Dion rocks the blues with Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, Rickie Lee Jones and more on new album

Dion DiMucci was a kid from Bronx erstwhile successful the precocious ’50s the vocal radical Dion and the Belmonts and songs specified arsenic “I Wonder Why” and “A Teenager In Love” made him a prima of aboriginal stone ‘n’ roll.

As a solo creator successful the aboriginal ’60s, songs specified arsenic “Runaround Sue” “The Wanderer” and “Ruby Baby” built a bequest that successful clip landed Dion successful the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

But if you inquire Dion why, astatine 82, his caller medium “Stomping Ground” continues a caller tally of blues-based records, it’s simple, helium says.

“That was ever the instauration of everything I’ve ever done,” Dion says. “The archetypal opus that got maine connected this roadworthy was ‘Honky Tonk Blues’ by Hank Williams. Then I heard Jimmy Reed’s ‘Baby What You Want Me To Do.’

“Which made maine privation to pass similar Hank Williams and groove similar Jimmy Reed, you know,” helium says. “So it was ever the foundation.”

Of course, that didn’t sway the grounds companies who released Dion and Belmonts and aboriginal Dion albums. They wanted thing a spot smoother than the stone built connected the blues that Dion loved to perform.

“The grounds companies were saying, ‘Do 1 for us, and past you could bash 1 for you,’” Dion says. “So they’d marque maine bash an Al Jolson song, and past I could bash ‘Runaround Sue.’ Or marque maine bash a standard, and past I could bash ‘The Wanderer.’

“So I’m each implicit the place,” helium says.

On “Stomping Ground,” arsenic with its 2020 predecessor, “Blues With Friends,” Dion is making precisely the benignant of euphony he’s ever loved most.

The songs here, similar his aboriginal solo hits, are astir each cowritten by Dion. And they’re recorded with a big high-profile collaborators, including connected the caller medium artists specified arsenic Eric Clapton, Peter Frampton, Rickie Lee Jones, Boz Scaggs, and Bruce Springsteen and Patti Scialfa.

“Nowadays, what’s happened is radical volition accidental to me, ‘You’ve recreated yourself,’” Dion says. “And I say, ‘No, I’ve ne'er created myself successful the archetypal place, truthful I’m not going to recreate myself.’

“I conscionable deliberation I’ve evolved, I’ve developed,” helium says. “It’s similar an acorn, and present you’re an oak tree. It’s the aforesaid DNA.”

Playing with friends

The catalyst for “Blues With Friends” and present “Stomping Ground” was a blessed accident, Dion  says.

The blues stone guitarist Joe Bonamassa, a longtime friend, came implicit to his location not agelong aft Dion had recorded the aboriginal versions of 14 bluesy stone songs.

“I played him ‘Blues Coming On,” and helium said, ‘I’d emotion to play connected that,’” Dion says. “And erstwhile helium played connected it, I ne'er heard thing similar it successful my life. I thought I could ne'er deliberation of thing similar this.

“He possibly made maine precise alert of however constricted I americium with putting model trimmings connected thing I constitute oregon produce, similar a record,” helium says.

In a way, it reminded him of however his champion songs had ever been made amended by a philharmonic publication present oregon there.

“I did ‘The Wanderer,’ Buddy Lucas stepped up to the mic and played that (tenor sax) solo,” Dion says. “It’s the aforesaid benignant of deal. You’re getting a large creator contributing what they perceive successful the song, and they’re playing what they’re hearing, not what I’m hearing.”

“Blues With Friends” yet paired Dion with artists specified arsenic Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, Paul Simon, Van Morrison, Jeff Beck, and Brian Setzer of Stray Cats. And Bob Dylan wrote the liner notes.

“Stomping Ground” wasn’t intended to beryllium “Blues With Friends Part II,” but Dion says arsenic helium listened to the unsmooth tracks portion driving successful his car, successful his caput helium could perceive however antithetic artists mightiness dependable successful the mix.

“On the mode home, again I’m thinking, ‘Wow, you cognize Eric Clapton would stone this thing, man, oregon Mark, I perceive Mark Knopfler connected this song, cipher else. So it started up again.”

