Musician and author of "The Passionate Eye: The Collected Writing of Suzanne Vega"

February 10, 1999

Suzanne Vega, singer/song writer extraordinaire, chats with NetCafeLive about her book, "The Passionate Eye." Vega discusses the significance of writing in her music, future tour plans and collaborating with Joe Jackson.

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NetCafeLive: Welcome! NetCafeLive, brought to you by Talk City (tm) and Borders.Com (tm), welcomes you to chat with singer/songwriter Suzanne Vega. Suzanne is here to discuss her work in music and also her powerful new book, "The Passionate Eye - The Collected Writing of Suzanne Vega." And now, without further ado, Welcome Suzanne!

Suzanne Vega: Hi .glad to be here! Nice to see everyone's names here!

Meriwidow: Suzanne, what prompted you to put your writings in a book? Especially, your song lyrics?

Suzanne Vega: I like to write, and whenever I write a song, it's important to see it on the page as well as sing it. I got some offers, and I finally got organized enough to put out a book.

Romeovoid: Suzanne, I've been a big fan of yours for years, and the power you have in word is what has always drawn me to your music. I have to ask, which typically comes first, the words or the tune?

Suzanne Vega: In the best songs, they both come together. Used to be, the melody came first, and created the atmosphere. But the best ones, they come together.

Elevatorshoes: How has your past shaped your view of the present? What type of childhood events do you draw upon in your writing?

Suzanne Vega: My past has definitely shaped my present. Let me think.there is a theory that you are born into the world complete and you develop like a photograph, and I subscribe to that point of view. You just become more and more "you" as you get older. Those things that I developed were my preoccupations as a child…how to be heard, how to express myself inside out, how to express feelings, how to deal with the world around me.

Alcatraz: Where did the title of your book come from?

Suzanne Vega: The title came from Bruce Miyashita. He had written (from a news group) an essay about some of the lyrics. The essay had that title, and I asked him if I could use it.

Pianca-amb: Suzanne, why did it take so long for the idea of the book to come out?

Suzanne Vega: It didn't take long for the idea, it took a while for the BOOK to come out. I had put the proposal out when I was pregnant. My daughter is now four and a half, so you see how long it's been. Since then, I wrote it, did a world tour.many other things.

Yellowmellow: How has being a mom shaped your dialogue in music and word?

Suzanne Vega: Being a mother has made it much more difficult to access parts of my brain. It's made it harder to sit and write, but on the other hand, I do write more emotionally now.

Jbhoward: I noticed there are no page numbers in the entire book. Was that intentional?

Suzanne Vega: Actually, I would have liked some page numbers, and a table of contents. But my editors thought it was a book you could "dip into" and they wanted a timeless quality to it. In the end, I've accepted it.

Angela: What countries have you visited touring? Which one has been your favorite?

Suzanne Vega: I've toured a lot of them. All over Europe - Germany, France, so many. I've never been to Africa, or to India or the Middle East, except Israel. A favorite? It changes…depends on where I am popular! I had a wonderful time in England once, and also a not-so-wonderful experience another time.it varies. I like so many countries for different reasons. I love Italy for the food, France for the people, Japan for the organization.

Parkbench: Suzanne, tell us how you decided on the "theme grouping."

Suzanne Vega: It seemed obvious to me because rather than chronological, it seemed more natural to group them. It tells a more complex story this way. I wanted to show how you can look at these different problems from the different perspectives.

Chad281 Says: Can you tell us more about the book?

Suzanne Vega: For those who don't have it yet, it's a collection of lyrics, and poems, and essays, and journals. It's a collection of my writings from age nine on up, starting with a poem I wrote at age nine called "By Myself." And it just continues from there.

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