Artist Interview: Gone West with Jeff Desira

 If you're looking for a tireless supporter of other songwriters, an instigator of events that shine the spotlight on San Francisco's wealth of talented troubadors, and an example of one of those voices, look no further than artist Jeff Desira.  An accomplished multi-instrumentalist whose played in a bunch of bands, Jeff's diverse musical background adds up to a knack for acoustic balladry laced with catchy hooks. I first met and heard Jeff  at one of Alex Jimenez's Usual Suspects Songwriter Showcase where I was glad to find he was in the thick of recording his recent material.  He recently caught me up on his new project, his influences, the showcase he now hosts, and his experience as a songwriter on the East and West coasts.

Q  You were in a lot of bands before turning your attention to the guitar and your solo work. Was that a difficult or easy transition and what do you love most about leading with your own music? 

JD Before making songwriting on guitar my main focus, I played synthesizers and bass guitar in various band situations, starting from around 1990.
Transitioning from keyboard session work/playing keyboards in bands to bass wasn't so difficult for me, really. After auditioning for a band as a keyboardist, they admitted to really needing a bass guitarist and literally gave me my first bass: a 1954 Telecaster bass. I learned an 8-song set in about four weeks and we had our first gig. In hindsight, if I hadn't taken piano lessons first, I probably wouldn't have had a good understanding of how bass works. Bass is a much more physical instrument though, and requires a different kind of coordination. I ended up playing bass guitar from about 1991 to 2004, when I decided to start writing songs on acoustic guitar.
The transition from bass to acoustic guitar took a while longer, primarily because I was developing material on my own this time, and had a more intense focus on song arrangement.
I've been writing songs mainly on acoustic guitar for about nine years now, and I love that I get to incorporate all of the things I've picked up over the years and use it on my own recordings. For example, I'm currently recording an EP with producer/musician Scott Mickelson (Fat Opie) and now I play bass on my own tracks, sing backing vocals, write violin arrangements, play percussion — I can add anything I want as appropriate for the song. 

Q  Music in SF, Music in NYC, Music in SF: Discuss. What's different and similar about the music scene in/of both regions? 

JD  After playing in bands for about 14 years, I found myself writing songs on acoustic guitar for [another] three years. With the exception of an occasional open mic, I didn't really play out much. I then decided to move to New York where I think I really sort of developed my chops. In '07-'08 the singer-songwriter scene there was pretty thriving, and on pretty much any given night there was a place to play. All of a sudden I was surrounded by other songwriters who were working intensely on their own projects to a degree that I hadn't seen in SF. I know for a fact that it inspired a creative output in me to where I wrote a ton of material in a short period of time. I also think the level of appreciation for music and live performance is different there. I remember having a regular Thursday night gig at some infused-vodka place downtown, and the clients and staff treated me incredibly well. Everyone was really excited about hearing the live entertainment no matter where I was. I never felt that to them it was just ambient noise or that they were just putting up with it. I felt genuinely appreciated.
I eventually moved back to California in early '09. I literally moved straight from Brooklyn to the North Bay to take care of family and begin scratch tracks for my current EP with the late Kerry Garloff. During the process, Kerry admitted to me that he had cancer and insisted on finishing what we had started. Shortly after we finished recording the scratch tracks, Kerry passed away, leaving a message through his Mother asking me to finish my album. This is the album that I'm currently working on with producer Scott Mickelson.
After a couple years of hosting events and showcases, I finally moved back to SF where I found a new, developing singer-songwriter scene, comparable to what I had experienced in NYC. The level of appreciation for music here is still different from that of New York, but it's still so inspiring for me to be around so many talented and motivated artists with similar interests. 

Q Other than your latest mixes, what/who are you listening to now? What have you heard lately that made you go 'yeahhh!'?

