JULY/AUGUST 2011 ISSUE MMUSICMAG.COM SPOTLIGHT Dove shore lenny kravitz For this one-man band, no influence is out of bounds—even the Partridge Family

“Maybe I’M schIzophrenIc,” says later groups like the strokes began to be Lenny Kravitz with a chuckle, contemplating praised for doing exactly the things I was his reputation as one of rock’s most torn apart for,” he says. “I thought that whole committed multi-instrumentalists. From his criticism was ridiculous. Most of my favorite 1989 debut Let Love Rule through the artists drew from the past. I just read an new Black and White America, Kravitz has article about how earth, Wind & Fire used consistently played almost all the instruments to get torn apart in the press. The same on his albums. “When I’m playing various was true of Led zeppelin.” instruments, I take on different personalities. While making his new album Kravitz JULY/AUGUST 2011 It’s as if the bass player, the drummer, the delved even more deeply than usual into the M MUSIC & MUSICIANS guitarist, the keyboardist and the singer are music of his ’60s childhood. “In those days, all different people—even though it’s just even children’s TV was psychedelic,” he says. MAGAZINE me. When I listen to the results, it always “shows like H.R. Pufnstuf were psychedelic. sounds like a true band session.” For Black you can hear the impact of that on a song and White America, the newly built home like ‘stand.’ I dragged a harpsichord down studio at Kravitz’s residence in the bahamas to the bahamas to use on that song. as only encouraged that impulse. “It was like it developed, I thought, ‘oh, I see what’s having a new toy,” he says of the gear-stuffed going on here—this is like something from facility. “you want to play with it. I started The Partridge Family!’” writing uncontrollably.” Kravitz plans to spend much of the next Kravitz is well aware that he also has a two years touring, which he admits has been reputation for writing songs steeped in the a grind in the past. “It can be monotonous influences of his favorite artists—“sly stone, just running through the hits,” he says. “so John Lennon, stevie Wonder, David bowie, I’m going to perform the songs people Marvin Gaye, the classic stuff,” he allows. want to hear, but I’m also going to explore When charges came early in his career that this new music. The live experience will be his music was overly derivative, he stayed almost like starting over.” the course. “The funny thing is, 10 years –Russell Hall

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