February 2012
7 posts
Things coming together
Left to right: Jan, Aggi, Felix, Mac, Chris. photo by Winfried Zang
Whew, last week’s sure been busy – but it’s also been very rewarding.
A long rehearsal on Wednesday, gigs on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and a recording session with Robert Oberbeck on Saturday afternoon.
A short recap: On Thursday we were at Beavers, one of my favorite venues. Opening for us were Lick And A Promise as an...
"Rauchig, kratzig, knatternd"
Aus dem Main-Echo vom 27. Februar 2012
»Glad-Bag-City« hat den Blues
Doppelkonzert: Starker Auftritt von der Magic Ed Combo und Markus Rill & The Troublemakers in der Glattbacher Mühle
Glattbach Was für ein Abend: Am Freitag wurde Glattbach zu Glad-Bag-City und mittendrin stand die Gladder-Bagger-Mill - die Glattbacher Mühle. Denn bluesig-rockige Klänge hielten Einzug in das Glattbacher...
2 tags
Rules of writing - or not
As you may or may not know for several months now I’ve been writing a monthly column on songwriting (usually they’re 1 1/2 to 2-page articles) for Gitarre & Bass, Germany’s most-read magazine for, you guessed it, all things associated with guitars and basses.
Writing about music is challenging and rewarding. I don’t declare unbreakable “rules”. I much...
Rill entschleunigt →
Eine Konzertkritik vom Auftritt am Freitag, 3.2., im Bürgerzentrum Augustdorf. Klickt auf die Überschrift, um dem Link zu folgen.
Done tracking
Hi guys,
we’re all done laying down basic tracks for 14 new songs at 7V Studios in Bockenem. Felix (guitar), Chris (bass), Aggi (drums) and I were up north from Thursday to Monday and we had a terrific run. In fact, we were done tracking on Sunday afternoon - that’s when Aggi drove home. On Monday, Chris and I decided to give this one all-acoustic song a different arrangement....
Tracking at 7V
Hi guys,
here’s a short video with handycam material to show you our recording setup at 7V Studios. We’re done tracking and things sound wonderful!
You hear snippets of “For The Stars”, “A Braver Smile” and “Never Come To Know”.
January 2012
6 posts
Recording at 7V
We recorded a bunch of new songs at 7V Studios in Bockenem the last few days. Here’s some pics.
All pics by Volker Bahmer, Achim Sauer & Chris Reiss
Felix & me - an acoustic take
Felix Leitner on the Tele
My big back side
Chris Reiss - bass in the bath room
Aggi Berger (aka the Aggiburger) on drums
From The Studio
Hi guys,
we’re up in Bockenem near Hannover recording what will eventually become our next album.
We gathered here on Thursday afternoon and by now we have six songs in the can. I guess I should qualify that - some will need a few more overdubs (organ, cello), some seem pretty much done.
I’m very happy with what we’re getting. Some of it is beautiful, some is far out and...
A great interview with Leonard Cohen →
I don’t know nearly enough about Leonard Cohen. Here’s an article with an overview of his career and a short interview portion which offers some absolutely stunning insight into songwriting.
6 tags
Recording countdown
Hi guys, been a little quiet here in the blog lately, I know. Gearing up and preparing to go into the studio starting next week Thursday. So I’ve been weeding out songs, thinking about arrangements, polishing up a few lyrics. It’s all nitty-gritty work that’s important and it’ll pay off but it’s nothing exciting to blog about. (Yes, in case you haven’t noticed, the other stuff I blog about is...
2011 in the rearview & the road ahead
I’m not really in a retrospective mode right now. I’m very much looking ahead and looking forward to going in the studio with the guys in less than four weeks. We have a bunch of great songs that we’re planning to record. Then we’ll get some friends in to overdub some cool stuff and then hopefully we’ll have ourselves a new record. Also still hoping for the live DVD to be all done for our...
December 2011
3 posts
9 tags
Do You Remember Bobby Fischer?
I recently saw an immensely moving portrait of chess genius Bobby Fischer, his ascend to the world championship in the 1972 match with Boris Spassky and the decline of his mental health in the years after. It was so moving, I immediately wanted to write a song about this fascinating man and his journey. I sat down and out came those four lines that are now the first verse of the song below....
