From 20th Century Guitar Magazine
HANSON - Clarke Isaac Hanson Jordan Taylor Hanson Zachary Walker Hanson
by Lawrence Acunto
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This is a band that has just finished up work on their third album, a live recording taken from the current nationwide tour, and the oldest member is not yet of voting age. Their first single, "MMMBop", shot up the charts last year making Hanson a household name. But beyond the obvious curiosity of a brother act so young is the fact that the infectious song is a classic pop tune in every sense of the word. Lest you discount this talented trio merely because of their youth, remember, Stevie Wonder was twelve when he recorded
"Fingertips", Steve Winwood sixteen when he recorded "Gimme Some Lovin'" and Michael Jackson was around eleven when the Jackson Five broke into the charts. All three of these examples (and, of course, there are others) parlayed their childhood successes into musical careers that have spanned decades and given each legendary status. Will this happen to Hanson? Is there a single member of the band destined for the same fate? Too early to call.
But, having already composed two hits in a relatively short period of time, there is little reason to believe they are not capable of continuing. Ike Hanson, the trio's guitarist, is a Les Paul fanatic who counts Joe Perry among his guitar heroes, and has already begun an impressive collection of Gibson's premier solidbody. Ike also plays keyboards, as does middle brother Taylor and the youngest of the three, Zac, plays drums, as, again, does Taylor.
All three sing - rather well, indeed - and they write most of their own music. Take away the popstar surroundings, the hit records and world tours and you are left with three obviously intelligent, very articulate young men with whom it was a pleasure to spend an afternoon. And that is just what we did in early September during their stay in New York City.
TCG: There seems to be this whole youth movement going on with Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Jonny Lang and Hanson.
Taylor: It does seem that way. We actually met Jonny Lang. He is a really nice guy.
Ike: He seems pretty cool.
TCG: How is your visit to New York so far?
I: We've actually been here for awhile. It seems that lately we have spent more time in New York, London and Los Angeles than we have at home.
TCG: Worse things could happen, I guess. Is the tour over now?
Zac: We have five more dates.
T: The tour began as twelve dates but has grown to something like 36 or 40.
I: It is actually an even 40.
T: It just kept getting longer and longer. We just added five more dates.
TCG: Didn't school start last week?
T: School did just start.
I: It is a real pain. It's like, "We have to do math before we go out and do the show."
T: It works really well for us because we have always been homeschooled and our parents have taught us really well.
I: There are curriculums you can get so it works well on the road.
TCG: I saw the second show you did at Jones Beach. You guys were great, what I could hear of it. It is like the second coming of Beatlemania with all of those screaming girls.
Z: It's not so much Beatlemania as it is the calling of the dogs.
T: We have animal concerts after the regular show for all of the animals that show up from the high frequencies they heard. After the audience leaves we do a show for all of the animals left behind.
TCG: They certainly are a vocal audience. I think there was one group that wanted you guys to run for President.
T: I think that is the same girl. She has a sign with that on it.
I: We have some very devoted fans. We have a bunch of them say something like itwas their fourteenth show.
T: That's almost insane.
TCG: You guys must be almost sick of it by the fourteenth show.
T: No, not at all. Before we were signed, I guess you could say before Hanson took off, we were constantly playing.
I: We always did three or four shows a week anyway.
T: Once the record came out we had to do so much press and interviews...
I: And so much travelling it just kind of got ridiculous. We finally thought, what's the point? We are a band and we should be out playing.
T: We weren't playing at all. We did some TV and we would do some of those three-song radio shows but we wanted to get back out and really play. We just said let's go on a tour and it has gone really well.
TCG: You give your audience a lot of show. You played longer than I thought you were going to.
T: It's fun for us.
I: We hope they go away happy and had a good time because we are having a good time on stage.
T: Were you there when it was raining?
TCG: No, I was there Saturday night.
I: It was sprinkling the whole night and it was chilly. Luckily, there was no real wind. By the second to last song, the wind started to pick up and then the rain started to increase. On the last song the wind started picking up some more. As we said the final goodnight, it just poured! It couldn't have been more perfectly timed.
TCG: It seems whenever I go there, it pours. Your show was one of the few that it didn't rain.
I: It's a great venue. They've added all those seats now.
TCG: Years ago, Guy Lombardo did shows every weekend, before they allowed rock and roll there, and the stage was separated from the audience by water. He would make his entrance in a 1930's mahogany Chris Craft speedboat right up to the stage. It was very impressive. At least the first few times you saw it.
