The Jazz Session #586: Theo Bleckmann

Vocalist Theo Bleckmann is in a league and a category of his own. Equally dazzling when interpreting the music of Kate Bush or singing the songs of Charles Ives, he made his ECM Records leader debut in 2017 with his album “Elegy”. More recently, he collaborated with the brass quartet The Westerlies for their haunting record “This Land.” Theo and I talked about his approach to recording versus performing live, his cherished collaborations with drummer John Hollenbeck and pianist Shai Maestro, and why clarity and authenticity are so important in creativity.

Show Notes:
Tracklisting:
– Take My Life (from Elegy)
– Elegy (from Elegy)
– Knows Only God (God Only Knows) (from Songs You Like A Lot)
– Comedy Tonight (from Elegy)
– Look for the Union Label (from This Land) – Suspended In Gaffa (from Hello Earth!)
– Army Dreamers (from Hello Earth!)

Buy “This Land” here
Buy “Elegy” here

Theme music by The Respect Sextet
Follow The Jazz Session on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook
Subscribe to The Jazz Session’s YouTube Channel
upport The Jazz Session by becoming a member at Patreon. For $5 a month you’ll get a weekly bonus episode called Track of the Week, plus early access to every show. For $10 a month you get all that plus an extra monthly bonus episode of “The Insider”, a spin-off interview series where Nicky chats to jazz industry insiders (broadcasters, artist agents, label heads, journalists) about the nuts and bolts of the business.