Great blogs by great musicians - The Bob & Knopf...
Hey guys,
you may have read about the Bob Dylan/Mark Knopfler concert I recently saw in Nuremberg.
Before and after that gig I immensely enjoyed reading tour diaries by two of Mark Knopfler’s band members, Nashville guitar virtuoso Richard Bennett and Knopfler’s right-hand man, keyboarder Guy Fletcher.
Both have been blogging regularly, writing about every gig and every hotel along...
8 tags
My favorite records of 2011
Seems to me like 2011 was an exceptionally fine year for new music. Lots of my favorite artists released a new album this year and then I also found some new artists, or ones that were new to me, at least.
I could’ve put together a real strong top ten list after the year’s first half – and that almost never happens to me. Usually, a lot of September/October releases make it into my year-end top...
November 2011
9 posts
7 tags
Storm approaching - an unearthed gem
Hi guys,
I’ve been sick in bed the last couple days so I spent some time going through old demos I still had on my laptop. When I came across a song called “Storm Approaching”, the title didn’t ring a bell. Listening to it was a very pleasant surprise. Seems to me it’s a real good solid song with some nice lines. It could’ve been a contender :-) So here it...
7 tags
Rock The Boat
On Saturday we played a double header concert at das boot in Würzburg with Lick And A Promise, a great rock’n’roll band in the Stones/Black Crowes/Faces tradition. The Troublemakers presented a new band member in piano and organ player Jan Reinelt and a whole bunch of new songs. It turned into a great gig!
Lick And A Promise opened with a few acoustic numbers. I love a rock band...
In the room with Rosanne Cash →
Here’s a great video interview. Take a little time to watch this. You’ll learn something and you’ll be moved and it’ll be good for you.
7 tags
Coal Stays In The Ground
Hope you’ve all seen & read my last blog post about great Austin songsmith Bill Carter.
I’ve been playing the Lifelong Rhapsody CD all week and have started playing a couple of those tunes myself. Here’s my home demo of “The Coal Stays In The Ground”, the beautiful album closer. (As always, I’m not slavishly copying the original version. This is just my...
Bill Carter - a better man is hard to find
As many of you know the time I spent in Austin, Tx. in 94/95 was a supremely inspiring part of my life. It basically gave me the road map on how to be a songwriter/performer/artist. There’s just something about the ethos of the Austin music scene that has rubbed off on me. Shoot as high as you can with your art but keep your feet planted firmly on the ground as a person. And every now and then I...
Rollin' & Tumblin'
Last Monday, after a weekend of gigs, Troublemakers bassist Chris and I made our way to Nürnberg to see Mark Knopfler and Bob Dylan.
We got there pretty early at around 6.45 p.m. or so but with finding a parking spot and getting in with the crowd we were in our seats a mere five minutes or so before Knopfler and band got going at 7.30 p.m.
Having never seen Knopfler before and enjoying his work,...
The Reverend & me & two more Stooges
Had a pretty cool, diverse weekend last week. Here’s the rundown.
photo by Lucas Schobert
On Friday I played at Brückenkopf in Hanau near Frankfurt. I shared this gig with Reverend Schulzz. Knowing that the good Reverend has near-legendary status in his hometown, all along I had assumed it would be a double-header. A few days before the gig I realized that it was more of an opener/main act kinda...
A good first date
Rebecca Kemp, tour manager extraordinaire, Lisa MacIsaac, me, Brenley MacEachern. Picturesque hangers in the background, huh?
Most of the best musicians are also the nicest people. Cause if you’re really good you don’t need to put on airs. And it’s the music you care about, not your ego. I believe this to be true at least eight times out of ten. And my theory was once again...
Last Ride Home
Here’s my friend Tom Ripphahn performing “Last Ride Home, a song we co-wrote for the new Hands On The Wheel album “River Of Time”, live at MusikMesse Frankfurt. It’s a good song - maybe I should start doing it, too.
