Um, you all know I love Duran Duran? John Taylor in particular? (Hell, I even got to interview him once - swoon!)
Well, I love John Taylor, and it turns out John Taylor loves Barack Obama, therefore I love Barack Obama! (As if I didn't already.)
Want proof?
Now VOTE! And if you're in Cali, vote NO ON 8! We're voting for love, not hate!
Showing posts sorted by date for query john taylor. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query john taylor. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
I Stand Accused
Burglary at Home of Duran Duran Guitarist
Posted Apr 2nd 2007 10:09PM by TMZ Staff
According to police, Taylor's house was ransacked and several items were missing from the residence, including the rocker's personal safe.
Taylor and his family are currently in England. The break-in was discovered by the housekeeping staff.
Along with the LAPD, the Hillside Burglary Task Force, also responded to the call. The special task force was created after a string of burglaries were reported in the west end of Hollywood Hills last year.
Cops told TMZ, "At this point, the fingerprints and photos are being taken of the scene and it is an ongoing investigation."
Taylor was one of the founding members of Duran Duran, one of the most popular bands of the 1980s.
******
Okay, I have received this info via email from many, many of my friends, asking me if I have an alibi. My deep love (but not obsession) of Duran Duran, and John Taylor, is well documented. Basically, what happened is this:
Well, I was looking for cracks in the pavement when suddenly I had a view to a kill! The shadows were on my side thanks to a new moon on Monday, so I slipped into the wild boy's house and, since I don't believe in shame, grabbed the electric Barbarella (what a girl on film!) and ran to the shore to the chauffeur. We were waiting for the night boat anyway, and there wasn't anyone out there, so we hightailed it to Tel Aviv. At the time I was pretty hungry like the wolf, but it's already just a careless memory, I'm afraid.
Geez, guys - I didn't do anything! If I broke into the man's house, I would have waited for him to come home and stayed over for drinks. And asked his wife Gela Nash-Taylor for some of those cute Juicy Couture tracksuits. Really!
******
Okay, I have received this info via email from many, many of my friends, asking me if I have an alibi. My deep love (but not obsession) of Duran Duran, and John Taylor, is well documented. Basically, what happened is this:
Well, I was looking for cracks in the pavement when suddenly I had a view to a kill! The shadows were on my side thanks to a new moon on Monday, so I slipped into the wild boy's house and, since I don't believe in shame, grabbed the electric Barbarella (what a girl on film!) and ran to the shore to the chauffeur. We were waiting for the night boat anyway, and there wasn't anyone out there, so we hightailed it to Tel Aviv. At the time I was pretty hungry like the wolf, but it's already just a careless memory, I'm afraid.
Geez, guys - I didn't do anything! If I broke into the man's house, I would have waited for him to come home and stayed over for drinks. And asked his wife Gela Nash-Taylor for some of those cute Juicy Couture tracksuits. Really!
Sunday, January 22, 2006
Sweet Dreams Are Made of This
Sometimes you get up kinda crabby and something completely wacky happens to snap you right out of it. Something that will most likely never, EVER happen to you again.
This happened to me today, and it's one of those "only in LA" things, which I am forever grateful for.
It is well documented that I am totally nuts about Duran Duran, John Taylor in particular. Mmm mmm good. But I'll take a sighting of any of those guys to bring my day up a notch, or a zillion notches. I've even had the lucky opportunity to meet John Taylor once in person, and to interview him (by phone, sadly) on another occasion. That makes me happy.
Today I went to the Arclight Theatres to see "Syrianna." The Arclight is basically the Cinerama Dome complex, which is a fancy movie experience because the seats are cozy and spacious, they have a bar, they serve popcorn and polish sausage and Haagen Daas, they tell you about the movie before it starts, and they stop seating people once it does. You get the idea. It's also waaaaaay pricey.
I wanted to go to the matinee, but got held up so I made it to the 4:45 showing instead. As I was buying my ticket, I heard a man with a British accent ordering his tickets from the fellow next to me. I glanced over out of curiosity, and it was Simon Le Bon. SIMON FUCKING LE BON! And he looked great. At this point, I tried to figure out if I could be seated near where they were seated, but realized that would be a bit obvious and since they weren't selling tons of tickets to a movie starting in 5 minutes, I decided my chances were good.
I went upstairs for my snacks, and Simon came along with a woman (who wasn't his wife, but looked vaguely familiar). I went into the theatre just before they came in, and wound up a couple of rows behind them. The movie started and I decided to pay attention to that, as I did pay the money after all, and it wasn't as if Simon was my favorite member of Duran Duran.
Early into the film, a third member joined their party, but I couldn't get a good look at him as they were all slouching comfortably and enjoying themselves. When the movie ended and the credits started to roll, I watched the group to see when they were getting up to leave so that I could saunter out alongside them. Simon stood up, so I made my way around them to the aisle and as I passed by (because they hadn't budged), I saw that the third member of their party was John Taylor.
JOHN FUCKING TAYLOR!
I still cannot believe that John Taylor was sitting two rows in front of me for nearly 3 hours and I didn't notice. You'd think my ovaries would have rumbled or something. It was then that I realized that the woman there was John's wife, Gela Nash Taylor, co-creator of Juicy Couture. They were watching the credits roll and he said, "Oh, it was Chris Cooper! I like him but I always forget his name..." "Oh, he's good," Simon responded. "He won the Academy Award for that one movie, the one where he didn't have his front teeth..." "Adaptation," interjected John. And then I had to walk out of the theatre before being outed as a borderline stalker.
I was so excited that I immediately got a really amazing headache.I mean, how cute is it that Simon and John, after having been in a band for over 25 years, hang out and go to the movies together? I immediately walked next door to my alma mater, Amoeba Music, so I could tell one of my best friends and my ex-boyfriend (who had both been witness to my original John Taylor sighting and subsequent meltdown) about this one and they could see how well I handled it this time.
I'm still only shaking a little bit.
Oh, and I really liked "Syrianna."
This happened to me today, and it's one of those "only in LA" things, which I am forever grateful for.
It is well documented that I am totally nuts about Duran Duran, John Taylor in particular. Mmm mmm good. But I'll take a sighting of any of those guys to bring my day up a notch, or a zillion notches. I've even had the lucky opportunity to meet John Taylor once in person, and to interview him (by phone, sadly) on another occasion. That makes me happy.
Today I went to the Arclight Theatres to see "Syrianna." The Arclight is basically the Cinerama Dome complex, which is a fancy movie experience because the seats are cozy and spacious, they have a bar, they serve popcorn and polish sausage and Haagen Daas, they tell you about the movie before it starts, and they stop seating people once it does. You get the idea. It's also waaaaaay pricey.
I wanted to go to the matinee, but got held up so I made it to the 4:45 showing instead. As I was buying my ticket, I heard a man with a British accent ordering his tickets from the fellow next to me. I glanced over out of curiosity, and it was Simon Le Bon. SIMON FUCKING LE BON! And he looked great. At this point, I tried to figure out if I could be seated near where they were seated, but realized that would be a bit obvious and since they weren't selling tons of tickets to a movie starting in 5 minutes, I decided my chances were good.
I went upstairs for my snacks, and Simon came along with a woman (who wasn't his wife, but looked vaguely familiar). I went into the theatre just before they came in, and wound up a couple of rows behind them. The movie started and I decided to pay attention to that, as I did pay the money after all, and it wasn't as if Simon was my favorite member of Duran Duran.
Early into the film, a third member joined their party, but I couldn't get a good look at him as they were all slouching comfortably and enjoying themselves. When the movie ended and the credits started to roll, I watched the group to see when they were getting up to leave so that I could saunter out alongside them. Simon stood up, so I made my way around them to the aisle and as I passed by (because they hadn't budged), I saw that the third member of their party was John Taylor.
JOHN FUCKING TAYLOR!
I still cannot believe that John Taylor was sitting two rows in front of me for nearly 3 hours and I didn't notice. You'd think my ovaries would have rumbled or something. It was then that I realized that the woman there was John's wife, Gela Nash Taylor, co-creator of Juicy Couture. They were watching the credits roll and he said, "Oh, it was Chris Cooper! I like him but I always forget his name..." "Oh, he's good," Simon responded. "He won the Academy Award for that one movie, the one where he didn't have his front teeth..." "Adaptation," interjected John. And then I had to walk out of the theatre before being outed as a borderline stalker.
