The Florida native is charismatic and easygoing by nature, but if you dig a little deeper, the truth behind his thoughtful lyrics becomes apparent. “I feel like the lyrics I write are me trying to preach to myself and wake me up to things in my life, even if I don’t get it right away,” he says. “And the more I sing them, they become a mantra for my life.
“There’s a beauty in the simplicity of writing lyrics from the soul. For me it’s thrilling – it was a joy to write Home In the Sky and Everything Is a Song. These days I just let it happen. I just roll with it and let the chips fall where they may. I’ve slowed down in a lot of ways, but I feel like I’ve accomplished all I wanted to with Ol’ Glory.”
The album was recorded at Retrophonics Studios in Florida. As a keen surfer, the studio’s close proximity to the beach is always a major bonus for Grey. “It’s the seventh time I’ve recorded there and my seventh album,” he laughs. “It felt like I was on vacation. I’d go for a surf in the morning and play music all afternoon with the boys – it was a dream.”
Grey’s dream team in the studio are an ensemble of exceptional musicians known as Mofro, and they’ll be joining Grey on his return to Australia in October. “I like it when an album feels live, so we play live in the studio as much as possible. When we record a take, we try to keep overdubs to a minimum so that the music has a natural feel. Where the rubber hits the road for me is the minutiae that show up in a record – that interaction between musicians that’s so subtle that you can’t make it happen, it just happens.”
Together JJ Grey & Mofro weave a deep, soulful blend of blues, rock, folk, funk, gospel and R&B. “I did what a lot of people do when they’re starting out – I tried to emulate my heroes,” Grey says. “At first you only sound like the sum total of your influences – I sounded like a guy who was trying to sound like Otis Redding meets Jerry Reed. But if you keep doing it, eventually you’ll quit thinking about your influences, and who you are starts to show up in that blend of all those sounds.”
Today JJ Grey is known for his smooth tone and honeyed harmonies with just the right amount of grit. However, Grey is quick to mention that his true strength lies onstage, whether he’s playing for a handful of friends in his hometown of Jacksonville or headlining a festival halfway around the world.
“You won’t ever see me up there with a grin plastered on my face getting ready to plough through it one more time. I’ve never played a show like that in my life and I don’t think I ever will. If I’ve played a city 1000 times, it doesn’t matter. It’s the first time I’ve played that show that night, at that place and that song. Whenever I play live I just want to dig in and swing for the fence every time.”
BY NATALIE ROGERS
