Medleyville

David Rhodes doesn't get boxed in by stylistic considerations

During the last 30-plus years, guitarist David Rhodes has built himself quite a resume.

He's successfully collaborated with Peter Gabriel, both in the studio and as part of his touring band; helmed a group called Random Hold, which has garnered a cult following; and has worked and recorded with such artists as Paul McCartney, Akira Inoue and Roy Orbison, among others.

Rhodes, who will be touring this summer in support of Bittersweet, recently checked in to talk about his new album, his style and select moments from his career.

Medleyville.us: What prompted you to do a solo album and tour at this time, and was there a certain concept you had in mind for Bittersweet? What sets this apart from your other work?
David Rhodes: "Over time, I’ve written songs and bits of songs that have never seen the light of day. Gradually I came to feel as though I had a decent collection of material to work with and develop.

"There was no real concept behind the songs as a whole, just a desire to have them out in the open. I’ve always enjoyed singing, but I’ve spent most of my career playing guitar, which I also enjoy a lot. When you play for other people, your role is always one of supporting what they’re doing. Even when they give you great freedom, you’re helping them express themselves. So Bittersweet is a body of work where I am lord and master!"

Peter Gabriel took notice of Random Hold and subsequently asked your group to tour with him. What convinced you to accept Gabriel's invitation to join his band?
Rhodes: "PG, and his management and publishing company, came to see us play at the Rock Garden in London. After seeing that, he asked us to work on some demos for his third album. I was then asked to record with him, which I nervously did.

"I was really very new to guitar playing, having spent a few years studying at art school, and not 'guitaring.' Walking into a room of session musicians and enthusiastic production people -- when I didn't consider myself a real player -- was daunting.

"My main interest was, and still is, sound, not technique. I felt out of place, but Peter was supportive and helped me to get through the sessions [but] not without some hiccups along the way. The backing vocals for the record were great fun to record. They were way easier for me.

"It then followed that we supported Peter, on tours of both the U.K. and the U.S. On the tour of the States, [everyone in the band] became weirder and weirder with each other, and by the end we were all a bit grumpy and out of sorts, barely speaking to one another. When we got home, I decided to leave the band. I then spent a considerable time being down, and on reflection probably depressed, and in a dark frame of mind.

"It was after the recording of PG’s fourth album that I was invited to tour as part of his band. I suppose the factor that convinced me to accept was that I’d watched the previous incumbent playing some of my parts, and I knew I could do it better."

By your own admission, you don’t read music very well and aren't technically savvy, which may come as a surprise to many people. I imagine this provides a sense of freedom to absorb many different possibilities. How has this affected your approach to your music?
Rhodes: "The reading has only been a problem on a couple of occasions. The expedient way around that is to listen to what‘s going on. Limitations in technique can be viewed as a way of focusing and not getting bogged down in stylistic considerations. If you can’t come up with different ways of playing something, you become more absorbed in the sounds you're working with, and how they relate to what’s happening. The sound then leads to the part."

There's an interesting story behind how you came to work on Roy Orbison's Mystery Girl album. Can you talk a bit about that?
Rhodes: "At that time, I was working [co-producing] T-Bone [Burnett]’s Talking Animals. I had been home in England and was due back in L.A. to finish off the record. I went to the airport in London, and when I reached the airline desk, the staff informed me that my ticket was for the following day.

"I was confused. I normally check these things, as anyone does, but I’d convinced myself that I knew the day I was to travel and had only skimmed the ticket information. Fortunately, there was space on the plane and I was able to leave that day.

"I arrived in L.A. and spoke with T-Bone. We met up for a drink that evening, and he said he was in the middle of mixing an Orbison track that Elvis Costello had written, 'The Comedians.' There was a problem in that the orchestral session had gone well, but that they needed some guitar on the track. T-Bone had apparently asked Ry Cooder, who was working in the studio next door, to have a go, but he’d declined, saying there were too many chords in the tune. So he asked me to try something on it. I played the following day. It was fun."

