Our guest this week, Livingston Taylor, is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, pianist, performer, recording artist and teacher. He has enjoyed a storied career that has spanned five decades. Livingston has shared the stage with Joni Mitchell, Jimmy Buffett, Linda Ronstadt and his sister and brothers who are all musicians. Having spent 50 years understanding and perfecting the art of performance, Livingston has documented his learnings in the renowned book “Stage Performance: Stay lean and simple. Tell the Story.”
In this episode of the Disrupt Yourself podcast, Livingston shares insights into family, life, love, teaching and the art of performance. We learn why Livingston prefers the periphery of the limelight and discover the melodic connections between speaking cadence and song structure.
As a special treat, Livingston teaches us the importance of tone through the gift of song.
Livingston’s 50th year of making music was celebrated by Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, both declaring January 18, 2017 “Livingston Taylor Day”. A documentary film entitled “Livingston Taylor: Life is Good” was released in 2018 at national and international film festivals. It has garnered many awards, nominations, and accolades, including The Van Gogh Award for the Feature Documentary category at the Amsterdam International Film Festival.
In February 2019, Livingston released “The Best of LIVe – 50 Years of Livingston Taylor Live”. This album features 11 song selections from his upcoming “LIVe – Livingston Taylor Live” Box Set. Upon release, the album was ranked in the top 10 and his song “Good Friends” was #2 on the Folk DJ chart.
We are grateful to have Livingston with us and trust that you will enjoy this interview as much as we did.
Listen to the episode in the player above, or download and enjoy it on iTunes. If you’re so inclined, please leave us a review!
Links Mentioned in this Episode:
- Livingston Taylor | Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
- Book, “Stage Performance: Stay lean and simple. Tell the Story.”
- Award Winning Documentary, “Livingston Taylor: Life is Good”
- American Public Television Special, “Livingston Taylor Live from Sellersville: Songs and Stories”