I was so excited that I immediately got a really amazing headache.I mean, how cute is it that Simon and John, after having been in a band for over 25 years, hang out and go to the movies together? I immediately walked next door to my alma mater, Amoeba Music, so I could tell one of my best friends and my ex-boyfriend (who had both been witness to my original John Taylor sighting and subsequent meltdown) about this one and they could see how well I handled it this time.
I'm still only shaking a little bit.
Oh, and I really liked "Syrianna."
Monday, May 30, 2005
Blast Off!
My musical alphabet has reached R. Which means... Rocket from the Crypt!!!!!
I'm a San Diego girl. I was bored to tears there, though, and got out when I could. I've always been a big music geek, and there were never really any good shows that came through SD. There might have been some fun local bands, but there was mostly a lot of blues-rock and reggae, which I wasn't in the mood for.
Of course, a couple years after I left, the SD music scene got cool. One of the early bands to come out of that was Rocket From the Crypt. They sprang from the remnants of the glorious Pitchfork (the band, not the snarky site we love to hate) in 1990, spewing rowdy garage punkabilly - with horns. You could practically see the hair grease, tattoos, and sunglasses before you ever saw them live. They are a great fuckin' band.
Leader John Reis (also in Hot Snakes and Drive Like Jehu) hosts a radio show at a SD station called Swami Radio. I tuned in on a recent visit, and got to hear the Sonics, the Real Kids, Brian Eno, Delroy Wilson, the Saints, and Houndog Taylor. He brings listeners on sometimes and they all rock out together.
The swami looks an awful lot like another gentleman who has inspired Reis. Inspired many people in San Diego, actually. I don't know his name, but he is a dry cleaner... A dry cleaner with a need, a desire, to clean your clothes. He has named his chain of dry cleaning services Velvet Touch, and billboards and bus signs all over town feature a large grinning head of a man with a slogan proclaiming: THIS MAN WANTS TO CLEAN YOUR CLOTHES.
So if you own that first Rocket record, and you always wondered what the hell that song was about, there you go. Inspirational!
I'm a San Diego girl. I was bored to tears there, though, and got out when I could. I've always been a big music geek, and there were never really any good shows that came through SD. There might have been some fun local bands, but there was mostly a lot of blues-rock and reggae, which I wasn't in the mood for.
Of course, a couple years after I left, the SD music scene got cool. One of the early bands to come out of that was Rocket From the Crypt. They sprang from the remnants of the glorious Pitchfork (the band, not the snarky site we love to hate) in 1990, spewing rowdy garage punkabilly - with horns. You could practically see the hair grease, tattoos, and sunglasses before you ever saw them live. They are a great fuckin' band.
Leader John Reis (also in Hot Snakes and Drive Like Jehu) hosts a radio show at a SD station called Swami Radio. I tuned in on a recent visit, and got to hear the Sonics, the Real Kids, Brian Eno, Delroy Wilson, the Saints, and Houndog Taylor. He brings listeners on sometimes and they all rock out together.
The swami looks an awful lot like another gentleman who has inspired Reis. Inspired many people in San Diego, actually. I don't know his name, but he is a dry cleaner... A dry cleaner with a need, a desire, to clean your clothes. He has named his chain of dry cleaning services Velvet Touch, and billboards and bus signs all over town feature a large grinning head of a man with a slogan proclaiming: THIS MAN WANTS TO CLEAN YOUR CLOTHES.
So if you own that first Rocket record, and you always wondered what the hell that song was about, there you go. Inspirational!
Monday, March 28, 2005
Let's Take the Whole Day Off
The Found Magazine junkies abound. God bless Miss R.B. from Brighton in the UK for being fabulously creative with found objects. Go here and have a read.
I wrote enough yesterday. Revel in John Taylor-ness.
I wrote enough yesterday. Revel in John Taylor-ness.
Sunday, March 27, 2005
Last Chance on the Stairway
Back in January, I interviewed John Taylor for a trashy supermarket rag. They thought they might use it for filler, but since Jen & Brad broke up around that time, they didn't really need it. Unless John Taylor had weighed in on that particular drama as well, which he didn't. They held onto it for a while, but now it's all mine again. Of course, I'm posting it here, in its uninterrupted (and occasionally embarrassing) glory.
Unfortunately for me, it was a ten minute phone interview, so I didn't have the luxury of either turning beet red or hyperventilating in the presence of the Hot One (who was terribly nice, by the way). My teen crushes never die, apparently.
Tuesday, January 11th, 2005
John Taylor: Hello Mo! Mo, Mo, Mo, Mo!
Mo: Hi John, thanks so much for taking the time to do this today.
JT: Where are you?
Mo: Sitting on the floor in my living room.
JT: No, what city?
Mo: Oh, Silverlake.
JT: Ah! Are you keeping dry?
Mo: We didn't really suffer too much from the rain, what about you? Aren't you on the Westside?
JT: Yes. We thought some houses might fall off the cliff, but everyone's okay. The rain has stopped, but nobody wants to leave home.
Mo: I was leaving home during the rain, I wasn't afraid.
JT: Nobody goes because nobody knows what to do, do they?
Mo: That's just Los Angeles, though; that's just California. I lived in Northern California too and when it rains up there the same thing happens - everyone just sort of freezes. So, I have some questions to ask you before we get bolted off the line... The upcoming tour: you're hitting up stadiums this time?
JT: Actually, they're not stadiums, they're arenas.
Mo: Ah, arenas, arenas...
JT: I think a stadium implies the outdoors, and in LA we're playing the Staples Center, which is pretty big.
Mo: Alright, you're playing really, really really large venues.
JT: (laughs)Well, yea, we did a British tour like that last year.
Mo: Yea, and I remember that you had both the Scissor Sisters and Goldfrapp opening.
JT: Right!
Mo: And I wanted to give you guys props for having those two bands and knowing about those bands, especially at that time for the Scissor Sisters, because no one outside of New York City really knew who they were. What kind of openers do you think you're going to have this time around?
JT: We haven't firmed it up yet, but it's gonna be good.
Mo: I remember reading about those shows, and Goldfrapp especially. She has such an amazing voice.
JT: She's wonderful.
Mo: Yea, an incredible singer. How is this tour going to be for you guys? When was the last time you played venues this large in the United States?
JT: We did a couple radios shows like that before Christmas, but it wasn't our show. To tell you the truth, I'm quite comfortable. I love to play... just let me at it. It's a drag if you love something like that - what I do - better than anything else, that two hours on stage... I love that, I feel that's my thing. I'm lucky to get to do that these days. A lot goes into a tour, I mean, it's extraordinary. A ten week tour! I mean, who the hell does ten week tours? I'm sure no British band! (laughs) But it's very, very exciting. I think the reason we don't have an opening act yet is because they're all a bit frightened! (more laughing) Really, it's going to be a tremendous opportunity because you're going to be able to grow so much. The band that plays the last date will be a completely different band from the one that played the first date. There's no short cut, you know. If you're a performer, you want to be a great act. If you want to be a player, you've gotta play.
Mo: I'm sure that you're selling lots of tickets to this because the album has been doing great. I've really been enjoying it! What have you noticed about your fans? They've grown up with you guys, I think. So how has it been, since Roger came back and the original lineup has gotten back together? How has the audience been?
JT: It's galvanized everybody. Everybody that was kinda sorta into the band has come out, has come back, has said, "Fuck it, I don't mind!" And time and trends have helped us as well. The last couple of years have been like, "Whew! Well, it's okay to like this band." And I think when people actually do come to the shows, and they feel a part of the crowd that is very... it's like... Ok, maybe 20 years ago we would have pooh-poohed the idea that people who are interested in fashion and style and all that stuff, but we've become such a fashion and style oriented society that now, if you're in a Duran Duran audience and you look around, you go, "Wow, this is where the cool kids are!"
We used to feel this tremendous... what we used to call "audience envy." We'd look at the Rolling Stones audience or the Guns and Roses audience and say, "Why isn't our audience as sexy as theirs?" And now we don't have that anymore because we've got the coolest audience. We've got teenagers right up next to the gorgeous, gorgeous forty somethings, a really good crossover.
Mo: Speaking of having all the cool kids at your show, I have to ask about the celebrity fan quotient and I was just wondering if you had any interesting stories... like I hear that Gwen Stefani is a big fan, Jennifer Aniston loves you, or the entire band The Killers, and of course Mark McGrath from Sugar Ray...
