by Tina Whelski
She's got Doris Day's hemlines, Eminem's venom and Liberace's spirit-and that's just what you get the first few minutes meeting Singer/Songwriter/Pianist Nellie McKay. As McKay takes the bench, demurely tucking her 1940's-style dress around her, she strikes the keys with conviction igniting a blast of influences from various musical eras that she arranges with careful forethought. On top of jazz, rap, and Tin Pan Alley-inspired sounds her raspy, rhyming, crooning, cooing, velvety voice soothes one moment and morphs into a vitriolic rant the next.
No topic is safe from McKay's lyrical eye as she delights in muckraking to raise consciousness for the issues she values. On her debut double CD Get Away From Me, McKay issues a feminist cry in "I Want To Get Married," tugs you through the drudgery of routine on "Work Song," contemplates the perfect soul-mate in "Clonie," and scratches at politics, animal rights, poverty, self-discovery and more. In a speaking voice reminiscent in timbre to Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, 20-year-old McKay discusses her musical approach, the artistic compromises she's encountered working with a major label and feminism.
WOMANROCK: As a little girl you enjoyed imitating Rosalind Russell, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, Rita Hayworth and Doris Day. Now you dress like them as a grown up for your performances. Will you talk about your attraction to the clothes and manners from the time periods where these ladies reigned?
MCKAY: Well in private I dress just like everybody else, but in public I always try to be different. In high school if you're always different you say, I'm just going to be as different as possible and it's a pretty common reaction among 'weird kids.' So I just wished that stuff could be more like the movies…Stylistically when I look at the 60's I tend to go for the people I would not have been like. The suit-wearing, pearl-wearing Doris Day, Jackie Kennedy types…I am a hippie who really likes conservative tailoring.
WOMANROCK: Is there one time period you prefer stylistically over others?
MCKAY: I'd have to say style-wise that the forties would be up there. I think it was when women had much more pride than I think they do today even. All of a sudden they were wearing pants. They were working. The movies were dominated by women…There's something about the fifties that seems so backwards. I think their manner and decorum and stuff seems to be hiding something very secret and very disturbing. Whereas the forties it seems the panache and the style and wit of it was still from the thirties. It was still not censored and filled with McCarthyist propaganda.…Did you see The Stepford Wives? It was fluffy, but the whole thing is that I feel that feminism is always hanging by a thread. There's always a subconscious or conscious longing to go back to a time when women were women and men were men. I just think that the movies carry great weight. If you think about women who romanticize Eminem or other rap stars or chauvinist rock n' rollers, it's almost like masochism in an incredibly widespread way.
WOMANROCK: Tell me about your relationship with Sony during the making of the album. You've said, "The label hires you for being one thing and then they're mad at you when you are that thing."
MCKAY: That's exactly it. The main thing I got out of The Stepford Wives is I feel like a Stepford wife all the time. They like you and then they get you and then they want to completely change you-just keep your general bone structure…What the f*ck did they hire you for? Thanks for bringing up that quote. It's one of the few quotes I hear and don't cringe.
WOMANROCK: Legendary Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick signed on as your producer. How was it working with him?
MCKAY: We disagreed on quite a few things and the main thing though is that he supported the album when Sony wasn't and he was all right with not being paid $25,000 to complete the album. My manager, Geoff, and I were the only three people who believed in the album. We were standing up against a lot of people. We had as much fun making the record as we could. I also felt like I was going to die a lot though. I don't like working creatively under that kind of pressure. This is another thing that people at record companies can't fathom; is that money makes things worse. It just means you have a bigger studio to work in. You've got heavier doors. You've got a bigger console. It only complicates the process. It was such a high-pressure thing; we had a very limited amount of time to make the album...we were constantly being leaned on. There were constantly these nasty messages from my liaison at Sony. I can't say enough how much I like the people there as people, but when it comes to what I'm trying to do, I do feel that there's a lot of double dealing and head patting and just plain getting in the way. I just don't understand why anyone works for a creative institution if all they're going to do all day is try to stop creativity.
WOMANROCK: You seem to have won your fight for artistic integrity more often than not. Can you talk about some of the songs on the CD?
MCKAY: I like "Waiter"…when you're in a car and you look out the window, I like hearing that 'boo bah boo bah' beat. It feels like everything is flying by and you're going to do something. And the fact that it's an anti-war song gives it a good sense of purpose…I like the fact that "Inner Peace" practically growls. And then I would just have to say "Suitcase Song," because I feel it's just very representative of me. Not that it makes it a great song or anything, but I guess that means when I listen to it that I'm reminded of me.
