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VH1: You're famously independent. But are there any other artists you have looked at and thought, 'They have done this,' and that gave you the courage to make the decisions that you have?
Jewel: There are a lot of people. I think Neil Young was actually quite a big influence on me. I toured with him when I was about 21. He just impressed upon me the fact that it's important to really communicate to an audience. To fight for that, more than to fight to be liked. I think Merle Haggard is that way. I think he's sort of punk rock in the sense that he always does what he wants as an artist, and doesn't necessarily kowtow to stereotypes, even though he's in country music - a business that's typically stereotyped. I think Joni Mitchell is someone who always just did what she wanted musically. I think Nina Simone and Josephine Baker were like that. There are a lot of writers, too. I find it happening more in writers than I do in musicians. I think fame affects them in a slightly different manner. They're a little bit more removed from the grip of it.
VH1: It's interesting you mention country artists. A lot of these songs could be pigeonholed into the country rock genre. Did you gravitate more to that genre than on previous albums?
Jewel: I feel that my first record had a lot of country influence. I can't really help it. I mean, I was raised on a ranch and my father was a cowboy. I grew up in such an odd melting pot of cultures. I grew up very redneck, but with a lot of artists around. It's usually not a mix you see together. My first record had several waltzes on it. I don't really think of what kind of genre I'm in. I just think of the song and whatever fits on it. I do think the new record kind of crosses genres. I thought that "Everybody Needs Somebody Sometime" was kind of a John Mellencamp or Bruce Springsteen type of thing. How I hear it in my head is totally different from how you hear it, versus how somebody else hears it. And I love that.
VH1: "Everybody Needs Someone Sometime" sounds like something Shania would do.
Jewel:: That's funny.
VH1: But I'm not quite sure if that's a compliment or criticism.
Jewel: When I think Shania I think of really slick. I think Mutt Lange. I think of Mutt Lange's producing and those types of things. Very different context.
VH1: Had you recorded in Nashville before or was this your first musical stop on Music Row?
Jewel: I've done quite a bit of recording in Nashville. I think my first record was actually mixed in Nashville. I think I may have redone "Who Will Save Your Soul?" in Nashville. I've worked there quite a bit over the years.
VH1: Does the place's influence seep through onto the record?
Jewel: No. I actually liked recording in Nashville better because I was able to detach from pop and rock culture more easily. I think when you record in New York and L.A., the musicians, at least subconsciously, are aware of the guitar tones found on a Creed record. The sound of radio and pop culture seeps in accidentally, and you end up seeming dated. I really try and keep my records as timeless as possible, so that hopefully they'll sound good in 20 years. I try to use timeless instrumentation. So recording in Nashville I asked people from very, very different worlds to record music they wouldn't normally be asked to record. I think it got them to sort of work outside of their own heads and to be able to come up with more original stuff.
VH1: How has your relationship with Ty Murray influenced the songs on the album?
Jewel: It isn't over-personal. I think whatever you're doing in your life affects your songwriting, whether it's directly or indirectly. But to a large degree it actually doesn't. A lot of it is just my active imagination. Also, some of those songs I wrote for this record, like "Love Me Leave Me Alone," I wrote when I was 20 years old. "Cleveland" I wrote when I was 21. Some of them are quite old. So the writing really goes across a large span of time.
VH1: On your past albums, there's usually only one co-songwriting credit. On This Way, you drafted more collaborators than ever before. You wrote "Serve the Ego" with Itaal Shur and "Standing Still" with Rick Nowles. What do you look for in a songwriting partner?
Jewel: On this record I wrote all the lyrics and all the melodies, and it's the music that we'd co-write. It's sort of a pleasure for me, because I can sing the chords I want a lot quicker than I can find the chords on the guitar. A lot of the chords I tend to go toward are easier to access on a piano than a guitar, and I don't play piano. So it was really fun and actually it sort of expedited the process to write with someone who played piano. "Serve the Ego" actually had three writers on it. But for some reason no one's really talking about that.
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