Sasha Dobson

Sasha Dobson is a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist whose life has run the gamut from swing dancing in Santa Cruz, to learning instruments on-the-fly in New York City. You’ll hear about how she and Norah met, how they encouraged and inspired each other, and ultimately came full circle in exploring music together. They’ll play some of Sasha’s striking solo compositions, duet on a Puss N Boots classic, and you’ll hear Norah's surprise performance for Sasha. Tune in for all that and the answer to what a Jazz singer is supposed to do with their hands! Recorded 3/29/21

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, I'm Norah Jones and today I'm playing along with
Sasha Dobson.

Speaker 2 (00:04):
I'm just playing long with you. I'm just playing in
lone with you. Hey, I'm Nora.

Speaker 1 (00:18):
Welcome to the show with me as always Sarah Oda.
Hi there, Odi Chan, Hello, Hi.

Speaker 3 (00:24):
Hi.

Speaker 1 (00:25):
Our guest today is our sister. She is sister sister.
Sasha Dobson is a singer, a songwriter, an incredible guitar player.
I love her drum grooves, and she happens to be
both of our oldest friends in New York City.

Speaker 4 (00:43):
This is true. She's also a dancer, but you'll hear
more about that later.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
Yeah, she's one of my favorite, favorite, most beloved people
in my life. Actually, she's one of my best friends,
and she's one of my favorite people to collaborate with.

Speaker 4 (00:57):
She's put out a lot of albums as a solo artist,
but she's also a bandmate of yours in Puss and Boots.
That's right with Catherine Popper. Yep, we have a band together.

Speaker 1 (01:07):
In this band, we sort of learned how to play
guitar a little bit together. Then she switched to drums
and started playing drums. It's been a really fun band
of experimentation and chasing different things just for fun and songwriting.

Speaker 4 (01:21):
And she's a very accomplished, beautiful songwriter, but she's also
such a good improviser that I feel like she's a
fun musician to have around to kind of just like
anything's possible, exactly.

Speaker 1 (01:33):
I definitely feel like anything's possible with Sasha, like she's
always up for anything musically as well, which kind of
goes back to I think being raised jazz in that
school of music and improvising.

Speaker 4 (01:47):
I felt like having Sasha on the show as sort
of a no brainer because the heart of our show
is about collaborating, and I feel like there's something so
natural and easy about collaborating with somebody that you know
so well, like a family member. It's just in your DNA.

Speaker 1 (02:01):
Yeah, I mean, Sasha was the first guest we wanted,
she was first on the list, and I've known her
so long and I know her so well that actually
this episode was hard for me because of the talking stuff.
We talk really easily, and that's not a problem, but
actually trying to think of things I didn't know about her,
or trying to figure out how to pretend I didn't

(02:23):
know the answer to the questions I was asking. Yeah,
but the truth is I learned a lot that I
didn't know.

Speaker 4 (02:29):
Yeah, it's like we've watched her journey as a musician
and a friend for almost twenty years, or more than
twenty years, but like there's just little nooks where yeah,
I didn't know about her.

Speaker 1 (02:41):
Yeah, things I didn't really completely know. She is from
Santa Cruz, California. She grew up in a family of musicians,
jazz musicians specifically, And we talk about all that. I
highly recommend you go check out her social media pages
and go see her play because she plays all over
New York all the time, and see if she's on

(03:03):
tour in a city near you. Because she's a beautiful
performer and she's a special songwriter. She has become such
a special songwriter over the years. You know, I remember
when she wrote her first song. We talked about that
in this episode. Now she's got so many songs that
it was hard for me to choose them for this episode.

Speaker 4 (03:21):
I just have so much love and respect for her
as she's just such a true artist.

Speaker 1 (03:25):
Yeah, she's a beautiful human and one of our favorite
people inside and out and musically and friend wise. And
we just love her so much. You're going to hear
a lot of beautiful songs that she wrote in this episode,
as well as an old jazz standard that we recorded together.
She's one of my favorite guitar players, actually rhythm guitar players,

(03:46):
So she brought her guitar and she played some guitar,
and we're going to open up with a song we
do in Pus some boots that she's going to be
playing drums on, So please enjoy.

Speaker 5 (03:56):
Sasha Dobson, Oh, sister, I don't want to know it you.

Speaker 6 (04:16):
I don't want to know it's true.

Speaker 7 (04:20):
You lost your well again, Sister, You've forgot your head again.

Speaker 6 (04:34):
Bakers. Instead, it's time to let you know.

Speaker 8 (04:44):
You can take my money, you can take my man.
You can try to every think you can check it
down the two three buds Eavin's I don't feel.

Speaker 9 (05:00):
That empty hard.

Speaker 10 (05:04):
Sisters, You've all learn them wrong. Won't you listen to
my song? I can't let you go.

Speaker 8 (05:56):
Now? You can take that money, can take my man, charity.
You think you can chegg it down?

Speaker 6 (06:10):
Ju be mad?

Speaker 8 (06:13):
Nevin's gone to feel ity, sister, Oh.

Speaker 11 (06:22):
I don't know.

Speaker 6 (06:25):
Won't you listen to myself? I can you.

Speaker 1 (06:46):
Georgie, Well, your doggie was barking at the door.

Speaker 6 (06:50):
The whole time.

Speaker 1 (06:52):
You're awesome, not bad, not bad.

Speaker 12 (06:55):
It's not for chess.

Speaker 1 (06:56):
Oh my god, I miss playing with you. I know. Oh,
I know, god, I miss playing with you.

Speaker 12 (07:03):
I missed it a lot.

Speaker 1 (07:05):
Oh man.

Speaker 12 (07:06):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (07:08):
So we okay, so we share I say our birthdays.
We were twenty because we're one day apart. Yes, and
we have had many a birthday together. Yes, And so
we met. It was it was nineteen ninety nine, okay,
the summer that's when I moved to New York. So
that's when I was twenty and you were twenty. Yeah, okay,
so we shared that gig. But we met for the

(07:29):
first time at Carpo's Cafe. Yeah, on Bleaker Street. Yeah,
because Danielle Guessparo was singing.

Speaker 12 (07:36):
Right, Yeah, it was her gig. Was playing drums and
it was his game. And that's why I was there,
that's right, because I followed him around like puppy.

Speaker 1 (07:43):
Oh.

Speaker 12 (07:44):
And I remember you said it and I was.

Speaker 1 (07:46):
Like, who's that sing Yeah, and you said it and
I was like hi, Yeah.

Speaker 12 (07:50):
I just remember thought, oh my god, she's so friendly,
a friendly chess friendly you and Danielle. I was like, oh,
she was gonna it out.

Speaker 10 (08:00):
You know.

Speaker 1 (08:01):
It was so generous of her too. I mean, I
know that's always the jazz scene you're supposed to sit
in and all that, but that was not typical. No,
it's scary for a sing I don't know. It just
felt very generous.

Speaker 12 (08:12):
Yes, Yeah, and I and that's part of why your friendship.
One of the many reasons why your friendship means so
much to me is because, yeah, I mean, it feels
like singers aren't necessarily mean to each other, but it's
kind of a lonely road.

Speaker 1 (08:28):
Yeah, it is. And I've got to say, I agree
they're not mean. I think they get a lot of
crap maybe, and so they put on a little bit
of armor, especially the jazz jazz world. Maybe.

Speaker 12 (08:38):
Absolutely.

Speaker 1 (08:39):
What does the term chick singer mean to you?