You've composed for film and television and also created the soundtrack for the Italian animated film La Gabbianella E II Gatto. What was the experience of composing for an animated film like?
Rhodes: "It was a wonderful project to work on. It's a very popular and well-loved children's story in Italy. The extended title of the film translates as, 'The Little Seagull and the Cat Who Taught It to Fly.'

"There are two processes involved in working on animated films. In the first place, the songs are written [and] he animation will then follow the song; simple. The other process is the writing of the score, where the music supports the action. However, it’s not like scoring live action film, where you have the moving images to work to.

"With this animation, I had the recorded character voices and a static storyboard to work to. So you have to imagine the action and pace of it, from one static image to the next -- often 30 or more seconds apart -- by listening to the dialogue and reading the action from the script. You then create the music to suit what you think is going on. It was one of my first soundtracks, and really quite naive. Maybe that worked in its favor."

Other than the cuts from Bittersweet, what songs are you performing on the tour?
Rhodes: "When I’ll be supporting Cyndi Lauper [this summer], I’m not sure how long I'll play for, but there will be definitely one new song in the set, 'Waggle Dance.' This is a song loosely based on my research into keeping bees, which I began to do just over a year ago. I spend a lot of my time reading bee books and an online forum on bees. I then spend a lot of time worrying about my hives.

"There are a couple of other songs that I may try – 'Be Mine' and 'Ship of Fools.' These have been written specifically to take advantage of the guitar system that I am using for live performance. This involves making simple loops of what I'm doing as I’m playing."

What type of guitars are you using onstage?
Rhodes: "My stage setup is incredibly pared down. I’ve just completed a small tour of Europe, traveling on my own by train, carrying everything with me. I use a Gibson Les Paul Robot, which has a mechanized tuning system built into it. I wrote the album using some different tunings that would be very time consuming to deal with onstage.

"I run the guitar through a laptop, installed with Guitar Rig 4, which is software that does a pretty good job of simulating amps and contains a lot of effects. This then goes straight to the PA. This is a far cry from the half dozen guitars, big pedal board and big Rivera amps and cabinets that I take on [Gabriel] outings."

Do you have any musical plans after this tour? Another solo album, perhaps? A Random Hold reunion?
Rhodes: "I’ve done a handful of shows of the Bittersweet material, working with bass and drums. I’ve never played in a trio before, and I find it very exciting and great fun. It feels like a very pure form of band music. So maybe that's the way to proceed.

"There are a couple of [Gabriel] shows to play in Australia in November, I think. There is also a soundtrack for an English horror movie to work on, but that will be early next year.

"[Random Hold] will never reunite, as one of our [members], David Ferguson, sadly died last year."

-- Introduction and interview by Donald Gavron

David Rhodes on tour (schedule subject to change):

* June 29: House of Blues -- Cleveland

* June 30: House of Blues -- Chicago

* Aug. 1: House of Blues – Orlando, Fla.

* Aug. 3: Adrienne Arsht Center – Miami

* Aug. 4: Ruth Eckerd Hall – Clearwater, Fla.

* Aug. 6: Chastain Park Amphitheatre – Atlanta

* Aug. 7: Beau Rivage – Biloxi, Miss.

* Aug. 8: House of Blues -- New Orleans

* Aug. 10: Paramount Theatre – Austin, Texas

* Aug. 11: House of Blues – Dallas

* Aug. 12: House of Blues – Houston

* Aug. 14: Route 66 Casino – Albuquerque

* Aug. 15: Anselmo Valencia Amphitheatre – Tucson, Ariz.

* Aug. 17: The Mountain Winery – Saratoga, Calif.

* Aug. 18: Uptown Theatre – Napa, Calif.

* Aug. 20: Peppermill Wendover Casino – Wendover, Nev.

* Aug. 21: House of Blues -- Las Vegas

* Aug. 22: House of Blues -- San Diego

* Aug. 26: Chumash Casino -- Santa Ynez, Calif.

* Aug. 27: Greek Theatre -- Los Angeles

* Aug. 28: Silver Legacy – Reno, Nev.

