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Shapeshifter
The many personas of songwriter Fred Eaglesmith
By Ryan Heinsius
Published on 02/05/2009
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[ view additional photos ]
Holy roller: Singer-songwriter/character actor Fred Eaglesmith. Photo courtesy of Shock Ink.
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On the I-40 in the Texas panhandle near Groom stands the largest cross in the western hemisphere. It’s 19 stories high and is made of a cream-colored aluminum siding. Most any day it’s packed with visitors, all making a pilgrimage to the flat, featureless land for their own, very personal and varying reasons.
This is Fred Eaglesmith country.
Not that the 51-year-old, Ontario, Canada-born singer-songwriter is all too fond of religion. But he is fond of the infinite stories that lurk in desolate Americana and the endless fall-and-redemption that exists everywhere.
“The church is like a tinderbox, the preacher’s got a match … somebody’s cryin’ in the very back row,” sings Eaglesmith on the title track of his 17th album, the 2008-released Tinderbox.
“I knew that I wanted to write an album about that person,” he says of the song’s main character, who is in the midst of a spiritual crisis. “So in other words, somebody who wasn’t necessarily a believer, who was struggling with everything, and their life was hard … just basically hanging on at the fringe; at the edge. And it could mean anything. It doesn’t have to be church or God, even society.
And I wanted to write an album for that person, so that’s what I sort of did.”
On Tinderbox Eaglesmith inserts himself into his characters—members of a fictional rural church community—becoming their mouthpiece and examining the mysterious reasons why humans turn to religion in times of trouble. Eaglesmith’s closeness to his characters is his stock and trade, and the foundation on which he has built a much-lauded multi-decade career.
“As long as I’m telling the truth, I don’t care who I am,” he says of his story-heavy songs. “As long as I can be that guy when I write the song and when I sing it, I don’t care who he is. As long as he’s there—as long as I’m there. It’s like acting.”
Eaglesmith, who was raised in rural southern Ontario as one of nine children, often draws comparisons to the imitable Tom Waits for his gravely delivery and underworld mystique. As a teen he even hopped a train, ending up in Western Canada where his music career began. But Eaglesmith’s styles swerve as wildly as the many characters he portrays, leaping between solo folk, bluegrass and more country-flecked rock.
“I don’t want my girlfriend to be wearing the same clothes she was five years ago,” he says. “I’ve seen those clothes. She’s got to spice it up a little bit. And that’s how I feel about music. I don’t want to be doing something out of tradition—you’re doing something cause people did it before you and you’re repeating it? That’s called ‘religion.’ That’s religion, and I’m pretty anti-religion. I’ve always crossed the line, and I’ve consequently pissed the traditionalists off, which is my job.”
But, despite rocking the boat within the traditional music world, Eaglesmith has managed to attract a significant amount of respect from his musical peers. The Cowboy Junkies, Chris Knight, Kasey Chambers, Mary Gauthier, Dar Williams, Todd Snider, and pop-country lightning rod Toby Keith have all recorded his songs. And in 2003 several artists including Jay Bennett, Gurf Morlix and Rex Hobart chipped in on The Songs of Fred Eaglesmith: A Tribute. He’s even appeared in a couple movies, “The Gift” and “50 Odd Dollars,” and has found fans in Martin Scorsese and James Caan.
But despite all his just-under-the-surface mainstream acceptance, Eaglesmith describes himself much like he describes the very characters in his songs: “The fringe guy—the guy who’s looking in. Because I’ve been that guy most of my life. I live on the road. I’ve been on the road for 20 years almost—straight. I don’t live in society, so it’s easier for me to look at it.”
As Eaglesmith’s life has been determined by the road, he has developed, as he describes it, an Andy Kaufman-esque live show, throwing political correctness and sensitivity out the window. He commonly observes a few audience members per night heading for the door mid-show, unable to stomach his many humorous and biting monologues between songs.
For Eaglesmith, music’s true depth is imbedded in characters and stories, not the performer—but of course, in his world there’s never a clear point where the two worlds begin and end.
“I don’t understand the importance of (my music). That’s the truth. People tell me how important it is to them, and I accept that. But, it’s not that important to me. You know, curing kids with leukemia is important … A good plumber—there should be awards for good plumbers. You need those guys. When you need a plumber—man! There should be awards for good humans.”
Don’t miss Fred Eaglesmith and his band at the Green Room Thu, Feb. 5. Flag locals Muskellunge Bluegrass will open the show at 10 p.m. and there will be an $8 cover. For more info, see www.fredeaglesmith.com or call 226-8669.
Additional photos for this story:
Photo courtesy of Shock Ink.
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Photo courtesy of Shock Ink.
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