Jeff Bridges really needs no introduction, but for the sake of the uninitiated, he’s an Oscar-winning actor with numerous other talents on his curriculum vitae, including, but not limited to, photography, painting and songwriting. Many likely remember his turn as Otis “Bad” Blake in 2009’s multi-award winning Crazy Heart, but Bridges’ musical journey began long before that film graced the silver screen.

We were recently fortunate enough to have the opportunity to speak with Bridges about his careers in both film and music and the challenges of balancing the two, but we wanted to focus on his newest album, upcoming tour, and what the future holds for him as a musician.

You can find our entire conversation with the great Jeff Bridges below, along with links to check out his newest live album with his band, The Abiders.

UTG: With having an interest in both music and film when you were starting out, how did you choose which path to follow initially?

Jeff Bridges: Well, my father, Lloyd Bridges, was very gung ho about all his kids going into showbiz, and I remember when I did, when I was around 15 or 16, when I was into my music, talking to my dad, and I said, “You know, I’m not sure if I want to do this acting thing, dad. I’ve got the music and I like to paint and do other creative things,” and he said, “Well, Jeff, you know, the wonderful thing about acting is that you get to explore all of your different creative impulses, and there’ll be a time when you get to play a musician or get into that.” Of course, it was true; I’ve played a musician quite a few times in the movies. You get to use all your talents, if you’re lucky, and I certainly have been; working with wonderful people, doing great projects that the music is kind of incorporated in.

As you have a passion for both mediums, how do you choose which to apply your time to and when? Do you ever find yourself sacrificing one to do the other, or does it come down more simply to scheduling?

It kind of falls into place, but it is a little challenging to do both because they both take a lot of time and preparation. It’s just a matter of kind of sorting that out, you know? It kind of sorts itself out, but you’re right…it’s challenging, and how do I do it? I just struggle and do it [laughs].

All these years later, having had the opportunity to be lucky enough to merge these two passions, as you said, does one mean more to you in any way at this point or do you still find yourself torn between the two?

They’re very similar, you know? They have aspects, where you’re working solo, whether it’s writing a song or learning your lines- that kind of thing. They also both have elements where you’re working with other artists. You’re working with the actors and the directors, and you’re working with all the musicians that you play with, and the audience, you know? So they’re very similar, and because they’re so much a part of my life, I feel kind of a gamut of emotions about ’em. There are times when it’s total elation.

There’s nothing like playing with a band, you know? It’s just so great, when you’re all kind of swept away and you’re into the groove. It’s just a wonderful feeling, and the same thing when you’re acting with someone. You know, when you can’t believe that it’s not really happening because you’re so into the moment. But at the same time, there’s also sweat and anxiety–performance anxiety–and all of those things [laughs].

I’ve read that you’ve spent time practicing meditation and that you’ll routinely meditate before filming. I was curious as to whether or not that comes into play within your music career as well, because as you mentioned (and I feel the same way), playing music can be a form of meditation and release itself.

Yeah, I’ll meditate often before a performance or a scene, and music is a way to relax or to kind of deal with the song of life, and if you’re lucky enough – and it’s often the case – that the other actors are also musicians, and to play and harmonize with those guys, that’s a great way to connect, because basically that’s what you’re trying to do when you’re making a movie, to harmonize and make something beautiful.

So you’ve got this great new live album which just came out last month. You’ve clearly been more active musically in the past few years, and I know you’ve said that Crazy Heart sort of lit that fire within you to further pursue your music. So do you have any plans for your next studio album or new material in the pipeline?

I’ve got a pile of new material and I’m looking forward to the time that I can get into the studio and record some of this stuff. We don’t have any definite plans at the moment, but we’ve got the stuff [laughs].

Just part of that challenge we talked about…

Yeah, just trying to sort it all out.

This is technically related to the album [laughs], but I was curious…because of your CCR cover (“Lookin’ Out My Back Door”), did you personally have a hand in incorporating the Creedence aspect into The Big Lebowski or did you choose to later cover the band because The Dude was such a huge CCR fan in the movie?

