BILL MURRAY TALKS ASTROS, DRIVING AN RV.
When people hear that actor Bill Murray has been touring the country in an RV accompanied by a classical trio, no one bats an eye.
In 2018 anything and everything that Murray does is met with bemusement and interest. His persona is now a rolling American landmark. Maybe even a precious natural resource as his image is on everything from pillow cases and bumper stickers to street art and T-shirts. People at dinner parties tell stories of the night he came into their local dive and served them shots from behind the bar.
That’s why when I get a call from Murray and German cellist Jan Vogler as they are driving through Pennsylvania Amish country on the way to a gig in Baltimore, it’s not surprising. It makes sense.
On their “New Worlds” tour, which comes to Jones Hall on Monday, Murray and Vogler are revisiting human creative history, with Murray reciting passages from notable works of literature and music, redefining yet again how we see him.
Murray’s vocal work is one-part crooning and one-part spoken word. It’s an American and European stew featuring ingredients from Mark Twain, J.S. Bach, Franz Schubert, Ernest Hemingway, Walt Whitman, Leonard Bernstein, Ira Gershwin and Stephen Foster.
Murray and Vogler met in a rather Murray-esque way: in an airport security line before a flight from Berlin to New York City. As Vogler tells it, Murray was admiring his cello and they soon became fast friends. Eventually the germ of the “New Worlds” collaboration, which yielded an album last year, took hold.
“I had heard him singing in ‘The Jungle Book’ and saw him recite poetry in the city,” Vogler says as Murray drives. “He can sing really well, and he can also recite and tell stories incredibly well, so I sent him a text.”
Driving across the country, DIY style in Murray’s RV gives the group, which includes violinist Mira Wang and pianist Vanessa Perez, a chance to see strange nooks and crannies across the American landscape.
“I just saw a man watering his fields with a water wagon being pulled by horses,” Murray says.
They are seeing things that one wouldn’t observe aboard a big tour bus. But, it’s worth wondering, what do people see when Murray pulls over to pump gas?
“I have a mask for stopping,” Murray says. “Luckily I haven’t needed it yet.”
For German-born Vogler, seeing America, where he has lived for
some time now, from an RV is adding new meaning to the work they are doing onstage.
“We are reflecting on the past in America at a very interesting time,” Vogler says. “There are incredible values in America and I love the treasures of American culture. Guys like Gershwin and Stephen Foster were a part of a very creative time for our country and it’s happening again.”
Any chat with the Chicago-bred Murray is incomplete without mentioning baseball. His beloved Cubs are once again being lauded as locks for the postseason just as Houston’s reigning World Series champs are hearing similar forecasts.
“Astros games are fun to watch,” Murray says. “It’s such a hungry and dominant team. (Owner) Jim Crane has done a nice job pulling those guys together and it looks like they are all having a great time.”
He’d love to see a Cubs and Astros World Series matchup.
“It’s not out of the question,” he says. “Maybe I will be in Houston again in October and November.”
Murray was in Houston for extended period about 20 years ago, shooting Wes Anderson’s “Rushmore” in and around the city. He was staying at a hotel with windows that didn’t open. That’s all he can recall . Though, he does remember working long hours that prevented him from exploring the city as he would have liked.
“Wes was still cutting his teeth and felt an obligation to his hometown to do it right,” Murray says.
He remembers a script reading with “Rushmore” co-star Jason Schwartzman that scared him a little about the project.
“He was just awful,” Murray says with a laugh. “I think he was nervous at first around me. I went to a whiskey tasting at the hotel and drank it off.”