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An Interview with Rob Laurens
A total gem of a singer/songwriter from Cambridge, MA
NOTE: I have recently discovered the music of Rob Laurens, singer/songwriter/storyteller from Cambridge, MA. Rob’s new album, Jubilee, totally stopped me in my tracks in the best of all possible ways — a feast of music for my soul — plaintive invocations from a man who clearly feels life deeply and authentically conveys the grit, longing, lament and triumph of the hero’s journey we are all on. What follows are excerpts from an interview I conducted with Rob last week.
What do you love about music?
What I am moved by most is when the combination of the lyrics and music of a song create something far greater than the sum of the parts — when the overall effect is far more than either words or music alone
A great example of this is the song, “Shenandoah.” Because of this phenomenon, songwriting, I believe, is in many ways a literary form, akin to, but distinct from, poetry, as well as notably an American form, like the short story.
When did you know that you wanted to be a musician?
When I was five, I was in a toy store and saw a toy banjo. I asked my parents if I could have one someday. That Christmas they gave one to me. I…
