Ana Egge creates glorious songs from dark places

The Canadian born-US raised songwriter Ana Egge plays Kelly’s Bar, Bridge Street this Saturday, November 12 as part of an excellent double bill that also includes Dutch singer Christof Van Der Ven.

Ana has just released her seventh studio album, Bad Blood, which was produced by the legendary singer-songwriter Steve Earle.At the time of this interview, the folk-rock singer is in the Scottish highlands, as part of her UK tour.

“It’s really beautiful – it’s not that cold!” she laughs. “I came up here a couple of years ago touring with a friend and so we got in touch with the same promoter and we came back. Tomorrow we go all the way up to the top to play in a lighthouse.”

Songwriting is not the only craft that Ana Egge is well versed in – she is also a luthier (someone who makes stringed instruments) by trade. “Obviously, it’s all hands on,” she says about her early days as a guitar-manufacturer. “You can read about it but you don’t know what you’re doing until you mess up a few times. And there’s always so much to now. I worked with [her mentor] Don Musser in Silver City for a while and I made my guitar.

“Then I went to Austin and did inlay on guitars, a company called Precision Pearl. Then in Brooklyn I was apprenticing with this great repair man called Bob Jones, who’s definitely one of the best in the country. Now, I’m working for a company called Retro Frets.”So, what’s the secret to making a good guitar?

“Well, I think the player makes the best guitar!” Ana says. “You can make something that’s pretty crappy sound great. But in general, a solid body, with a solid top, with good wood, that’s put together well, is your best bet.”

Bad Blood is produced by Steve Earle. He may be better known as a songwriter, but a production credit from Earle practically guarantees an album of quality.

“Well, we’ve known each other for years,” Ana says about the Texan. “I first met him because I’m friends with [Canadian singer] Ron Sexsmith and Steve produced his Blue Boy record. Since then, I’ve kept in touch. I co-produced all of my last six albums, and with this one I was just ready to give the reins over to someone else and not be in charge of the production at all.”

Earle has a reputation as a somewhat irascible and demanding taskmaster. Is this justified?

“Oh he was very involved!” laughs Ana. “At every moment! Telling the drummer, ‘don’t play that, play this’. Telling the bass player to play a different instrument. Ripping the guitar out of the guy’s hand saying ‘I don’t want you to play that, play this!’.” 

Earle’s involvement aside, Bad Blood is steeped in classic Americana. The album was recorded in Woodstock, in the studio owned by Levon Helm – drummer and singer with The Band, who helped Dylan go electric and were the subject of Martin Scorcese’s The Last Waltz. The idea to record there came about when Ana and her producer were discussing the logistics of making her album.

“We were talking about the rest of what we had to figure out and I said ‘well I had a dream last night that we were recording it at Levon’s in Woodstock.’ And Steve said ‘oh, that’s a great idea, why don’t we just call Levon?’. And it was just like that!”

On Bad Blood Ana Egge addresses the thorny issue of mental illness. It’s something that has affected her family, but rather than write about specific people, Ana decided to write about the illness as a character in itself.

For more, read this week's Connacht Tribune.