Ray LaMontagne heading for Newcastle City Hall

Jun 25 2009 by David Whetstone, The Journal

Quiet man Ray LaMontagne talks to David Whetstone ahead of his latest UK tour

THERE are musicians who are garrulous and outgoing and there are those like Ray LaMontagne who would probably prefer to let their music do the talking.

A little pre-chat research turns up the following heartening nuggets – that the New Hampshire-born singer doesn’t much like giving interviews and that he has been known to perform live shows in the dark.

Well, he’s agreed to the interview and tells me he started writing songs in his early 20s – he turned 36 last week – and began playing live when he was about 24, maybe 25.

“I started feeling very passionate about music when I was in my early 20s but it was a very private thing. I didn’t share it with anybody for a long time,” he confides.

I’d heard he worked in a shoe factory but suddenly decided to quit after hearing Treetop Flyer, a song by Stephen Stills, on the radio when it awoke him for an early shift.

“That’s how the story goes, I guess. It has taken on a life of its own. But I always liked Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Crosby, Stills & Nash, The Band. They’re all pretty amazing.”