Why Jeff Bridges dropped a previously unreleased album from the 1970s (exclusive)

• Jeff Bridges recently shared an album with previously unreleased songs called Slow magic
• The project, which was released on Saturday, April 12, has an eccentric collection of songs and jam sessions that develops a bygone era.
• In an exclusive interview with People opened the actor/musician to make the record and the movie people quote most to him (apart from The big lebowski).

Comes from a showbiz family that encouraged his creativity, Jeff Bridges has been able to use a number of interests. From acting and singing to painting, photography and ceramics, he always found ways in his artistic occupations.

And back in the 1970s, Bridges, 75, bought a Malibu house that became a clubhouse for a group of close friends-Stan Ayeroff (a guitarist and writer), David Greenwalt (co-producer of Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Matthew Bright (a bassist who directed Motorway); and Steve Baim (who auditioned to be James Browndrummer) – who surfed, hung in the hot tub and played music together.

Now bridges some of the previously unpaid recordings from that time with Slow Magic 1977-1978. The project, which Bridges worked last year with Keefus Ciancia, Jean Sievers and Matt Sullivan has a role of characters from West Los Angeles Art and Music Underground Scene of the Era including Burgess Meredith (Rocky, Batman) and members of Oingo Boingo, and the result is an steadfast, inventive and eccentric collection of songs and jam sessions that induce a bygone era.

“I was excited about (how) it would put me in contact with all these old friends that I had lost,” The big lebowski Star tells People about the album. “And sure enough, it did. It has been a wonderful journey and realized these songs in this way.”

In an exclusive interview with People, Bridges opens up about the process of release these recordings, the movie quotes the most people to him and the late brother like his late brother Beau Bridges Got him connected to him always bringing.

People: Congratulations to your new (old) album. What made you choose to share these previously unreleased recordings?

Bridges: A dear friend, Keefus Ciancia put the whole thing in motion. Keefus and I have done several projects together. We made an album that T-Bone produced, then we made another album called Sleeping bands and a video of Sleeping bands Album called Life is just a dream, And we made a small video series of it. Then, after these projects, Keefus said: “Why not just come into the studio, bring all your music, all your things you have written, and we will see what happens?” So I brought a bunch of things with me. One of the things was this little cassette from the 70s, and he loved it.

Without telling me, he sent it to his friend Matt Sullivan on Light in the attic, and they specialize in archive stuff. And they called my music director, Jean Sievers, and they asked her: “Hello, would he be interested in creating an album of this?” And then that news got me and I said, “Are you kidding? What is it? What are you talking about?” I couldn’t believe they thought it was something worth making an album out of, but they said, “Yes, we would like to.” And then I agreed to it. I have loved working with light in the wind, all these guys. A large group of people.

People: Tell us about the collaborators presented on the album. What was it like to visit the songs and have them involved?

Bridges: Well, one of the main characters is this guy called Steve Baim. We grew up together, went to Grammar School, Junior High and High School together. Shortly after high school he would have these Wednesday evening jam in his house, and there was a core group of Jamsters, but we would have all kinds of people to go with us. And there were a couple of rules. One, was “no songs.” You couldn’t bring any songs that you worked with or play any cover songs or something similar. No blues were allowed. Steve and another jam member, Stan Ayeroff, were in bands together, and Steve just got tired of playing all covers and playing EA-B7 Blues progress. He just wanted to make more experimental music, so that’s what would happen every Wednesday night. This lasted for 15, 20 years.

At the same time I wrote music, so what happened on Wednesday night would be Jam’s inspire some of my writers. And that’s what you hear on slow magic. There are a couple of instrumentals there, “Space One” and “Space Two”, which will give you a real idea of ​​how they were on Wednesday night, where people were encouraged to play instruments that they did not know how to play.

People: Will you perform songs from Slow Magic Live at any time?

Bridges: I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it.

People: You recently sang at Japanese breakfast last album On the track “men in bars.” How did that collaboration come into effect?

Bridges: Blake Mills worked on an album that I did with T-Bone Burnett, and I’m a big fan of Blakes. I love his music. He produced an album with Japanese breakfast and he said, “Hello, do you want to sing on this tune?” I heard the song, I liked the melody and it was a chance to hang with Blake. So I jumped aboard.

People: You have some Big Lebowski Screening and Q&A date in Los Angeles are coming up. What can people expect from them?

Bridges: Well, they will see the movie, and I (will) give a question and answer that will be centered on photographs that I took when I made that movie. I take pictures with a wide lux camera that they no longer do. My wife Susan and I are recreating the camera. So that’s what LEBISH The thing will be about. Of course, I’m biased, but it’s still one of my favorite movies. And it will be centered around the photographs I took under it.

People: Apart from The big lebowskiWhich movie quotes people most to you?

Bridges: Perhaps Starman. It is about a foreigner who tries to be as human as possible. And he comes to a stop light, and Karen Allen’s character is next to me and she says, “Stop.” Stop. ” And I go through the light and she says, “Did you see that light?” He goes, “I saw you very carefully. Red light stops, green light goes, yellow light goes very fast.”

PEOPLE: The old man canceled after two seasons in December. What was your reaction to the news?

Bridges: Well, I was a little surprised that we were interrupted. We were nominated for all these awards, but I understood it was a very expensive show to do. And there were several reasons why people talked about why it was interrupted. My great disappointment was not to work with these people. Amy Brenneman was so good to work with. John Lithgow. Showrunner, Jon Steinberg, was fantastic. It was a fantastic team.

People: A friend of mine worked with you on a set, and I heard that you used to bring your favorite chair for each set.

Bridges: Yes. We have these chairs. I’m sitting in one right now. It’s called a Lafuma, but there are a bunch of ripoffs. But Lafuma is the one who, my brother Beau (Bridges) turned on maybe 20 years ago, and we have used them ever since.

People: Do you still take your favorite chair to set?

Bridges: A couple, yes. One for my trailer, one for the set, and I also usually give them away.

Never miss a story – register for People’s free daily newsletters Keeping up to date on the best of what people have to offer, from celebrity news to compelling stories of human interest.

People: Do you have a dream role that you want to play at this stage in your career?

Bridges: I’m more of a counterpunch that way. I am lucky enough in that material comes my way, and I can say, “Not this, do this.” And my mo is, I resist to do S — a lot because I know what it takes. It takes me away from doing many other things I might want to do. I don’t even know what this is right now, but I have experienced it, where you have agreed to do something and then something else happens immediately after you can’t do. It’s time away from your family. I have four grandchildren now and raised my children, I was away a lot. So now we are so lucky to have them all in Santa Barbara who lives with us. And all the grandchildren, so I’m just stairs about it.

PEOPLE: Slow magic is full of older recordings. Would you record new music or a new album?

Bridges: I might. What I did While I was sick And had some downtime, something came to the surface that surprised me. But I said, “Yes, I’m 75. You have all these songs you want (drop) and you can polish them.” And I said, “I won’t polish them. Why don’t I release them in a rough form and put a visual aspect on them?”

So I released something called Emerging behavior. This is in the same spirit as Slow magic In it all is rough – either things I did with my band The Abiders or songs that I just did on garage bands. I might post more of them. There was something (where) I said, “Well, the whole music thing is so different now. What are you paying?” And so I decided (that) just let people donate to No Kid Hungry and Amazon’s conservation group, two organizations that I am very part of. So I don’t know, life just seems to have its way of doing these strange projects that I like. You talked about The old man is interrupted. The upside of it is now I have some time to do all these strange little things.

Slow Magic 1977-1978 Is out now.