Gillian Welch Finds a Fan in Conor Oberst

Posted on May 3rd 2007 3:00PM by Steve Baltin
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Singer-songwriter Gillian Welch had the pleasure of contributing background vocals to the track 'Classic Cars' on the new Bright Eyes album, 'Cassadaga,' and Welch's musical partner, David Rawlings, plays guitar on four tracks. Backstage at Coachella, Welch and Rawlings recounted to Spinner their memorable first meeting with Conor Oberst. "We met Conor at the Newport Folk Festival," Rawlins said. "He was out there with M. Ward and then with Jimmy James [of My Morning Jacket] doing his thing. We were on the side of the stage, and he ran over and said, 'Hi, I love your music.'"

"He left the stage to come over to talk to us," adds Welch. "We stood there talking for a while and he said, 'Oh, I need to go back onstage now.'" Welch says fans can expect to see some collaborations when she and Rawlings are on the road with Bright Eyes on their current tour. "We're going to go and open this tour for him and probably play a little bit with him, too." There's also a possibility fans might get to hear some new tunes from Welch, as she debuted two songs at Coachella.

In between all of the backstage doings and their own set, Welch and Rawlings did get to check out some other stuff. "I saw some Amy Winehouse. I thought she was cool," Welch says. "[And] I saw some of Jesus & Mary Chain. They sounded good."