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Witty veteran band continues to evolve

Devo's new album is an ambrosia salad filled with razor blades, a milkshake made from a hornets' nest, a pie-in-the-face to all things conventional and artificial. Something for Everybody (Warner Bros.) is the band's first studio release in 20 years, but this album – full of snappy drum beats, shredding, quirky synthesizer treatments and plucky guitar riffs -- is one of the Akron, Ohio-bred band's best and most consistent efforts since 1982's Oh No, It's Devo!.

The familiar lineup of singer Mark Mothersbaugh on synthesizers, brother Bob Mothersbaugh on guitar and synths, Bob Casale on guitar and programming, brother Gerald Casale on bass and synths, plus new drummer Josh Freese (A Perfect Circle, Guns N' Roses), has created a worthy companion to the albums in the Devo canon and given their fans cause to rejoice. De-volution has never been more popular or pertinent.

Something for Everybody is a misnomer, and Devo is not for everybody. From the opening tune ("Fresh") to the final track ("March On"), the clichés of modern life are savaged with pop aplomb — and if no one gets it, then that seems to prove the point.

Subjects such as lost faith, fanaticism, complacency, technology, drugs and war are all lampooned with an edgy sneer. "I won't even think twice/I really don't have a choice" the narrator says on "Fresh," as he searches for that elusive thing he is pursuing. In matters of irony, Devo makes Jerry Seinfeld look like Fyodor Dostoyevsky.

"What We Do" is a hilarious take on conformity. "Feedin' and breedin' and pumpin' gas/Cheeseburger, cheeseburger, do it again," the chorus wails. "Gamin', prayin', believin', maintainin', textin', electin', rejectin', infectin' " continues the assault on a society that has put its collective brain on the shelf.

"Step Up" is about a person who wants to help himself even though he has to "be firm, figure out what’s what." He can’t, no matter how hard he tries.

"Don't Shoot (I'm a Man)" encompasses the confusion and paranoia of the everyday man as he slogs through life. Who could imagine that songs like this could be so much fun?

Devo continues to satirize the contradictions of modern life in a manner that makes one shimmy and shake even as the apocalypse beckons. The more things change, the more they stay the same — or get worse. With Something for Everybody, the band has sharpened its rapier wits and skewered society in a manner that would make Aldous Huxley proud.

And you can dance to it, too.

-- By Donald Gavron

Posted by Medleyville at 08:47 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

FRANK ZAPPA'S LIST

Long before the Valley Girls, mud sharks, dental floss, yellow snow and, tragically, the cancer that claimed him in 1993, there was simply Francis Vincent "Frank" Zappa, a young kid with an above-eclectic record collection who escaped the confines of Lancaster, Calif., to arrive in Hollywood with his "rockin' teen combo," The Mothers of Invention, in 1965.

His career onstage and disc thereafter caused countless unsuspecting youngsters such as myself to immediately set aside their Monkees albums in order that we could join our newest mentor upon this most adventurous of all, as it turns out, musical paths.

But exactly how did this seemingly unassuming composer/guitarist become one of the most musically and socially iconoclastic participants of the 1960s? A fascinating new documentary from Sexy Intellectual, Frank Zappa: The Freak-Out List, uses the 179 names listed within the original 1966 issue of the Mothers' debut album, Freak Out!, as a guide to explaining, well, why the music therein sounded the way it did.

As in, sounded like nothing else released that year -- or ever since, for that matter.

Its detailed examinations of the classical composers and rhythm 'n' blues musicians, who first awoke young Zappa to the possibilities of a life and career submerged in musical exploration, truly give this film the meat of its matter. Of course, the quote "The present day composer refuses to die!" will be familiar to anyone who read the fine print inside the Mothers' key early albums. But as The Freak-Out List explains, the man who first uttered those defiant words in 1921, French composer Edgard Varèse, remained a major influence upon, and inspiration to, Zappa throughout his life.

