SYLEENA’S DAD ROCK
Album reconnects Chicago native musically with her father, Syl Johnson
Calling from outside Atlanta, where the Chicago native now lives, singer- songwriter Syleena Johnson laughed when asked about the challenges of creating her new album, “Rebirth of Soul,” being released Friday. “It was a very special project for me— for sure. But it’s always a challenge working with my dad,” said Johnson, talking about her father, veteran soul/ blues singer and producer Syl Johnson.
“The music on this record was very precious to him, so he was very judgmental on how I approached it. But it was good, because, in a way, it was a learning experience for me. It was awesome to be able to reinterpret those artists for our time today. It was exciting to again work with my dad for the first time since his 1994 recording of ‘ Back in the Game,’ when I was still in my teens!”
The senior Johnson produced “Rebirth of Soul,” and its songs span quite a range, selected by Syl in close cooperation with his daughter. Among the tracks are such classics as Aretha Franklin’s “Chain of Fools” and Etta James’ “I’d Rather Go Blind.”
“I didn’t just go into the studio and re- record these songs,” she said, “but worked with some amazing orchestral musicians from that classic period to give the record such a wonderful orchestral component.”
In recent years, Johnson has also branched out— appearing on such reality television shows as TV One’s “R& B Divas: Atlanta” and WE- TV’s “Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars.” This fall, she signed on as the co- host of a daily talk show, “Sister Circle,” which the entertainer said “really is stretching me in great new ways.”
And she added, “I can’t wait to get back to Chicago early next year,” when she will be appearing at City Winery in the West Loop in February.
A role with Letts appeal
For Tracy Letts, the chance to play the kindly, conciliatory father of Saoirse Ronan’s title character in the film “Lady Bird” ( opening Friday) was a happy relief. “I was so delighted to finally get the chance to play something that is certainly different from all the guys who do things like organize military drone strikes [ like his Andrew Lockhart on ‘ Homeland’] and all that kind of stuff,” said the actor, also a Pulitzer Prizewinning playwright.
The Chicago resident believes Larry McPherson in “Lady Bird” is “much closer to me temperamentally than all of those less appealing types of guys I frequently get asked to play.”
The “Lady Bird” title character’s parents Larry ( Letts) and Marion ( Laurie-Metcalf) do their best to support their only child, but Larry clearly is far more sensitive to his daughter’s emotional needs than is hermom. Despite Metcalf and Letts’ long Steppenwolf Theatre connection, “Lady Bird” is, according to Letts, “strangely the first time we’ve really acted together. We figured out we first met in 1988, which means we’ve known each other for nearly 30 years. We’ve known each other’s work, of course, and have seen each other on stage many times. Knowing each other well definitely did help to play husband and wife.”