JD I love well crafted songs and find new music often through the suggestion of friends. The last thing I heard that really blew my mind was from local musician Brad Brooks — a song called "Night Fades" from his album Harmony of Passing Light. I'm also listening to Fat Opie's "Victoryville," Felsen's "Breaking Up with Loneliness," and from Brooklyn, NY, I'm listening to Brandon Wilde's album "Hearts in Stereo." From Melbourne, Australia I'm listening to Tim Reid's "Any Given Day."  Also on my ipod right now are Tim Easton, The Jayhawks, M. Ward, Guster, Glen Phillips....

Q Tell us about SF Acoustic Sessions, your monthly songwriter showcase.  

JD  I host a quarterly songwriter showcase, titled "SF Acoustic Sessions." I performed the very first one at 50 Mason Social House, but then I decided to simply host the showcase for other musicians and give them 100% of what's made from the event. The whole idea was inspired by a conversation I had with local musician Tom Rhodes about the use of the word "community." In order to have a community that works, you have to put in more than you get out of it. For this last showcase at Milk Bar, I hosted Chelsea Coleman, Jefferson Bergey, Aaron Ford, Tom Rhodes, and Liz Ryder.

My next big performance is at Lost Church in HSF. It's both a theater and live music venue here in San Francisco, where I've seen many incredibly talented musicians perform. I have a special full band performance planned for this show on July 25th, just two days before my birthday. 

Q How can folks find out more about the Lost Church show and have you any touring on the horizon to support the EP?

JD An easy and quick way to find out about them is to either go to my Reverbnation page or Facebook fan page, where I post my performances regularly. As for touring to support my forthcoming EP which will be titled "Weathervane," I'm looking forward to touring up and down the West Coast, as well as parts of the East Coast after it's release in the coming months.

Today in Petaluma: An afternoon of live music at Lagunitas Taproom

Scrub Jays on Mother's Day

My mom passed away eight years ago, so on Mother's Day, I send salutations to moms I know, rather than my own. But it's not that I forget her: as time passes, I only miss my mom more. This past Sunday, I had an afternoon radio spot scheduled for KKUP 91.5, chatting with DJ (and tireless supporter of independent musicians) Don Campau. Given the day, I was making sure to include a song, that's part tribute to both my mother and my grandmother ("Grandma Mission Blues" below) in the set list.
My morning's preparation, however, was interrupted by the sound of squawking outside the living room window. Peering into our side yard, I saw not a bird but a very interested cat— my neighbor's generally docile feline — crouching near the gardening table, twitching its tail. After running outside and yelling at the cat, I saw a frightened, just-fledged scrub jay hopping under the table. Of course, it was just as scared of the large humans trying to help it get away as it was of the cat. But, whether due to cat-inflicted injury (it had a little blood on the side of it's mouth) or lack of skill, it couldn't fly up and out of the yard.  I picked it up and it struggled out of my hands to perch on my finger and I attempted to get it in a tree but no-go. Meanwhile, the cat came around the side of the porch, waiting to take over. After a bit more kerfuffle, we got the bird into a well-ventilated crate and set to finding the nearest Wildlife Rescue Hospital, which turned out to be 20 miles away in Walnut Creek, adjacent to the Lindsay Wildlife Museum.
Scrub Jays — as are most corvids — are among the smartest animals on the planet,  possessing accurate memory and an ability to plan ahead for the future (!). As a kid, I used to feed the jays the 'crusts' of my Wonder Bread peanut butter sandwiches (not recommended) and they quickly learned to wait in the oak trees near a bird feeder each day at lunchtime.
After about 10 minutes in the car, I noticed our rescued jay looking more alert and peering out of the crate and around the car. A good sign. Hopefully, it recovers well and will remember as much how to stay clear of cats as the relative comfort of the interiors of VWs.
The staff at Lindsay Wildlife Hospital promptly whisked the jay through a door from which came the sounds of lots of other birds. As they took down our information and assigned our delivery a number (we can check on its status in a few days) a few other folks came in with shoeboxes and jars containing rescued creatures. The wildlife hospital  is set up to take in animals 7 days a week, starting at 9am, and they're keeping busy: during the first week of May, they took in nearly 250 critters.  Turns out Lindsay's facility is one of the oldest and largest wildlife rehabilitation centers in the country, and largely dependent on volunteers and donations. Hopefully, I won't have to take any more animals there this year, but I'm definitely happy to give them some support. Find out more at http://wildlife-museum.org/hospital.

