Gabriel’s music gets new life with orchestra

Q. Your conductor Ben Foster has said the combination of touring and local musicians makes every night feel like a first night. Does that give you an extra charge about being on your toes?

A. There’s a real opportunity for things to [expletive] up in a nice way, yes. (Laughs) But we do have our core players. We have about 18 people in the orchestra traveling with us that will know the music backwards.

Q. Some of the “I’ll Scratch Yours’’ songs came out in piecemeal fashion. Is there a plan to a do a proper full album release?

A. I would very much like it to be. We had six out of 12, and some we’re still trying to get. There are one or two other people who weren’t doing the exchange that have done or want to do my stuff, so I think we’re going to fill it up like that. We have some fantastic things from Paul Simon and David Byrne and Stephin Merritt.

Q. Did you get much feedback from the original artists about your version of their songs on “Scratch’’?

A. Mostly they were really enthusiastic except Thom Yorke (of Radiohead). At first he said he hadn’t heard it but the rest of the band had and they didn’t much like it so … so that was … thank you Thom. (Laughs). And then it was weird because he was going to do a version of [my song] “Wallflower’’ which he said he used to listen to a lot when he was a kid. But then I think they got busy, and he got pissed off being asked about it so [he] abandoned that one.

Q. That’s too bad since it seems like Radiohead would be a band that would cite you as an influence. But musicians, hey, you’re a temperamental lot.

A. I know. Difficult bastards at the best of times. It takes one to know one. (Laughs)

Q. Because of its placement in “Say Anything,’’ for many people “In Your Eyes’’ is inextricably linked to the image of John Cusack hoisting that boombox. How is that for you?

A. I think, like many artists, when anyone else is doing your promotion for you, you thank the Lord. (Laughs). It’s not a bad thing at all. We have occasionally spoken, Cusack and I, since we’re sort of indelibly married in that image. It’s a beautiful thing.

Q. It’s been almost a decade since you released an album of new material. Anything in the pipeline?

A. When I was younger, I was doing 90 percent music and 10 percent everything else, and now I think music is about a third of what I do between technology and [charity] stuff. With a young family again, I’m pretty determined not to work weekend or vacation time. So, I’m spending less time in a year, and I’m a slow worker. But there’s a lot of material cooking up, so I need to get back to that. But I’ve always taken the attitude, when it’s ready, it will come out and [to] have an interesting life in the meantime.

Sarah Rodman can be reached at srodman@globe.com.