JT: Gwen is a big fan and I really love her, and I'm a big fan of her as well. I think having their support and their interest has meant a lot to us. But really, we're a band's band. There's a lot of personalities in our band. Most bands today, I think, have somebody, who was influenced by a member of Duran Duran. You know what I mean? You know, whether it's like, Korn's singer, or the Killer's bass player, Franz Ferdinand's drummer... Everybody's band was influenced by one of us. We're not like a band where it's really all about one guy and everybody else plays his songs. We're very, very democratic; we're very sum of the parts. I mean, if you wanna be a bass player, chances are you're gonna check me out (laughs), along with other bass players! We've always shouted our musical identities out loud.
Mo: So back to the tour, your schedule has been really hectic. How is Andy [who was out during the shows played in December due to illness]?
JT: We had a pretty intense schedule, and when we were finishing up the album I went back to LA for a week and spent a bit of time with my kid, but Andy kept at it. He stayed in the studio. I didn't really mind when he called up in December and said, "Hey, I gotta check out." It was quite challenging getting someone up to speed in about 48 hours. When you have to ride something like that, it's very frustrating, but it kind of makes you stronger. We all took the holidays off and then we got back together last week and started playing again, and the work that we had to do with the stand-in guy paid off, because Andy was back and we'd done a lot of work in the meantime.
Mo: Now when you tour, do you bring your family along or do they meet you along the way?
JT: Yea, they do. But they're so fucking blasé! Like my daughter in particular, she's really fucking blasé. "Oh, whatever. Maybe I'll come out..." You know, she's gotta have her own suite. My wife's kids [Taylor's wife is Juicy Couture co-founder, Gela Nash-Taylor], they're really into music and into the mechanics of music; how songs get written. They've seen a lot of it. My daughter's like, "Six days dad, that's the most!" I'm like, "Come on, come and spend some time with me on the road." "Aw dad, really? Do I have to?" They're just at the age where they want to be with their friends. And it doesn't matter that I'm like, "But I thought I was cool!" "It's not that - it's not personal. I just want to be with my friends."
Mo: (laughing) That puts a bit of perspective on things, doesn't it?
JT: Yea it does. Humility.
Mo: Before I wrap it up, I was curious about what kinds of acts the band is into now. Does anyone have any particular favorites?
JT: Well, it's just been so great to be doing this, making your own music, and um... I'm all about me right now! (laughs) If you'd asked me two years ago, I would have given you a roll call of music I was listening to, but when you're in your own band and you're playing every day... that's it, baby.
Mo: So right now, you guys are the shit.
JT: Yea!
Mo: Excellent! Are you looking forward to the tour?
JT: Oh god, yes.
Mo: And where do you kick off?
JT: Fort Lauderdale. And we end in the Garden.
Mo: Nice! Well, there's that somewhat infamous statement from the beginning of Duran Duran that within a certain number of years from the formation of the final lineup of the band, that you would be playing to a sold out Madison Square Gardens.
JT: It took us longer this time around to get there! Simon joined the summer of '80, and within 4 years, we sold out 2 nights at Madison Square Garden. This time, hmmm... we've worked together... oh anyway, who's counting! We're glad to be back.
Mo: Well, I'm glad that you guys stuck it out and that everyone's come back together. It has galvanized fans, at least that I've seen. I've been a big fan since... well, as long as I can remember.
JT: Longer than you can remember!
Mo: Sorry, college drinking has interfered with what I remember (laughs).
JT: So what are you listening to, what's your favorite album?
Mo: My favorite album? I go back and forth between the first two.
JT: No, no, what music are you listening to at the moment?
Mo: Oh, my favorite album of last year was Interpol, Antics. And my second one was the Delays, Faded Seaside Glamour.
JT: Oh, I've never heard of that!
Mo: Faded Seaside Glamour, rather, the Delays, is sort of like the Las meet the Cocteau Twins; it's really beautiful and I'm a sucker for melody, so that pulled me right in.
JT: So your favorite Duran records are the first two?
Mo: Yes, the first two, and the other ones go back and forth on my turntable. Well, I still have a turntable!
JT: I got one for Christmas, actually. It's been such a long time since I've used one!
Mo: I still DJ around town, so I can never give them up.
JT: Oh, you do? Where?
Mo: Sometimes at the Burgundy Room out in Hollywood.
JT: Cool. I like the Burgundy Room.
Mo: Yes, it's fun and I have to tell you, "Careless Memories" is always a big hit!
JT: Yea, that's a good song.
Mo: And of course, everyone likes "Girls on Film."
JT: Of course!
Mo: Well thank you for talking with me this afternoon, stay dry and have a good tour!
JT: Thank you and ta ta!
Unfortunately for me, it was a ten minute phone interview, so I didn't have the luxury of either turning beet red or hyperventilating in the presence of the Hot One (who was terribly nice, by the way). My teen crushes never die, apparently.
Tuesday, January 11th, 2005
John Taylor: Hello Mo! Mo, Mo, Mo, Mo!
Mo: Hi John, thanks so much for taking the time to do this today.
JT: Where are you?
Mo: Sitting on the floor in my living room.
JT: No, what city?
Mo: Oh, Silverlake.
JT: Ah! Are you keeping dry?
Mo: We didn't really suffer too much from the rain, what about you? Aren't you on the Westside?
JT: Yes. We thought some houses might fall off the cliff, but everyone's okay. The rain has stopped, but nobody wants to leave home.
Mo: I was leaving home during the rain, I wasn't afraid.
JT: Nobody goes because nobody knows what to do, do they?
Mo: That's just Los Angeles, though; that's just California. I lived in Northern California too and when it rains up there the same thing happens - everyone just sort of freezes. So, I have some questions to ask you before we get bolted off the line... The upcoming tour: you're hitting up stadiums this time?
JT: Actually, they're not stadiums, they're arenas.
Mo: Ah, arenas, arenas...
JT: I think a stadium implies the outdoors, and in LA we're playing the Staples Center, which is pretty big.
Mo: Alright, you're playing really, really really large venues.
JT: (laughs)Well, yea, we did a British tour like that last year.
Mo: Yea, and I remember that you had both the Scissor Sisters and Goldfrapp opening.
JT: Right!
Mo: And I wanted to give you guys props for having those two bands and knowing about those bands, especially at that time for the Scissor Sisters, because no one outside of New York City really knew who they were. What kind of openers do you think you're going to have this time around?
JT: We haven't firmed it up yet, but it's gonna be good.
Mo: I remember reading about those shows, and Goldfrapp especially. She has such an amazing voice.
JT: She's wonderful.
Mo: Yea, an incredible singer. How is this tour going to be for you guys? When was the last time you played venues this large in the United States?
JT: We did a couple radios shows like that before Christmas, but it wasn't our show. To tell you the truth, I'm quite comfortable. I love to play... just let me at it. It's a drag if you love something like that - what I do - better than anything else, that two hours on stage... I love that, I feel that's my thing. I'm lucky to get to do that these days. A lot goes into a tour, I mean, it's extraordinary. A ten week tour! I mean, who the hell does ten week tours? I'm sure no British band! (laughs) But it's very, very exciting. I think the reason we don't have an opening act yet is because they're all a bit frightened! (more laughing) Really, it's going to be a tremendous opportunity because you're going to be able to grow so much. The band that plays the last date will be a completely different band from the one that played the first date. There's no short cut, you know. If you're a performer, you want to be a great act. If you want to be a player, you've gotta play.
Mo: I'm sure that you're selling lots of tickets to this because the album has been doing great. I've really been enjoying it! What have you noticed about your fans? They've grown up with you guys, I think. So how has it been, since Roger came back and the original lineup has gotten back together? How has the audience been?
JT: It's galvanized everybody. Everybody that was kinda sorta into the band has come out, has come back, has said, "Fuck it, I don't mind!" And time and trends have helped us as well. The last couple of years have been like, "Whew! Well, it's okay to like this band." And I think when people actually do come to the shows, and they feel a part of the crowd that is very... it's like... Ok, maybe 20 years ago we would have pooh-poohed the idea that people who are interested in fashion and style and all that stuff, but we've become such a fashion and style oriented society that now, if you're in a Duran Duran audience and you look around, you go, "Wow, this is where the cool kids are!"
We used to feel this tremendous... what we used to call "audience envy." We'd look at the Rolling Stones audience or the Guns and Roses audience and say, "Why isn't our audience as sexy as theirs?" And now we don't have that anymore because we've got the coolest audience. We've got teenagers right up next to the gorgeous, gorgeous forty somethings, a really good crossover.
Mo: Speaking of having all the cool kids at your show, I have to ask about the celebrity fan quotient and I was just wondering if you had any interesting stories... like I hear that Gwen Stefani is a big fan, Jennifer Aniston loves you, or the entire band The Killers, and of course Mark McGrath from Sugar Ray...