WOMANROCK: Is your neighbor David aware that you wrote the track "David" about him?
MCKAY: While I'm glad I wrote it and it looks like it will be the first single to go to commercial radio, which we're working on now, I do feel that that song was a product of watching too many Elvis movies. He wants a girl, so he sings her a song. So I thought it must work the same for women, which it turns out it doesn't. But it's OK, because I've rather moved on and I have a very healthy social life apart from my neighbor.
WOMANROCK: But it served your art well?
MCKAY: Oh, it certainly did. I don't know if he knew I wrote that song about him. It's weird because who it's about changes. I mean the actual premise of the song is just about longing for someone or something to get you out of your mess. So I think of all kinds of different people when I sing it. I think you have to write about something you know. And that was something I knew.
WOMANROCK: Will you talk about Get Away From Me musically?
MCKAY: Everything that you listen to influences you. I am getting sick of being called a crooner or being placed just in the jazz category though. I can't imagine that these people have listened to the record when they say that…Certainly I feel jazz creeps in there, but it's not intentional. I'm always trying for different styles that I feel are more in sync with today…I think this first album was the first step towards that.
WOMANROCK: You once told me that you dressed up as Liberace for a presentation in your freshman year of college, but got an "F" on it. You said, "That was really a turning point for me because if you can't appreciate Liberace, how can you call yourself an artist?" What do you think of Liberace?
MCKAY: Well I've got a huge picture of him on my wall and he's grinning down at me as I speak to you. I think there's something fascinating about Liberace and something to be aspired to. It was kind of that triumph of the soul through showbiz kind of mentality.
WOMANROCK: You just played Bonnaroo, toured with Sting and now have another string of dates coming up. How's the frantic pace of the road treating you?
MCKAY: I want a private jet and I want my own tour bus. I don't need to own a private jet. I'm happy to rent a private jet, but at the moment I can't do either, so that's kind of out. Aside from the traveling, I love touring. I love playing for the different audiences and it's been great meeting these people, particularly Cyndi Lauper. I'd like to think we're kind of friends now. I opened for her back in December and we recently did an Interview Magazine piece together. We've traded emails and nothing much but I really feel like she understands me and we talked about a lot because she is a consummate artist. I think it really helps to be with like-minded people. They help you get through a lot of it. She just said, "Don't worry about it. Just keep your chin up girl," in that voice and it's just really heartening.
Originally posted to WomanRock.com Sept '04.
Nellie McKay performing "I Wanna Get Married" on The View.
Nellie McKay video for "David."
No topic is safe from McKay's lyrical eye as she delights in muckraking to raise consciousness for the issues she values. On her debut double CD Get Away From Me, McKay issues a feminist cry in "I Want To Get Married," tugs you through the drudgery of routine on "Work Song," contemplates the perfect soul-mate in "Clonie," and scratches at politics, animal rights, poverty, self-discovery and more. In a speaking voice reminiscent in timbre to Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, 20-year-old McKay discusses her musical approach, the artistic compromises she's encountered working with a major label and feminism.
WOMANROCK: As a little girl you enjoyed imitating Rosalind Russell, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, Rita Hayworth and Doris Day. Now you dress like them as a grown up for your performances. Will you talk about your attraction to the clothes and manners from the time periods where these ladies reigned?
MCKAY: Well in private I dress just like everybody else, but in public I always try to be different. In high school if you're always different you say, I'm just going to be as different as possible and it's a pretty common reaction among 'weird kids.' So I just wished that stuff could be more like the movies…Stylistically when I look at the 60's I tend to go for the people I would not have been like. The suit-wearing, pearl-wearing Doris Day, Jackie Kennedy types…I am a hippie who really likes conservative tailoring.
WOMANROCK: Is there one time period you prefer stylistically over others?
MCKAY: I'd have to say style-wise that the forties would be up there. I think it was when women had much more pride than I think they do today even. All of a sudden they were wearing pants. They were working. The movies were dominated by women…There's something about the fifties that seems so backwards. I think their manner and decorum and stuff seems to be hiding something very secret and very disturbing. Whereas the forties it seems the panache and the style and wit of it was still from the thirties. It was still not censored and filled with McCarthyist propaganda.…Did you see The Stepford Wives? It was fluffy, but the whole thing is that I feel that feminism is always hanging by a thread. There's always a subconscious or conscious longing to go back to a time when women were women and men were men. I just think that the movies carry great weight. If you think about women who romanticize Eminem or other rap stars or chauvinist rock n' rollers, it's almost like masochism in an incredibly widespread way.
