We are absolutely delighted to announce that Air-Edel’s Lorraine Feather has been nominated for ‘Best Song’ in the 22nd annual Critics’ Choice Awards.
Lorraine co-wrote the title song to ‘Rules Don’t Apply’ with Eddie Arkin for the feature which stars Lily Collins and Alden Ehrenreich. The film was premiered at the AFI festival and tells the story of an unconventional love story of an aspiring actress, her determined driver, and the eccentric billionaire who they work for.
Recently Lorraine was interviewed by Mulderville.net about her work on ‘Rules Don’t Apply’ and her career as a songwriter for many feature films including ‘Dinosaurs’, ‘The Jungle Book 2’, ‘The Princess Diaries’, and many more.
Lorraine: “The music for Dinosaurs was written by Ray Colcord, a dear and talented man who passed away early this year. A mutual friend of ours suggested I send my solo album The Body Remembers to Ray, whom I’d known as a pianist at The Improv in Los Angeles. Ray was well-known for having a pretty dark sense of humor, and this friend thought we’d be a good fit as writing partners. The first song we wrote was called “Poor Slobs with Terrible Jobs” and we had a ball. We then wrote dinosaur blues songs, dinosaur country songs … he was a treat to work with. The Jungle Book 2 was a unique experience, in that my agent Maggie Rodford, of Air-Edel, suggested to Matt Walker of Disney that I be considered to write lyrics with a composer I’d never met, Paul Grabowsky, who lived in Melbourne. Paul and I spoke on the phone and wrote the song long-distance, a first for both of us. Disney approved our song, and we wound up doing two others for the project, finally meeting in LA to work on the third. The music supervisor for ‘The Jungle Book 2’, ‘Dawn Soler’, later recommended me to write lyrics for a song in ‘The Princess Diaries 2’. Julie Andrews, who had not sung in many years due to severe throat problems, had requested Larry Grossman as the composer. This was another long-distance collaboration, as Larry lived in New York and I was living in Northern California at the time. It was an honor to create something for Ms. Andrews, such an iconic and elegant singer, especially since it was her first public performance in some time. The demo for that song was sung by Jessica Molaskey, the very talented wife of guitarist John Pizzarelli.”
Q: What can you say about your collaboration with Eddie Arkin on the song ‘The Rules Don’t Apply’?
Lorraine: “It was quite fast, as almost all of our song collaborations have been over the years. It took us about two weeks, with breaks. When we were finished, I did a demo version with piano. Warren immediately loved it, but then a long time went by during which we had no idea if the film would actually be made. Eddie and I were pleasantly surprised, when ‘Rules Don’t Apply’ was finally completed, to discover that our song was in it three times, later to become four, as it was added as an end title.”
Q: What kind of advice would you give to someone who would like to work as a singer / songwriter?
Lorraine: “I’m unschooled myself, but my situation is unusual because I was around so much music and so many great musicians growing up, so I think getting a good education is wonderful. Keep listening and find what truly excites you. Try many things and don’t be afraid to make mistakes or go down what seems like a fruitless path, because earnest work is never wasted. When you find what you do best, pour yourself into it and don’t give up. And if you collaborate, do it with co-creators with whom you share a mutual admiration, who inspire you to do your best and are supportive.”
‘Rules Don’t Apply’ is out in US cinemas now.