About That Song: The Jorgensens
About That Song #34
In our special series, singer-songwriter Sarah Morris interviews artists about the songs that shaped them.
Hi! I’m Sarah Morris. I’m wildly in love with songs and the people who write them. There have been a few songs in my life that have been total gamechangers—songs that made me want to be a songwriter and songs I’ve written that made me feel like I am a songwriter. About That Song is a space where I can learn more about those pivotal songs in other writers’ lives.
In the 34th edition of this series, I got to talk to Kurt and Brianna Jorgensen, aka The Jorgensens! This bluesy husband-and-wife duo have been collaborating for a decade, and Kurt’s got a special place in my own songwriting journey. We dug into their musical past to find out about the songs and artists that helped make them the songwriter they are today.
The Jorgensens. Photo credit: Jim Vasquez.
Sarah: Hi Kurt and Brianna!!
Brianna, it’s nice to meet you! And Kurt, I haven’t seen you in forever, but you were maybe the first SONGWRITER I ever met. Before we get too far along into our conversation about songs, I want to say how impactful that was to me—here’s a person … who writes songs! Really good songs! And lives down the street! A game changer!
I know you each had robust solo careers before coming together just about 10 years ago. I’m wondering if you’d share a few of the songs that played a pivotal role in your journeys—both as individuals, and then as a duo. To start—do you remember the song that you heard that made you want to be a songwriter? Tell us about that song.
Brianna: I grew up listening to a lot of classic rock albums. If there wasn’t a classic rock album playing, it was typically Cities 97 on the radio. Back when they did those amazing studio C acoustic performances. Cities 97 was pretty eclectic then; it left a mark on me and inspired me. I can’t say a specific song that made me want to be a writer. It was more the era of the 90s singer-songwriters that spoke to me: Sheryl Crow, Ben Folds, Tori Amos, Alanis Morissette—the list is long.
Sarah: The list is long! How about you, Kurt?
Kurt: My earliest influence was The Beatles; I knew they wrote and to be honest I assumed that songwriting is just what you do. I was 13 when I started my first band, and we were not good enough to learn an actual song someone else had written so we made up our own.
Sarah: Oh wow! I love that 13-year-old “I guess we just write our own, then” attitude!
Kurt: Sarah, I'm shocked I was the first songwriter you met!!! I hope it left you with a good feeling about writing, I guess you didn’t quit so it couldn’t have been that bad, haha.
Sarah: It did leave me with a good feeling about writing—you were incredibly kind, and generous. Thank you! I’m wondering—once you each began writing, did you feel like a writer immediately? Was there a song that gave you that “a-HA! I AM a songwriter!” moment? Tell us about that song.
Kurt: I had one year where I wrote a song every single day for 365 days. No matter how bad it was going I finished the song. The exercise gave me a group of songs that became my Howling At The Pale Moon album and I felt like at that point I understood the way I wanted to write. I really felt like a songwriter at that point; I was living it everyday.
Sarah: That is a phenomenal feat! I do weekly songwriting challenges, but have not attempted the daily—perhaps someday? I imagine a year of dedication to daily practice would be such a clarifying agent for your writer’s voice. Brianna?
Brianna: I most certainly didn’t view myself as a serious songwriter right away. It was more of a way to just do something that I loved, which was play instruments, and sing. I’ve always enjoyed writing and it’s been a way for me to sort myself out. There’s really only one song (out of dozens) from the early days that I still play consistently. A song titled “Wandering”—for some reason that song holds up. It was just better written than any of the earlier songs. “Wandering” is a song about finding something that’s worth standing still for; no need to wander anymore (at least for now).
The Jorgensens. Photo credit: Jim Vasquez.
Sarah: How about the first song the two of you wrote together—were you already considering collaborating as performers, and writing from that intention? Or was there a moment in the writing that made you think you ought to take this pairing to the stage?
Brianna: “Back to You” was the first song we wrote together. It came naturally. One day Kurt played me a guitar progression he was working through. He had the first verse (if I’m remembering correctly) and said why don’t you add a verse for yourself and we’ll both do the chorus. It came together quickly. Writing together has been enjoyable. I never thought I’d have a writing partner but it’s become one of my favorite aspects of our lives together. It’s neat that we can sit down and create something together, and then break off and write individually. We get the best of both worlds.
Kurt: Yes, “Back To You.” It was very easy to write and painful to record. We were just figuring out the musical dance of how we would sing together, to be honest. Now it's very easy and we’re at a point where we’re not worried about hurting feelings—if one of us doesn’t like an idea, we move on to the next, better idea. Part of the magic of working with another songwriter is when you find the flow and can bounce ideas back and forth. Can’t be afraid to share ideas.
Sarah: Yes, any time I’ve co-written, I start out by saying something along the lines of “I’m gonna say all manner of nonsense and we can throw all of it out, but hopefully the nonsense gets us to the less-nonsense stuff.”
Your song “Twenty Years” starts with the lines “I don’t want to say nothing about easy, you got to fight for what you believe in, I go twenty years back to find where I lost track.” I loved the idea that yeah, sometimes you have to go wayyyy back to find the key to now. Can you tell us about that song?
Kurt: Everything about this song takes me back to the roots of my songwriting journey. We’ve gotten more blues- and even jazz-based at times with production and songs, but “Twenty Years” puts me back into acoustic music and that’s where my heart is. The song is filled with metaphors about recovery—it's really about looking back and thinking “Did that all really happen?"
Sarah: I’ve heard there’s a new album in the works—congrats! Was there a song that kickstarted the journey toward the studio? If so, can you tell us about that song? When can we look forward to hearing it?
Brianna: Yes, there always seems to be an album in the works in our household.
Sarah: Oh that sounds like a joyful house to be in!! I love it!
Brianna: Kurt might know the specific song that started this one, but I can’t recall. There’s always a batch of songs just “swimming” around. We lay scratch tracks down or little tidbit ideas and just start building. Once we dive in and start really working the songs and coming up with arrangements, it becomes quite clear which songs fall by the wayside (for the next album) and which will make the current album. I know one of the first songs we recorded for this was a cover of a Willie Dixon song, “Spoonful”—a song in which we both sing lead. It’s always fun when we each take a verse and share the chorus. People seem to like those songs best for whatever reason.
Kurt: We’re always recording, writing and thinking about what’s next. For me I never know exactly what the next record will feel or sound like until we have the first song that really comes together. You can’t push it—it really needs to be organic.
You can see The Jorgensens as a four-piece band this Friday, February 16, at kj's Hideaway. Music starts at 6:30 pm. Get tickets!
Listen to “Twenty Years”
The Jorgensens Band Members
Kurt Jorgensen - Lead Vocal, Lead Guitar, Back up Vocals
Brianna Jorgensen - Lead Vocal, Piano, Guitar, Back up Vocals
Mark O'Day - Drums
Brenda Lee King - Bass
C Harris - Percussion
Jeff King - Saxophone, Clarinet
Jeff Levine - Trumpet
Andra Lee Suchy - Back up Vocals
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sarah Morris. Photo credit: Tom Smouse.
Sarah Morris is a superfan of songs and the people who write them, and a believer that certain songs can change your life. A singer-songwriter / mama / bread maker / coffee drinker who recently released her fifth album of original material, she’s been known to joyfully sing with people in her Big Green Bathroom.