Speaker 12 (08:43):
I mean, I don't really have like a huge hang
up about it. I guess from being it. Yeah, but
I do know that I always felt just personally like
something was missing all those years when when I was
just quote unquote singing. Yeah, And I do know that

(09:05):
I always felt left out in a way when all
I was doing was singing. And not being a part
of the rhythm section.

Speaker 1 (09:13):
Especially when like between verses, right or exactly, yeah, they're
all sololy and you're just standing there.

Speaker 12 (09:19):
And now, of course, all this, all these years later,
I can go back and do a jazz gig and
just sing and it's actually kind of nice to just
relax and not have to set up gear or totally
play in between, and I can enjoy. But you know,
I love you, know me. I love playing rhythm, I
love being involved the whole time.

Speaker 1 (09:35):
You're a great musician, and I think it's so I mean,
we've known each other so long, so thinking about I've
been having a running conversation with you in my head,
which is hilarious because you've also been here at my house.
But I'm trying to think of all these things because
I know you so well and we have so much
shared history. But I want to know about what I

(09:57):
don't know about you, which is it's interesting because we
both come from the jazz world, and we shared that
gig a Vintage for so long, totally or for that summer,
and we knew each other and that's when we met
and we were both singing jazz. But then both of
us have come together doing other things, yeah, and writing songs.

(10:18):
And you just played drums. You're a guitar player. I
hired you to be in my band once playing rhythm
guitar because you're such a great rhythm guitar player. So
it's kind of wild to me that you didn't start
playing an instrument until much later than most people I know. So, okay,
so your childhood, you have a jazz family.

Speaker 12 (10:44):
It's true. I was born into a family of jazz musicians, allible.

Speaker 1 (10:50):
Yeah, it's incredible.

Speaker 12 (10:52):
I love them so much, and they're all amazing and
very inspiring, unique people, and it was very intimid.

Speaker 1 (11:00):
Well, so that's what I'm wondering about. Yeah, do you
think that's why you didn't Your your mom is a singer, yep.
Your brother plays drums and saxophone yeah, and vibes and vibes,
and and he's older and he's two years thank you
for me, Yeah, he's no. Just for the intimidation, yeah, no,

(11:21):
two years older. And then your father, who has passed
away but was an amazing legendary pianist.

Speaker 12 (11:28):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (11:28):
Yeah, I've heard so many stories from it's crazyious because
he is crazy. I think I feel him.

Speaker 12 (11:34):
Yeah, yeah, you've heard enough about it.

Speaker 1 (11:36):
I've heard so much about him. But but you were intimidated,
you think out of playing an instrument growing up, Well, it.

Speaker 12 (11:42):
Was like Smith grew up playing with dad, just like
you and me are doing right now. It's so amazing
to be in this seat because and to wake up
in your home and your piano in the morning, just
because it was so much your I'm like, I'm your kid.
Your kids are growing up in a similar way that
I did, you know, and I looked up, I mean

(12:05):
now after many many years of therapy, piece it together,
and see that I was in awe of what was
going on between particularly my brother and my dad. And
they always wanted, especially my dad, maybe not so much
my brother, who wanted me to be a part of it.

(12:25):
But I was so shy and I just was but
and I didn't maybe know quite how to participate. And
my brother was you know, I didn't know until many
many years later that he was definitely like a prodigy,
a freaky you know, I mean, like he could play drums.
I have videos watching him playing drums at age ten,

(12:48):
and it was like, oh, I had no idea.

Speaker 1 (12:51):
He was like a freak of nature.

Speaker 12 (12:54):
Yeah, and I didn't know that then. I just was like,
why can't I do that? Yeah, I must not be
able to like because it just didn't happen. You know,
I didn't find it the way he did.

Speaker 11 (13:08):
I was.

Speaker 12 (13:08):
It took me a long time to figure out what
I wanted to do other than sing.

Speaker 1 (13:12):
Well, you always wanted to sing, though, right, Yeah.

Speaker 12 (13:14):
I mean singing definitely. It was the easiest way to
jump in.

Speaker 1 (13:17):
Well. It also singing when you're when you're in a
musical family. I mean, you're natural, You're a natural musician.
You're just doing it. You're probably doing it right after
you were born, right, I.

Speaker 12 (13:29):
Mean I guess I think that, you know, because I
didn't have like a steady like itinerary with one instrument. Yeah,
I definitely was around it, you know.

Speaker 1 (13:40):
Yeah. Yeah, did your mom sing when she wasn't practicing
a song? Did she just sing around the house like
for fun?

Speaker 12 (13:48):
Well, mom and dad sang a lot. Yeah he sang too, Yeah,
like in harmony, and I do.

Speaker 1 (13:54):
Why you're such a great harmony singer. It is okay
amazing to play some of that you did once and
I totally yeah.

Speaker 12 (14:02):
Yeah, a lot of people don't know because because they
only made a couple of records where they mostly gigged. Yeah,
and she sang and she sang and they harmonized together,
and there's a lot of rating. That's why Girl Talk
is so magical for me personally. Which is a song
that we recorded together in harmony, and we're gonna do

(14:25):
it so much like what I grew up around with.
That's double harmony.

Speaker 1 (14:29):
That makes so much sense now because I was trying
to piece it together and I was thinking, Okay, you're
one of my most chemistry harmony. We harmonize with each
other best out of anyone I've ever heard. It's the
same here, familiar, It's like we were twins or something.
And I was thinking about my background with harmonies being

(14:52):
I was just harmonized with whatever was on the radio,
and then I was in church choirs and then school choirs.
But you came up different, diferently, And that makes sense
now because I was wondering where the harmony stuff.

Speaker 12 (15:04):
Because that's what my dad got. Well, that's where he
got all the harmony shops from because he was a
magical harmony singer from you and he learned it in
the church.

Speaker 1 (15:13):
Ah. Okay, of course, and his mother and Nana. Nana
great singer, and she's a great singer, and she sat
in with us. Yes, that was one of my all
time favorite things.

Speaker 12 (15:26):
Oh my god, you made it happen. You surprised me.

Speaker 1 (15:29):
I did. I thought you made it happen. How did
I make it?

Speaker 12 (15:33):
I think you said, should we ask Nana to sing?
And I was like, you've got to be kidding, she'll freak.

Speaker 1 (15:40):
Well, that was because when we were doing put some
This was on our first record, like five six years
ago to fourteen, Yeah, twenty fourteen, and we were still
doing Tumbling Tumbleweeds sometimes and you said that she taught
it to you, I think where she used to sing.

Speaker 12 (15:55):
Yeah, we did it a couple of times.

Speaker 1 (15:57):
Yeah, and so we thought we'd do that song with her.

Speaker 12 (16:00):
That that was amazing. She's never cropped up the ending,
but she and she was well, my grandmother Portnana was
just starting to struggle severely at that time. Now it's
pretty pretty gone her hearing, but that was it was
just starting to kind of seep in. I don't think
she had a hearing aid yet.

Speaker 1 (16:17):
She was amazing. And then I loved the inning, and
I remember feeling so like, oh no.

Speaker 12 (16:22):
But she and she also amazing and she was that
was that was so sweet.

Speaker 1 (16:28):
So your musical roots go way.

Speaker 12 (16:29):
Back, I'm doomed.

Speaker 1 (16:32):
And your grandpa was a musician, a.

Speaker 12 (16:35):
Great court of ox. More so, my dad was more
of like the musical scholar, and my grandfather was a
little bit more like my brother and I were. You know,
we jumped ahead and mostly are self taught by ear.