October 2011
4 posts
Ruminations on a new record
Hi guys,
I know starting to make plans on a new album a little over half a year after the last one’s been released sounds a little premature. However, there’s some good reasons for us to go into the studio soon. As of now, we don’t know if we’ll record the entire album or maybe have another session later. And a release date is not in sight. But here’s our reasons for laying down some tracks...
Hail hail rock'n'roll - happy birthday, Chuck
Hey guys,
Chuck Berry is 85 years old today. Lennon hit the nail on the head with his famous quote: “If you want to give rock’n’roll another name, you might as well call it Chuck Berry.” Actually, I’m not sure Lennon said “might as well”, it doesn’t have a very Liverpudlian ring to it, does it? But anyway, words to that effect.
Here’s Chuck:
...
The latest gigs, first thoughts about a new album
Been keeping busy. Two gigs last week.
Thursday at Rohrmeisterei in Schwerte. Usually, this is a songwriter series with three performers, hosted by harmonica ace Chris Kramer (who also happens to be my music publisher). Last Thursday, however, was very unusual. One of the scheduled performers – a local legend named “Klocky” – had passed away two weeks before the gig so it was turned into a...
In Berlin with Annika Fehling
I spent September 22 through 24 in Berlin, gigging with my friend Annika Fehling (you know her, she’s the co-writer/duet partner on Your Own Private Rainbow). I rolled into Berlin on Thursday afternoon, me and the Pope on the same schedule. Well, almost. I hooked up with radio DJ Uwe Golz at Deutschlandradio Kultur around 4 pm. We did a short & sweet interview, I played a couple...
September 2011
7 posts
Of coats & things
Hi guys,
this week I’m mostly offline. I’m spending a few days at my Dad’s with my daughter before I’ll be heading to Berlin on Thursday for a string of gigs with my good friend & frequent collaborator Annika Fehling. (Short version: Thursday at art.gerecht, Friday at Zimmer 16, Saturday at Café Tasso - Friday’s gig will be broadcast live on the net at...
Nowhere Begins Revisited
video by Ingo Wählisch
Nowhere Begins was the title track of my third album from 2001. As a young songwriter I was severely fascinated with storytelling outlaw songs. Steve Earle’s got plenty of them and I had tried my hand at them, too. Working on “Nowhere Begins” I thought to myself that if I wrote another outlaw story song I’d better find somewhere new to go with it and I thought the lyric...
Nowhere Begins Revisited
video by Ingo Wählisch
Nowhere Begins was the title track of my third album from 2001. As a young songwriter I was severely fascinated with storytelling outlaw songs. Steve Earle’s got plenty of them and I had tried my hand at them, too. Working on “Nowhere Begins” I thought to myself that if I wrote another outlaw story song I’d better find somewhere new to go with it. I thought this lyric...
Aus dem Gießener Anzeiger →
Am Samstag habe ich mit meinem Freund Markus Leidig in dessen Heimatstadt Lauterbach beim Stadtfest gespielt. Schöner Gig. Findet auch der Gießener Anzeiger - klickt auf die Überschrift und folgt dem Link.
"Great songs" - an album review
As you know, I’m enjoying the exchange with fellow musicians and music lovers on Twitter. A guy I’ve become friendly with over the last few months is David Rozzell (@BluegrassHippie), a fine musician himself in UK-based bluegrass trio Wood, Wire & Words (find them on Facebook here). David & I exchanged CDs and he enjoyed “Wild, Blue & True” so much that he took...
Podcast interview w/ SWundso →
Hatte am Dienstagabend ein sehr angenehmes, entspanntes Gespräch mit Flo Kohl und Alexander von Halem, den Machern des “Schweinfurt und so”-Podcasts. Klickt auf die Überschrift und hört mal rein; die ersten Rückmeldungen sind sehr positiv.
Napoleon & The Troublemakers
all photos & video by Patrick Wötzel
Hi guys,
The Troublemakers have had quite a busy summer. Right now the band is in wonderful shape. Our next goal is to arrange some of the new songs I’ve written and start thinking about recording them. We’re also hoping to finish the DVD in the near future.
Last Friday’s gig was the last summer gig for The Troublemakers. Next up are...