I: That's a good idea. Maybe we'll do that.
T: But you could only play venues that had water around them.
TCG: With all those hit singles, you guys could have moats put around all ofthe theaters. How big of a shock was it when that first record took off?
T: It was a huge shock. We never expected any of it.
I: It's kind of weird because when you hear songs on the radio, you expect it to sound different.
T: But it still sounds like us!
I: The first time we heard one of our songs on the radio, we were here in New York and were getting out of our van. I faintly heard the song and yelled, "Hey guys, wait, turn it up!"
Z: The funny thing is there was no volume on the radio. The radio wasn't even on "1". How did you hear that?
T: It was like he had a sixth sense.
TCG: How did you write that song (MMMBop)?
T: It was kind of a long process. The chorus part was written when we were working on our first independent record. Over a period of about a year we kept coming back to it. Finally, we decided to write verses around it.
TCG: It is the epitome of a pop song. I was listening to Three Car Garage on the way into town this morning and when you get to that song, it is instantly likeable. Even though that version is not the one most are familiar with from the radio.
T: A lot of what is on the demo is basically what is on the single. The single is just better recorded. The original version is also a lot longer.
TCG: What instruments were on the demo as opposed to the single?
T: The same instruments. When we went to Los Angeles to do the record we brought all of our equipment. We rented a house and set everything up there. Funny, this is the first time we ever thought about that but we used all of our original instruments to make the record. Zac used his old Pearl five piece drum kit.
I: I was playing my first Les Paul, a Studio, and an amp I got from a friend.
T: The first record was pretty much like the demo. Not much changed.
TCG: Have you talked to your parents about having a bass player and maybe a horn section or some backup singers?
T: We do have some more. There are four more brothers and sisters but I don't think they want to join the band.
Z: It will never happen. Ever!
I: I really don't think they want to.
TCG: Do any of them play instruments?
Z: No.
I: They are into different things.
Z: Of course, they're ten, seven, four, and seven months old.
TCG: So they're not really ready?
Z: Exactly.
T: They travel with us and we are all really close.
TCG: Seven kids! No wonder you want to be on the road so much!
I: It definitely makes for a large travelling party.
TCG: Do they know their older brothers are famous?
T: They understand it all.
TCG: Any sibling rivalry yet?
T: Not really.
TCG: There have been some famous brother acts that had some famous brawls.
T: We all work very well together and have the same interests.
I: The funny thing is the only thing we actually ever argue about intensely is music.
T: When we get into the studio and things start to get a little intense, that's when things heat up a little.
Z: Let's take this outside!
TCG: Who is the moderator when something like that happens?
T: It depends on who is arguing and who is not.
I: The beauty of there being three of us is there is always someone outside the argument.
Z: They are usually arguing while I'm still working on the album.
T: There is always someone to moderate. But we get along really well.
Z: The bad part is when there are two people against you.
TCG: Who was the first one to pick up an instrument?
I: I guess I was. The first instrument that all of us played was the piano. Taylor and I took lessons for about five years and Zac for about four. I really enjoyed it but I had a love for the guitar and during that time I picked up the guitar.
TCG: What music were you listening to?
T: The very first music we heard was fifties and sixties rock and roll. Going back a little further, we lived in South America for a year and we had a tape which was a compilation of songs from 1958. This was the music that was most influential for us.
I: The first song on the tape is "Johnny B. Goode" which is like the rock and roll song. It really made me want to play guitar.
TCG: Zac, did you take drums because it was the only thing left?
Z: Actually what happened is one night, a couple of days before a show, a friend of ours brought over a drum set that was in his attic. We had no idea even how to put it together. For some reason I just ended up with it.
I: Actually both Zac and Taylor play drums.
T: We were both trying to set this set up, fumbling with it. It was an old set that looked like Ringo's set. It had the stands that fall over and everything. A couple of days after we got the drum set that nobody knew how to play, we did a show.
TCG: Not to single anybody out, but the other night the drumming was outstanding.
Z: Thank you very much.
TCG: You are the guy that keeps everything together. The other guys can screw up and it won't matter much.
I: It's very true. If Zac screws up, we all do!
TCG: You can take the whole band down with you.
I: It's very true. That's why it helps that he's so solid. He is the best one in the band.
Z: It is a funny thing because when we studied classical music we always had to count. I hated doing that and now I'm stuck with it for life.
T: He would never do the counting and now he has to.
TCG: Well, that also puts you in the position that is these guys get you mad just before the show...
I: We've had people ask us who is the person in charge.
