MusicRadar

Daniel Lanois is a happy man. The legendary producer, who has made his mark working with artists such as U2, Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel, Neil Young and The Neville Brothers, among others, is primed and ready to hit the road with his own band, the all-new Back Dub. But the real reason for Lanois' joy runs much deeper than that - he's just thrilled to be doing anything at all.

"Thank God I'm alive," he says, referring to the serious motorcycle accident he suffered earlier this year, one which landed him in intensive care for several weeks. "It was pretty bad. I broke something like six ribs. But here I am, walking around and swimming every day. Still, it was a terrible thing to go through. For a guy who'd never been in the hospital before, to be in intensive care for all that time - not a lot of fun. I think a lot of people must have been praying for me."

That they were. And now those folks will be amply rewarded with the sounds of Black Dub. Normally a behind-the-scenes kind of guy, Lanois is stepping out as guitarist and co-vocalist with the band, which also includes 23-year-old lead singer Trixie Whitley (daughter of the late blues artist Chris Whitley), along with bassist Daryl Johnson and drummer Brian Blade.

Their just-released, self-titled album, recorded at Lanois' expansive Los Angeles home, is brimming with soulful, bluesy and ethereal numbers (make no mistake: Whitley, despite her youth, is already a vocalist of breathtaking range and depth), such as the haunting I Believe In You and Caanan. And on two of the record's instrumentals, Sirens and Slow Baby, Lanois gets to show off his impressive studio wizardy, not to mention his prowess on the guitar (check him out, blazing away, in the exclusive video above).

Lanois recently sat down with MusicRadar to discuss the formation of Black Dub and the recording of their debut album. In addition, we also talked guitar (does he influence The Edge or the other way around?) and asked him what he's learned from being shoulder-to-shoulder with the iconic producer Brian Eno.

Daniel Lanois trades vocals with Trixie Whitley. © Jive Records

Being a successful producer all these years, were you looking to do something different, as in forming a band?

"I wasn't looking to form a band. I was doing a two-piece show in Belgium - Brian Blade was playing drums with me - and I remember it as being particularly good and fiery. After we played, the promoter told me that a couple of girls wanted to say hi backstage. As it turned out, they were the Whitleys, Chris Whitley's widow, Helene, and her daughter, Trixie.

"I hadn't seen Trixie since she was two years old. I couldn't believe she was all grown up. She told me she was singing and playing drums, which I thought was great. She gave me a CD she had made, and I listened to it and went, 'Whoa! There's something going on here in the vocal department.' So I said, 'Let's see if we can do something together.' With Brian Blade on drums and Daryl Johnson on bass, we cut a couple of tracks, and it worked out very well right away."

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