JT: Gwen is a big fan and I really love her, and I'm a big fan of her as well. I think having their support and their interest has meant a lot to us. But really, we're a band's band. There's a lot of personalities in our band. Most bands today, I think, have somebody, who was influenced by a member of Duran Duran. You know what I mean? You know, whether it's like, Korn's singer, or the Killer's bass player, Franz Ferdinand's drummer... Everybody's band was influenced by one of us. We're not like a band where it's really all about one guy and everybody else plays his songs. We're very, very democratic; we're very sum of the parts. I mean, if you wanna be a bass player, chances are you're gonna check me out (laughs), along with other bass players! We've always shouted our musical identities out loud.
Mo: So back to the tour, your schedule has been really hectic. How is Andy [who was out during the shows played in December due to illness]?
JT: We had a pretty intense schedule, and when we were finishing up the album I went back to LA for a week and spent a bit of time with my kid, but Andy kept at it. He stayed in the studio. I didn't really mind when he called up in December and said, "Hey, I gotta check out." It was quite challenging getting someone up to speed in about 48 hours. When you have to ride something like that, it's very frustrating, but it kind of makes you stronger. We all took the holidays off and then we got back together last week and started playing again, and the work that we had to do with the stand-in guy paid off, because Andy was back and we'd done a lot of work in the meantime.
Mo: Now when you tour, do you bring your family along or do they meet you along the way?
JT: Yea, they do. But they're so fucking blasé! Like my daughter in particular, she's really fucking blasé. "Oh, whatever. Maybe I'll come out..." You know, she's gotta have her own suite. My wife's kids [Taylor's wife is Juicy Couture co-founder, Gela Nash-Taylor], they're really into music and into the mechanics of music; how songs get written. They've seen a lot of it. My daughter's like, "Six days dad, that's the most!" I'm like, "Come on, come and spend some time with me on the road." "Aw dad, really? Do I have to?" They're just at the age where they want to be with their friends. And it doesn't matter that I'm like, "But I thought I was cool!" "It's not that - it's not personal. I just want to be with my friends."
Mo: (laughing) That puts a bit of perspective on things, doesn't it?
JT: Yea it does. Humility.
Mo: Before I wrap it up, I was curious about what kinds of acts the band is into now. Does anyone have any particular favorites?
JT: Well, it's just been so great to be doing this, making your own music, and um... I'm all about me right now! (laughs) If you'd asked me two years ago, I would have given you a roll call of music I was listening to, but when you're in your own band and you're playing every day... that's it, baby.
Mo: So right now, you guys are the shit.
JT: Yea!
Mo: Excellent! Are you looking forward to the tour?
JT: Oh god, yes.
Mo: And where do you kick off?
JT: Fort Lauderdale. And we end in the Garden.
Mo: Nice! Well, there's that somewhat infamous statement from the beginning of Duran Duran that within a certain number of years from the formation of the final lineup of the band, that you would be playing to a sold out Madison Square Gardens.
JT: It took us longer this time around to get there! Simon joined the summer of '80, and within 4 years, we sold out 2 nights at Madison Square Garden. This time, hmmm... we've worked together... oh anyway, who's counting! We're glad to be back.
Mo: Well, I'm glad that you guys stuck it out and that everyone's come back together. It has galvanized fans, at least that I've seen. I've been a big fan since... well, as long as I can remember.
JT: Longer than you can remember!
Mo: Sorry, college drinking has interfered with what I remember (laughs).
JT: So what are you listening to, what's your favorite album?
Mo: My favorite album? I go back and forth between the first two.
JT: No, no, what music are you listening to at the moment?
Mo: Oh, my favorite album of last year was Interpol, Antics. And my second one was the Delays, Faded Seaside Glamour.
JT: Oh, I've never heard of that!
Mo: Faded Seaside Glamour, rather, the Delays, is sort of like the Las meet the Cocteau Twins; it's really beautiful and I'm a sucker for melody, so that pulled me right in.
JT: So your favorite Duran records are the first two?
Mo: Yes, the first two, and the other ones go back and forth on my turntable. Well, I still have a turntable!
JT: I got one for Christmas, actually. It's been such a long time since I've used one!
Mo: I still DJ around town, so I can never give them up.
JT: Oh, you do? Where?
Mo: Sometimes at the Burgundy Room out in Hollywood.
JT: Cool. I like the Burgundy Room.
Mo: Yes, it's fun and I have to tell you, "Careless Memories" is always a big hit!
JT: Yea, that's a good song.
Mo: And of course, everyone likes "Girls on Film."
JT: Of course!
Mo: Well thank you for talking with me this afternoon, stay dry and have a good tour!
JT: Thank you and ta ta!
Monday, February 14, 2005
Six Degrees of John Taylor
Ok, you know how every once in a while you find a dorky game so fun that you can't stop playing it? And you think about its possibilities when you aren't playing it? Well, thanks alot, Scott Stereogum, because you linked me to a game that actually made it possible to connect my current alt rock crush - Ken Andrews (Failure, On, Year of the Rabbit) - to my teen dream - John Taylor (Duran Duran, duh). In 9 moves. It took a few more to connect the Eagles to Bikini Kill, but it could be done. IT COULD BE DONE.
Thank God for computer nerds who are also music geeks, or I wouldn't be able to get my goober factor so high.
Thank God for computer nerds who are also music geeks, or I wouldn't be able to get my goober factor so high.
Monday, December 06, 2004
Welcome to the Terrordome
I'm talking more about this Duran Duran thing, for the LA stylings of it. I know some of you don't live here, think it's awful, and I'm willing to feed that beast... just for a moment.
At the show, the floor was sectioned off into three parts. My press pass had been mixed up at the entrance, so I had a "regular" admittance pass. (I got my VIP later.) Anyway, I was concerned that my incorrect pass gave me a less than stellar view, because there were a whole bunch of people up front, and roped off. Nope, I couldn't go there. That was for the fans and seatfillers.
So today, I went to the Duran Duran forums for the first time, and read some interesting things (which I later had verified). Another reason to believe that Los Angeles can truly live up to it's reputation:
"...We arrived and waited at least two hours in the cold (ed. note: our evenings have been about 40 degreees, weird for LA). Various people were being pulled from the line and were taken in beforehand. When we were finally let in, the audience was sectioned off into three areas. The seatfiller.com people (1/2 of who were not fans, but I recognized many people who utilized this service to get in who were fans, so that was a good thing) were in the front surrounding the stage. The middle area was reserved for Bailey's people and the fans from ddmusic were placed in the back. Needless to say I was very dissappointed, angry is more like it. Yes, I should have been thankful that I was even there, but to know that the fans were placed in the back really pissed me off. I asked three people from VH1 what was going on and who was responsible and did the band have anything to do with the placement of the fans. Two had no idea what I was talking about and the third production staff I spoke to said that "because this is a TV show, we need actors and model types in the front for the camera".
"...I think it is worth noting that probably 60% of the seatfillers were hardcore fans (i was one of them) who happened to be industrious and signed up. That was the only way for us to get to go to the event, if you weren't a member of ddm.com. Everyone around me knew all the words to all the songs. I think you will see that when the show airs. I just don't want some misconception going around that most of the seatfillers were not big fans, because that is not true."
"...After a long walk to the soundstage, we're told we HAVE to check our coats before we go inside because they want it to look like "warm, sunny California". I looked at the guy and told him I'm not checking my coat. (I had a leather, tailored coat on) He tried to tell me they wouldn't let me in. I laughed at that and told him if he wanted to put me up front, I'd check my coat, otherwise forget it. So we walked in and there were a shi*tload of people already in there. We were literally at the back. They then ushered in a bunch of corporate people in between us and the seatfillers. If I hadn't been in heels, I would have seen precisely ZIP.As for the seat fillers, perhaps the ones up front were fans, but the ones in front of us stood there like deadwood through most of the show and when the fans in the back got excited over anything they, along with the corporate folk, threw looks over their shoulders and rolled their eyes. The real kicker was walking out after and being behind two females wearing VIP lams. Her comment to quote it directly:
'Can you believe those fans that were pissed off because they were in the back? As if anyone wants to see their fat wrinkly asses on tv.'"
So when John Taylor made that crack about everyone being from Central Casting... I guess he wasn't kidding.
At the show, the floor was sectioned off into three parts. My press pass had been mixed up at the entrance, so I had a "regular" admittance pass. (I got my VIP later.) Anyway, I was concerned that my incorrect pass gave me a less than stellar view, because there were a whole bunch of people up front, and roped off. Nope, I couldn't go there. That was for the fans and seatfillers.