Speaker 10 (16:50):
You know.

Speaker 1 (16:50):
Grandpa was a little more fussy.

Speaker 12 (16:53):
Play that one song, ssh, I only know that one
song and one key, you know, very but he but
he played all night one man band with the drum
machines which I have, and and then he would have
his old drum machine bam bambooed bungee corded to his
ham and organ and he would play quarterbacks.

Speaker 1 (17:16):
Left hand with the drum machine. He was just a
one man bands. Crazy.

Speaker 12 (17:20):
It was crazy set up.

Speaker 1 (17:22):
Did he wear suspenders? Yeah, I feel like that. My
image of him was god him. Oh yeah yeah. And
I feel like I could totally picture your hands as
a one man Yeah. Crazy, these crazy crazy.

Speaker 12 (17:36):
I mean, once you get older, you can really see
the life that you you can step out of it
and it's different, you know, and you can see these
people maybe more as people, unless as like your parents
or grandparents, and just you know, there's some definitely unique
creatures in my upbringing. So I feel lucky.

Speaker 1 (17:55):
It's amazing.

Speaker 12 (17:56):
But but yes, I am a late bloomer.

Speaker 1 (17:59):
But you're not behind anything. I mean, okay, because I
feel like I was there at the start of your
songwriting journey, Button, I might know. I know what I
think you're What was the first song you wrote? So?

Speaker 12 (18:14):
I think it was for Leaf Clover?

Speaker 1 (18:16):
Okay, that's on guitar. Yeah, yeah, I love this song,
thanks man, So we should play four leaf Clover. Okay,
it's the first song you wrote. And it's also it's like,
you know, we haven't played this song in so long.
Before we were Pussing Boots, we were the sloppy joe
Inne and we played this song a lot. Yeah, was

(18:39):
it before you recorded it? Which with the for the record,
I think or after?

Speaker 12 (18:44):
Maybe it was all happening around the same time. And honestly,
I might not have had the nerve to ask if
I could play guitar on the actual recording because I
had Richard Julian and Jesse Harris there also accompanying me.
On that record yea, which is an amazing situation in scenario,
but it worked somehow, you know. And but but they

(19:09):
both were like, yeah, man, because I was playing guitar
with you and we were I think we were doing
this song that I was like at the Fat Cat,
at the Fat Cat and at the Rodeo Bares and
that I was like, well, maybe I could try and
playing it on the recording. And we were at Compass
Points studios and I was not going to play guitar,

(19:30):
but I did, I think because.

Speaker 1 (19:31):
Because he wrote it on that I wanted to.

Speaker 11 (19:33):
Yeah.

Speaker 12 (19:34):
And it took me many years after that to realize
that even though I'm shy about my playing, that my
playing is informing the melody, the phrasing, it's informing the
whole thing.

Speaker 1 (19:47):
You're playing the guitar for the song you wrote on
the guitar is what it is.

Speaker 12 (19:53):
Yeah, exactly exactly.

Speaker 1 (19:55):
It's not you. If it's someone else playing accompanying me,
else feel yeah, well, that's and that goes back to
why I hired you to play rhythm guitar, because I
always felt a little disconnected because I wasn't good enough
at guitar yet to play live. I always felt a
little disconnected from the rhythm guitar parts until you and
I started doing those guits together.

Speaker 12 (20:16):
I get it now.

Speaker 1 (20:17):
I mean, I get it too. And it doesn't mean
it's hardtter. It has nothing to do with it. It's better worse.
It's just about the feel you connect with.

Speaker 12 (20:24):
I mean, as a jazz singer, there are so few
people that I feel that ease with when I can
just let go. And I mean, that's why it's such
a It's gonna be so grivy to do that today
with you. But and also, yeah, there are even in
jazz with all the monstrous musicians in New York. There's

(20:45):
so many incredible musicians, but to have that connection, it's
just kind of rare, no matter how good they are. Like,
accompanying a singer is a thing. It's it's a different thing.
It's a different thing.

Speaker 1 (20:54):
It's a totally different thing. All right, Well, let's do
four Leaf Clover. I love this song.

Speaker 3 (21:00):
Fo dot do doo doo doo doo do do.

Speaker 8 (21:33):
Do do do do.

Speaker 13 (21:35):
Do doo doo doo. H I found me a falling clover.

Speaker 9 (21:54):
Didn't change a thing.

Speaker 6 (22:00):
Still cut out with a storm, fastenal Fer.

Speaker 14 (22:06):
And I'm hanging by.

Speaker 6 (22:10):
Stream.

Speaker 8 (22:13):
Oh no, no, no, one day you will.

Speaker 15 (22:32):
Seem way.

Speaker 6 (22:50):
I won't have that conversation.

Speaker 16 (22:55):
There's nothing left to say. I don't need those expectations.

Speaker 8 (23:09):
I can't live that way. I don't don't don't.

Speaker 6 (23:21):
I want to hurt you.

Speaker 1 (23:28):
How we laugh, we live with.

Speaker 6 (23:33):
If I have to.

Speaker 8 (23:45):
Die, I don't dott doo doo do do do.

Speaker 6 (24:24):
Do do.

Speaker 8 (24:29):
Do do do do do do do do.

Speaker 11 (24:33):
Do do do do do do bo?

Speaker 1 (25:17):
You graduated from high school early? Like I was thinking,
what was I was talking to Sarah because she's also
known you twenty something years or maybe a little, which is.

Speaker 12 (25:26):
Amazing since we're only twenty five years.

Speaker 1 (25:27):
Yeah, we're only twenty five years old. But I was like,
can you help me because I feel like I'm too
in with Sasha, like I know too much about her.
Help me think of stuff I don't know? And she said,
what was teenager? Sasha? Like, I was like, I don't know.
So before you graduated early, what was school?

Speaker 11 (25:48):
Like?

Speaker 1 (25:48):
What kind of school did you?

Speaker 12 (25:49):
Guys? I mean, I wish I was more scholarly again,
I feel like I'm just starting to get into like
studying and things, and like, oh, I don't know. My
brain is a little bit more focus. But back then
I was shy, which most people can't imagine because I'm
so silly and extroverted now yeah, yeah, especially with boys.

(26:12):
Just yeah, I'm kind of a nerd, I think because
I grew up on stage playing with mom and dad
and in an environment that was such a tribe that
branching out and being in normal, uh schooling environment it
was hard.

Speaker 1 (26:29):
Yeah, And I was dorky and like, you know, a
little bit chubby, you know. But you went to normal schools,
the normal like public school. Did you do any music
in school? Choir? I should have a choir?

Speaker 12 (26:42):
And I think I was a little bit, you know,
because I was so spoiled back home. Yeah, I didn't
have the patience to be in like school.

Speaker 1 (26:48):
Choir and they only way boring and it was pretty boring,
not fun.

Speaker 12 (26:53):
It wasn't as it wasn't as fun. And I mean
I was so spoiled musically at home that I didn't
have the patience or the sort of focus to have
this other thing happening. And unfortunately, I really think, oh man,
if I had just knew what I or had the
nerve or the courage to start an instrument. Back home,

(27:17):
when I was younger, I would have stayed out of
trouble and probably been less shy socially, you know, because
I would have been busy working on music. Yeah, but
I didn't have that yet, so it was lost.

Speaker 1 (27:30):
But yeah, that's what's so interesting to me, because you're
so good at all of it now and I'm just
trying to picture you. Weren't you really into the swing
dancing scene, really.

