TWILIGHT SINGERS
TEXT CATONIA WHALEN
DATE SEPTEMBER 10, 2004

Greg Dulli has been called alt-rock’s one and only soul man. It’s a statement that, when asked, the man himself doesn’t quite agree with. But upon closer inspection, there is, in fact, some truth to that designation. As the leader of the critically acclaimed yet underrated Afghan Whigs, Dulli and his band were one of the few alternative acts around in the ’90s who acknowledged R&B, both in their live shows and on record, in attempt to meld together soul and post-punk.
One of Greg Dulli’s first dabblings in recorded covers with the Whigs came out in 1992 on indie powerhouse Sub Pop. The release, Congregation had four well-known soul R&B songs including the Supreme’s “Come See About Me.” On that EP, he succeeded in deconstructing the tracks with enough grit, anger, and passion to make them almost cringe-worthy. A white boy soul man was born. And on the Whigs’ most well known album, 1993’s Gentlemen, the tales of self-loathing and broken down-relationships that have plenty in common with soul songs from days gone by.
Another EP of covers, Uptown Avondale, was released in 1994 on Elektra. It showed the Afghan Whigs’ keen ability to do cover versions and perform them in the live arena. As well, there have been many other slick interpretations of other unlikely covers such as TLC’s “Creep” and Hole’s “Miss World.” And if you ever had the chance to see any of the Afghan Whigs blistering live performances, you probably recognized that you could never predict what interesting covers they would throw into the mix.
Since the break-up of the Afghan Whigs, in 2001, Dulli has been performing with a revolving cast of musicians he has dubbed the Twilight Singers – mainly because it consists basically of him and whoever else he invites along for the ride. The Twilight Singers has just released She Loves You, an covers album that immortalizes tracks from Mary J. Blige, Billie Holiday, John Coltrane, Hope Sandoval, Bjork and George Gershwin, among others. The album features the vocals of Brian Young of Fountains of Wayne, on the Nina Simone cover “Black Is The Color Of My True Love’s Hair” and ex-Screaming Trees frontman Mark Lanegan on the Skip James blues tune “Hard Time Killing Floor.” Langen and Dulli are also in the process of recording an album together under the name The Gutter Twins.
If you’ve followed Greg Dulli’s career, you can see that he’s part-superstar, part-clown, part-demon, and part-philosopher. He has always been open to exposing himself in his song lyrics and in music preferences. And with She Loves You, once again, he’s giving both of those to his fans.
Congrats on the new record. It’s quite an accomplishment!
Thank you. I really like it. I’ve noticed that covering such a broad spectrum of music has brought out everyone’s opinions and it’s been interesting to watch. Especially the fact that I’ve been accused of turning “Strange Fruit” into a sex song, which I found hilarious.
I was going to ask you what draws you to a song given the eclectic choices that you make.
Well, I’ve been doing covers since I started playing in bands when I was a teenager.
Actually I was going to ask you what the first song the Afghan Whigs covered. Do you remember?
The first song that we ever played as a band was “Psychedelic Shack” by the Temptations. That was the first cover we played. And then actually we played “One Day” by the Church. I think those were the first two songs we played as the Whigs, which are suitably schizophrenic just like we were. What was the question again? Sorry.
I was asking about your eclectic taste and what draws you to a song?
I’ve got to like it. I’ve got to think that I do it. I’ve got to be able to disappear into it, you know? And re-appear as myself. And if I can do that then I can transform the song. The transformation is the interesting part for me.
Do you think you are able to find yourself in the voices of others when you cover a song?
Of course. I think that’s what music is anyway. Someone singing about something you felt before. That’s how it becomes your song. If I listen to “All Things Must Pass” by George Harrison, for instance, which I listened to last night, that’s my album now; and it can mean whatever I want it to mean. And I listen to the songs on that record, and I related to a lot of those feelings because we all share feelings. That’s why I think it’s very natural and innate for me to interpret others.
You said that what a song can reveal in another’s hands is sometimes better than the original. And your examples were Jimi Hendrix “All Along The Watchtower” and Stevie Wonder’s “We Can Work It Out.”
Dylan’s “All Along The Watchtower” and McCartney’s “We Can Work It Out” are both fine songs in their own right, but I like the re-do’s better.
Do you have an all time favorite cover song?
I’ve got like, 50. If someone put a gun to my head I would concede “All Along The Watchtower” or [Leonard Cohen's] “Hallelujah” by Jeff Buckley. Or [Doctor John's] “I Walk on Guilted Splinters” by Johnny Jenkins. Or [Toots Hibert's] “Pressure Drop” by the Clash. There’s a million of them.
The first time I saw the Afghan Whigs in Toronto, in 1994, you covered New Order’s “Regret” when someone was heckling you to play “Free Bird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Oh that’s right. So we played New Order instead. You know what, that’s my favorite New Order song ever. I think Republic is an underrated record.
