Suzanne Vega performs at House of Blues May 10.
Sometimes, when a record label releases a 'best of' compilation by a performer, the artist in question is often excluded from the process. Not Suzanne Vega. 'I was very involved in it and I'm very happy with the way it came out,' is what the acclaimed singer/songwriter told me about RetroSpective: The Best of Suzanne Vega (A&M), a 21-track single-disc collection that covers her recording career from her 1985 self-titled debut disc through her 2001 album Songs In Red And Gray. The disc opens with her best-known hit single 'Luka' and also includes a few obscurities such as songs from movie soundtracks and the unexpected hit remix of 'Tom's Diner.' I spoke with Vega while she was en route to the next venue on her tour, and here is what she had to say.
Gregg Shapiro: In 1987, at the time that your single 'Luka' was released, 10,000 Maniacs had a song on their album In My Tribe album titled 'What's The Matter Here?,' which also dealt with the subject of child abuse. Why do you think that that was such a hot-button issue for songwriters at that time?
Suzanne Vega: I really don't know. It's one of those things like when two people create the telephone at the same time. You don't know why that happens in the culture. For some reason, that was the time for that subject to become more in the media. The other is that it's possible that other people have written songs (on the subject) in the past, but because it was the right time for the media to hear about it, the songs got the exposure that they wouldn't have otherwise gotten.
GS: The remix collaboration, between you and DNA on 'Tom's Diner,' is one of the purest and most successfully realized remixes of the time, because the song maintained its integrity at the same time that it was enhanced.
SV: Yeah. I thought so too when I first heard it. I thought, 'Wow, that's really great. They didn't change the meaning of the song, they just made it much more accessible.'
GS: Was the concept something to which you were open or did you need to be persuaded?
SV: All I had to do was hear it once and I thought, 'Oh, I really like this. Let's release it.' Because if I hadn't, no one would have ever heard it, because we would have not released it. We would have probably sued them, which is what my manager wanted to do. But I could also tell from listening that they didn't have any money. These weren't slick producers. These were two guys in a room. I said, 'Rather than suing them, because nobody wins if we sue them, why not just release it and see if it gets any kind of audience.' It was much more successful than I had expected.
GS: On a couple of the songs from 99.9 Fahrenheit degrees, it seemed, at least to me, that you were addressing the subject of HIV/AIDS, especially in the title track and on 'Blood Makes Noise.' How close am I to the meanings of the songs?
SV: So many people have told me that that I'm starting to think it's true myself. But that wasn't what I was thinking of at all. I wasn't thinking of AIDS at all. But a few people have told me, including AIDS workers, that the song and the album really hit them in a personal way because of their work with AIDS, but it is not what I was thinking of. It's one of those things where you write something that is personal to yourself and it hits a nerve in a way that you don't expect.
GS: As a gay man, I also appreciated the transgender theme of the song 'As Girls Go,' from the same album. Can you tell me about the inspiration for that tune?
SV: Yes, it was a woman that I knew from a local restaurant who was really beautiful. We had sort of a funny connection. We would always say 'hi' and she would ask me where I got a dress or something like that. There was this kind of bond between us. Then I found out from someone who had dated her about her situation. That she wasn't as feminine as she seemed to be. I thought, 'Wow, that's amazing!' Because she was one of the most charismatic people I think I have ever known. She had the kind of charisma that a movie star would have. She left the restaurant one day. She told me, right before she left, that she was going on some kind of trip across the country. She said goodbye to me and we gave each other a kiss goodbye. I was strangely moved by her whole situation.
GS: Are you aware of a following in the queer community?
SV: To some degree. I think so, yeah.
GS: You have also contributed to movie soundtracks, such as Pretty In Pink and Dead Man Walking. Joe Jackson played piano on the song 'Left Of Center.' Was it your idea to work with him on that song?
liked his music. It was one of those things where we all said, 'Yeah, that's a good idea.'
GS: Would you say that the influence of your parents, including your late stepfather, the writer Ed Vega, had an impact on your own urge to create?
SV: My mother is a computer systems analyst and I think I have benefited from what both of my parents did. I think I do have an analytic sort of mind. And yes, I was very much encouraged to write by my stepfather. As it turns out, my biological father played piano, so I think I get a certain amount of ability from him. I was influenced by all my parents (laughs), biological and otherwise.
GS: You are hosting the 'American Mavericks' program on public radio. Please tell me something about it.
SV: That is a really fun project. It's 13 hours of information and music and interviews with American composers, ranging from the late 1700s all the way up to Philip Glass and Laurie Anderson. It's filled with anecdotes about their private lives and their personalities and how they think and compose. It really makes that area of music much more accessible to people who like music. Even people who love quirky or alternative pop music would find this series interesting because it's all about musicians and music and how these really interesting, strange composers think and thought throughout the history of American music.
GS: It sounds fascinating.
SV: It's great. I really enjoyed working on it. I hope that it gets a bit of exposure