David Linx, virtuoso vocalist from Brussels, Parisian by adoption, presents Thursday evening, February 17, in Paris, at the Bal Blomet, his latest record, the splendid Be my Guest (Cristal Records), launched in mid-November 2021, a year after the excellent Skin in the Game. An ambitious, eclectic and shimmering musical project. An album of duets which sees the singer multiplying encounters with artists from all walks of life, from pianists Tigran Hamasyan, Ran Blake and Or Solomon to mandolinist Hamilton from Holanda, from guitarist Marc Ducret to singer Theo Bleckmann… On the menu of these duets , exciting rereadings of pieces by Björk, Thelonious Monk, Pixinguinha or the Carpenters, but also unknown songs and texts. At the opening of the album, Trevor Baldwin, nephew of writer James Baldwin, of whom Linx was close, reads a letter from his uncle, accompanied by the singer.
Three artists present on Be my Guest are announced Thursday evening in Paris: flautist Magic Malik, guitarist Nguyen Lê and pianist Gustavo Beytelmann who once played with Astor Piazzolla. Host of the evening, David Linx will have at his side the pianist Grégory Privat, his stage partner for this new program. On November 19, the duo gave a dazzling concert at the Sunside, in Paris, during a very first presentation. Their reunion at the Bal Blomet, a splendid place steeped in history, promises to be effervescent in the presence of their distinguished guests. A perfect opportunity to find or discover David Linx, a singer with a style as sparkling as it is original, distinguished in recent years by the Jazz Academy (2020 awards) and the Victoires du jazz (2019 awards).
David Linx and pianist Or Solomon revisit Hunter by Björk
Franceinfo Culture: When did you want to record an album of duets?
David Linx : The idea came to me in 2011. I wanted to do a project on the outskirts of my other albums. I knew it was going to take more time: doing fifteen duets is like doing fifteen small projects. Each time you establish a relationship with an artist, it takes time. In 2013, I received a prize from SABAM, the Belgian SACEM, which allowed me to have a certain amount of money to carry out this project which involved various trips.
So you met the musicians with whom you wanted to sing?
Yes. For example, on the sidelines of a trip to Rio, I went to record with Hamilton from Holland. Going to see my family in Philadelphia, I made a detour to Boston to record with Ran Blake… Then I put the project aside around 2016, I then had five or six duets that were ready, but I was too impressed. I wasn’t sure I was up to it… I listened to them again a year later, and there I was very happy. I restarted the project and I finalized fifteen duets. The vast majority of the sessions took place with the guest artists, with the exception of Theo Bleckmann who sent me the recording of his vocal part. I finished mixing the album during the pandemic.
Holland’s David Linx and Hamilton revisit Page of goldby Pixinguinha
A real long-term project!
Indeed. In the meantime, I’ve made five or six “normal” records, let’s say! I really wanted to devote time to this project. There was the idea of making an inventory: where was I, artistically, vocally? Above all, I wanted to show a certain palette… It’s a stylistic inventory, with several approaches. There is for example a piece of Randy Newman, I Think it’s Going to Rain Today, which is ultimately very traditional. And then he’s got the duet with Ran Blake, Vanguard, where there is a slightly more free jazz relationship to the music… I wanted to approach these completely different expressions and bring the style that would bring coherence to the whole. Maybe I wanted to prove to myself that style is me! [il rit] And if it’s not me who puts it down, it’s because I’m not strong enough! I kind of pressured myself. It’s a bit like an exam.
We feel both the desire to share and the desire to become a student again…
It’s exactly that. I am self-taught. I come from a time when there was no school. When I was young, I always learned by working with people I thought were better than me. For this project, I didn’t tell myself that when I went to the studio, but I went to record with extremely specialized artists. We arrived in the studio extremely prepared, mentally and artistically. We are very demanding, and at the same time, we want the public to understand what we do. And for my part, I want to be sure to be the reflection of my time. This project gave me the opportunity to make that wish come true with fifteen different people! It was fifteen short exams!
How were the pieces chosen?
It was I who asked the artists to come up with an idea of what they would like to hear me sing. Afterwards, we discussed their proposal, there was nothing arbitrary. Nguyen Lê came with one of his songs, he asked me to write lyrics on it. Regarding Letter to Trevor, while I was in New York, I had asked Trevor Baldwin, the nephew of James Baldwin, who is like my family, to read me a text in the studio, because he writes very well. He finally came with the letter his uncle had written to him three months after his birth, in which he apologized for the delay he had taken in welcoming him to the world, with a whole philosophical development on the delay. . It is very beautiful. And it was a way for me to continue working with James Baldwin with whom I had made a record in the 80s. of his voice, I sat down at the piano, one night, at the Cristal Records studio in Rochefort, and I added four voices.
David Linx and Tigran Hamasyan revisit ‘Round Midnight, by Monk
What motivated the choice of the other guest artists? Admirations? Friendship stories?
I had about thirty artists in mind… I don’t know, moreover, if there will be a second part of this project. All the guests are people I already knew, like for example Diederik Wissels [pianiste néerlandais avec lequel il a beaucoup travaillé], with the exception of singer Rani Weatherby. I was in concert in Seattle. She was in the audience. Afterwards, she sang me something on her ukulele. I offered to record this song the next morning before I took my train to Portland. We found a studio in Seattle and within an hour we had our song, what she was offering was so fresh! I’ve always loved going from one musical style to another, with the same feeling. When I sing with Marc Ducret [ndlr : grand guitariste de jazz] or Ran Blake, it’s no different than when I sing a traditional melody, or something that’s supposed to be easier, it’s the soul you put into it that counts. It’s important to me to show that it’s possible to entertain with something that looks a bit sharp, but isn’t.
Do you keep any other strong memories from the recording sessions?
With Tigran Hamasyan, we drank tea, we played, we know so well ‘Round Midnight... I’ve been singing it for 40 years, but I felt like I had sung it for the first time! Ran Blake didn’t want headphones, sheet music or text, you had to know everything by heart, be very alert. We did several takes, but you didn’t know where it was going to start! In Rio, I was delighted that Hamilton de Hollanda chose a ballad, he who is such an acrobat as an instrumentalist. It shows his inner strength and reveals another facet of his enormous technique. He chose a little-sung piece by Pixinguinha, the inventor of the choro [ndlr : genre musical brésilien]. He told me that this work had served as the trigger for a tribute project to Pixinguinha. I also liked the work with Diederik Wissels. With him, we expect beautiful romantic ballads… But at the time, he was having fun fiddling around on a new synth… He sent me an electro piece, I cut it into several parts and I made the arrangement. I finished it with backing vocals that give a little nod to Queen. With Magic Malik, it was magic. He asked me to just sing the melody, without too many variations. When he started playing, I felt like I had a symphony orchestra around me…
David Linx in concert
Thursday February 17, 2022 at the Bal Blomet, in Paris, 8 p.m.
In partnership with Jazz Magazine
David Linx (voice), Grégory Privat (piano), Magic Malik (flute), Nguyen Lé (guitar), Gustavo Beytelmann (piano)
> David Linx is preparing a duo tour with Grégory Privat