Speaker 12 (27:39):
Into the swing dancing thing. So my mom is a
great dancer, and the one thing I did do growing
up was dance. I took dance up until like fourteen.
Once I hit puberty, which I hit late, which we
talked about last night. It was like, uh, you know,
the whole skinny dancer thing was not for me. Competitive

(28:00):
not for me. But I still, as you know, love
to dance. My mom is a great swing dancer. So
back then and I well, I was always sort of
made fun of for being a jazz nerd. And I
remember one time, even like in kindergarten, I brought my
dad's jazz record Smithsonian to show and tell to share
to the class. And back then in kindergarten, our teacher

(28:21):
actually had a turntable in the classroom. Wow, like my dad,
She's put out this record smith Yonian and and I
I remember how it was like my first feeling of like,
I don't know, I just remember experiencing like that thing
where not everybody likes jazz.

Speaker 1 (28:38):
Yeah, like being like this sounds great to me, Oh no,
like hearing it through their ears.

Speaker 11 (28:42):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (28:43):
Like it wasn't like everybody was like this sucks, but
they just weren't listening probably, yeah, And the teacher was like,
and I just remember being like, huh, do you remember
what you played?

Speaker 12 (28:53):
I think it was just like the first song on Smithsonian,
which was I had that smith Yeah, Steve gadd and
Gomez and I don't remember which song it was anyway.
I mean, so with swing dancing. As soon as I
got out of high school early, which I took my
ged and kind of like got out of that scene,

(29:14):
I started, you know, hanging out in cafes and Santa
Cruz and making friends with people who were.

Speaker 1 (29:18):
Older than me who were into the same stuff.

Speaker 12 (29:20):
Yeah, who were into the same stuff, and swing dancers
in particular.

Speaker 1 (29:23):
I remember it was huge then. It was huge in
the nineties, so right, Yeah, it was big.

Speaker 12 (29:28):
Yeah, and all my friends or people. All of a sudden,
it was like I was cool for the first time ever.
I was cool for knowing about jazz.

Speaker 1 (29:37):
That is really and I was like yeah.

Speaker 12 (29:41):
Well yeah, and my friends wanted to dance to jazz.
So then I was like all in and like, you know,
shaved my eyebrows off and.

Speaker 6 (29:52):
Black hair.

Speaker 1 (29:52):
Yeah. I was in like a different scene all of
a sudden.

Speaker 12 (29:56):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (29:56):
Yeah, I hung out with the songwriter like I mean,
I met you and the jazz scene sort of yes,
and then I was you came.

Speaker 12 (30:03):
I didn't even know about other music scenes.

Speaker 1 (30:07):
Well me either when I first moved to New York,
and then it sort of opened up. So, uh, you
came on the like songwriter scene, and then you started
writing songs well well slowly. Well yeah, but man, I
had trouble choosing songs for this podcast because you've written
so many great songs things. And but I did have

(30:29):
a point on anyway, which was that we were fast friends.
All of a sudden. We were like totally each other's girl,
you know, and you were getting into you said, you said, hey, Norah,
I want to learn how to play guitars like me too.

Speaker 12 (30:46):
And yeah, I'll never forget that.

Speaker 1 (30:48):
And you said, Okay, I booked a gig at the
Fat Hat every week in the pool hall part, not
the back room, but the pool hall. You want to
like learn. I was like, yeah, but I would have
never done that. But that whole learning on the gig thing,
sort of working it out on the gig, that comes
from both of us. I think just playing playing gigs.
That's how that's how we did it.

Speaker 12 (31:08):
You play gigs. Yeah, you don't spend a lifetime practicing
in your room.

Speaker 1 (31:15):
You get out there, get out there and play music
with other people. Yeah, And that's so important.

Speaker 12 (31:20):
It's so important. I mean, this year it's been so
hard exactly, even though it's an opportunity to work on
other things. And I mean you make the best out
of it or in your own way, but but I yeah,
spiritually it's like it's hard. It's been hard.

Speaker 1 (31:36):
Yeah, But that's that was you. That was you pushing
us both into just doing it. And boy, some of
it was not good, but it was awesome at the
same time. I mean, we had the harmonies dialed in
and sometimes we would just drop out because we forgot
where the chord was. Remember, But then yeah, we'd done

(31:58):
it for two months every Wednesday, and it felt it
got better better, and then it got better and then
it got better.

Speaker 12 (32:04):
Yeah, I mean it's amazing. I have some old there
are some YouTube thingies up there and I'm like, that
sounds great. Yeah, how is that possible?

Speaker 1 (32:14):
And the stuff where I'm playing guitar with you in
the early days.

Speaker 12 (32:17):
I mean to think that you took me out on
the road back then, I mean I was I didn't
even believe it could ever. I didn't even believe it
could ever happen, you know. I mean, it's amazing when
you you know, you just have a dream to make something.
I don't even know why I'm emotional, but it's like
back then, I just we were working on guitar, but

(32:40):
I just never thought that it could come together.

Speaker 1 (32:43):
Well, you were so good at it, and I asked
you to come on the road with me because you
were a better rhythm guitar player than I had played
with a lot of great guitar players, and I'm not
saying they weren't great, but there's just something about your
feel when you're playing guitar. No, I'm not being nice,
I'm being serious. It just felt natural, It felt connected

(33:05):
to what I was. I mean, and then obviously the
harmonies you know, were great. The two things together, it
was just like a no brainer for me. I was
so excited.

Speaker 12 (33:14):
Well, I wish that I did a better job.

Speaker 1 (33:16):
And you did a great job.

Speaker 12 (33:18):
And I am amazed at your trust in me because
looking back, you know, I was so green and like
I've been there, believe it. I didn't believe it, but
but it sounded pretty.

Speaker 1 (33:28):
It sounded great. And you know what we were both
in like super transitional. Yeah, I was in a huge
transition in my life, my music, everything. Yeah that was
two thousand and nine.

Speaker 12 (33:38):
Yeah, you've got the doggies. We prove it.

Speaker 1 (33:41):
Yeah, we our dogs are old now, but we had
just gotten them. And we brought our dogs on the road.
That was we had our dogs on the tour bus.
That was amazing.

Speaker 12 (33:50):
That was amazing. And now I never this little nugget.
These two are best friends. Oh my god, I love
so great. I know, really amazing.

Speaker 16 (34:11):
I see said, it's up change boo, and it's happening
all around.

Speaker 6 (34:24):
And the simple things, the bad, I can't think nothing
of it.

Speaker 16 (34:34):
In the distance we create, in the closeness we cat change.

Speaker 6 (34:46):
It's the simple things. It's the simple.

Speaker 17 (34:54):
Thing.

Speaker 16 (35:13):
It's a thoughtful disposition, way looking too mad.

Speaker 6 (35:25):
In the words we're using bad and the can is
that w shave.

Speaker 15 (35:35):
In the sun.

Speaker 6 (35:36):
D's passed through the sun, and I hope we move.
It's the simple things.

Speaker 9 (35:50):
It's the sable things in a seam of man.

Speaker 11 (36:22):
Move thing.

Speaker 6 (36:25):
But my body lacks me.

Speaker 9 (36:31):
And we die to around.

Speaker 6 (36:34):
In circles to a temple we can't.

Speaker 8 (36:39):
Fine, and A try to tell you our fee.

Speaker 18 (36:47):
But we never make that time. It's the simple thing.
It's the simple.

