Jonathan Paull Gertler confronts the world with his sunny acoustic rock on his upcoming album No Fear (out on September 10.) On “I Wish I Knew,” premiered here on Adobe & Teardrops, Gertler tries to build empathy with others, humbly admitting what he does and does not know.
Gertler feels the many years he spent as a vascular surgeon clearly fueled his outlook as a songwriter. “Being a surgeon was a central event in my life,” he agrees. “It informs your personality, and I spent a lot of years at it. It exposes you to life, death, and other things most people never get to see. Some of my songs are very reflective of that part of my personality, but I also try to account for the willingness to take risks in life to get to a better place without putting people in harm’s way. If you’re just totally afraid of taking that risk, you end up with lousy outcomes.” The art of surgery is very much the art of staring down tough odds with both confidence and humility.
In his interview below, Gertler spills some secrets about “I Wish I Knew,” and the process behind the song.
What inspired you to write this song? What is the story behind it? What is it about?
Songs often come together for me out of combining lyrical and chordal riffs. Not necessarily about an event but perhaps more of a fleeting observation or emotion. I also often write late at night – often when walking outside – getting ideas and putting them into voice memos, and then hoping I can translate them into something worthwhile. I have way more voice memos than I have songs for certain.
This one came about with the opening riff and the phrase “I wish I knew.” And then I started wondering exactly what it was that I wanted to know. As with many of my songs, the tune and lyrics reflect the strong sense I have of exploration and risk but also the very firm knowledge that the last thing I want to be is spoiled in any way – expecting too much, thinking I can control outcomes, never expecting anything but good things As a society, we are increasingly expecting that all things can come to us – safety, material goods, health, peace – where much of the world lives with things as daily needs that are hard to find that we just take for granted. And thus, the lyrics from this song started addressing the fact that we can’t really know anything but we can aspire to be better ourselves and to give to those around us.
“I Wish I Knew” seems to be deeply introspective in some ways, as some of the best songs are. Did you set out to write a song about conflicting desires, or did it just happen that that was the message in this song as it came together?
I always say that I am observational not experiential but certainly introspection has to be part of any writing. If you don’t examine your own motivations and emotions you don’t have the right to judge others. But yes, I didn’t set out to write about conflicts but let’s face it – we all have conflicts. It’s managing them right that counts. They can’t be avoided or ignored.
What can you tell us about the recording sessions and working on this song?
It was hard to find the right balance. I am not really an electric guitarist, although my early years were like everyone from my era both electrified and lead guitar oriented and unkempt. I loved the sound of the PRS 30th anniversary special I had just bought but didn’t want this to be a bunch of electric layers. So John Paul’s acoustic overlay (reversing the rhythm guitar acoustic/lead guitar electric paradigm) worked exactly as I wanted. We talked through a couple of approaches and settled on that, and it became a clean tune with just the right electric riff in the mix.
Your lyrics are rich and robust, with depth and plenty of catch-your-attention turns of phrase. Who are your biggest influences or artistic inspirations?
Thank you for those kind words. I will take any inspiration from any good written word. I love Dylan, Jason Isbell, and Chris Smither, and I love romantic poets and modern poets. Today I found a phrase in a book review that resonated – Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s famous quote that all people have three lives: public, private, and secret. So I will look anywhere I can for inspiration.
Time to tell us a secret — what is something about this song that you haven’t mentioned anywhere else?
In this tune are traces of Jimi Hendrix’s “The Wind Cried Mary” chord inversions and T.S. Eliot. How’s that for a strange mix?
“I Wish I Knew” will be available on all streaming services through Rock Ridge Music on August 20th. Presave the song here.