August 2011
10 posts
The King's Alley
Heya guys,
whew, I’ve been busy in a major way the last couple weeks.
Let me tell you about our concert with DVD recording at Königsallee in Güntersleben on Sunday, August 21. (Btw, Königsallee translates at King’s Alley, hence the title of this blog post.)
It’s an amazingly beautiful venue with real good sound and great light, a wonderful stage and a beautiful outdoor auditorium. A lot of...
Movies for your head
A great story on Saturday in Der Neue Tag! It’s online right here www.oberpfalznetz.de/zeitung/2938327-100-traum_mehrfach_erfuellt,1,0.html
An interview with The Country Startpage -... →
click on the headline to follow the link to The Country Startpage
The One That Got Away - live at Ringparkfest
The One That Got Away - live at Ringparkfest Würzburg, August 7, 2011. Filmed by Patrick Wötzel
This song is different from most of my other songs. I usually don’t believe in sitting down with nothing and believing I can just make a song appear out of thin air. I usually need some sort of idea/inspiration/emotion that gets it all started. This song, however, I wrote sort of on...
Beauty Of The Moment - Markus Rill & The...
August 6, 2011 at KOMMZ Aschaffenburg on the side stage. Filmed by Peter Jakobs
We had to run sound on this side stage ourselves. A little feedback problem in the very beginning. The rest goes down alright in the blistering sun. Notice the shades on everyone in the band but me. Wish I had worn a different shirt :-) Stick around till the end, there’s a little hommage to a good guy from...
A whirlwind of a weekend
photo by Kilian Martin, Ringparkfest Würzburg, Aug 7, 2011
Whew, that was a whirlwind of a weekend. I played five sets in three different lineups on two different festivals in four different locations. Sounds confusing? It was. And the funny thing is, while summer gigs are usually a little harder to book than club dates for me, on this one weekend I could’ve played another two or three gigs if I...
An audience review of our Ringparkfest gig →
Here’s a nice review of our gig on Sunday night at the Ringparkfest in Würzburg from Kilian Martin, a Würzburg music lover. Click the headline to get to his blog post.
Die FAZ hört zu
photo by Vinh Long Ha
Aus der FAZ, 2. August 2011 Bericht vom Konzert beim “Stoffel”-Festival in Frankfurt/M., Sa, 30.7.2011
Lebendige Geschichten Hands On The Wheel und Markus Rill bei “Stoffel” Als Tom Ripphahn im Jahr 1990 mit einigen befreundeten Musikern aus Frankfurt die Band Hands On The Wheel gründete, war die Rock- und Popwelt in mancher Hinsicht noch...
July 2011
4 posts
From wrestler to writer
People are often surprised when they hear that I used to be a successful wrestler and now I’m a songwriter. Apparently, these are two things that don’t go together in most people’s minds. To me, however, wrestling and writing/performing my type of music have a lot in common. There are a lot of similarities between the two activities that shaped my life. Let me explain.
When I talk about...
Album review from Akustikgitarre
Akustikgitarre, July/August 2011
—-Scroll down for English translation—-
Markus Rill – Wild, Blue & True
Nachdem Markus Rill seine letzten drei Alben in Nashville aufgenommen hat, ist es Zeit für Neues. Lange hat der Ex-Würzburger Americana-Alben in Serie veröffentlicht, die dem direkten Vergleich mit...
Way Down up in Sweden
At the wonderful Songwriter Festival in Visby I enjoyed sharing the stage with friends.
Here’s an impromptu version of Way Down with Annika Fehling – who organized the festival and wrote the song with me – and my friend A.P. Meister. Don’t be shy to sing along – our camera man Thomas does, too :-)
July 2, 2011
Bad travel karma and good music in Sweden
On stage at the Songwriter Festival in Visby/Sweden. Photo: Jon Strider
Hey everyone,
I’m back from a wonderful trip to Sweden which had everything you’d ever ask for: Adventure, great music, good friends, challenges, love and more.
I had been invited by my friend Annika Fehling to perform and host a workshop at the International Songwriter Festival in Visby on the wonderful island of Gotland in...