So today, I went to the Duran Duran forums for the first time, and read some interesting things (which I later had verified). Another reason to believe that Los Angeles can truly live up to it's reputation:
"...We arrived and waited at least two hours in the cold (ed. note: our evenings have been about 40 degreees, weird for LA). Various people were being pulled from the line and were taken in beforehand. When we were finally let in, the audience was sectioned off into three areas. The seatfiller.com people (1/2 of who were not fans, but I recognized many people who utilized this service to get in who were fans, so that was a good thing) were in the front surrounding the stage. The middle area was reserved for Bailey's people and the fans from ddmusic were placed in the back. Needless to say I was very dissappointed, angry is more like it. Yes, I should have been thankful that I was even there, but to know that the fans were placed in the back really pissed me off. I asked three people from VH1 what was going on and who was responsible and did the band have anything to do with the placement of the fans. Two had no idea what I was talking about and the third production staff I spoke to said that "because this is a TV show, we need actors and model types in the front for the camera".
"...I think it is worth noting that probably 60% of the seatfillers were hardcore fans (i was one of them) who happened to be industrious and signed up. That was the only way for us to get to go to the event, if you weren't a member of ddm.com. Everyone around me knew all the words to all the songs. I think you will see that when the show airs. I just don't want some misconception going around that most of the seatfillers were not big fans, because that is not true."
"...After a long walk to the soundstage, we're told we HAVE to check our coats before we go inside because they want it to look like "warm, sunny California". I looked at the guy and told him I'm not checking my coat. (I had a leather, tailored coat on) He tried to tell me they wouldn't let me in. I laughed at that and told him if he wanted to put me up front, I'd check my coat, otherwise forget it. So we walked in and there were a shi*tload of people already in there. We were literally at the back. They then ushered in a bunch of corporate people in between us and the seatfillers. If I hadn't been in heels, I would have seen precisely ZIP.As for the seat fillers, perhaps the ones up front were fans, but the ones in front of us stood there like deadwood through most of the show and when the fans in the back got excited over anything they, along with the corporate folk, threw looks over their shoulders and rolled their eyes. The real kicker was walking out after and being behind two females wearing VIP lams. Her comment to quote it directly:
'Can you believe those fans that were pissed off because they were in the back? As if anyone wants to see their fat wrinkly asses on tv.'"
So when John Taylor made that crack about everyone being from Central Casting... I guess he wasn't kidding.
Sunday, December 05, 2004
D Is for... Duh!
If you ask me to name a band whose name starts with D, I'm gonna name these guys:
Duran Duran. Founded in 1978, they were an art school band fronted by Stephen "Tin Tin" Duffy (remember that 80's song "Kiss Me?" Yea, that guy). Nick Bates was on keyboards, Nigel Taylor on guitar. There was even a clarinet.
Stephen leaves, drummer Roger Taylor joins, Nigel switches to bass and starts using his middle name, John. Nick changes his last name to Rhodes and starts wearing makeup. (This is later the reason that Andy Warhol decides he wants to meet Duran Duran when they first came to the States in 1981.)Andy Taylor is flipping burgers at the Rum Runner, a hip Birmingham club, and joins on guitar. Simon Le Bon's girlfriend is a waitress at the Rum Runner and recommends the drama student for the singing gig, and Simon wins the guys over with his pink leopard skin pants and vocal style.
Duran Duran becomes the house band at the Rum Runner (where Nick also DJs) and within a year, they are signed and off to America. They make good on their promise to play Madison Square Gardens within 2 years of forming this particular lineup. Videos, yachts, supermodels and tons of hair dye follow.
Roger leaves the band after the 1985 performance on Live Aid, the last time the original lineup played together until 2003. Roger, Simon & Nick did Arcadia; Andy & John did the Powerstation, then Andy bailed. John left the band in 1996.
But then they all got back together. I was lucky enough to meet John Taylor and chat with him a tiny bit about it a couple years ago. This evening, I almost got to meet them all.
Last week, a friend from In Touch Magazine (lots of pictures, few words - those few words are usually followed by exclamation points) assigned me to a story: Go to the taping of the new VH1 concert series, this one featuring Duran Duran, and have 20 minutes with the band afterwards. I almost fainted.
Now understand, I am pretty much an indie rock girl. I love a wide range of music, but my journalistic past dealt pretty much with alternative type bands and electronic outfits just on the cusp of Spin magazine level or something. I got to interview artists like Failure, the Chills, Kristin Hersh, Rocket From the Crypt, the Geraldine Fibbers, Discount (who went on the become the Kills), Creeper Lagoon (they were practically my house band at KALX), Shonen Knife... stuff like that. Oh, and Tracy Lords. I got to interview her about electronica though, not her filmography. Bummer, I know.
But my weakness for Duran Duran runs deep. I spent the week in a mild state of shock. I figured out what to ask them in a few minutes, but it took me days to decide what to wear. At one point, I realized I had to wear my ex boyfriend's brown denim jacket. So I called Diego Luna ex, and left him a frantic message begging for his jacket. He brought me the coat in question and wished me luck (since he had been there when I met John Taylor and almost hyperventilated). Eventually, the hair was good, the outfit chosen, the recorder functional, the camera loaded, the new Sharpie pen and Creem magazine from 1983 ready to be autographed... and off I went.
It rained like crazy today. Californians say they like rain, but they don't react to it well. As a result, Duran Duran was cranky. Andy Taylor was out due to "exhaustion." The sound stage was freezing, and at sound check, the band was worried that turnout would be low. Once the show was ready to go, perhaps 2/3 of the people invited had showed, and we were all bundled up and a bit wet. There were diehards there, and I'm pretty into Duran Duran - but I ain't a diehard. I can still laugh at them as well as with them. They played and sounded great - they really are tight and clean and rowdy... one person nearby thought it was a lip sync, but Simon's antics soon proved that it wasn't.
The show will air next Tuesday, December 14th. I'm sure that some bits of dialogue will be cut out though... Like John telling the crowd that they were so good looking that they must have come from Central Casting, and Simon retorting, "Yea, just do what we do. Act like you're enjoying yourself." Or later in the show (once everyone had warmed up a bit), Simon enthusiastically yelling to the crowd, "Is our fucking drummer hot shit tonight?" (Um, he was.)
I'm lousy at recalling setlists and such, and I'm sure their website will have all sorts of that. We heard some new stuff and some old stuff. Okay, okay... I was really happy to hear "Planet Earth," "Girls On Film," "Careless Memories," and even "Wild Boys," which I used to hate but now really get a kick out of. "Notorious" was awesome as usual, and we were treated to a beautiful rendition of "The Chauffeur," always haunting and amazing.
And then it was over, and the Wild Boys in question were tired and cranky and no press got to hang out with them. So I didn't meet them. I'm going to do a phoner either with just Simon or the whole band later this week, but that's not quite the same. Although I'm not upset about it. I'm sure I would have held it together had I met them (just barely), but after that, then what? A question still not answered, but perhaps to be answered another day. Besides, I've gotten this close, and I ain't even trying.
Duran Duran. Founded in 1978, they were an art school band fronted by Stephen "Tin Tin" Duffy (remember that 80's song "Kiss Me?" Yea, that guy). Nick Bates was on keyboards, Nigel Taylor on guitar. There was even a clarinet.
Stephen leaves, drummer Roger Taylor joins, Nigel switches to bass and starts using his middle name, John. Nick changes his last name to Rhodes and starts wearing makeup. (This is later the reason that Andy Warhol decides he wants to meet Duran Duran when they first came to the States in 1981.)Andy Taylor is flipping burgers at the Rum Runner, a hip Birmingham club, and joins on guitar. Simon Le Bon's girlfriend is a waitress at the Rum Runner and recommends the drama student for the singing gig, and Simon wins the guys over with his pink leopard skin pants and vocal style.
Duran Duran becomes the house band at the Rum Runner (where Nick also DJs) and within a year, they are signed and off to America. They make good on their promise to play Madison Square Gardens within 2 years of forming this particular lineup. Videos, yachts, supermodels and tons of hair dye follow.
Roger leaves the band after the 1985 performance on Live Aid, the last time the original lineup played together until 2003. Roger, Simon & Nick did Arcadia; Andy & John did the Powerstation, then Andy bailed. John left the band in 1996.
But then they all got back together. I was lucky enough to meet John Taylor and chat with him a tiny bit about it a couple years ago. This evening, I almost got to meet them all.
