61. Suzzy Roche and Lucy Wainwright Roche

Portrait by Lani Morrison

Come for a ride down Interstate 5 with Suzzy Roche and Lucy-Wainwright Roche as I talk to them on their way to the next gig on their west coast tour. Suzzy is one-third of The Roches, a group of sisters whose records since the 1970s have been creating fanatic enthusiasts around the world, myself included. Her daughter Lucy has released several killer solo records in the last couple of decades, and the new album “I Can Still Hear You” is the third that the two of them made together. This one’s an especially big deal for me, because I’m a huge fan on the Roches and their extended universe, including Lucy and her siblings Rufus and Martha Wainwright, not to mention her father Loudon Wainwright III. Earlier this year, I took my family to see Suzzy and Lucy perform in Seattle a few days before recording this interview while they were on the road (and I joined by speakerphone technology). Today we’re talking about the Roches legacy, including being among the first artists to earn the classification “folk punk,” Suzzy and Lucy’s experience collaborating remotely on an album that was meant to happen in a Nashville studio, balancing humor and sincerity in their music, the adjustments necessary to incorporate Roches songs into their set, and Suzzy’s most recent novel “The Town Crazy.”

Music Video for “I Can Still Hear You”

Lucy and Suzzy performing the Roches’ “One Season”