Likewise, we learn of -- and actually hear via side-by-side audio/visual clips -- the above-obvious influence of Arnold Schoenberg's "Accompaniment to a Film Score" on Zappa's very own film scores, and precisely how snatches of Holst and Stravinsky end up weaved into the Mothers' Absolutely Free album of 1967. Why, as Zappa himself ordered the likely bemused readers of Hit Parader magazine that year, "buy everything that you can by Igor Stravinsky and dance to it."

Now, on the all-important flip side of The Freak-Out List lie the many doo-wop and R&B artists Zappa was also seriously grooving to, as he mastered drums then guitar in his very first Lancaster desert garage bands. For instance, it is impossible to hear any of Zappa's multitude guitar solos, recorded or otherwise, without being directed straight back to the magnificent Johnny "Guitar" Watson, and The Freak-Out List presents joyous, yet ultimately heartbreaking footage of the two's final musical get-together chez Zappa.

Elsewhere, we're shown how no less a kindred musical spirit as Miles Davis, and his In a Silent Way album in particular, helped create a context for Zappa's landmark "jazz-rock" (as it would be pigeon-holed today) Hot Rats. Yes, although he once (in)famously claimed "Jazz isn’t dead; it just smells funny," Zappa obviously kept his fair share of Eric Dolphy records alongside the Varèse, and co-operated so fully – and so successfully – in jazz violinist Jean-Luc Ponty's King Kong project that Ponty ended up as an actual Mother himself for two entire tours.

So, then: Dozens of albums, hundreds of compositions and thousands of performances later, we still may not be able to get a sufficient grip around the art, or as some would say artifice, of Frank Zappa. But ever since leaving on what was called his final tour, on Dec. 4, 1993, all we have left are his dedicated scholars, followers and now films such as The Freak-Out List (plus Sexy Intellectual's companion DVD Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention in the 1960s) to guide us toward our understanding and appreciation of a figure so prolific, so public, yet so baffling.

Musician/writer Gary Pig Gold is the co-founder of the To M'Lou Music label.

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She may only be in her early 20s, but folkie singer/songwriter Samantha Crain is very old-school in her approach to recording music. The way Crain sees it, a recording captures a moment in time, and she doesn't like to devote a whole lot of time achieving the end result.

Crain spent a reported five days recording 2009's Songs in the Night, her first full-length effort. For the recently released follow-up, You (Understood) (Ramseur), she took seven days at Spiderglass Studios in Wichita, Kansas, to record the album's 11 songs.

Earlier this month between tour dates, Crain checked in to discuss her recording style, how she maintains a simple, balanced life on the road and other subjects.

Medleyville.us: Generally speaking, there are advantages and disadvantages to anyone in his or her late teens who picks up the guitar for the first time, which is what you did. There’s a greater ability at that age to understand what you’re trying to learn and play, but finding the time to practice can be a challenge. Talk about where you were in your life when you started playing guitar and some of the obstacles and discoveries that popped up during that time.
Samantha Crain: "It was a little easier for me; I think if I would have been in any other situation, I probably wouldn’t have had as much time to focus on learning how to play guitar and write songs. But at that point, I was living on Martha's Vineyard in a musicians community, and that’s all I was expected to do was to teach myself [guitar] and write songs … for about four or five months.

"[At that time] I just wanted to get out of Oklahoma. I wasn't going so I could learn how to play guitar. I just saw an opportunity to get out of where I was from and ended up at this musicians community sort of thing through an off-campus [college] study program. I wasn't planning on becoming a musician or anything."

A few press outlets have likened your sound and songwriting to Neil Young, but it's really your preference to record quickly that's the most Young-like element of what you do. Have you always recorded this way, and who or what influenced this approach?
Crain: "I think that's a fairly important thing in what I'm doing: I like to record very quickly. I don't know exactly where the initial influence came from. I think I decided at some point that the immediacy of a record, even if it didn’t sound perfect or if you weren’t as prepared for it as you’d like to be, captured some sort of character. It's an actual record, a specific instance in time when the songs were recorded.