Speaker 11 (37:00):
Thing.

Speaker 18 (37:05):
It's the simple things.

Speaker 9 (37:10):
It's the sum.

Speaker 11 (37:25):
I like you.

Speaker 1 (37:27):
I wanted to talk about that tour we did with
the Dogs in two thousand and nine. So growing up
in this sort of world of jazz musicians, I always
sort of try to be one of the guys, you know.
And I don't know if you had that experience or
if it was totally opposite for you, but when you

(37:49):
came on that tour with me, it was like the
world of girly stuff kind of like I was like, oh,
Sasha's really dulled up. I'm gonna put more makeup on tonight. No,
it was I mean in a positive, an extremely fun
positive way. It was like I was scared.

Speaker 12 (38:11):
To play up. I grew up with that. That's actually
that rings that hits me in the heart because I
do remember years before that, ten years before that, yeah,
with in college and being in love with Toma, my
first boyfriend who we both know and who's a dear
friend still, and and having I mean, I always, ever

(38:33):
since I was a little tiny kid, love love makeup
and clothes me.

Speaker 1 (38:39):
Too, makeup, not close to much, but makeup. I always
loved makeup. So it was so weird that I pushed
it down.

Speaker 12 (38:44):
But yeah, I think because when you're going up around
jazz musicians, it's like, oh, that's not hip man to
be all into that crap.

Speaker 1 (38:53):
Or there's just not as many women.

Speaker 12 (38:54):
You know, that's for sure, you're one.

Speaker 9 (38:56):
Of the guys.

Speaker 12 (38:56):
Because everybody's one of them. There's always just a bunch
of dudes up until recently. That's why it's so liberating,
and you want to.

Speaker 1 (39:01):
Get taken seriously, especially as a singer, you know. Yeah,
But it was like I.

Speaker 12 (39:07):
Definitely I don't know exactly why, but I definitely remember
feeling shy about letting that part of my personality out
on the bandstand and in front of other cats.

Speaker 1 (39:18):
Guys, do you know when that switched?

Speaker 12 (39:20):
Probably last year, I definitely, I mean on tour with you,
and maybe honestly I never really thought about it until
this second, but I do think having a guitar, oh yeah,
really helped, because there's something about just singing jazz where

(39:41):
you just don't think about I mean, like, you don't
think I want to look conservative, but it is a
conservative environment kind.

Speaker 1 (39:50):
Of well, and also you're just standing there out front,
so you don't want to be too inviting of the
wrong kind of attention.

Speaker 12 (39:57):
It's true, even though jazz singers back in the day
were the most.

Speaker 6 (40:01):
Lavish they did.

Speaker 4 (40:03):
You know.

Speaker 1 (40:03):
Well, that's what's so weird about our generation of I
don't know, I feel like it's not just us. It's
probably a thing for a lot of women who grew
up in that in that era or in our era.

Speaker 12 (40:14):
Yeah, where it was like, for some reason, well, I
guess because we're pushing out of that girl mentality where
the woman's only only only women sing, you know, even
though that's kind of the Even though my parents were
super supportive and very liberal and not like that, I

(40:36):
did grow up in that environment where the women sang
and the men played instruments. Yeah exactly, And my dad
wanted nothing more than to have me play an instrument.
But I was like, man, you know, scow that I'm
just gonna sing. But I mean yeah, but he was right.
I mean this was this was it like to sing
and play and to be a part of all of
it is like where it's at, you know.

Speaker 1 (40:57):
Yeah, they made it feels so good, so good. It
was too nerdy and shy and also impatient as a.

Speaker 12 (41:04):
Kid, you know, you have to be willing to like suck.

Speaker 1 (41:08):
There's one particular. There's some show we did in Belgium
that was filmed okay, that is on YouTube. And I've
been going through a bunch of archives trying to find
fun stuff to post on Instagram. And there's this show
it's like Midway and our promo tour we did for
that album of mine, Okay, And I'm wearing like a

(41:29):
Teal Madonna prom dress that's short and sleeveley.

Speaker 12 (41:33):
I love that.

Speaker 1 (41:35):
I know, I love that dress doesn't fit me anymore,
but I mean I couldn't imagine, and I love the
way I look like It's great. It's so fun. But
it's just like I couldn't have imagined ever dressing up
and having that much fun with clothes and makeup and
hair if we weren't, you know, sharing a dressing room
on that tour.

Speaker 12 (41:54):
God, that was a dream.

Speaker 1 (41:55):
It was so full.

Speaker 12 (41:56):
And the wardrobe case we had the word and the
thing was like I couldn't shut it.

Speaker 1 (42:04):
Because it was too full. There we had like hair,
I had hair extensions and it was so funny.

Speaker 12 (42:12):
It was so funny and so much fun. I mean,
I I would definitely, I'm like, I would definitely do
things different and try and shave it down.

Speaker 1 (42:21):
I would do things different in every situation. But it
doesn't matter.

Speaker 14 (42:24):
We had so much.

Speaker 12 (42:26):
Yeah, it's great.

Speaker 1 (42:27):
It was amazing. What do you have anything new? You're
working on a couple of new things you would feel
comfortable sharing? Sure, as songs, you don't mind an unfinished No,
I love clear and Loose.

Speaker 12 (42:41):
You've seen my live shows.

Speaker 1 (42:43):
I don't care well, but I think that's that's what's
so fun about music is it's it's just a moment
of that thing. It doesn't mean it's the final, definitive thing.
It's just it's alive. Don't you think songs are kind
of alive?

Speaker 12 (42:59):
Definitely. Yeah, it's almost like until you put them down
on a record that you can kind of do whatever
you want.

Speaker 1 (43:06):
Or yeah, it's like you're searching for the definitive version
until you record it. Yeah, and then you can kind
of move along and do it.

Speaker 12 (43:13):
You can still change it, but yeah, it does. Once
it's on a record, it's a little bit more like, oh,
let's go back to that and reference it, because why
did I do that one time?

Speaker 1 (43:20):
I don't know exactly.

Speaker 12 (43:21):
It's weird. It is interesting, though, I long for definition
and like when you I mean, it's so I need
to practice what I tell other people who maybe I
have a chance to work with younger artists, you know,
because it's like making decisions and defining things. It's like
the best feeling in the world, but it's so hard.

Speaker 1 (43:44):
It is sometimes yeah, yeah, you.

Speaker 12 (43:46):
Know, at least sometimes for me.

Speaker 1 (43:47):
Yeah. Well, and that's why I think playing music with
someone you either have that chemistry moment, whether it's perfect
or not, or you don't. You could get it totally
right and could not sound that good right or wouldn't
feel good you know.

Speaker 12 (44:05):
Yeah, yeah, decision making, you know, there's nothing like finishing
something and you know, it, You're like.

Speaker 1 (44:14):
It happened, Yeah, exactly.

Speaker 12 (44:17):
Falling in love you think it's never gonna happen, it's
never gonna happen.

Speaker 1 (44:20):
And then one day it happens.

Speaker 12 (44:24):
So I've heard. I'm kidding. I'm waiting wait for that
day to come. We're talking about songs, of course.

Speaker 1 (44:37):
It's just so fun thinking about the journey, you know,
like watching it over the last fifteen twenty years, I know,
watching you go from singing jazz standards to playing all
these instruments and writing songs, and it's just fun.

Speaker 12 (44:54):
Oh thanks, Yeah, And now.

