Javier |
Fri. November 14.2003 12:00 AM EST |
Javier: The Cool and the "Crazy"Hot new soulster blends old school groove with modern R&B. He talks about about seducing the ladies with song, and getting the jitters at the Apollo. by C. Bottomley |
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It seems like a lot happened to Javier Colon when he was in seventh grade. He fell in love, for starters, and discovered that with the help of a guitar and a sentiment like Lost Without Your Love, he could win over the class tease. That same year
Both might explain why Javier is so far the only great R&B hope to ever come from Bridgeport, Connecticut, the ever-struggling seaside city that once had P.T. Barnum as its mayor. Even after he moved on to high school, Javier took a circuitous route towards soul. He sang in musicals like Show Boat, joined an a cappella group, and played with Derek Trucks jam band. On his self-titled solo debut, however, his patchwork heritage makes for sweet sounds. The snappy single Crazy earmarks him as a disciple of India.Aries neo-soul, but his breadth recalls the young George Michael. October Sky, a jazzy tune whose after-hours feel comes courtesy of trumpeter Roy Hargrove, could be his Kissing a Fool. With a Dominican dad and Puerto Rican mom, Javier has soaked up plenty of Caribbean grooves, too, which boost songs like She Spoke to Me. And theres a bit of Broadway in the air when he brings down the house on wrenching ballads like In Your Hands. With looks that have the kids swooning and an urbane air thats equally appealing to their moms, the singer and his tunes are out to win over more than just old girlfriends. He told VH1 how Jose Feliciano, Otis Redding, and puppy love have helped get him this far. VH1: What was the music like around your house growing up? Javier: I heard Latin music on the radio constantly, being that my father was in the [radio business]. Then my mom had all these 45s, from The Temptations and Chubby Checker, Bill Haley & the Comets, Elvis records - all kinds of stuff. My older brother loved early hip-hop and R&B stuff, and my sister was into anything from rock to N.W.A [laughs] so, it was a little bit of everything. [Watch Clip] VH1: When the parents put on the oldies, would you moan, Oh, turn it off! J: I liked it. I had an affinity for doo-wop. I would walk around and try to sing those low bass notes. When I was going into the seventh grade, my father took over what used to be an oldies radio station. He had all these cart tapes of oldies that needed to be erased, so theyd be ready for Spanish music. I had to tape [the oldies for] my mom, because she wanted all of these great songs. I got to listen to all this great stuff - from The Coasters and The Platters to everyone. It was the best learning experience that I could ever have. VH1: Which performer made you realize, Thats what I want to do? J: Jose Feliciano. Hes an amazing songwriter, guitarist, and singer. Hes blind, also. He would play the guitar and sing these beautiful songs with these beautiful melodies and I would just be lost. He happened to be a friend of my dads, so I was able to go to some shows around the time I was starting to play the guitar a little bit more seriously. I was in awe of him. [Watch Clip] VH1: Crazy is the first single. Who is this girl that drove you so nuts? J: To me, that songs about that feeling you get when you have this new love and your heart starts to race, like when you realize on your caller ID that shes calling you. Youre like, Should I answer? What am I gonna say? How cool am I gonna sound? Its that feeling that somebody makes you that crazy, just by talking to you. Ive definitely been there, in like seventh and eighth grade when love was new & VH1: What were your first songs like? J: My first writing experience was in seventh grade, for a girlfriend of mine. Actually, she wasnt a girlfriend yet - I wanted her to be. So I sat down with my guitar and worked really hard on this little song I wrote called Lost Without Your Love. Basically, it said, I would do all these things for you and I feel lost not having you. And it worked! For a little while & Things in seventh grade never last. VH1: What is it that youre looking for in a girl? J: The perfect woman, to me, is someone with who I can be myself, and [she] can be herself. There are no facades; theres no guards put up; so you can always be honest with each other. Honesty is big for me, so&an honest person who is independent and strong [and] can be herself in front of me. VH1: Do you become someone different as a performer? J: I dont think I do. A lot of the songs line up with my thoughts, my morals and the person that I am. When I get on stage, it comes through in the songs. I think what Im saying is I'm still the same person. VH1: What was your biggest musical role in high school? J: In high school, I was Jim in Big River, which is the Huckleberry Finn story. Thats probably my favorite role. He was a runaway slave, and he was just a good person inside. He wanted to make a life for himself so he could buy back his wife and children out of slavery, so he was running away, and Huckleberry Finn helped him do that. It was such a beautiful role. VH1: Did you get the jitters when you first performed at the Apollo? J: I went there with an a cappella group when I was a freshman in college. We sang Boyz II Mens Its So Hard to Say Goodbye, and we actually got like third or fourth place [in the amateur night contest]. I had to step out in front of the other three guys and start the song off. So if I was bad, the house was gonna come down on us. They started freaking out - it was great! It was one of the best experiences Ive ever had. [Watch Clip] VH1: What do you take from gritty singers like Otis Redding and Sam Cooke that helps you as a vocalist? J: They used space very well. They werent big riffers - they didnt try and go for all these crazy notes, because the song lent itself to a certain style of singing. They picked what they sang very well, and they sang it very well. They didnt overdo anything. They picked the most beautiful melodies they could think of, and gave it to you, with some character. Thats what I try to do in some songs. VH1: Youve been singing Bill Withers Use Me in concert. What do you like about his music? J: Man, Bill could do anything. When hed get on stage, hed have you in the palm of his hand. Use Mes got an acoustic guitar in it; its very bare boned, but its still so gritty and funky. I love that he was able to just break it down like that and still make people dance, and still make people feel like, Wow. Theres a pocket there and you can really feel it with such a minimal amount of instruments. VH1: Ever had a moment when you opened your mouth and nothing comes out? J: Yeah. I was with the Derek Trucks Band in Mobile, Ala. I gave everything I could in sound-check -then we had something to do for a local radio station. By nine oclock, my voice was squeaking. As were walking to the show, I realized I couldnt sing. I tried to sing and nothing was there! It scared me because it was the first time that I had lost my voice completely, and it didnt come back that night. [Watch Clip] |
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