"I wasn't around a lot of musicians or bands [growing up] … so it might have come from knowing that Neil Young and Crazy Horse recorded their albums in a whirlwind. It's more important for it to be more of record of time instead of something that was labored over."

Do all 16 people you’ve said in your press materials were the ones who had an impact on the writing and recording of You (Understood) know they played a role in some way?
Crain: "I don't know. … I don't think anybody who has been in my life over the past year is thinking to themselves, 'I wonder if I’m one of those people?' I think I do a good enough job of covering things up and making them vague."

The sped-up part near the end of "Holdin' That Wheel" seemingly comes out of nowhere. Who came up with that idea, and how was it executed?
Crain: "It was my idea. I just knew that the end part was this big chunk – two chords rocking out for a bit, so I had the idea that I wanted it sped up at the end. Originally I thought it would be a manual speedup – speeding it up manually through the playing. Then as we were recording it and it became more of a single-track recording [approach] rather than a live recording, [the decision became] to speed up the tape after everything was recorded."

The appreciation for a slower-paced, simpler and quieter life helped inspire the songs "Santa Fe" and "Wichitalright." As a touring musician, those qualities are hard to find on a day-to-day basis, so how do you find solitude while on the road?
Crain: "That’s been more of my concern this year than playing shows and writing songs. The best ideas that I’ve come up with that I [actually] can do is trying to take two-lane highways rather than interstates. That way you’re seeing different parts of the country: You're not just seeing Wal-Marts and McDonald's from coast to coast – that can get kind of depressing. And instead of stopping to eat at restaurants right off the highway I try to find grocery stores and make more of my own food.

"Keeping a lot of stuff with me – that was one thing that I never used to do. I packed really light – just a backpack and a sleeping bag, and that was about it. But I found that packing a lot of stuff -- books and pictures and even stuff you know you won't use – just knowing that it's there creates more of a home atmosphere. I’m [also] just trying to time my day out better … and trying to make it more like if I had a real job."

-- By Chris M. Junior

Samantha Crain on tour (schedule subject to change):

* June 14: Middle East Upstairs – Cambridge, Mass.

* June 15: Bell House – Brooklyn, N.Y.

* June 16: Mercury Lounge – New York

* June 18: Castaways – Ithaca, N.Y.

* June 20: Iron Horse Music Hall – Northampton, Mass.

* June 22: Nightcat – Easton, Md.

* June 23: World Café Live – Philadelphia

* June 24: Iota Club & Café – Arlington, Va.

* June 26: Canal Club – Richmond, Va.

* June 27: Soapbox – Wilmington, N.C.

* June 28: Berkeley Café – Raleigh, N.C.

* June 29: Duke Gardens – Durham, N.C.

* June 30: Double Door Inn – Charlotte, N.C.

Photo by Todd Roeth

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John Mellencamp, Black Robot and more

* John Mellencamp -- On the Rural Route 7609 (Mercury/Island/Universal)

If there's any doubt remaining whether John Mellencamp is one of rock’s best singer/songwriters of the past 30 years, then On the Rural Route 7609 (due June 15) should take care of that.

This four-disc set, packaged in a sturdy, photo album-sized format, features select key Mellencamp hits in their original, demo and re-recorded forms, but the focus is on album tracks, among them "Jackie Brown," one of the best songs he’s ever written. It’s great to finally hear Mellencamp’s version of "Colored Lights," which he wrote for The Blasters. Lyrics, liner notes by Anthony DeCurtis and track-by-track commentary from Mellencamp round out this unconventional (yet worthwhile) boxed set.

* Black Robot -- Black Robot (Rocket Science/Formosa Records)

Imagine if the Bon Scott-led AC/DC took a stab at J.J. Cale's "Cocaine," and that's what you get with Black Robot's version that's on the band's self-titled debut (out now).