Speaker 1 (44:56):
We get to watch Kat do it, you know, writing
so much since we started playing with her and singing more.

Speaker 12 (45:02):
I know, I'm really excited to hear what she's like making.

Speaker 6 (45:06):
It's pretty cool.

Speaker 19 (45:08):
What do you got, well, I have no idea.

Speaker 20 (45:37):
Wig up, slow down, lead down, look out.

Speaker 21 (45:50):
And away for side, make a move.

Speaker 11 (45:58):
Way four, sid.

Speaker 20 (46:20):
Stole me, Monday, bill.

Speaker 6 (46:27):
Me, Sunday.

Speaker 14 (46:32):
Emma.

Speaker 16 (46:35):
It doesn't say the way ses, it doesn't say.

Speaker 11 (46:48):
On.

Speaker 12 (47:20):
It's pretty much all I got.

Speaker 14 (47:23):
Let's go.

Speaker 11 (47:33):
Yeah, m m mm hmmm mm hmmm.

Speaker 6 (47:55):
Rain drops.

Speaker 1 (47:56):
I love it. You know what, It's so cool because
always come with cool rifts. All. Thanks. I love it.
I'm sure I was thinking of you when I wrote it.
Now always, you know, I love it. That's great.

Speaker 12 (48:12):
Thanks.

Speaker 1 (48:12):
I have been you know, I've got a bunch of
snippets and.

Speaker 12 (48:18):
These months have been a little out of focus.

Speaker 1 (48:22):
Yeah, tell me about it. It's so hard about the
drive of the work kind of keeping you like having
something to do work for Yeah, I'm having a reason
to finish something or a reason absolutely. Yeah, I know
what you mean.

Speaker 12 (48:35):
Last year we were all raging. I mean, for me,
I was busier than I've been in many, many years,
and you were on the verge of a full year
of touring and and and I felt like those first
couple of months of lockdown, I was like, I'm gonna
keep going.

Speaker 1 (48:52):
Yeah, I was.

Speaker 12 (48:53):
Still on this like adrenaline.

Speaker 1 (48:55):
It took a time for everybody to sink in.

Speaker 12 (48:57):
Yeah. And then and then the summer it really hit me.
And in the winter that's when I think I wouldn't
say I went into a depression, but definitely where it
was like harder to finish things, and you.

Speaker 1 (49:08):
Know, yeah, but that stuff just goes in cyclic it
does it does. Do you ever get worried anymore? That
you're going to never have another idea or you're past
that point.

Speaker 12 (49:16):
I feel like I'm definitely because it always comes around.

Speaker 1 (49:22):
Yeah, that's love. Or you don't worry about it.

Speaker 12 (49:25):
There, Yeah, I don't worry, but I definitely am like,
Oh how old am I? I noticed the clock taking
a little more where I'm like, I want to accomplish more.
Or back in the day I didn't care or think
about time.

Speaker 1 (49:42):
Yeah, that's what the thought is more than more than Yeah,
worried about inspiration coming back? Yeah, and because I know
that's always going to happen.

Speaker 12 (49:50):
Yeah, I think that it'll be easier to finish songs
when there's something going on in life.

Speaker 1 (49:55):
To write about, exactly nothing to write about? Yeah, can
I write about it? What am I watching right now?

Speaker 7 (50:02):
Oh?

Speaker 12 (50:02):
My god? How many times can I rewatch Glow?

Speaker 1 (50:05):
Can I write another song about it?

Speaker 12 (50:07):
Can I?

Speaker 14 (50:08):
Oh?

Speaker 1 (50:09):
Man, I should watch that one?

Speaker 12 (50:10):
And Shit's Creek?

Speaker 1 (50:11):
Oh yeah, so good the Wigs? I love that? Thanks man,
I'll finish it maybe the night, finish it, finish it,
finish it. Yeah.

Speaker 12 (50:22):
In fact, You've always been such a great resource of
inspiration for many reasons. But it's like, what song were
we doing? Uh, Sex Degrees of Separation where you were like, Sasha,
are you going to finish this? And I remember I
was like okay, and I just forced myself in a

(50:44):
way that I hadn't before and then I finished it.
So sometimes you need that push.

Speaker 1 (50:48):
Yeah, well that I feel like that's the work part
of songwriting, the inspiration part when it comes through you
and you you know, it's like feels divine. Yes, that's
the that's the fun part. And then finishing it is
the work.

Speaker 12 (51:02):
Is the work part, the work. Yeah, you have to
make time and yeah, sit down.

Speaker 1 (51:06):
Yeah. Can I play a song of yours for you?
Is that weird?

Speaker 12 (51:14):
Are you kidding?

Speaker 1 (51:15):
I thought it would be fun, and then I thought
I should tell her what I'm gonna do so she
can chime in. But it's your song, so you know it,
So I'm thinking chime in.

Speaker 12 (51:24):
Probably I don't know it.

Speaker 1 (51:26):
Okay, sit down at the drums because you might want
to chime in. Okay, this is a This is one
of my favorite songs, yours. Okay, here's your song written
by you. I love this song. This. This was on
our first Pus Some Boots album, but it was also
on one of your albums. Oh, so you know each one.

(51:47):
It is okay. You forget me, I know you will.

Speaker 14 (52:06):
We had.

Speaker 6 (52:09):
Our face.

Speaker 22 (52:11):
For now, but let's beyond it and.

Speaker 6 (52:23):
Tie sometimes.

Speaker 1 (52:29):
To our mind for now, will ride.

Speaker 11 (52:46):
And fall.

Speaker 9 (52:49):
Again, your card.

Speaker 16 (52:55):
Will face.

Speaker 17 (52:58):
Always.

Speaker 22 (53:05):
Don't be sorry, just smile.

Speaker 17 (53:12):
Somehow.

Speaker 22 (53:15):
Oh we did our best.

Speaker 6 (53:21):
Phone.

Speaker 23 (53:21):
Now I'll be roll and free brow you.

Speaker 6 (54:01):
And you be fake.

Speaker 11 (54:07):
From me.

Speaker 6 (54:15):
You be smarter.

Speaker 9 (54:19):
And take.

Speaker 11 (54:22):
Her hay.

Speaker 7 (54:25):
And by.

Speaker 6 (54:28):
He may.

Speaker 11 (54:32):
Fall.

Speaker 17 (54:32):
Now you say it better.

Speaker 1 (54:45):
It was so funny. I was trying. I was like,
oh wait, I'm gonna go up like no slash always,
I'm not gonna And I was like, I can't, No,
I said, I was just I was flashy.

Speaker 12 (54:57):
You are such a sweeter.

Speaker 1 (54:59):
No, it was, it's not your fault. I I love
this song because it's such a torch song. It's such
an old jazz song. But it's also just such a
country song. It's really just a country song. Yeah, both,
but it's both. And that's how I feel about you.
And I'm like, wait, where did she get the country side?
Because you're oh you you you got it from us

(55:21):
doing those.

Speaker 12 (55:22):
We were playing a lot, and I remember I crashed
at your house. I was I don't know if I
might have been babysitting Ralph, but I was also going through.

Speaker 1 (55:31):
Oh sorry, no, no, I'm just not my baby.

Speaker 12 (55:34):
My dog. Ralph is the baby, our first love. The
first baby is Ralph, second baby is George, my dad.
But anyway, and I remember I was going through the
beginning stages of a breakup and I wrote that on.

Speaker 1 (55:52):
Your floor, really yes, in Manhattan.

