Matthew Perryman Jones is no stranger to our city. An Atlanta native, he got his beginnings at Eddie’s Attic during the great songwriter decade in Atlanta. “MPJ (as he is lovingly referred as…)” has been featured in numerous television shows including Grey’s Anatomy, Pretty Little Liars, and One Tree Hill, and most recently in feature film (made in Atlanta!), What to Expect When You’re Expecting.
Hailed by All Music as “a combination that has drawn comparisons to everyone from Jeff Buckley to Leonard Cohen,” Matthew Perryman Jones’ latest album Land of the Living is receiving powerful feedback from around the globe. He joined us for our 5GB series before his show this Friday at Vinyl.
What’s the first gig you ever attended?
U2’s Joshua Tree Tour in ’87 (I’m dating myself). It was at the Omni in Atlanta. I remember those were the days we camped out on a sidewalk to buy good tickets.
What is the best gig that you ever played/performed?
I think the best gig I played was at the Alabama Theater in Birmingham. I was invited to play Reg’s Coffeehouse 10 year anniversary show. I played right before Jim James (My Morning Jacket) and Patty Griffin. I’ve been a long time Patty Griffin fan so it was a huge honor.
What is the best gig you have ever seen?
That’s a tough one. It’s a toss up between Sigur Ros at the Palace Theater in Louisville, KY and WILCO at the Ryman in Nashville. Both were mind blowing, jaw dropping shows and I left both being in love with music all over again. They were very different kinds of shows, but I’m going to leave it at a tie.
What is the gig you would most like to play?
I suppose it’s a dream of mine to be able to do my own show at the Ryman Auditorium here in Nashville. The history, the room and it being in the city I met and married my wife and where our 3 daughters were born would all make it a pretty special show. I’m sappy like that.
What would be the lineup for your dream gig?
If I could create a festival-esque show line up it would go something like this:
-Lisa Hannigan would kick it off with her stunning voice then on to acts like Elbow, The National, Peter Gabriel, Sigur Ros, Radiohead and maybe Leonard Cohen would close it out. I wouldn’t know what to do with myself.
Catch Matthew Perryman Jones, June 22nd at Vinyl
