucky there too.
A - Yeah. I've always been lucky.
Q - That's what you need in the music business, luck. Maybe more than anything else.
A - Maybe.
Q - You wrote and recorded with George Harrison. I don't know if you a Beatles fan, but what was that experience like?
A - How could you not be a Beatles fan? Are there actually people who weren't Beatles fans?
Q - Absolutely. You'd be surprised. I've interviewed them.
A - Well, I was a Beatles fan of course.
Q - So, what was it like to write with George Harrison?
A - I mean, it as fun. It happened at a Thanksgiving dinner. It was a family dinner with the only people who weren't family were me and George. We're both guitar junkies. The only guitar there was a little nylon string guitar that was not really a great guitar, but it was the only guitar there. George and I both being junkies for guitars passed it back and forth and played on it. Without trying, we wrote that song ("The Holdup"). (laughs) We weren't trying to do anything. Just having fun.
Q - It probably didn't take you all that long to write it, did it?
A - No, it didn't.
Q - That's what I thought you'd say. You played with so many musicians, Bob Dylan, Jerry Garcia, Willie Nelson. You really got around.
A - Yeah. I was very lucky.
Q - When you attended Columbia College of Columbia University, did you graduate? Your bio says you just attended.
A - Yeah, I took a leave of absence in my second year.
Q - What were you studying before you took a leave of absence?
A - Well, in the early years of a college of university you don't get too many electives. I got a few. I was studying music, so I was studying as much as I could of music. Taking some piano lessons. Doing what I could.
Q - You performed in Hawaii not that long ago. What's the marketplace like for your music?
A - There seems to be a market for what I do because I've had a couple of trips over there that were successful, so evidently, yeah.
Q - Is it hard to write a good Blues song? Mick Jagger says it is, if that means anything.
A - I think it's hard to write any song.
Q - Are there times when it's easier to do?
A - I just find it hard to do. When people say, "How do you write a song?" The answer is, "Any damn way you can."
Official Website: DavidBromberg.net
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