T: It's Zac.
I: Zac. If he wants to do polka, it's polka. We have to follow him.
TCG: Some of your lyrics seem to have religious connections.
T: Our faith is definitely something that is very important to us, but most of the time it is something that we don't focus on.
TCG: It's good though. The songs can go several ways.
I: That's what is so cool about music. It can be interpreted in several different ways, not in just the way you wrote it. Of course, that is not always a good thing.
T: When we wrote the song "With You In Your Dreams" we got all of these calls from people complaining about a song about a one-night stand. The song goes, "If I'm gone when you wake up, please don't cry; if I'm gone when you wake up, it's not good-bye."
I: It is actually about our Grandmother dying.
TCG: Is there a lot of pressure to follow up the last two hits?
T: You can't let that happen. Right now we are working on a live record. That's going to be coming out pretty soon and it is going to have some new songs on it. I think there are a couple of covers on there also.
I: "Money" is on there.
TCG: "Magic Carpet Ride"? T: That's not on there because it was recorded before we were playing that song live.
TCG: That came out great.
I: I love playing that song. We always thought about playing that but one of the crew guys got us to do it. There are a lot of songs we'd like to do. There just isn't enough time in the shows to do them all.
TCG: You should do an album of covers.
I: We have actually thought about that.
TCG: Some bands are so good at interpreting songs like Cheap Trick or what Yes did with Paul Simon's "America". Ike, you are playing all Les Pauls.
I: I've always had this thing about the Les Paul. I don't know exactly what it is.
T: I think it is the beefy sound. A lot of people don't like the way the guitar feels but they like the sound.
I: I like the way it feels. I like the neck...
T: The way your back feels after the show!
I: I have a Joe Perry model which Gibson was kind enough to give me and it weighs about two tons.
TCG: You used that one the other night as well as several others.
I: I have that and a honeyburst Classic which is a great guitar but my main guitar is actually this black Studio which was my first real guitar. I play that one a lot. It has a very dark sound.
TCG: What do you put them through?
I: Matchless amps. I really like them. They remind me of the old Vox amps. They sound great. I played my first one when we were doing a demo and thought it was really good. I use a DC-30. It's the two-twelve cabinet.
TCG: Do you use any effects?
I: I have a harmonizer and a delay but I don't really use the delay much. I really only use the harmonizer on one song. I have a tube screamer...
T: And a wah-wah.
I: And a wah-wah.
TCG: It keeps going. You keep bringing up more.
T: I keep remembering them.
I: He is the guitar tech.
TCG: Well, we are getting the signal that our time is up. Thank you, guys.
Hanson: Thank you.
Follow-up: Editorial Comments from 20th Century Guitar article
-The guy who interviewed Hanson and who wrote these comments is actually the Editor of said magazine!
FIRST DRAFT
by Lawrence Acunto
There was much discussion about the office when the decision was made to put Hanson on the cover of this month's issue. On the surface, they are very un-collectible guitar-like (whatever that means) and it was supposed that there would be a lot of heat with this decision. However, looking just a little below the surface, one will find the justification. Hanson represents the next generation of musicians, recording artists, and pop stars that the collectible guitar market needs in order to survive beyond the demise of we that currently covet such things. Let's face it, for those of you with several fine, collectible guitars, these instruments represent a sizable investment. So many times I have heard collectors remark that a particular guitar is being set aside to send the little ones to college. But what happens when it is time for the little ones to go to college and no one cares about that Les Paul or D'Angelico you've been hiding under the bed all those years? Suddenly your investment in the future is nothing more than a guitar, albeit a fine one. In order for the market to sustain itself, it must bring in new players, new investors and new enthusiasts. The collapse of a particular collectible market due to a lack of participants is not unheard and in fact, this very scenario has happened many times. Ike, the guitarist of Hanson, is just the type of person that can generate the enthusiasm of his generation. Just from the brief conversation I had with him, it is obvious that he, not unlike most of us at his age, eats and sleeps guitars, guitar music and just about everything else guitars. Young guns such as Ike, Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Jonny Lang are the guitar heroes of their generation just as Page, Beck, Green, and so many others represented our musical dreams and desires, and they can lead the guitar market into a bright future. As long as they continue to play old Strats, Teles, and Pauls, it is they that will help spawn the future guitar collectors and enthusiasts that will keep the collectible guitar market healthy and flourishing.
Along with Zac and the boys, there are several other articles that we hope will keep your interest this month. Greg Gagliano looks at some cool Ampeg amps...