CONTENTS

– ERIC HARABADIAN
William Shatner
Bold Prog-Rock Collaborations With Stellar Cast
William Shatner has not only been an enduring star of TV, stage
and screen, but has boldly ventured into musical and spokenword
territories. His first recording project, The Transformed
Man (1968), featured amusing and somewhat campy recitations of Bob
Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man” and Lennon-McCartney’s “Lucy in the
Sky with Diamonds.” In 1978 Shatner performed a similarly tongue-incheek
rendition of Elton John’s
“Rocket Man” at the Science
Fiction Film Awards. This pop
culture icon has also collaborated
with keyboardist Ben Folds on the
reflective album Has Been (2004)
and recorded Seeking Major Tom
in 2011.
Shatner’s latest album, for
Cleopatra Records, is called
Ponder the Mystery and it is
his first foray into the world of
progressive rock. The music was
written and co-produced by Yes
and Circa multi-instrumentalists
Billy Sherwood and Tony Kaye. By
Shatner’s own estimation, it is one
of his most personal and creative
works to date. The artists that
signed on to appear on the record
are a who’s who of classic prog,
rock, fusion and even country.
Mick Jones, Steve Vai, Al DiMeola,
Rick Wakeman, Robbie Krieger,
Vince Gill, Edgar Froese, Edgar
Winter and George Duke are just a
few of the contributors.
Music Connection: Can you talk
about the origin of this project? How
did you arrive at the storyline? It
seems very personal.
Shatner: When the label asked me
to do it and they asked me what
would I do, I sort of flashed on a
concept where I imagined a man
on a beach in despair. And through
the process of twilight and sunset
and the evening, the night and the
sounds of the night, he gets his joy
of life back. And from that one-line
scenario I was able to hang my
hook on certain songs that apply to
that—despair, feeling down and out,
sunset, the colors of sunset, how
they affect life. And then the sounds
of the night and finally a joyful song
in which he gets his mojo back.
MC: Did you feel progressive rock was the
best vehicle for your statement?
Shatner: Well, I wish I could say that I
consciously went to progressive rock. But,
in fact, it seems my natural tendency is to
be in a genre that could be characterized
as progressive rock. I’ve likened
progressive rock music to science fiction—the exploration of boundaries
to go in new directions and try to discover, I suppose, things that are
already there and bring them out. That’s what I think science fiction does
and that’s what I’m beginning to see that progressive rock music does.
MC: That makes a lot of sense. Just the nature of it being progressive
allows you to go wherever you wanna go with it.
Shatner: Well, exactly! And this being a concept album, if you will, it
harkens back to the great history of concept albums.
MC: That’s something that’s been lost in modern music. We’d like to
see that trend come back.
Shatner: You wanna sit down and listen to this whole album. There’s a
progression here. This is music that has a beginning, middle and end.
“I’ve likened progressive rock
music to science fiction — the
exploration of boundaries…”
MC: Can you talk about the writing process for this album? Did you sit
down in sessions with Billy Sherwood and Tony Kaye?
Shatner: No. I sat down and wrote what I thought was a song and,
essentially, poetry. I tried to give it some depth so that there are echoes
in the songs of other meanings. If you look at the words carefully, there
are undertones of other meanings of life and death and that kind of
thing. And then I presented them
to Billy, who then made them into
a song both in cutting and pasting,
if you will, the lyrics and writing the
melodies and arrangements. So
he is truly the genius behind this.
MC: That’s very gracious of you
to say.
Shatner: Well, it’s fact! In many
cases the words are good. In some
cases I’d love to have some of them
back and rework them. But he has
made these songs just lovely and I
am very proud of this album.
MC: What were you were listening
to in preparation for this record?
Shatner: I’d like to say I played
The Wall or something like that.
But I listen to a lot of music. I
love music of all kinds. But I
don’t know individuals! I hear
something but I couldn’t tell you
who I listened to until someone
tells me about it. But I don’t
know…I’m not conversant, as I’m
not with actors. I don’t know who’s
on these shows. The leading
actors I know, but I’m not up on
the names or reputations.
MC: Is there a vocal regimen you
use before a recording session?
Shatner: No. I’m very busy and
so I’m constantly saying words
in front of people or in front of
a microphone. You wanna be
careful that you’re not selfconscious
about your voice. So
many people who use their voice
for their living become conscious
of their voice rather than the
intention of what their saying—
whether it’s music or dramatic—
so you’ve gotta be careful of that
as well. But head tones, chest
tones, I know about those things
and I’m aware of them.
MC: What would you like audiences to
get from Ponder the Mystery?
Shatner: I want them to be entertained
and moved emotionally so that
they wanna come back to the next
performance. My hope is that it’s that
kind of music and that kind of mystique that people will say, “I’ve gotta
go back and hear that again.”
MC: What music artists would you like to work with in the future?
Shatner: I’d like to work with anybody that’s considered great in music.
For that matter I’d like to work with anybody great in any field. I’m so
curious about what makes somebody great and where their talents lie. I
would love to work with anybody who’s talented in anything.
MC: Finally, do you have any other musical projects planned right now?
Shatner: No. Let me see how this one goes and then, if I’m asked,
we’ll tackle something else.
Contact Billy James, glassonyonpr@gmail.com
November 2013 musicconnection.com 45