Mark Eitzel: Conflicted About Covers

"I don't like covers," said Mark Eitzel over coffee one sunny afternoon at his favorite San Francisco haunt, the SOMA Café. So then why has he recorded an entire album of other folk's songs (Music for Courage & Confidence, due from New West on April 23)?

"I like doing them; I hate doing them," said the acclaimed San Francisco-based singer/songwriter, who is known for being unpredictable. "I'm of two minds. I'd rather write new songs than sit down and learn a cover. But then, you learn a lot by learning covers. They say — those songwriters out there, those great songwriters out there that you read all about, who tell you how to write songs — do covers."

Named after a kitschy self-help album from the 1950s with the same title, Music for Courage & Confidence was produced by Eitzel and Brian Paulson (Wilco, Beck, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Slint). Backing musicians include Joey Waronker and Justin Meldal-Johnsen (both from Beck's band), and guitarist Bjorn Olsson. Johan Kugelberg, editor of the music magazine Ugly Things, initiated the project in 1997. Despite Eitzel's reservations, he went ahead and recorded an eclectic batch of songs drawn from such genres as rock, pop, blues, soul, folk, country and doo-wop.

Of the 10 songs that appear on the album, Anne Murray's "Snowbird" is Eitzel's favorite. He says the song drives him crazy; it just won't leave him alone. It opens the album and, endearing and sweet, it in fact does inspire courage and confidence.

"Rehearsals for Retirement" is from Phil Ochs' later period, when he'd lost the sterling qualities that made his name synonymous with folk in the mid-'60s. Eitzel quickly came to Ochs' defense: "It's the production," he exclaimed. "They're great songs. It's all those '70s circus string arrangements. Terrible. It was out of his control." (Ochs actually recorded the song in 1969.) Eitzel gets at the heart of the song's potential and shows what Ochs could have done with it under different circumstances.

Eitzel makes each song his own. They're all mood pieces. The other eight include "Ain't No Sunshine" (Bill Withers), "Gentle on My Mind" (Glen Campbell), "Help Me Make It Through the Night" (Kris Kristofferson), "I'll Be Seeing You" (Billie Holiday), "Move On Up" (Curtis Mayfield), "I Only Have Eyes for You" (The Flamingos), "More, More, More" (Andrea True Connection) and "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" (Culture Club).

The project, completed in stages, got started five years ago. "I started recording in 1997," Eitzel said. "I couldn't find anyone that would put it out. Or, anyone who would believe me that if I re-sang and re-mixed the songs it would be great. I'm very, very happy on Matador [which released Eitzel's two previous albums, and for which he is working on a new album of original songs]. Matador is a great label. And, in fact, it couldn't have worked out better for me. But only New West said, 'Oh yeah, this sounds great.' So they put it out. They've been great. I did the music for 'Do You Really Want to Hurt Me' and 'More, More, More' and 'I Only Have Eyes for You,' and then the demos that I did were 'Rehearsals for Retirement' and 'Ain't No Sunshine,' and 'I'll Be Seeing You.' I didn't choose 'Gentle on My Mind.' It was suggested, and I said 'Fuck yeah, I'll do that. I love that song.'"

Eitzel, who led the American Music Club during the late '80s and first half of the '90s, was once known for his drunken, disorderly stage shows. "I used to be really self-destructive onstage," he said. "The more self-destructive I was, the more the audience loved it. I wanted to feel the transcendence of alcohol. But there really isn't any. But when you're young you think 'I'm so fucked up, I might be telling the truth.'"

Today his stage shows may be calmer, but Eitzel still has his edge. "I just finished a song about a male stripper. It's taken me two years to finish this song. It's called 'A Patriot's Heart.' And then I wrote a song called 'Freedom,' slightly in response to Paul McCartney's [song in response to Sept. 11]. I heard the chorus once on Entertainment Tonight or somewhere, and turned it off... I was like, 'Paul, what happened?' Maybe he never wants to get a parking ticket in New York City again."