Speaker 12 (55:55):
In Manhattan, in the in the music room. Amazing, And
I remember I remember thinking, I can't believe it because it
was one of those songs that came really fast.

Speaker 1 (56:07):
Which is always my favorite, and that doesn't surprise ever
happens because it's a simple but heavy song.

Speaker 12 (56:14):
And it was back when I was only singing jazz
except for with you guys. You know, I was totally
still transitioning and where it was a novelty that I
was playing guitar, it wasn't normal yet. And and you
were a huge influence on me all opening up.

Speaker 1 (56:31):
All I learned on guitar was the country corner. Like
I still don't know how to play like many dominant
sevenths or major seven chords on guitar, so our band
is kind of limited. If I'm playing guitar to sort
of country. It's a big country ish well you know, but.

Speaker 12 (56:49):
Yeah, but then it was like, it's it's an really
nerd out is. It's an aaba form, which is why
people think it's sort of standard.

Speaker 1 (56:58):
Sort of like a jazz snartist. That's what I like
all about it. It sort of goes both ways. I
meant to do it more country, but then I got
nervous and I didn't. I don't know what I did,
but we'll hear it later. Oh I'm so touch, Oh
I love you. That song was always one of my
favorite drum groups that you did with us, and I
feel like the last few songs I wrote for Puss
and Boots, I've wanted that torch because I love that

(57:20):
the way you play drums. Did you did you listen
to lyrics a lot when you were young singing jazz?
Because I didn't. I mean I did, but I didn't
the way I do now.

Speaker 12 (57:33):
Yeah, definitely. No, they didn't register in the same way
I mean, I think because we're younger.

Speaker 1 (57:38):
Well yeah, and a lot of those songs we hadn't
had those experiences yet.

Speaker 12 (57:42):
I literally had to be told, Sasha, you're too young
to sing that song lush Life for me, lush Life,
and yeah, I don't even know all of them. Got
oh well, sophistic yeah, exactly, smoking, drinking, I am you're.

Speaker 1 (57:56):
Like fifteen, Yeah, like nine. That's amazing. Oh my gosh,
I love that.

Speaker 12 (58:04):
Well, there's a video of that.

Speaker 1 (58:05):
It's interesting because, like when I started writing songs, music
wasn't the hard part. It was lyrics, and it was
finding a thread or a style or a story within
each song. And then I finally realized each song can
be totally different. But absolutely, yeah, I didn't. I mean
I that was a hard part. I grew up singing
these classic songs but not really hearing the lyrics in

(58:28):
the same way.

Speaker 12 (58:30):
I hear you.

Speaker 1 (58:30):
Yeah.

Speaker 12 (58:31):
I guess that's one of the one of the many
good things about getting older.

Speaker 1 (58:35):
Things resonate totally differently. Yeah, it's so funny. Do you
remember when we did we did Music Cares for Neil Young,
and I was like, Sasha, come to California with me,
we'll do this thing. And then we got something else
and I forgot to tell you what it was. Is
that right? And I remember we got out there, I

(58:56):
was like, yeah, learn a tell me why by Neil Young?
And you're like, uh, okay, I didn't really give you
any details, typical, just like I was like, sure, no problem,
I forgot to tell you. It was like this huge
event where we were playing Neil Young songs in front
of Neil dressing up. Probably good you didn't tell me.
I just remember like dropping the ball and actually informing

(59:17):
you about what we were doing. And you were such
a good sport, and I was like, I'm gonna play
guitar just like I was. It was as if I
was channeling you from the Fat Cat days, like I'm
just gonna play guitar. Uh. All these industry people know
me as a piano player, but I'm just gonna play guitar.

Speaker 12 (59:32):
As your secret around. But you were I had ignorance,
is Bliss. I had no idea what I was getting into.
So it was fine.

Speaker 1 (59:38):
It was so fun, and Don was the mdm' a
pause band. But I didn't want to play the husband
because I just wanted it to be our little thing,
our special little thing, which it's very special. It was cool,
but then remember I was like, but no, I'm not
We're not going direct. We're not plugging these guitars direct,
and we're pluwing just like Willie Nelson. We're plugging our

(59:59):
we were.

Speaker 11 (01:00:00):
I was cool.

Speaker 1 (01:00:01):
Well, it was so funny because I felt like the
band and the crew and everyone that was helping us
set up, they were super kind, but they were just
like all right.

Speaker 12 (01:00:10):
They were letting us do whatever they were.

Speaker 1 (01:00:13):
They were super cool about it. But I just remember,
remember I was really stubborn about it, because everybody wants
to plug indirect and to make sure they get a
good thing. It was so groovy because it was different.
It was so funny, and I just felt like we
were little high schoolers all in that big room, you know,
with all those industry people at all those artists. But

(01:00:33):
I felt totally good because I was with you.

Speaker 12 (01:00:36):
Like I mean likewise again, I had no idea what
I was getting into, so it was totally fun amazing.
And also you know that you all were and always
are my like point of focus. So it was just
like I just put my energy into you.

Speaker 1 (01:00:53):
It was hard not to focus on Nielson and I
didn't know you didn't see him very good. Yeah, so
we're gonna go full circle.

Speaker 12 (01:01:05):
Now, Yeah, exactly.

Speaker 1 (01:01:07):
So we're gonna so you have a new album which
is actually a jazz album, yes, ma'am, is this so
you did an album a long long time that was
a jazz album, right, The Dark Darkling Thresh.

Speaker 12 (01:01:19):
Yeah, yeah, that was like your first It was like
the Cords one and yeah, my first sort of jazz thing.
It wasn't necessarily a Sasha, I mean, it's under my name,
but it was it was more of a Chris Buyer's
oh cock tat. I mean it was his arrangements and
his kind of vision and me being twenty three and

(01:01:41):
of course like, yes, sing on this album.

Speaker 1 (01:01:45):
But that was your first recording that was out of there. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
and that was jazz and it was just standards or
any original.

Speaker 12 (01:01:53):
And it's all no, yeah, not yet.

Speaker 1 (01:01:55):
And so then since then you've done all this original
music and all these albums have been a lot of
songs that you wrote. Yeah, and then now we're going back.

Speaker 12 (01:02:07):
Yeah, you know, I just felt like, I mean, as
far as Sasha adopts all the opportunities that I've been
fortunate to have as a recording artist so far, I've
been more so as a songwriter. And I just started
to feel like I never actually made a record myself that.

Speaker 1 (01:02:24):
Was jazz, which is such a huge part of what
such how you are and where you come from.

Speaker 12 (01:02:29):
Starting to feel a little sad about that.

Speaker 14 (01:02:31):
I know.

Speaker 1 (01:02:32):
And it's like, I feel like a lot of people
are in our community musicians, they sort of stray from
the jazz world and they get into other music and
it's really fun. It's like things blossom a little totally
for us. And then but then it's like, yeah, that

(01:02:54):
music made.

Speaker 12 (01:02:55):
Me for sure.

Speaker 1 (01:02:57):
Yeah, yeah, I feel like coming back to it is
really heavy.

Speaker 12 (01:03:03):
Yeah, I mean it's still it was like such a
meaningful thing and not something. It's one of the only
recordings I've done personally under my own name where I
wasn't shy.

Speaker 1 (01:03:15):
Yeah, because you're confident, You're you're totally You're like, oh,
I know this finally.

Speaker 12 (01:03:21):
Well it's the only thing that I do that I'm
not like, oh, I kind of know how to do,
you know? Yeah, because yeah, because I paid my dues.

