MusicsWeek: How did you get started in music?
Jay Clemens: I followed my sister to piano lessons in the late 1960’s - yes, I am an old man. Our teacher was the most sophisticated woman in Mandan, North Dakota. She traveled to New York every year on a pilgrimage to celebrate great music and high culture, and we were all her beneficiaries. She set high expectations and encouraged all her students to learn and grow, even beyond the music. She had some truly exceptional piano students who ultimately won major prizes and played at Carnegie Hall. I was not one of them.
MusicsWeek: What inspired you to become a musician?
Jay Clemens: I have always played and loved music of all genres. During my 35-year career as an international lawyer, music was a form of release for me. I spent countless hours on long-haul flights studying big band scores - Gerry Mulligan, Duke Ellington, and Maria Schneider. I was fortunate to retire early and enrolled in some classes at the Jazz School in Berkeley, California. I started working with Rachel Efron, who introduced me to songwriting. Songwriting enabled me to integrate two parts of my creative brain - the lyrical and the musical. And I’ve learned a lot about myself in the process.
MusicsWeek: Can you tell us a bit about your background and upbringing?
Jay Clemens: I was born and raised in the frozen tundra of western North Dakota. For most of my childhood, my father was the superintendent of the North Dakota State Juvenile Reformatory. We lived on campus with the students, who were not allowed to leave. My mother was also a social worker, so our dinner table featured a steady diet of stories about people, young and old, and their challenges. I grew up believing in second chances and the need for compassion and community.
MusicsWeek: What's your favorite memory related to music?
Jay Clemens: When I was in college, our jazz ensemble performed with the great saxophonist and composer, Sam Rivers. At that time, I was not familiar with Sam’s music, which was rooted in free jazz. During the concert, we played one of his new compositions, “Shades.” I remember being swept up in the groove of the music and the intense group improvisation of the musicians. When the piece ended, I put down my soprano saxophone and sat exhausted in a pool of cold sweat, feeling like I had elevated to some new level of musical understanding. It was a spiritual experience.
MusicsWeek: What's your biggest passion outside of music?
Jay Clemens: I was an Asian Studies major in college and almost went to graduate school to study classical Chinese poetry. Over a 600-year period in the Tang and Song dynasties, Chinese writers composed some of the most beautiful imagistic poetry that has ever been written. I feel those old poems in my gut, and sometimes they find their way into my songs.
MusicsWeek: How do you stay motivated and inspired?
Jay Clemens: I keep listening and building my songwriting toolkit. I listen to everything - old Tin Pan Alley music, Country, Rock, Hip-hop, Pop, Death Metal - OK, maybe not a lot of Death Metal. But I look for things in the music that inspire me. Sometimes it’s the lyrics, sometimes it’s the melody or harmony, and sometimes it’s the production - especially in more current music. And I never tell myself “I could never do that.” I just find ways to integrate what I like into my own songs. I think that’s how we develop our own voice - it’s a composite of what we love.
MusicsWeek: What's your favorite song to play live?
Jay Clemens: My favorite song to perform is “Curfew in New York” because it provokes such a wide range of comments and emotions from listeners. The song was inspired by a couple of Great American Songbook standards - “Autumn in New York” and “Moonlight in Vermont.” I love those songs but they are really quirky. The music is beautiful and nostalgic, but the lyrics talk about the beauty of telegraph lines in the woods and divorcees who lunch at the Ritz. I wanted to do a song that took a similar approach - combining nostalgic music with some edgy imagery about New York during the pandemic. Some listeners have told me they find the song deeply moving; others have told me that they find it hilarious; and then there are a few who have begged me never to write another song about New York. I learn something from every one of those conversations.
MusicsWeek: What's your creative process like when writing songs?
Jay Clemens: My creative process can start in a lot of different places. In most cases, I begin with the music and then develop lyrics that match the tone of the music. But sometimes I have a song title or theme in mind and I start with the lyrics first. The one thing I have learned is to respect the muse and go with the flow.
MusicsWeek: Do you have a favorite album or artist that influences your work?
Jay Clemens: There are so many. I’ve probably learned the most about songwriting from Jimmy Webb and Randy Newman - they are exceptionally creative and versatile, and do every aspect of songwriting extremely well. I am currently drilling down into the songs of Tony Lane, Mike Errico, Jonatha Brooke, and Lizzy McAlpine. My songs don’t sound like theirs, but I’m hoping some of their greatness will rub off on me.
MusicsWeek: What's the most challenging part of being a musician?
Jay Clemens: We live in a country that loves music, but doesn’t provide proper support or encouragement for most artists. I hope the music industry will move in a direction that can sustain more artists financially. New technology can be great for music. More music is available than ever before, but we need to invent new ways for listeners to find and support new artists. The big players in the industry don’t have any financial incentive to develop those new models, so reform will probably have to come from the bottom up.
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