After fifty years on the stage, Jonathan Richman is still breaking new musical ground.
The singer shared reflections on his career in a lively conversation with Midday Music host Evan Miller on Feb. 27. Later that evening, the Massachusetts native performed at the Foundry Theater in Yellow Springs with drummer Tommy Larkin. Known both as a founding member of the influential 1970s proto-punk band the Modern Lovers and as a prolific solo artist, Richman spoke with Evan Miller about his improvisational approach to performance and about his interests outside of music, from poetry to masonry.
The interview yielded several revelations about Richman’s long career. Surprisingly, given his impressive catalog of songwriting credits, he rejects the label of “songwriter.” “I hear myself getting called a songwriter,” he told Evan. “I never saw myself as one; to me, I'm a singer who makes up songs to give himself something to sing.” Richman’s distinction between “songwriter” and “singer who writes songs” captures his approach music. He is known for treating the words to his songs as a starting point for improvisation, inserting or removing lyrics ad libitum in his performances. “These songs are works in progress,” he said. “They're not perfect. And I'm certainly not a perfect singer.”
Richman credited The Velvet Underground with shaping his spontaneous music sensibility. As a young man, he saw the band perform at least 60 times—possibly closer to 80. “To me, that's what music was,” he said. “The songs would never be the same twice. That's where I learned it.” Like the Velvet Underground, Richman says that he strives to bring something new to each performance of his songs, whether for a recording or a live audience. “The version on the record was how it was that day,” he said. “It might have been totally different another day.”
These days, Richman usually appears onstage with his long-time drummer Tommy Larkin. Richman said that Larkin’s intuitive playing and relaxed attitude toward touring have made him an invaluable collaborator for the last 30 years. “We’re both low-maintenance,” he told Evan. “Neither of us need to go back to the hotel after soundcheck…With him, it’s actually easy—we get along musically, chemically.” Richman also discussed rekindling his musical relationship with Modern Lovers keyboardist Jerry Harrison, who later served as keyboardist and guitarist in the Talking Heads from 1977 to 1991. Harrison has co-produced several of Richman’s recent studio releases, including his 2021 album Want to Visit My Inner House.
“A few years ago I was at a recording session in Oakland, and there was a Mellotron keyboard there and I was thinking, ‘You know what would sound good on it? Jerry would!’ I called up Jerry and said, ‘There’s this Mellotron here. You want to come down and play keyboards?’ And he did. Except it sounded better than good; it was what the songs needed. And I didn't tell him what to play…I just said ‘okay, here's how the song goes. What do you hear?’”
In the interview, Jonathan Richman didn’t just talk shop; he also spoke with Evan about his passions outside of music, including constructing bread ovens (though not baking in them). Richman’s upcoming tour dates are available via High Road Touring. His music is available for purchase on Bandcamp, or via his record label, Blue Arrow Records.
Text by Peter Day, adapted from a studio interview recorded by Evan Miller on Feb. 27, 2024.