Founded by former Buckcherry bassist Jonathan "JB" Brightman, Black Robot also taps other hard-rock bands for inspiration: "Momma Don't Cry" has a Led Zeppelin-esque groove and Jimmy Page-style riffery, while "Girls Kissing Girls" will probably have the guys in Motley Crue wondering how they didn't come up with this shout-along chorus (and title) first.

Black Robot doesn’t break any new ground or offer any surprises on its debut, but the band has enough chops and tunes to get the job done.

* Neil Young: Long May You Run – The Illustrated History by Daniel Durchholz and Gary Graff (Voyageur Press)

As the title suggests, this Neil Young book is loaded with photos from throughout his career, as well as concert posters, ticket stubs, album covers and 45 picture sleeves. But thanks to the straightforward writing by Daniel Durchholz (a Rolling Stone veteran) and Gary Graff (Billboard), who effectively use previously published remarks from Young and others as part of their narrative thread, Long May You Run makes for a well-rounded, good read, too.

Young's Motown experience with the Mynah Birds (whose members included Rick James) is detailed in a tight sidebar, and the so-called feud between Young and Lynyrd Skynyrd and his legal battle with David Geffen are given the same treatment.

* Various Artists -- Guitar Masters Vol. 3 & 4: Les Paul Dedication (BHP Music)

It's a fact worth repeating: Music -- especially rock 'n' roll -- would not be what it is today without Les Paul's innovations. This two-disc set (out now) of wall-to-wall guitar workouts is dedicated to the late Paul, and the 25-track collection features contributions from such A-list names as Jeff Beck, Steve Vai and Allan Holdsworth. Standouts include Gary Hoey's rendition of the Beck song "El Becko."

-- By Chris M. Junior

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Edgy, unrefined effort comes up a little short

Fans of The Jam, take note: Former leader Paul Weller's new solo album, Wake Up the Nation (Yep Roc Records), harkens back to his days when he was an angry young man eschewing punk rock nihilism for a more focused social commentary.

Nation is edgy and unrefined -- and that seems to be the intent. "Moonshine," the opening song, begins with a blast of distortion that leads into a fiery piano reminiscent of Ian Hunter and Mott the Hoople. Just like many of the 16 tracks on this album, it ends abruptly at just a little more than two minutes and comes at you like a bullet that breezes past your head.

"She Speaks" works well as a short blend of mod/New Wave sensibility aided by My Bloody Valentine's Kevin Shields on guitar and former Jam member Bruce Foxton on bass. Many of the other songs –- such as "Fast Car/Slow Traffic" -- just begin to hook you when they wind down and stop.

"In Amsterdam" and "Whatever Next" are interesting fillers that lead nowhere, and there is an overall sense that most of the songs were composed by rote, but that doesn’t mean they aren't well-made or interesting.

"Aim High" and "No Tears to Cry" stand out, but on this album, the gems are few and far between. Longtime collaborator Steve Craddock solidifies the content of the production with his guitar, bass and drum work. Bev Bevan (The Move, Electric Light Orchestra) delivers some buoyant percussion on the two opening tracks, but -- like Shields and Foxton -- his contribution to the album is too minimal.

Weller's songwriting is in a class of its own, and for a vast majority of the time, it is more serious than frivolous. Wake Up the Nation is an interesting departure from Weller’s latest efforts (such as 22 Dreams), but it never quite achieves the polish or high standards that he holds himself to.

-- By Donald Gavron

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Whether it has to do with lyrics or song sequencing, Justin Currie puts a lot of thought into his work.

Currie, the former Del Amitri leader (and the voice behind the band's U.S. hits such as "Always the Last to Know" and "Roll to Me"), released his second solo effort, The Great War (Rykodisc), last month. He recently checked in with Medleyville.us to discuss (with dry humor and specific detail) his latest solo album as well as the aforementioned topics.