[Laughs] Well, Lebowski has been such a strong influence and source of such enjoyment in my life. But no, the Creedence was in the script, but that coincides with my appreciation of Fogerty and Creedence, you know? They’re great. That was just a coincidence.

You and The Abiders just wrapped up some Midwest and East Coast dates last month, and you have this West Coast run starting on November 1. You said you have a pile of new material; can we expect to hear any of it on this leg of the tour?

On these shows, there’ll be a couple of new tunes. I mean, there’ll be tunes that are on the album, and we haven’t had a rehearsal yet for this tour, but I imagine it’ll mainly be made up of songs on the album. There might be a few surprises we throw in there.

Will [your daughter] Jessie be with you on these dates, or do you have any other openers coming with you?

Jessie will be with us on most of the dates. I think she’ll be on all those dates in the San Francisco area.

It’s coming up on 15 years since you released your first album. When acting became so prominent in your life and you had that interest in music that had to kind of be put on hold in a sense as you took on more acting work, did you ever think you’d be able to return to music and actually create albums, let alone ones that would chart well?

Well, music has always- I’ve kept it alive, or it’s kept itself alive in my life, just because of my interest or just a natural impulse I guess. I remember when I started, I’d get on my dad’s old Wollensak tape recorder and tape songs. Then when I had some of my own money I bought a little TEAC, you know, and I’ve just always had a little studio in my life to record songs. Then I’ve always had a group of guys that I’ve played with, since I was a teenager.

So, it’s always been bubblin’ on the back burner there, and I always thought that I’d love to put out an album. You mentioned, [laughs], an album in the top of the charts…I don’t think I qualify for that [still laughing], but that’s not as important to me as just making the music and recording it. You know, one of the things I love about this current album is that they call it a record, right? Well it’s a record of what went down the summer of ’14, you know? Personally, I really love it because it reminds me of the great times we’ve had and what a wonderful band that we got together, and hopefully people will dig it. If enough people dig it that doesn’t discourage me and keeps me goin’ and we do enough of these shows, then I can keep the music alive.

What was it exactly 15 years ago or so that made you decide that it was finally time to get that first album out?

Hmm, good question. Let’s see… Well, I met- well, like I told you, I liked to build these little studios, and we got shook out of LA about 20 years ago with that big Northridge earthquake. It destroyed our house and we ended up moving up to Santa Barbara, and I wanted to build a little studio, and I can’t remember how I got this guy’s name but somehow I got hooked up with a guy named Chris Pelonis. Turns out, he’s a world-class builder of studios and speakers, and he came over and we started working on building a little studio in my garage, and he said, “Let’s hear some of your stuff.” So I broke out my tunes and he dug my tunes, and he says, “Hey, I got a friend, Michael McDonald. Do you know that guy?” I said, “Sure!” He says, “Well, Mike might dig some of this stuff.” So he played it for Mike and Mike liked it and he ended up coming out, and the three of us produced Be Here Soon and we formed a record label called Ramp Records. That’s how that kinda started.

And what’s next for you? What do you have lined up currently?

Well, I’m doing a lot of work with the No Kid Hungry campaign, and doing my best to end childhood hunger here in America. I worked with T Bone Burnett on a movie called A Place At The Table. It’s a documentary about hunger here in America. We’ll be having a screening of that and a panel discussion in a few days here in Santa Barbara; they’re having a film festival.

So, I’ll be working on that, and I’ll be playing with Jessie and Jackson Browne here in Santa Barbara. We’re gonna have a rehearsal for that show pretty soon. Doing things like that.

And lastly, if you had for some reason never become either an actor or a musician, what do you think you would have spent your life doing up to this point?

I think I’d go for painting, or some sort of creative thing. Painting, sculpting, working with clay. I enjoy that.

Do you still have the chance to do any of that now?

I do. Not too recently, but that’s something I enjoy doing and plan on doing in the near future.

Jeff Bridges & The Abiders’ ‘Live’ is out now on Mailboat Records. Purchase through iTunes or Amazon. You can view the band’s upcoming live appearances here.

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Brian Leak

Editor-In-Chief. King of forgetting drinks in the freezer. Pop culture pack rat. X-Phile. LOST apologist.

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