By Lisa Malakaua • February 13, 2008
When she speaks, it is softly and with a lot of thought. Get this lanky, sultry singer started on the topic of music, and the energy shifts: She becomes the blushing bride about to be swept off her feet, one who is more than willing to take you along for the ride.
As the name of her newly released solo album, Joy Ride is destined to bring Hawai’i Island jazz artist, Lou Ann Gurney attention. The eclectic collection contains 12 jazz standards and jazz/pop songs representing some of the finest songwriters in American music history including Duke Ellington, Harold Arlen, George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, Peggy Lee and Irving Berlin.
Born and raised in San Diego, California, Gurney has resided on Hawai`i Island for the past 15 years with her husband Mark, “I met him on Kaua`i. I went on a vacation and I brought home a husband for my souvenir instead of a T-shirt,” she says with a sly smile. Turns out, this sixth grade science teacher at Waiakea Intermediate School is also passionate about her vocation. “Sixth graders are generally sweet,” she says with a laugh. “I’ve been a teacher for about twenty years and most of the time I’ve taught sixth grade. I like that age. Sometimes I feel I’m an awful lot like a sixth grader. I can certainly identify with what they go through.”
BIW met up with Gurney and her producer-arranger-recording engineer-musician and good friend, Gregg Perry of Peck Tunes LLC & Perryscope Records. While sitting at the Emerald Orchid in downtown Hilo over cranberry juice and soda, the two revealed that their band Jazz Mele featuring Lou Ann will begin a regular Sunday afternoon gig at that venue beginning February 17. Check out http://www.pecktunes.com and/or http://www.louanngurney.com for more information, dates and times.
On the CD, Perry plays piano, Hammond B3 organ, and other instruments. Big Island musician Ahti Mohala contributes inventive sax and clarinet solos in a variety of styles. Volcano Choy graces the Bossa Nova classic, “The Gentle Rain” with a virtuosic trumpet solo, while the multi-talented L.A. musician/producer Stephan Oberhoff adds dazzling guitar and piano tracks. Oberhoff can also claim credit for the two superb string arrangements on “Our Love Is Here To Stay” and “In The Still of The Night.”
Gurney, singing all of her life, and exposed to jazz through her parents, has made such standards her artistic focus for the past 12 years. “I really like history. I like old movies and the old movie stars and the whole genre, and I’ve even collected 78’s. I think I might sort of believe in this thing called the past life . . . I don’t know, it sounds kind of weird but somehow I just have this real strong feeling and connection to singers and performers like Judy Garland, Peggy Lee.” As Gurney talks about her childhood, the origins of her youthful enthusiasm are revealed. She and her sister are named after singers famous during the time -- this Lou Ann for one Miss Simms -- and the household was one filled with song. Her mother sang and the two girls were greatly encouraged to do so the same. “My dad encouraged me to be a show-off, so I was always into performing. I would stand in front of my class and I would just sing. Whenever my dad would come, he would sit in the audience and yell out, ‘more, more,’” she says. “Mom told me that she sang to me before I was born. She would rock in her rocking chair when she was pregnant and sing to me because she wanted me to be a singer; she did the same to my sister.”
BIW: So dad encouraged you to be a ham.
Gurney: Yeah, because he was a ham.
BIW: By the way, the CD art is awesome! What model, make, and year of car is that and who does it belong to?
Gurney: Well, I had the idea that I wanted my CD to be called Joy Ride. I was thinking of different names and that came to me. I love antique cars and I imagined I’d have a picture of me in an old car in the ‘30’s or so and I would either be driving it or I would be sitting inside or standing outside the car. Gregg had the idea of this cover and I liked that idea and so then I went to all the car shows. Gregg even went with me at times, and I called all the guys that owned cars.
Perry: She was out pounding the streets and hanging out at car shows and rallies and chatting up the car owners looking for the right vehicle for the photo shoot.
Gurney: We took pictures of several cars looking for just the right car. Gregg said, “It has to be a convertible to do this (pointing to the front cover of her CD that shows her arm and hand changing the radio dial with just the right lighting coming from the sun above.)
Perry: We really wanted more of a ‘30’s or a ‘40’s style car, but we couldn’t find the right one. When we discussed calling the CD Joy Ride, it took me back to me teenage years of cruising in cars just like this -- these mid-fifties Chevies. Anyway, it just reminded me of cruising around with my buddies, cranking up the radio and driving fast, literally going for a joy ride.
Gurney: So here I am going to all these different people’s houses looking for the perfect car.