Medleyville.us: With The Great War, you didn't want to repeat what you did on What Is Love For. But at the same time, all musicians have their patterns and bags of tricks – basically, you write what you know, sing in ways that sound and feel the best and play to serve the song. So what did you go through in order to make The Great War different as well as "much brighter and more accessible," as you say in the press materials?
Justin Currie: "I slapped myself across the back of my hands with a spanner every time I approached the piano with a cloud of black mist around my head. I tried writing standing up and whilst walking up stairs. I spent days listening to Christian rock, and months reading books bought in airports about how to maximize one's inner optimist. I watched Walt Disney and The Waltons and threw away all my black clothes. I reverse engineered The Beach Boys' All Summer Long and reconstructed it on an acoustic guitar in a park in the rancid yellow sunshine."

Your new album has strings on a few songs. What inspired that decision, who recruited the string players and what kind of coaching, if any, did you provide the musicians prior to recording?
Currie: "When you're doing solo records after being in a band, the first thing you notice is the absence of second and third voices in the sound. In Del Amitri, there were always one or two guitarists playing a counter-melody to what I was doing -- not complementing the top line so much as competing with it. That tension is what makes collaborative music so great.

"Jote Osahn, who has arranged all the string parts on both solo records, adds that other voice. I send her the songs -- sometimes with rudimentary string sample parts, sometimes not -- have a brief discussion about the flavor I'm looking for and she comes back with these fabulously original takes on what the songs are about. She moves them somewhere else. Her arrangements are not servants to the song; they are more like builders knocking stuff down and moving it around leaving the interior of the thing looking completely different. Her parts often bring out meanings in a song that I hardly knew existed and make me sing them in another way."

Talk about the relationship going on in the song "You’ll Always Walk Alone." The line "our cover's blown/now it's all talk" is an "A ha!" kind of moment that reminded me of Del Amitri's "Not Where It's At," in which the female object of the male narrator's affection prefers women over men.
Currie: "That's an interesting take on 'Not Where It's At'! … Maybe that's what I meant: I have always had more time for lesbians than straight women.

"On the first solo album I left a lot of ambiguity in the lyrics -- does this guy singing really think this [stuff] or is he self-deluded? Not many people keyed in to that, which I didn't expect them to. So on this album I inserted 'punch-lines' to expose the real position of the singer. 'You'll Always Walk Alone' has a very happy ending, as do 'Can't Let Go of Her Now' and 'Baby, You Survived,' which makes a change from the old days when I quite often stuck car crashes at the end of love songs just so I wouldn't come across sounding like a sap."

The Great War contains three bonus tracks. In this era of CDs and digital downloads, what's the point of bonus tracks when the standard tangible format is the CD? Are the bonus tracks simply some extra songs that don't exactly fit in with the feel or theme of the proper album?
Currie: "I hate bonus tracks -- hate them. Every time you finish an album now, sequence it to within an inch of its life and have it mastered, some bright spark from marketing demands you produce extra tracks, which completely [screws] up the integrity of the album. There is a damn good reason why you choose the final cuts that you choose and sequence them the way that you do.

"So, for me, this album is 11 songs, which start with 'A Man With Nothing to Do' and end with 'Baby, You Survived.' The other critical thing about sequencing an album is that the first and last numbers have to have a sort of dialogue. I always work out how it functions as a loop because when you find an album that you love, the really big moment is when you get to the end, take a breath and then put the ‘needle’ back onto song one, side one and start again. The way that first song sounds after that little pause at the end of the final track is crucial."

When you’re out in public, what is your typical response when someone happens to say to you, “Hey Justin, when is Del Amitri getting back together?”
Currie: "I just tell them the truth: 'When your rich daddy remarries and offers [us] two hundred grand to play at his wedding in the Maldives.' "

-- Introduction and interview by Chris M. Junior

Justin Currie on tour (schedule subject to change):

* June 10: Lincoln Hall – Chicago

* June 11: Fine Line – Minneapolis

* June 12: Toad Tavern – Denver

* June 13: Café du Nord – San Francisco

* June 15: Troubadour – Los Angeles

* June 17: Joe's Pub – New York

* June 18: Paradise – Boston

* June 19: Tin Angel – Philadelphia

* June 20: Jammin Java – Vienna, Va.

Photo by Alan Dimmick

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