Another month and another EBASS/Red Line Roots Songwriter of the Month. This month we have Frank Bell. I caught up with him to talk about him music and influences. Check it out.
RLR: Give us a bit about your background. You are a classically trained cellist…man, impressive! How has the earlier part of your musical journey impacted you in present day, how you think/write/arrange?
FB: Yes! Cello was and will always be my first love! Musically speaking I find the line between cello voicing and actual vocal voicings, very thin/blurred. Whenever I play the cello I think of phrasing as I would sing the notes, and conversely whenever I’m singing I often find myself exploring how I would play it on the cello itself. More than anything however, I think being classically trained has mostly affected my work ethic. As a child I was practicing 15+ hours a day on the cello and fell into a bit of a regimen. As a singer-songwriter, constantly evolving and developing my craft in new and interesting ways, the patience and good habits from my cello days have definitely shined through in everyday life, especially when it comes to the music I’m creating now.
RLR: You have been credited as either being a soul type singer, or in general just being real souful. I always have an interest in that style of singing and that whole “really coming from your chest/heart” kind of a vibe. Where do you inspirations come from in that respect? Is there an R&B sensibility somewhere buried in there? Some Jackson 5 as a kid perhaps?
FB: As far as being “Soulful” goes, I just try to keep things honest, ya know? I’m sure there’s some sort of breakdown as to what technically I may or may not do sometimes, but at the end of the day I just want to sing and express something that is true. Something essentially that is full of soul so to speak. Something that emotes and evokes emotion. In that aspect, I find that most of my inspiration comes from either first hand experiences, or those real life experiences of those around me. As far as what I listen to genre wise, I’ve always been all over the map…
RLR: In that same vein, you have a cover of a Jeff Buckley-esque version of “Hallelujah” up on your youtube page so your inspirations certainly span a wide range of music. What else did you listen to when you first started writing?
FB: Love Jeff for sure! And love Leonard Cohen for writing such an amazing song. I’ve always thought it too easy to look at our contemporaries, so whenever I hear something current or semi-current that I like, I try to find the root to come to my own conclusion and say how did this person get to this particular spot. I love going as far back as I can. Stevie Ray Vaughn? Albert King. T-bone Walker. Stevie Wonder? Sam Cooke. Johnny Ace. Ray Charles. Stevie Nicks? Well you get the idea… I remember my first cassette tapes being Barbara Streisand and Michael Jackson. Not sure if that has played a role on who I am now but maybe haha. As of late I’ve been reverting back to classical – music without lyrics – just to kind of clean my palate and come up with things as organic and non (albeit subconsciously) influenced. It’s been a good diet so far, though I’m now the guy at the bar who literally knows no current songs on the charts.
RLR: What is a specific record that shaped you when you first started playing and also, who is 1 ‘lesser known’/independent artist or an album that you are listening to now that you think folks really need to hear about?
FB: Hmm… I don’t think there was one specific record that had a major influence when I started playing… From a classical standpoint I’d say Yo-Yo Ma’s first recording of the Bach Cello Suites perhaps. Or Jacqueline du Pré’s Elgar Cello Concerto (Daniel Barenboim conducting the LSO). From a singer-songwriter view, I’d say the general popular stuff that was being circulated in my high-school and early college days. Mayer, Dave, Jack, all that stuff – that was the era of the singer-songwriter… If you were a dude playing guitar, chances are you were getting signed and doing stuff. I started playing guitar and writing relatively late in my eyes so it was cool to kinda explore that world a bit. I can go on record (pun intended) however and say that my favorite album ever is probably a tie between Jeff Buckley’s “Grace” and Stevie Wonder’s “Songs in the Key of Life”. I haven’t really been listening to much lately.
RLR: A big part of what Red Line Roots stands for is collaboration, community and bringing folks together and fostering an environment where artists help each other. How do you feel about that preservation of unity and family sentiment in the folk music community around your own town or city? How does it play into your own music and where you come from?
FB: Community is everything. I think it’s important, as an artist or even just as a human being, to remind each other that we aren’t alone. I have to constantly remind myself that. Musically speaking, community and collaboration bring both healthy competition, exciting anticipation, loving support, and inspirational growth that just isn’t at all possible when approaching something solo. The greatest compliment I’ve ever gotten is when someone tells me that I’ve put into song, something they haven’t been able to express into words. That in itself is a collaboration. When we as artist remember that the music (or any art for that matter) that we create is larger than ourselves and serves a bigger purpose, the sense of community and unity stands out even more.
RLR: If you could collaborate with anyone (dead or alive) musically, who would it be?
FB: Ernest Hemingway. Dr. Seuss. Nikola Tesla.
RLR: Aside from making music, are you able to make time for any pastimes or other activities? What would you want people to know about you aside from your musical endeavors?
FB: I’m very shellfish. I’m all about that shrimp life. In essence, I LOVE to cook. I find extreme joy in putting sometimes random ingredients together and “playing jazz” with them in the kitchen. To touch again on community, there’s something refreshing about sharing a meal with someone in the same way as sharing music with someone. I’m also a bit of a tech dork. I like to stay up to date with the latest developments and evolving technologies. I try to keep a look out for interesting start-ups, ventures, and the like – especially ones that serve a greater good/social cause.
RLR: Anything else you want to plug?
FB: Nothing specific to plug at the moment, but definitely keep an eye out for some surprise announcements and projects coming up soon! I’m also really interested in potentially playing some intimate house shows in the area. If anyone is up for the idea of me playing music in your living room for you and some friends, please reach out via www.frankbell.net! I’m also totally down to cook too 😉
Meanwhile here’s a link to an acoustic, in studio playlist I recorded while in New York w/ Nycrophone.com
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2UUzMPNqmL93FqZIaCGMwvRNCypeTee_
and here’s all my relevant social media links. I’ll be updating news there constantly within the next few weeks or so: