Any musician will tell you that music is almost a calling. There’s either some inner connection with music or there isn’t.
Ian Franklin heard the call. After his introduction to music, there was nothing else. He always knew his career path would relate to music. There was never any other option in his mind.
“I always wanted to pursue
music—ever since I could have an idea of ‘This is what I want to do when I grow up,’” Franklin said.
That passion for music has resulted in a decades-long career and a new EP, Step by Step, released last month. The songs are influenced by a fusion of roots-rock, funk, jazz, blues, and folk. Franklin calls the fusion eclectic pop-rock, the result of his decades of musical diversity.
Franklin got his first guitar at age 12 and immediately fell in love. His parents encouraged him by exposing him to the The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, and Eric Clapton.
By age 16, he was playing in his first band. Franklin spent the ’90s performing with many award-winning Sonoma County-based bands, like the rock-funk/hip-hop fusion band Gollum; the instrumental ambient/tribal-rock band Wish; and the Zappa meets Faith No More-influenced Cory’s Slug. He recorded his first solo project in 2001: Finley Swims.
Then Franklin decided to pursue music on a more academic level. He attended Berklee College of Music, where he double majored. He wanted a degree in music, but he really wanted to help people, too. That’s another influence from his parents; his dad, Dr. Marc Wilkerson, is a Lompoc chiropractor and Reichian therapist. So Franklin got degrees in songwriting and music therapy.
“I get to make music and help enrich people’s lives,” he said.
Franklin uses music therapy for special needs children, elderly patients, and stroke patients. He said the clinical application of music helps patients with focus, communication skills, and social skills, because music accesses a more primitive part of the brain. Franklin said music therapy is a contrast to his own musical pursuits, because songwriting and creating music are all about the musician, whereas music therapy is all about helping a client.
Franklin’s songwriting reflects the diversity he sees in life. Much of the inspiration for his lyrics comes from his experiences, though he likes to give himself songwriting challenges and step into someone else’s shoes. This exercise sometimes results in life-imitating-art situations, as it once did for Franklin when he wrote about heartbreak. The song was meant to be general, but during the process he went through a heartbreak of his own.
“So then it kind of became a song about me,” he said.
Franklin said his creative process varies; sometimes he’s extremely prolific, while sometimes there’s nothing. He blames these ebbs and flows on his muse.
“It’s like my muse has its own personality or schedule to keep,” he said.
Lately, his muse has been actively bestowing him with creative energy. Franklin will take on the Central Coast with several performances before heading back to the San Francisco area for several shows in the north.
Arts Editor Shelly Cone’s muse doesn’t go away often enough. She can be reached at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jun 16-23, 2011.