Sand & Water

Kwame cleaned the car this week and within an hour of being vacuumed and buffed there was sand in both foot wells. Despite dipping toes in the water before leaving the beach and shaking out my shoes before getting into the car, I seem to always trail some home. There's sand on my yoga mat, sand on the front porch next to the front door, sand in foyer. I came home from my trip to Southern California with sand in my suitcase. I'm not complaining. I consider it a victory that my current lifestyle allows me to get to the beach most days, even if only for a few minutes of toes-in-sand, gazing-at-water time. Living near a bay side beach the past two years has been a revelation. Instead of crashing waves, you get wind-pulled tides and pulsing currents. We live inland enough to be out of  sea-level rise's way, close enough to get to the sand in five minutes. Getting out to water's edge seems necessary, in my DNA. Beach blood is very likely: My grandparents were from a fishing village on the Adriatic; my dad grew up in a house built on the sand dunes of San Francisco.
After a recording session last week, we drove out to the ocean-side of things, the avenues of the Sunset District. After so many years, I finally had written down the correct address of my grandparents former home. I couldn't remember where it was, but as soon as I saw its 1920s era stucco facade, I remembered childhood visits, sitting in my grandparents home, trips to Original Joe's and my dad's old baseball pennant flags. My dad used to tell stories of playing in the dunes behind the house, as well as the very new Golden Gate Park. It's a different world nearly a century later — the avenues leading to the beach are filled with similar tracts homes of that time as well as restaurants, coffee bars (mmm Trouble Coffee & Coconut Club) and surf stores, groceries and Muni lines — but as ever, the beach was the beach, always changing, always what it is. Which is likely the real reason I love it so much.
 This isn't a new song, but it's surely one of the great ones: Sand & Water by Beth Nielsen Chapman

Dinner & a Show, May 13 @ KC Turner's Acoustic Bistro

What is Acoustic Bistro, you ask? Well...Acoustic Bistro is a cool weekly songwriter showcase curated by presenter KC Turner at the lovely Osteria Restaurant in San Francisco. I'm excited to be among three artists performing Monday, May 13, 2013, when I'll alternate the Osteria floor with two other troubadours, San Francisco's Andrew St. James and Pismo Beach artist Spanky.
I'd really love to see you at this gig and raise a glass between sets.
KC Turner Presents Acoustic Bistro @ Osteria
3277 Sacramento St San Francisco, CA
Reservations, call: (415) 771-5030 No Cover. All Ages.

Andrew St James * Deborah Crooks   * Spanky 

Please join us! To guarantee seating please make a reservation today by calling (415) 771-5030. 

New Song: Turn the Key

Happy May! Here's another newly recorded song from the upcoming CD:

Read.Eat.Listen: Homeward

Read: A new guide for Ashtanga practitioners by Sharath Ranaswamy! I picked up the new  Astanga Yoga Autsthana" while at Jois Yoga. With clear, concise descriptions of the Ashtanga practice, it's a great companion to Yoga Mala. Not 100% sure where else it's available other than Mysore but my hunch is a lot of studios where Authorize/Certified Ashtanga instructors are teaching  may have some in stock.

Eat: When in San Diego, Fish Tacos. I don't label myself vegetarian or vegan, because while I eat that way 95% of the time, I occasionally eat fish. So Cal is the place for fish tacos. Before heading to LA the other day, I had a wonderful plate, albeit less casual than your usual standup fare, at Jimmy's Famous Tavern in SD with a So Cal-based friend from the Hayes Valley chapter of living. If you're looking for grab-and-go, check out Serious Eats list of best places for fish tacos in SoCal (which has a lively comment list for more suggestions).
Listen: Another great track from the John Denver Tribute album that came out last month:  "Take Me Home,Country Roads" covered by noneother than Brandi Carlyle and Emmylou Harris.