Speaker 1 (01:03:31):
I used to go always to Smalls to see Sam
yell oh, and I would see you there sometimes. My
first summer in New York, I was such a door
well me too, and I would hide in the back
and I was terrified of everyone for sure, and I
would never go to the jam sessions. I would never
sit in or anything like that. I was just a fan,

(01:03:53):
you know, and a musician. But like I would see
you there and you always but you had already lived
in New York for three years and gone to the
New school.

Speaker 12 (01:04:03):
I went to the new School.

Speaker 1 (01:04:05):
Yeah, so you already knew everything, kind of knew people.
I always felt like, there's really cool, I know somebody
because she knows everybody, so I felt like, oh my god.
But also like just to see a girl there that
I knew, I was just like, okay, I can relax
a little, you know. And everybody there was never not
nice to me. Everybody was always so nice. But I

(01:04:27):
don't know why there's this thing of being like but
the truth is, I bet some of those guys were
the same way. They just don't show it in this
all nerds.

Speaker 12 (01:04:36):
It's so weird. It's it's also being young, accombination where
you're just like, it's so nice to see most of
those people thankfully still and and like everybody's just as
warm as ever. We you know, we played there together,
you and on your birthday, my birthday years two years ago.

Speaker 1 (01:04:54):
Yeah, it was it was so it was magical. It
was magic well because we were playing it Small. I
had actually, I think I sat in with sam Ye
Hall a couple of times because we became friends. He
was my piano teacher back then. But I had never
done a gig at Small, so I was like, oh
my god.

Speaker 12 (01:05:15):
I'm happening, and we took over the joint.

Speaker 1 (01:05:17):
I am forty years old and I got my first
gig at Small and I'm stoked, you know, but we
should do the title track because it was the first
time we sang this song girl Talk Yes, which is
it is so funny to sing that song with you.

Speaker 12 (01:05:33):
It's totally us. I know, it's completely It was genius.
Neil Miner he wrote a bunch of arrangements for that
project and he brought me this song in said sash
because I was like, oh, because I was hot to
do Booch made for Walking and asked if he would
learn that bass part. He was like, that's a big
stretch for Neil because he's straight down the middle when

(01:05:55):
it comes to jazz.

Speaker 1 (01:05:56):
Yeah, he's very stressed. Yeah, straight ahead a little more.

Speaker 6 (01:06:01):
And he was like, oh okay, and.

Speaker 12 (01:06:02):
You know, kind of excited about so then that opened
his brain up and he was like, have you heard
this song? Girl Talk? And I was like, well, I
remember the instrumental version, but he turned me onto the
lyrics and then you know, perfect when you sing it
with me. I was like, you know, we got.

Speaker 1 (01:06:17):
To do this. Yeah, we should be in like our
pajamas talking on the phone exactly we are. Let's do it.
Are you gonna sing and not play guitar? Oh my gosh,
what are you going to do with your hands?

Speaker 12 (01:06:28):
I'll show you absolutely nothing. Oh my god.

Speaker 21 (01:06:35):
Well maybe I'll do a little bit of that.

Speaker 1 (01:06:39):
That's why I could never do it. It took me
an instrument because I didn't know what to do with
my head.

Speaker 12 (01:06:44):
Oh man, I mean it's very hard, but it looks
the best when you do nothing, which is the hard
what I learned. It took me, like, it's very hard
to do nothing with your hands. I know, it's it
looks weird. We're talking about singing here, people.

Speaker 1 (01:06:59):
Yeah, we're talking about singing. It's really an important thing
to learn when you're singing. Yeah, I know it is.
It is all right, I'm gonna try.

Speaker 12 (01:07:07):
We'll see if I actually.

Speaker 21 (01:07:08):
Being with my hands.

Speaker 24 (01:07:23):
We like to chat about the dresses we will wear
too night. Wech you the fat about the chassis and
a neighbor's fine.

Speaker 6 (01:07:36):
In consequential things that.

Speaker 21 (01:07:38):
Men don't really care to know become essential things and
were fa so abroo.

Speaker 6 (01:07:48):
But that's a day. They're all the same. It's just
a game. We're all the.

Speaker 11 (01:07:54):
Girl time.

Speaker 14 (01:07:58):
Girl talk.

Speaker 21 (01:08:01):
We all me ow about the up sydowns of all
our friends.

Speaker 8 (01:08:08):
The hell, the wild, we dish, the dirt and never.

Speaker 21 (01:08:15):
The weaker sex the speaker sex, wee on amazyld but.

Speaker 14 (01:08:21):
The joke he wouldn't trade here for.

Speaker 6 (01:08:25):
A time of gold.

Speaker 1 (01:08:28):
It's aben planning.

Speaker 6 (01:08:29):
So take my hand, please understand.

Speaker 9 (01:08:33):
The sweem is God talk.

Speaker 8 (01:08:37):
Talks to.

Speaker 14 (01:08:47):
Baba.

Speaker 8 (01:09:02):
No no no, no, no no no, I don't know,
bah bah bah bah baba.

Speaker 21 (01:09:20):
We all me out about the synd downs of all
our friends. Oh how the wild we dish the never ends.
The weaker says, the speaker says, you load on mals.

Speaker 6 (01:09:39):
E hold where through we joke we want and change.

Speaker 12 (01:09:44):
It for turn gold.

Speaker 22 (01:09:48):
It's soon plans, So take my hand, please understand.

Speaker 6 (01:09:53):
The sweetest God talk talk to sweet is good talk.
This sweet it is good talk.

Speaker 1 (01:10:21):
You oh man, that's so fun, so fun.

Speaker 12 (01:10:26):
Oh, talking about chats. If you love it, it's fun,
it is fun, it gives you good energy.

Speaker 1 (01:10:32):
Well, thanks so much for doing this. Sure, it's weird.
I feel like we've been besties for forever, and I
feel like I learned a lot.

Speaker 11 (01:10:39):
Oh.

Speaker 6 (01:10:40):
Oh, I'm glad.

Speaker 1 (01:10:42):
There's still much. There's still much.

Speaker 12 (01:10:44):
So much for having me, sweetheart.

Speaker 1 (01:10:46):
Thanks for doing this.

Speaker 12 (01:10:47):
Now we can hang out.

Speaker 1 (01:10:48):
I love you, Matt, I love you so much. I'm
so glad that we're here together. Yeah, see you in
five minutes, see.

Speaker 12 (01:10:54):
You in five minutes.

Speaker 22 (01:10:56):
I'm just waiting.

Speaker 8 (01:10:59):
We say.

Speaker 1 (01:11:01):
That was Sasha Dopson. Oh that was great. Yeah, that
was so fun. She's just she's so fun. We have also,
we just it's like we're little kids at us lumber
party when we're together. Yeah, and that song girl Talk
is perfect for that exactly. Please go check out Sasha
live in New York City anytime and check out her

(01:11:22):
album Girl Talk, her album Simple Things. She's got a
few more albums. She's great.

Speaker 4 (01:11:27):
Thanks Sasha, we love you, We love you, Bye, sister.
Thanks for listening. Don't forget to subscribe to Nora Jones
is playing along wherever you get your podcasts.

Speaker 1 (01:11:43):
So you never miss a new episode. This episode was
recorded a mixed by Jamie Landry, additional engineering by Greg Tobler,
edited by Sarah Oda, artwork by Eliza Fry, Photography by
Shervin Linez. Produced by I and Sarah Ota,