Sylvie Simmons Drafts a New Chapter
Not many music journalists would have the guts to turn the tables on themselves, but London-born writer and musician Sylvie Simmons has spent the past few years doing just that – and the reaction is something that even she hadn’t predicted.
“Elvis Costello loves my album!” gushed the New York Times bestselling author in disbelief.
For an accomplished journalist who has spent several decades befriending and writing about the most notable rock stars in history, Simmons is incredibly modest and, as Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys calls her, “sweet”. Her acclaimed writing career, however, came as the result of her own nerves and provided a way to stay involved in the rock and roll world that she so clearly still adores.
“When I was 16, I got on stage with my guitar and my morbid little lyrics. I had horrible stage fright and I decided that I was going be a music journalist. That’s what you do when you can’t do it - you write about it,” laughs Simmons.
After years of writing for music publications like Creem, Rolling Stone, MOJO, and countless other outlets, Simmons’s second big break came in 2012 during a book tour for her New York Times best-selling biography I’m Your Man: The Life of Leonard Cohen.
“Book tours are one of the most boring things you can do. I thought, ‘I love his poetry and his work. I could just take my ukulele and I’ll sing his songs.’ So I got some musician friends to join in. It went from small bookshops and record shops to around the world. The idea of being afraid just disappeared.”
The success of Simmons’s book tour earned her a contract with Light in the Attic Records and a newfound career. As unexpected and serendipitously as the opportunity had arrived, so did the music.
“All these songs just came out. There was no effort, it's like they were sitting in me for thirty years,” says Simmons.
“That’s just the voice I had. It wasn’t influenced by anybody. It was literally what came out. I was happy, but shocked at the intensity and the sweet darkness of it.”
Now touring with her friends Giant Sand and working on her second album, Simmons is as gracious as ever for her various career paths. She’s seemingly baffled by many aspects her fortuitous experience: the ease of her songwriting, the laidback sound of her own music, and, perhaps most of all, the absolute rave reviews that her first record raked in from magazines and rock stars like her fan/friend Devendra Banhart.
“Devendra heard my songs before I even decided to write them. I happened to be hanging around with him for an interview. I ended up playing him one of my songs and he loved it. We stayed in contact and when the record label asked for blurbs about the album, I embarrassingly asked him for one. He wrote about a thousand words,” says Simmons.
“When reviews started coming in, I was terrified. I had to give myself little talks. I told myself that when I had to be strong. The British don’t like people stepping into different roles and I thought rock people would go off the deep end, but when the first reviews came out and they were amazing. It was the weirdest feeling.”
Despite her assortment of job titles, Simmons is first and foremost a fan. Unlike some industry veterans who preach a fire and brimstone forecast on rock and roll, Simmons is eager to share her favorite finds and discuss what’s next. Finally joining as a player after years as a spectator is just another thrill for her.
“The music world is the kindest most accepting world I’ve ever experienced. Writers can circle each other like cats. Musicians want to get together and jam. Nobody makes criticism on how you came into the music. It’s an interesting phenomenon.”
Don’t miss a performance by Sylvie Simmons in the Library on Wednesday, May 25.