The song about the stripper and the song about freedom are for Eitzel's next album, which will go back to his acoustic, singer/songwriter roots. "I've got about seven songs done," he said. "I'm throwing away [editing] a lot. I've actually got about 20 songs. I'm trying to write a really serious record."

After seven albums fronting American Music Club (1985-1994), garnering "Album of the Year" and "Songwriter of the Year" accolades from magazines including Rolling Stone and Spin, Eitzel went on to a critically acclaimed solo career. On his five solo albums, Eitzel has been joined by various collaborators including Bruce Kaphan and Danny Pearson of AMC, Kid Congo Powers from The Gun Club, The Cramps and The Bad Seeds, James McNew from Yo La Tengo, Steve Shelley from Sonic Youth, Mike McCready from Pearl Jam, and Peter Buck from R.E.M. Eitzel's admirers include, among others, Joni Mitchell, PJ Harvey, Elvis Costello, Stephin Merritt, Sheryl Crow, Ryan Adams, and Ann Magnuson, of the seminal band Bongwater. A Mark Eitzel tribute album, Come On Beautiful, was released in October 2000, with tracks by indie favorites M. Ward, Ida, Lambchop, Calexico, Jenny Toomey, Paula Frazer, and others.

"Ann Magnuson has my cat," Eitzel said. "I gave her my cat because I travel too much and it wasn't fair. I was on the radio station in L.A., the station with "Morning Becomes Eclectic" [KCRW], and I wanted to play that Ann song where she says the word pussy like 200 times in a row — 'pussy, pussy, pussy, pussy, pussy.' And I was like, you know, 'This has the word "pussy" in it.' And they were like, 'Yeah, how many times?' And I was like, 'A couple,' but they wouldn't play it. They were like, 'Well, no,' and I was like, 'But it's Ann Magnuson.' 'No.' I think they thought it would offend women."

Now Eitzel is discussing possible collaborations with former core American Music Club members. "The only members of American Music Club who were consistent were me and Danny and Vudi. We've been talking about doing some collaborations. We've been talking about doing records again."

Eitzel is also working on an album with multi-instrumentalist and PJ Harvey player Joe Gore. For this project, Gore is writing most of the music, while Eitzel is writing most of the lyrics. In addition, Eitzel and close collaborator Napoleon Hill recently finished recording seven songs of electronic music.

About his songwriting process, Eitzel said, "For me it's a big journey. I like to do the journey. I like to figure out what it is I'm trying to say in my life and try to express that. Songwriters are like anyone else, except that they live publicly, you know. At least I do. I'm pretty biographical — autobiographical — in my songs. At least I can't write anything if I haven't seen it, or heard it, or done it. I need that, because I'm no good at making stuff up."

Eitzel is immersed in the community of singer/songwriters, and says he listens to other musicians for inspiration. "I'm an active listener of music, myself," he said. "To me, the band I like right now is Songs: Ohia. I met him [Jason Molina]. I went to see him a couple years ago. I said, 'You're really good.' He's a nice guy." Eitzel also frequents local coffeehouses, like San Francisco's Bazaar Café, where he's heard undiscovered singer/songwriters who've inspired him greatly.

"A lot of people sing sad songs, but I'm probably the only artist that gets called 'the King of Sadcore,'" he said. "I was on the cover of BAM [the now-defunct California music magazine] once. I was excited: I was on the cover of BAM magazine! But then [because of being called the "King of Sadcore" on the cover] I was like, 'Fuck you!' I'm the only one who gets called that!"

Eitzel is known for his humorous banter with the audience during performances. During the interview he said, deadpan, "Everyone, well — when I walk down the street. When I go to the supermarket — people mob me. People ask me about the new album. Everyone wants to know. I'm so popular." He paused, then added, laughing, "I'm just joking." Contemplating the meaning of his vocation, he continued introspectively, "I want to make a cosmic moment happen. I want to make magic happen." — Jillian Steinberger [Monday, April 8, 2002]