Last week, a friend from In Touch Magazine (lots of pictures, few words - those few words are usually followed by exclamation points) assigned me to a story: Go to the taping of the new VH1 concert series, this one featuring Duran Duran, and have 20 minutes with the band afterwards. I almost fainted.
Now understand, I am pretty much an indie rock girl. I love a wide range of music, but my journalistic past dealt pretty much with alternative type bands and electronic outfits just on the cusp of Spin magazine level or something. I got to interview artists like Failure, the Chills, Kristin Hersh, Rocket From the Crypt, the Geraldine Fibbers, Discount (who went on the become the Kills), Creeper Lagoon (they were practically my house band at KALX), Shonen Knife... stuff like that. Oh, and Tracy Lords. I got to interview her about electronica though, not her filmography. Bummer, I know.
But my weakness for Duran Duran runs deep. I spent the week in a mild state of shock. I figured out what to ask them in a few minutes, but it took me days to decide what to wear. At one point, I realized I had to wear my ex boyfriend's brown denim jacket. So I called Diego Luna ex, and left him a frantic message begging for his jacket. He brought me the coat in question and wished me luck (since he had been there when I met John Taylor and almost hyperventilated). Eventually, the hair was good, the outfit chosen, the recorder functional, the camera loaded, the new Sharpie pen and Creem magazine from 1983 ready to be autographed... and off I went.
It rained like crazy today. Californians say they like rain, but they don't react to it well. As a result, Duran Duran was cranky. Andy Taylor was out due to "exhaustion." The sound stage was freezing, and at sound check, the band was worried that turnout would be low. Once the show was ready to go, perhaps 2/3 of the people invited had showed, and we were all bundled up and a bit wet. There were diehards there, and I'm pretty into Duran Duran - but I ain't a diehard. I can still laugh at them as well as with them. They played and sounded great - they really are tight and clean and rowdy... one person nearby thought it was a lip sync, but Simon's antics soon proved that it wasn't.
The show will air next Tuesday, December 14th. I'm sure that some bits of dialogue will be cut out though... Like John telling the crowd that they were so good looking that they must have come from Central Casting, and Simon retorting, "Yea, just do what we do. Act like you're enjoying yourself." Or later in the show (once everyone had warmed up a bit), Simon enthusiastically yelling to the crowd, "Is our fucking drummer hot shit tonight?" (Um, he was.)
I'm lousy at recalling setlists and such, and I'm sure their website will have all sorts of that. We heard some new stuff and some old stuff. Okay, okay... I was really happy to hear "Planet Earth," "Girls On Film," "Careless Memories," and even "Wild Boys," which I used to hate but now really get a kick out of. "Notorious" was awesome as usual, and we were treated to a beautiful rendition of "The Chauffeur," always haunting and amazing.
And then it was over, and the Wild Boys in question were tired and cranky and no press got to hang out with them. So I didn't meet them. I'm going to do a phoner either with just Simon or the whole band later this week, but that's not quite the same. Although I'm not upset about it. I'm sure I would have held it together had I met them (just barely), but after that, then what? A question still not answered, but perhaps to be answered another day. Besides, I've gotten this close, and I ain't even trying.
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Girls On Film
Ummm, yea, it's another Duran Duran posting. But I'm not as bad as some, really. I have been recently enlightened as to the fanatics that follow the boys around. I love 'em, but I don't think they're putting out any earth shattering stuff or anything. They make me remember my teen years fondly, they dress great and make fun white disco trash music, and they've most likely led me to have questionable relationships with musicians. But it could be waaaaaaaaay worse.
For example:
Last Friday, Duran Duran were autographing their new CD at a Virgin Megastore in West Hollywood. A friend of mine flew down from San Francisco to be there, armed with the new CD, the new CD/DVD pack, the new album (yes, the vinyl), her book of photography by Nick Rhodes, and her Duran Duran board game (I also own the Duran Duran board game). And she commented on the fanatics in attendance.
There were two different wristbands distributed. One was "guaranteed" and the other was a standby one. 500 of the "guaranteed" ones were distributed with 250 of them going out when they did a midnight onsale 3 days prior. People started camping out at 6am the morning of the onsale just to buy the cd.
After I got the wristband I went outside and joined the lineup. First
person in line arrived on Thursday at 4:45pm. The signing wasn't until
Friday at 7pm.
Security was quickly hastening everybody along the table to get out rather quickly. Very little time was allowed to make small talk or smile, nod or in the case of one woman... cry. No, that was not me. I heard one woman had to pulled aside and forced to sit down because she was so nervous that she was trembling and worried the event staff. That wasn't me either.
So next up: I ditched work today to go to a taping of the Ellen DeGeneres show. She wins Emmys and stuff, I guess... bigger than Oprah, perhaps? Regardless, it was my first talk show taping and it was exhausting. And I was there because the musical guest was - you got it - Duran Duran. Susan Sarandon and Dermot Mulroney were also there, but whatever. Academy award winner? Just give me John Taylor!
Because I'm a lucky girl, a friend of a friend worked on the show (she was also the drummer for Luscious Jackson) and got us on the VIP list. This meant we got to sit inside while it was raining outside. Non special people waited under a tarp. I felt kinda bad, till Duran Duran started soundchecking behind the wall that was keeping us from seeing the soundstage. "Sunrise" and "Hungry Like the Wolf." Occasional comments like Simon saying, "Oh, is that me? Sounds awful." Priceless.
Eventually we were seated. Most live show tapings have a comedian come on before hand to get you warmed up, and the Ellen show also had dancing. You were expected to get up out of your seat and dance like a maniac for however long it took to get the show started. It was all booty jam 80's stuff, which I'm not super into. The writer/comedian/VH1 commentator, Greg Fitzsimmons, threatened to move anyone not dancing to the back of the seating area, so my friends and I stood up and re-enacted the song that was spinning, "Copacabana." People were amused by this. We did not get moved.
(John Taylor and my friend who took me to the taping... except about 20 years ago. Dig the hair!)
The show is taped in real time, and you are cued to yell and scream and clap constantly. Between takes, you are forced to dance again. I was wiped out about 15 minutes into it, but held on to see my boys.
When they performed, they were maybe 20 feet away. It was awesome. They looked great. Well, actually, I think John's hair is thinning and he's sporting a "oops-got-my-finger-in-an-electrical-socket" look. Simon, however, looked trim and sexy - and I'm not even a Simon girl! Roger looked like my neighbor, but it was nice to see him after all those years away.
(Notice John has gone back to hats... but not GOOD hats... sigh...)
After their first song, the sixty something lady next to us turned to my friend and said, "I don't understand why they didn't put us in the front. My daughter has loved this band since 1981! We flew all the way from South Carolina for this!" Wow - I just lied to my boss about a dental appointment. Then after the second song, a girl in front of us started bawling. Like shaking and crying. One of her friends turned to us and said, "We flew her here from Florida. She loves Duran Duran and has never seen them, and she's dying of cancer." Jesus! I felt like a poseur amongst these women. I mean, just because I listen and own most of the music and had lots of posters up and see them live all the time, regardless of quality... for me - it's always been fun. For them, it's a part of waking up and breathing and stuff. Damn.
And afterwards, Ellen gave everybody a copy of her new book and the new Duran Duran CD. Which was nice, because I was waiting for the promo copies to start flooding the used bin before I got one. See? I love them, but I'm like that.
Oprah gave everyone a car at her show... you listening, Ellen? I guess the show airs Thursday the 21st; I'll be the girl dancing with two cute gay boys and not wearing hot pink with acid wash.
For example:
Last Friday, Duran Duran were autographing their new CD at a Virgin Megastore in West Hollywood. A friend of mine flew down from San Francisco to be there, armed with the new CD, the new CD/DVD pack, the new album (yes, the vinyl), her book of photography by Nick Rhodes, and her Duran Duran board game (I also own the Duran Duran board game). And she commented on the fanatics in attendance.
There were two different wristbands distributed. One was "guaranteed" and the other was a standby one. 500 of the "guaranteed" ones were distributed with 250 of them going out when they did a midnight onsale 3 days prior. People started camping out at 6am the morning of the onsale just to buy the cd.
After I got the wristband I went outside and joined the lineup. First
person in line arrived on Thursday at 4:45pm. The signing wasn't until
Friday at 7pm.
Security was quickly hastening everybody along the table to get out rather quickly. Very little time was allowed to make small talk or smile, nod or in the case of one woman... cry. No, that was not me. I heard one woman had to pulled aside and forced to sit down because she was so nervous that she was trembling and worried the event staff. That wasn't me either.