WOMANROCK: Tell me about your relationship with Sony during the making of the album. You've said, "The label hires you for being one thing and then they're mad at you when you are that thing."
MCKAY: That's exactly it. The main thing I got out of The Stepford Wives is I feel like a Stepford wife all the time. They like you and then they get you and then they want to completely change you-just keep your general bone structure…What the f*ck did they hire you for? Thanks for bringing up that quote. It's one of the few quotes I hear and don't cringe.
WOMANROCK: Legendary Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick signed on as your producer. How was it working with him?
MCKAY: We disagreed on quite a few things and the main thing though is that he supported the album when Sony wasn't and he was all right with not being paid $25,000 to complete the album. My manager, Geoff, and I were the only three people who believed in the album. We were standing up against a lot of people. We had as much fun making the record as we could. I also felt like I was going to die a lot though. I don't like working creatively under that kind of pressure. This is another thing that people at record companies can't fathom; is that money makes things worse. It just means you have a bigger studio to work in. You've got heavier doors. You've got a bigger console. It only complicates the process. It was such a high-pressure thing; we had a very limited amount of time to make the album...we were constantly being leaned on. There were constantly these nasty messages from my liaison at Sony. I can't say enough how much I like the people there as people, but when it comes to what I'm trying to do, I do feel that there's a lot of double dealing and head patting and just plain getting in the way. I just don't understand why anyone works for a creative institution if all they're going to do all day is try to stop creativity.
WOMANROCK: You seem to have won your fight for artistic integrity more often than not. Can you talk about some of the songs on the CD?
MCKAY: I like "Waiter"…when you're in a car and you look out the window, I like hearing that 'boo bah boo bah' beat. It feels like everything is flying by and you're going to do something. And the fact that it's an anti-war song gives it a good sense of purpose…I like the fact that "Inner Peace" practically growls. And then I would just have to say "Suitcase Song," because I feel it's just very representative of me. Not that it makes it a great song or anything, but I guess that means when I listen to it that I'm reminded of me.
WOMANROCK: Is your neighbor David aware that you wrote the track "David" about him?
MCKAY: While I'm glad I wrote it and it looks like it will be the first single to go to commercial radio, which we're working on now, I do feel that that song was a product of watching too many Elvis movies. He wants a girl, so he sings her a song. So I thought it must work the same for women, which it turns out it doesn't. But it's OK, because I've rather moved on and I have a very healthy social life apart from my neighbor.
WOMANROCK: But it served your art well?
MCKAY: Oh, it certainly did. I don't know if he knew I wrote that song about him. It's weird because who it's about changes. I mean the actual premise of the song is just about longing for someone or something to get you out of your mess. So I think of all kinds of different people when I sing it. I think you have to write about something you know. And that was something I knew.
WOMANROCK: Will you talk about Get Away From Me musically?
MCKAY: Everything that you listen to influences you. I am getting sick of being called a crooner or being placed just in the jazz category though. I can't imagine that these people have listened to the record when they say that…Certainly I feel jazz creeps in there, but it's not intentional. I'm always trying for different styles that I feel are more in sync with today…I think this first album was the first step towards that.
WOMANROCK: You once told me that you dressed up as Liberace for a presentation in your freshman year of college, but got an "F" on it. You said, "That was really a turning point for me because if you can't appreciate Liberace, how can you call yourself an artist?" What do you think of Liberace?
MCKAY: Well I've got a huge picture of him on my wall and he's grinning down at me as I speak to you. I think there's something fascinating about Liberace and something to be aspired to. It was kind of that triumph of the soul through showbiz kind of mentality.
WOMANROCK: You just played Bonnaroo, toured with Sting and now have another string of dates coming up. How's the frantic pace of the road treating you?
MCKAY: I want a private jet and I want my own tour bus. I don't need to own a private jet. I'm happy to rent a private jet, but at the moment I can't do either, so that's kind of out. Aside from the traveling, I love touring. I love playing for the different audiences and it's been great meeting these people, particularly Cyndi Lauper. I'd like to think we're kind of friends now. I opened for her back in December and we recently did an Interview Magazine piece together. We've traded emails and nothing much but I really feel like she understands me and we talked about a lot because she is a consummate artist. I think it really helps to be with like-minded people. They help you get through a lot of it. She just said, "Don't worry about it. Just keep your chin up girl," in that voice and it's just really heartening.
Originally posted to WomanRock.com Sept '04.
Nellie McKay performing "I Wanna Get Married" on The View.
Nellie McKay video for "David."
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