Tom Morello remembers the exact evening when he realized he could and should be more than just the guitar player from Rage Against The Machine and Audioslave.
“The thing that actually pushed me into picking up an acoustic guitar and writing my first song was a young man I saw perform at a teen-age homeless shelter in Hollywood on Thanksgiving night,” Morello said, recalling the event about five years ago.
“I used to emcee a talent show they had at this place called Covenant House. And one year this kid got up. He didn’t have much going for him in his life. He got up and played two of the most impassioned songs. He didn’t have the greatest voice, but he meant every word of it. In the midst of everybody talking and kind of eating their turkey and cake, I was just mesmerized.
“I thought, you know what, what’s keeping me from doing that? I’ve got a guitar. I’ve got a thought or two about a thing or two. And that made me go home and try to figure out how to play and sing some songs.”
Morello, to no one’s surprise, actually had more than a thought or two to share, and fans are now getting to hear and see what he has to say with the release of “One Man Revolution,” his debut CD under the guise of the Nightwatchman, and a tour in which Morello is armed only with an acoustic guitar, harmonica, microphone and his songs.
“One Man Revolution” is an early odds-on favorite to be 2007’s political album of the year as Morello, with a collection of sturdy Dylan-esque mostly acoustic solo songs, rails against the Bush administration and the war in Iraq; rallies support for union workers, and urges each person to stand and be counted in seeking social and personal justice.
Onstage, as he will be Wednesday in Seattle, Morello is a forceful presence, and on his headlining tour he figures to deliver faithful and energized versions of songs from “One Man Revolution,” as well as some yet-to-be-released material.
Morello’s talent for playing solo did not materialize overnight. In fact, he’s been working on developing his repertoire and his Nightwatchman persona for four years, with frequent appearances at open mike nights in his home base of Los Angeles serving as an early testing ground for his new songs.
As he continued putting solo shows under his belt, Morello discovered just how much this new musical direction suited him as an artist.
“I’d played thousands of shows as an electric guitar player and zero shows as a singer-songwriter. So I had to get that experience,” Morello said. “So I went out and played everywhere I possibly could, from coffee houses to country and western bars. … From that, I kind of built a reputation as someone who unions or activists could call on to play benefit shows or play for various left-of-center causes. All of a sudden I was feeling I was doing what I should be doing with my life.”
Of course, mixing activism and music was nothing new for Morello. As the guitarist in Rage Against The Machine, he was an integral part of a band that integrated provocative leftist lyrics with a fiery funk-rap-rock sound and built a large and loyal following before splitting up in 2000.
Three of the band members, Morello, bassist Tim Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk, went on to join forces with former Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell to form Audioslave. That band released two popular albums before dissolving after Cornell in February announced he was leaving to pursue a solo career.
The end of Audioslave, though, opened the door for Rage Against The Machine to return, at least on an occasional basis.
The group first reunited to play the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival near Los Angeles in April and also will join Wu Tang Clan, Nas and a number of other rap acts for several shows on this summer’s Rock the Bells tour. A headlining date is also on the books.
Morello is making no promises of a return to full active duty for Rage Against The Machine, which also includes singer Zach de la Rocha.
“First of all, I understand peoples’ excitement about the possibility of a more full-fledged reunion,” Morello said. “My things I intend to concentrate on, are making Nightwatchman records and doing Nightwatchman tours and being open to the possibility of doing more Rage Against The Machine shows as well.”
Audioslave, on the other hand, appears to be over and done. In his statement announcing his departure from the band, Cornell cited “irresolvable personality conflicts” and “musical differences” as reasons for moving on.
Morello didn’t get specific in offering his perspective on the breakup, nor did he express any bitterness.
“Well, Chris had been divorced from the band for months before he put out that statement,” Morello said. “We had reached an impasse that we just couldn’t get by, like rock bands do. It’s a shame because we built Audioslave from scratch. … But at the same time, those years were fantastic. We had a lot of fun making Audioslave records, a lot of fun on tour. It was great working with Chris.”
Tom Morello performs Wednesday in Seattle.
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