"What’s the last big question that I asked myself? Just the other day, I was thinking about how I can use my life and resources to make a positive impact in my little circle of influence, to move the needle towards progress in the wider community. There are such large things facing us now that don’t know borders, like climate change, nuclear weapons, and conflict on which that we must cooperate with each other,” Jeff Goldblum says, a smile audibly creeping across his face. "What do you think about that?”
While that flourish aiming at global improvement comes across as entirely sincere and serious, Goldblum’s vow to use his platform for good comes punctuated with all of his trademark and requisite thoughtful pauses, vocal tics, and bounding tone. That ability to see humour and hope in the darkest days has infused some of his most prominent roles, but that eccentric vocal delivery may be the most beloved aspect of one of the most universally beloved actors of the last few decades.
It may come as a surprise to some that Goldblum is promoting not a new film, but an album of jazz standards with The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra. The group had hosted a weekly variety show, the famous actor sitting behind the piano, almost akin to a host at the platonic ideal of the cocktail party. But listen again to his lines in Jurassic Park or The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou, and the penchant for jazz suddenly becomes clear: the unmistakable rhythms, the unexpected changes in key, the notes between the notes.
Throughout our conversation, the legendary actor pivots similarly quickly, his whip-smart wit tying topics together with an endless trove of anecdotes and recollections. His Baker’s Dozen selections seem to pull together on a golden thread, each song simultaneously relating to his personal life, acting and film, and jazz. In Jeff Goldblum’s world, those three columns are each essential and inextricably tied, the elements interlinked in a tremendous, beautiful burst of wonder and awe.
Jeff Goldblum & The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra’s The Capitol Studios Sessions is out now. Jeff &co play the EFG London Jazz Festival this week – for more info go here. Click the image of Jeff to begin reading his selections
