Lukas Nelson on making a ‘desert island’ record
For Lukas Nelson, self-quarantine means time to hunt through a songwriting vault overflowing with unreleased work.
How deep does this creative tunnel run? About 200 tunes, by Nelson’s count — a half-decade worth of work waiting for the right time to find ears.
He’s written some in quarantine, of course. Nelson, the 31-year-old frontman of roots rock outfit Promise of the Real and son to legend Willie Nelson, said he penned 22 songs during a 41⁄2-month isolation at the family ranch in Texas.
Now, Nelson wants to sift through the treasure to cut a record of nothing but the finest songwriting jewels. The end goal: release a “desert island” record, he said.
“We all decided we wanted to make a record that you could take on a desert island,” Nelson said. “The kind that is in the top five of records you wanna take with you wherever you go. And having world-class songs is really what separates records from nice, easy listening (and) great feel to ‘I wanna take this record to a desert island.’ That’s what we’re going for.”
In a new Tennessean interview, Nelson discussed plans for the band’s forthcoming release, finding sobriety and a signature guitar he released via Nashville-based Gibson. Read on for highlights.
Some songwriters may feel self-inflicted pressure to capture career-defining work. But Nelson said he tries “to do everything 150%, that’s how I was raised.”
He admits to not being “the best” at many things — guitar playing or dancing, for example — but he can write a song. (See “A Star Is Born,” for example. Nelson co-wrote a good number of songs for the hit 2018 Lady Gaga-bradley Cooper musical drama.)
“It’s still humbling knowing there are many things I’m terrible at,” Nelson said. “There are a couple things I’m pretty damn good at. And one of ‘em (is) songwriting.”
He continued, “Creating a record that is a desert island record is all about having the right songs first, and I’ve got those. And now it’s about creating the right team and environment and musical output to best support those songs. ... I think the hard part is done already.”
What goes into finding the “desert island” songs? Nelson and company dug through each idea for three weeks, narrowing hundreds into 25 and, eventually, 15 songs.
He and the band want to cut this impending release at a to-be-announced Nashville studio.
“We went through and picked out the cream of the crop, undeniably good songs,” he said, adding: “We never had time to do that before.”
And time off the road — Nelson plays with Willie Nelson’s Family Band, and Promise of the Real often backs Neil Young — comes with embracing new habits. Nelson said he’s cut out drinking and smoking marijuana. He began meditating regularly in late February and adopted Yoga nidra, a type of conscious relaxation, about three months ago.
He’s approached the year as a “great spiritual challenge” that’s unlocked new creativity.
“I realized that, with this time, I need to get into the best habits I’ve ever gotten into or I could go into the other direction and completely destroy my life,” Nelson said. “If I started drinking, even if casually drank, I thought it was gonna start to get to me.”
He continued, “Same with smoking weed . ... It’s really good for you if you’re ailing, but if you’re in a good place, why change your mood? I’ve come to a place (where) I don’t need anything to enhance me or take me away from what’s happening in reality. I’m pretty solid facing reality and taking it head on ... seeing how I can best acclimate to what God is bringing.”
Last month, Gibson released a “Lukas Nelson ’56 Les Paul Junior” vintage sunburst guitar modeled after the instrument found center stage during Promise of the Real gigs. The model matches Nelson’s specifications and “it’ll mold to your hand,” he said.
Nelson first played a Les Paul Junior about eight years ago, while working with Bob Weir. California musician Larry Cragg introduced him to the instrument.
“I don’t need many enhancements to make it sound how I want it to sound,” Nelson said. “Man, I can make it gritty or clean, just depending on how hard I hit it. It’s like a grand piano. It’s very responsive to the attack you put on it. (The guitar) really speaks to me.”