BIW: What would you tell them if you didn’t want to use their car?
Gurney: I would say, “Well, let me think about it.” Then we found one. This car belongs to Richard Silva, he lives in Hawaiian Paradise Park and it’s his 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible. He’s had the car since high school. Somebody gave it to him because they didn’t want it anymore. That was back in the ‘60’s when a ‘56 Chevy wasn’t worth much.
Perry: Back then it was only worth a couple hundred bucks. Now it could go for as much as $30K or more depending on the condition of the restoration.
Gurney: So he’s had it all these years. No power steering, no power brakes, and a three-speed stick shift with overdrive.
BIW: So where did you guys take the photos?
Gurney: In front of Gregg’s house on Paradise Drive.
Perry: We just parked it in the middle of the red cinder road, got in the back seat with the camera and tripod and started shooting pictures. I’d run inside the house and download the shots to the office computer so I could check the shots out on a large screen and say, “No, let’s move it down from here or let’s try it this way,” then run back out and adjust the shot and take some more photos.
Gurney: The car had a rear-view mirror that was hanging down into the shot so we had to take a screwdriver and remove it.
Perry: Here we are with Richard’s classic Chevy asking him if we could disassemble it for our photo shoot. I think it was cool that he let us do what we needed. By the way, we promised we’d give Richard a photo credit of the car. He didn’t charge us anything and even came over to my house a couple of times so we could check everything out. Then he invited us over to his house so we could shoot one afternoon over in his yard -- great guy. Mahalo plenty, Richard!
Gurney: (referring to the back photo on the CD) plus, my husband just bought me this Sig Zane dress for the cover photo shoot. The only part that shows are the straps, and he didn’t know that the car we were using was the same maroon color (as the car).
Perry: Also, inside the CD insert the background watermark is actually a ‘58 Cadillac El Dorado fender fin. We tried to keep the auto theme all the way through.
BIW: I noticed on the CD you used different players than the ones you use for your live dates. Why is that?
Perry: Well, when we started into pre-production for the CD project over a year ago we hadn’t been playing out as a band with a set lineup of players. So we used session players both from here and from Los Angeles to get the tracks together. Now we have a steady lineup and that’s who we use for live performances. Currently we have Bruce David on drums, Richard Lee on reeds and John Parker on bass with Lou Ann of course on vocals and then myself on piano.
BIW: So, where is the CD available for sale?
Perry: My independent label Perryscope Records is in the process of signing a distribution deal with a distributor based on Portland, OR, Burnside Distribution Corporation. The CD will be available for order at most retail outlets across the mainland in early spring. As for Hawaii, here locally you’ll find it at CD Wizards, the Most Irresistible Shop and Basically Books and we’re tying to get it into Border’s. Meanwhile you can find it on line at CD Baby and on Lou Ann’s web site and through my web site. Our sites are directly linked to CD Baby.
Gurney: I just sold my first online CD to a guy in Italy and my second one to someone in Colorado, so it’s pretty cool. If I can sell a thousand copies, I’ll be happy and amazed.
I’ve always been a singer; this little girl singing songs and I still kind of think of myself as that. Just creating this project and doing different live performances is helping to define me as an artist. I’m still trying to find out exactly what that means for me. I know I want to branch off from the Ella Fitzgerald kind of style. She and I have the same birthday on April 25, and she’s definitely my hero. But I’m looking to venture into other genres and expand my repertoire, take some chances artistically. I’m looking to make another CD this year and to increase my live performance possibilities also.
BIW: If one of your students came up to you and told you that they wanted to be a singer when they grew up, what would you tell them?
Gurney: Go for it! You can be whatever you want to be. Let’s sing a song together right now!
Hear more about Gurney during a live interview with Brad Freeman on KHBC radio station 92.7 FM on Monday, February 18 at 12 noon.
Joy Ride is available in Hilo at:
CD Wizard, Most Irresistible Shop, Basically Books, or on line at:
http://www.cdbaby.com
http://www.louanngurney.com
http://www.pecktunes.com
Available on iTunes shortly.
Catch Jazz Mele featuring Lou Ann Gurney every Sunday from 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. at the Emerald Orchid in Downtown Hilo.
And check out:
http://www.louanngurney.com
http://www.pecktunes.com
Visit these web sites regularly for Jazz Mele House Concert Series dates and other information.
For bookings call Lou Ann at 808.982.6012.
Lisa Malakaua - Big Island Weekly (13 Feb 2008)