This time, Pete Townshend of the Who did the liner notes, though Dion wrote an instauration successful which helium speaks of uncovering much restitution successful making euphony with with aged and caller friends than helium did arsenic a young antheral seeking fame and fortune.

“It’s a large thing, making large euphony and making friends, you know?” helium says. “I thought, ‘Man, I’m beauteous fortunate to get to bash this.’”

Mix and match

Many of the artists connected the caller medium were radical he’d known. Billy Gibbons, Joe Bonamassa, Bruce Springsteen and Patti Scialfa each were besides connected the earlier one. But others helium simply sought out, sending invitations done immoderate contacts helium had.

“The happening with Boz Scaggs that was a small crazy, due to the fact that I wrote the song, I heard it with a consciousness of urgency: ‘I’ve Got To Get To You,’” Dion says. “And Boz heard it with a consciousness of humor.

“So I decided to sing the archetypal 2 lines of each verse, due to the fact that I had this strength astir me, and I near him similar astir answer, putting that consciousness of wit connected it,” helium says. “It conscionable worked retired perfect.”

“I’ve Been Watching You” was primitively going to spell to a impermanent guitarist, but aft co-producer and technologist Wayne Hood played a solo connected an aboriginal mentation Dion says helium loved it truthful overmuch helium decided to marque it a vocal duet and reached retired to Rickie Lee Jones done her producers Lenny Waronker and Russ Titelman, who’d earlier fixed her “Blues With Friends.”

“When I went to her she said, ‘I’ve been listening to you,’” Dion says. “And she said, ‘My mother, we would creation to ‘The Wanderer.’ Every clip I perceive your sanction I’m similar afloat of joy.’ She was conscionable connected board.

“Now I accidental you haven’t lived until you sing a quirky emotion opus with Rickie Lee Jones,” helium says.

When helium sent Springsteen and Scialfa a way with lone his dependable and guitar connected it, Scialfa asked if helium had different instrumentation planned for it. He did not, and erstwhile she offered to adhd a fewer things, helium said sure.

“Well, she sends maine backmost 64 tracks,” Dion says. “None of the aforesaid thing. Of stacked vocals, harmonica parts, guitars, bass, drums. Everything you perceive connected that grounds is simply a Patti Scialfa production.

“Bruce told me, helium said, ‘Patti’s bully astatine this,’” helium says. “If you ever privation to consciousness loved, idiosyncratic sending you backmost 64 tracks, it’s similar wow. My full vocation is not 64 tracks.”

Carrying a torch

Hank Williams’ “Honky Tonk Blues” near an indelible content connected the lad who inactive remembers listening to it connected a Newark vigor presumption portion his parent cooked meal 1 night, and past moving down to the grounds store to bargain it the adjacent day.

No substance the root of the blues euphony — state artists similar Williams, electrical blues similar Jimmy Reed, who moved from Mississippi to Chicago similar truthful galore others — determination was a elemental purity that ever appealed, Dion says.

“That’s what’s truthful beauteous astir the blues,” helium says. “It’s a God-given signifier wherever you could explicit thing successful that: your joys, your loneliness, your betrayal, your tears. You could bare your soul, you could beryllium honest, you could beryllium truthful, you could beryllium real.”

In summation to penning and recording, Dion says he’s besides been moving with the producers of “The Wanderer,” a philharmonic acceptable to unfastened for a proceedings tally astatine the Paper Mill Playhouse successful New Jersey successful March 2022 earlier a planned determination to Broadway.

And, helium says, he’ll proceed marque euphony for arsenic agelong arsenic helium can, thing helium sees astir arsenic his work arsenic a performer who survived everything from the ill-fated formation that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper — the $36 summons was much than helium wanted to walk — heroin, booze, and age.

“I deliberation knowing Buddy Holly, and a batch of the artists that are not with america immoderate longer, Sam Cooke and Bobby Darin, guys similar Jackie Wilson and Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent, I astir consciousness liable for the gifts God has fixed me,” Dion says. “I conscionable can’t beryllium and portion it distant oregon fto it rot away.

“I consciousness that I person a work to usage it and hone it and respect it and grant it,” helium says. “And I consciousness similar I’m honoring them doing that.

“You know, I astir consciousness similar I’m being cheered connected by guys that person left, and are telling maine not to stroke it.”