So next up: I ditched work today to go to a taping of the Ellen DeGeneres show. She wins Emmys and stuff, I guess... bigger than Oprah, perhaps? Regardless, it was my first talk show taping and it was exhausting. And I was there because the musical guest was - you got it - Duran Duran. Susan Sarandon and Dermot Mulroney were also there, but whatever. Academy award winner? Just give me John Taylor!
Because I'm a lucky girl, a friend of a friend worked on the show (she was also the drummer for Luscious Jackson) and got us on the VIP list. This meant we got to sit inside while it was raining outside. Non special people waited under a tarp. I felt kinda bad, till Duran Duran started soundchecking behind the wall that was keeping us from seeing the soundstage. "Sunrise" and "Hungry Like the Wolf." Occasional comments like Simon saying, "Oh, is that me? Sounds awful." Priceless.
Eventually we were seated. Most live show tapings have a comedian come on before hand to get you warmed up, and the Ellen show also had dancing. You were expected to get up out of your seat and dance like a maniac for however long it took to get the show started. It was all booty jam 80's stuff, which I'm not super into. The writer/comedian/VH1 commentator, Greg Fitzsimmons, threatened to move anyone not dancing to the back of the seating area, so my friends and I stood up and re-enacted the song that was spinning, "Copacabana." People were amused by this. We did not get moved.
(John Taylor and my friend who took me to the taping... except about 20 years ago. Dig the hair!)
The show is taped in real time, and you are cued to yell and scream and clap constantly. Between takes, you are forced to dance again. I was wiped out about 15 minutes into it, but held on to see my boys.
When they performed, they were maybe 20 feet away. It was awesome. They looked great. Well, actually, I think John's hair is thinning and he's sporting a "oops-got-my-finger-in-an-electrical-socket" look. Simon, however, looked trim and sexy - and I'm not even a Simon girl! Roger looked like my neighbor, but it was nice to see him after all those years away.
(Notice John has gone back to hats... but not GOOD hats... sigh...)
After their first song, the sixty something lady next to us turned to my friend and said, "I don't understand why they didn't put us in the front. My daughter has loved this band since 1981! We flew all the way from South Carolina for this!" Wow - I just lied to my boss about a dental appointment. Then after the second song, a girl in front of us started bawling. Like shaking and crying. One of her friends turned to us and said, "We flew her here from Florida. She loves Duran Duran and has never seen them, and she's dying of cancer." Jesus! I felt like a poseur amongst these women. I mean, just because I listen and own most of the music and had lots of posters up and see them live all the time, regardless of quality... for me - it's always been fun. For them, it's a part of waking up and breathing and stuff. Damn.
And afterwards, Ellen gave everybody a copy of her new book and the new Duran Duran CD. Which was nice, because I was waiting for the promo copies to start flooding the used bin before I got one. See? I love them, but I'm like that.
Oprah gave everyone a car at her show... you listening, Ellen? I guess the show airs Thursday the 21st; I'll be the girl dancing with two cute gay boys and not wearing hot pink with acid wash.
Tuesday, October 12, 2004
This Is Ground Control to Mr. LeBon
"Barbarella, your mission: Find Duran Duran and use all of your incomparable talents to preserve the security of the stars..."
I am a freak about Duran Duran. Regular readers know this. I will always enjoy this band, happily and with a guilt free conscience. John Taylor is a total babe.
So their new CD, Astronaut, with the original lineup once again intact, came out today. I'll get it soon enough. The new video has already hit the VH1 cable waves so that former new romantics like myself can indulge. It features Nick Rhodes in a spaceship, making mannequins come to life. Rad. (Hmmm... who has better floppy hair... Nick Rhodes, or any of the guys in Franz Ferdinand? Hmmmm...)
Speaking of Franz Ferdinand, check out this hilarious interview with Simon where he mentions those guys and how much he loves the Killers.
Simon and Nick were always very cool about their musical tastes... D2's European tour last January featured the Scissor Sisters and Goldfrapp opening for them - handpicked by Simon & Nick. Nicely done!
And you've gotta read this interview with Time Magazine also... ridiculously funny. Here's an excerpt:
TIME: Is the entire band married to models?
Simon LeBon: Someone's got to keep the models happy.
And about the new CD? From Entertainment Weekly: Either Simon LeBon has become one fine singer, or recording engineers have discovered an anti-adenoidal button. That's just one of the surprises on the first album in 21 years from the original lineup of new wave's steeliest mannequins. Glistening zero-gravity synth-funk that's mostly unembarrassing and at times shockingly vital (the proto-Faint squall of "Want You More!"), this is so '80s you can almost taste the freebase. B --Doug Brod
What? I could have a drug problem or something, you know. Let me have my little obsessions...
I am a freak about Duran Duran. Regular readers know this. I will always enjoy this band, happily and with a guilt free conscience. John Taylor is a total babe.
So their new CD, Astronaut, with the original lineup once again intact, came out today. I'll get it soon enough. The new video has already hit the VH1 cable waves so that former new romantics like myself can indulge. It features Nick Rhodes in a spaceship, making mannequins come to life. Rad. (Hmmm... who has better floppy hair... Nick Rhodes, or any of the guys in Franz Ferdinand? Hmmmm...)
Speaking of Franz Ferdinand, check out this hilarious interview with Simon where he mentions those guys and how much he loves the Killers.
Simon and Nick were always very cool about their musical tastes... D2's European tour last January featured the Scissor Sisters and Goldfrapp opening for them - handpicked by Simon & Nick. Nicely done!
And you've gotta read this interview with Time Magazine also... ridiculously funny. Here's an excerpt:
TIME: Is the entire band married to models?
Simon LeBon: Someone's got to keep the models happy.
And about the new CD? From Entertainment Weekly: Either Simon LeBon has become one fine singer, or recording engineers have discovered an anti-adenoidal button. That's just one of the surprises on the first album in 21 years from the original lineup of new wave's steeliest mannequins. Glistening zero-gravity synth-funk that's mostly unembarrassing and at times shockingly vital (the proto-Faint squall of "Want You More!"), this is so '80s you can almost taste the freebase. B --Doug Brod
What? I could have a drug problem or something, you know. Let me have my little obsessions...
Sunday, August 01, 2004
Do You Remember the First Time?
Just getting nostalgic over my many firsts...
The “First Time” : Yes, I mean sex. This is the one everyone always wants to know about. Well, I ain’t gonna tell ya. Let’s just say that it involved me, a boyfriend, a red convertible, and a pesky neighbor that got me mixed up with my mom. ‘Nuff said.
The first love interest: Shaun Cassidy. But don’t you think he was a babe? Come on, that feathered hair was to die for...
The peaceful seashell
Sitting on the beach
Like a wishing well
Full of songs it can teach.
Soft songs, hard songs,
Always something new;
The songs of a seashell
Will never make you blue.
I was in all the local papers. I guess I’ve used up my fifteen minutes.
The first pet: Fluffy the cat. I got him when I was three and he died when I was 22. He was big and yellow and, well, quite fluffy. He had extra toes and would suck them when he was happy. He had bad breath and farted alot and would have seizures that made him lose control of his bladder and spin around in circles. And he was mine, all mine.
The first fight: The first fight I can remember was with my friend Pam, and I think it was over a Shaun Cassidy or Andy Gibb poster, but we scratched each other up and pulled hair and all that fun girl stuff until my mom separated us and forced us to make up.
The first favorite band: DURAN DURAN! And I still love ‘em. I should, I spent enough babysitting money on them. JOHN TAYLOR IS A TOTAL BABE! I think he’s actually a decent bass player as well.
The first act of vandalism (not counting toilet-papering homes): This gets a little hazy- there was such a long string a mischievous acts- but the first one I can remember involved an illuminated Carl’s Jr. sign in my friend’s living room... or was it that eight foot chicken...
The first vivid memory: I was about three years old and chucking lemon cupcakes with pink frosting at monkeys at the San Diego Zoo.
Monday, June 14, 2004
Sing Blue Silver
This happened two years ago today, so I feel the need to commemorate the event.
One of my longest lifetime goals had been achieved:
I MET JOHN TAYLOR.
(Okay, basssist for Duran Duran for those of you who don't remember... he was only plastered on my walls for, like, 4 years.)
When it was brought to my attention that he had entered the record store where I worked, I dropped the intercom and promptly hyperventilated. Then I paced frantically back and forth, trying to figure out what to do next. My co-workers & then-boyfriend were surrounding me, trying to figure out what the hell was going on as I muttered "Ohmygodohmygod" and finally I pointed and said, "John Taylor."
Then everyone started laughing.