You recorded part of She Loves You in Italy – in a city called Catania.
It’s beautiful there. It’s right underneath a living volcano, Mount Etna. It was smoking like a motherfucker when I was there. I was kind of like, “Wow, we’re on an island if this thing goes down. We’ll have to have to jump in boats.”
You recorded this new album rather quickly, right?
I did “Black Is The Color Of My True Love’s Hair” (by Nina Simone) last year. I did “Summertime” (by George Gershwin) in February, and then I did 12 more in like 15 days.
And you didn’t ever do that with the Afghan Whigs.
Fuck no, man. Or with the Twilight Singers. Anything involving original material is going to take longer because you have to find out what the hell it’s going to sound like. In this case with the words already written.
And the fact that you had played most of the covers live, you already knew where you were going with it.
Yeah. It’s kinda like falling out of bed for me. I don’t want to under-emphasize it. But, I mean, if someone gave me a guitar and told me to re-do a song, I could probably do it within 10 minutes. It’s great for me, and I play a variety of instruments. Like on “Hyperballad,” I played almost everything. And I have a studio in my house, so it’s relatively simple.
Is anything on The Gutter Twins’ forthcoming album with Mark Lanegan going to be like “Hard Time Killing Floor Blues” by Skip James?
No. The Gutter Twins is full blown. There’s one song where we get our Everly Brothers on a couple of times. We sing very well together. And we kind of like a lot of the same stuff, but it’s strangely coming out different than either one of us. We’re both used to being the writer. And we’ve co-written five songs. And I like how that’s going because it’s a little bit more of an exploration, rather than just going and doing your own thing. I’d written with other musicians, like Rick from the Whigs, and [Lanegan] wrote with Conners in the Screaming Trees, but we’re sharing lyric writing too. Sometimes I sing his words and sometimes he sings my words. That’s something that neither one of us has done before, so it’s kind of interesting.
Any idea when it’s coming out?
I would guess it would come out a year from now. We have like 12 or 15 songs done, but we’re going to do a couple more. We have to finish them and we both started going on tour. He’s on tour and I’m on tour, so we’re going to have to carve out some time in the winter. We’re definitely going to finish it and we’re going to tour together too, which will be very exciting for me.
I read that you came up with the financing yourself for your last few albums – the final Whigs and the first two by the Twilight Singers. I assume you did the same for She Loves You. Do you prefer being in control of that rather than relying on major labels?
I’ve made four records on a major label and a lot more on indie labels, but I made some bread off those major labels – l’ll tell you that much.
And if you’re smart about it then it’s a good thing, right?
And I’m smart (laughs).
What’s next for you? Anything started on the next Twilight Singers studio album or will you wait until after the next U.S. tour?
We’re doing 10 shows in the States, and then 10 more back in Europe, and then we’re going to finish a new studio album that we’re working on, which will probably come out next spring.
At the last Twilight Singers show at the Bowery Ballroom in New York, you were giving props to The Darkness. I think they are a great band, but many people think they are a joke.
I saw them play the other day. It’s not a joke for me, and it’s not a joke for me as a fan. When I watch them, I feel like I’m twelve years old, and that is a nice feeling.
Any other new bands that you are digging? What do you think of Franz Ferdinand?
I do like them. I think they are very good. I’m shocked at how many records they have sold in the U.S. They’re going to go platinum. It’s well past gold, and they’re forging on. I’ve listened to that record and I think there are five great songs on it. Great. I’m impressed with them. I think they are the new Gang of Four. And they dress nice.
Did you get to see the current Musicology Prince tour (Greg is a huge fan of Prince. He’s said that “Faded” from Black Love is his ode to “Purple Rain”)?
I did not. I was on tour the same time he was, and we were going in different directions. The last time I saw him, he still was sexual. I’ve seen him four times. I saw him on the 1999 tour. It was one of the greatest concerts I ever saw. He shot laser jizz off a bed after he fucked with his guitar. Purple Rain is one of the greatest records ever. His first seven records always will stand the test of time. And then he got spotty. But Prince owes me nothing more than he’s already given me.
Do you have say in what goes into the jukebox at The Shortstop, the bar you co-own in Los Angeles?
I have a lot of say in what goes into the jukebox. I have a big, huge say over it. All the owners are pretty musically savvy, so we all get a say, but yeah, my say is large.
I heard you opened another bar as well.
Yes. It’s in Highland Park, and it’s called Footsies. That’s been open since the New Year. It’s different from The Shortstop. It’s not as big or as crowded as The Shortstop, since Highland Park is a little off the beaten track. It’s a little more my style for an old man like me. I tend to kick it there a little more often. You’ll love it. There’s a great jukebox there too, honey!