At this point, I realized that I couldn't do anything about the situation because I was alone at the Information Counter, responsible for all the confused souls at the store or on the phones, and I couldn't leave. I began my mantra: "Please make him come ask me a question. Please let him come ask me a question!" Then panic set in, as I began to think I was trapped and would lose the opportunity. I'm not sure what the look on my face was like, but because I had the raddest boyfriend in the world who was there and happened to sort of be my boss, he told me he'd watch the counter and that I should just go for it.
I grabbed a Sharpie and pulled out my laminated International Duran Duran Club card (of which I am member #36963) and headed down the aisle. I walked up to him and said, "Hi. I work here." He smiled and said, "Yes?" I continued, "I would never forgive myself if I didn't ask for an autograph."
Then I whipped out the card. He was flabbergasted. "Oh my God, we put those out in 1984! You carry that around with you?" "I'm very loyal," I replied, and he laughed. "How long have you been into us?" he asked. "Since 1981," I said. He signed the card: "To Mo, With love, 19 years later - John Taylor."
I thanked him and went back to my post, and my hands were shaking so bad I couldn't even pick up the phone for a good five minutes.
Can I just say, he looked HOT! Slimmed down from his last puffy TV appearance, good skin, great hair, good glasses. He shopped about an hour, and I was kicking myself for not having asked about the current Duran Duran recording (since all original members had just reunited). As he was checking out, he got stuck waiting for his friend, so I just approached him again. "I hope you don't mind and if I'm bugging you, just say so, but I was wondering how recording was going?" And he said, "If you don't talk to me right now, I'll get bored to death waiting for my friend to come out." So we chatted about recording and music and stuff. I blamed him for my current fate of dating guitar players to which he pointed out if I were truly loyal, I'd be dating bassists. It was crazy to hear him say things like "I was lunching with Simon" and "Seeing Roger after so long, it felt like only a day had passed" and much more, but I know most of you don't care about that.
So on his way out, he said, "It was nice chatting with you Mo; I'll say hi the next time I'm in." I replied that it was really nice talking with him too, and put my arm on his shoulder and said, "I can die a happy woman now." He laughed.
It turned out that his friend had left his credit card behind, and came by the next day to pick it up. The manager on duty said, "I know you were here with John Taylor yesterday and that some of the staff was talking with him; I hope he didn't mind." And the friend replied, "Oh no, he's always gracious about that. And he was very charmed by the young lady with her Duran Duran fan club card..."
Oh please, let me be wife #4!
One of my longest lifetime goals had been achieved:
I MET JOHN TAYLOR.
(Okay, basssist for Duran Duran for those of you who don't remember... he was only plastered on my walls for, like, 4 years.)
When it was brought to my attention that he had entered the record store where I worked, I dropped the intercom and promptly hyperventilated. Then I paced frantically back and forth, trying to figure out what to do next. My co-workers & then-boyfriend were surrounding me, trying to figure out what the hell was going on as I muttered "Ohmygodohmygod" and finally I pointed and said, "John Taylor."
Then everyone started laughing.
At this point, I realized that I couldn't do anything about the situation because I was alone at the Information Counter, responsible for all the confused souls at the store or on the phones, and I couldn't leave. I began my mantra: "Please make him come ask me a question. Please let him come ask me a question!" Then panic set in, as I began to think I was trapped and would lose the opportunity. I'm not sure what the look on my face was like, but because I had the raddest boyfriend in the world who was there and happened to sort of be my boss, he told me he'd watch the counter and that I should just go for it.
I grabbed a Sharpie and pulled out my laminated International Duran Duran Club card (of which I am member #36963) and headed down the aisle. I walked up to him and said, "Hi. I work here." He smiled and said, "Yes?" I continued, "I would never forgive myself if I didn't ask for an autograph."
Then I whipped out the card. He was flabbergasted. "Oh my God, we put those out in 1984! You carry that around with you?" "I'm very loyal," I replied, and he laughed. "How long have you been into us?" he asked. "Since 1981," I said. He signed the card: "To Mo, With love, 19 years later - John Taylor."
I thanked him and went back to my post, and my hands were shaking so bad I couldn't even pick up the phone for a good five minutes.
Can I just say, he looked HOT! Slimmed down from his last puffy TV appearance, good skin, great hair, good glasses. He shopped about an hour, and I was kicking myself for not having asked about the current Duran Duran recording (since all original members had just reunited). As he was checking out, he got stuck waiting for his friend, so I just approached him again. "I hope you don't mind and if I'm bugging you, just say so, but I was wondering how recording was going?" And he said, "If you don't talk to me right now, I'll get bored to death waiting for my friend to come out." So we chatted about recording and music and stuff. I blamed him for my current fate of dating guitar players to which he pointed out if I were truly loyal, I'd be dating bassists. It was crazy to hear him say things like "I was lunching with Simon" and "Seeing Roger after so long, it felt like only a day had passed" and much more, but I know most of you don't care about that.
So on his way out, he said, "It was nice chatting with you Mo; I'll say hi the next time I'm in." I replied that it was really nice talking with him too, and put my arm on his shoulder and said, "I can die a happy woman now." He laughed.
It turned out that his friend had left his credit card behind, and came by the next day to pick it up. The manager on duty said, "I know you were here with John Taylor yesterday and that some of the staff was talking with him; I hope he didn't mind." And the friend replied, "Oh no, he's always gracious about that. And he was very charmed by the young lady with her Duran Duran fan club card..."
Oh please, let me be wife #4!
Tuesday, February 24, 2004
Da Doo Run RUN!
I love to read the trades at work. For those of you who don't live in LA (cuz everyone in LA knows), the "trades" are the industry magazines that come out every morning with the latest news and gossip and loads of advertising pushing some film or actor or something. Incredible amounts of advertising. I find it all very interesting.
One reason why I love to read the trades is because it's kept me up to date on whether I'll still have a job. Hell, Variety had the info about my company being sold before they bothered to tell us! Another reason is because they will sometimes have a little blurb about Shaun Cassidy, my very first teeny bop crush. I crushed hard on Shaun. My room was plastered wall to ceiling with every poster or article I could cut out of my hard-whined for copies of Tiger Beat or Dynamite. (These posters later changed to Rick Springfield, but without as much enthusiasm, only to climax in the obsession that is Duran Duran. Mmmmmm... John Taylor...)
I still have my first three Shaun Cassidy albums, my name and address written on them in crayon. I'll play them in clubs sometimes - people love it. Really!
So Shaun Cassidy is still in the business, but more as a producer and writer. I think he did that "Blood Brothers" thing on Broadway in an actor's capacity, but I love that he was one of the writer/producers of that short lived show "American Gothic" from a few years back about a small town with a sheriff who may or may not have been Satan. He also had something major to do with that cheerleading movie "Bring It On," and who didn't love that? I don't think I know a single straight guy who is into sports who didn't appreciate that movie. My brother in law worked on that flick - it was filmed in my hometown - and he actually got a picture and autograph of Shaun for me. Awww... I have no idea what I saw in him then, but I still love "Hey Deanie."
So here's the latest scoop on my boy... beware!
*******************************************
A Hollywood film studio security guard is recovering from a leg injury caused by a fender bender involving '70s heartthrob Shaun Cassidy. According to a police statement, Cassidy was driving into Warner Bros.' Burbank studio when he accidentally hit a vehicle already waiting at the security gate. Guard Conrad Perez was standing in front of the car that Cassidy hit, and suffered a major contusion when he was trapped between that car and a third vehicle. Cassidy wasn't criminally charged for the accident, which is still being investigated by Burbank police and the California Highway Patrol.
*******************************************
Um... yea... That's another thing I've learned about here in LA. Pedestrians get whacked. Even by a Hardy Boy.
One reason why I love to read the trades is because it's kept me up to date on whether I'll still have a job. Hell, Variety had the info about my company being sold before they bothered to tell us! Another reason is because they will sometimes have a little blurb about Shaun Cassidy, my very first teeny bop crush. I crushed hard on Shaun. My room was plastered wall to ceiling with every poster or article I could cut out of my hard-whined for copies of Tiger Beat or Dynamite. (These posters later changed to Rick Springfield, but without as much enthusiasm, only to climax in the obsession that is Duran Duran. Mmmmmm... John Taylor...)
I still have my first three Shaun Cassidy albums, my name and address written on them in crayon. I'll play them in clubs sometimes - people love it. Really!
So Shaun Cassidy is still in the business, but more as a producer and writer. I think he did that "Blood Brothers" thing on Broadway in an actor's capacity, but I love that he was one of the writer/producers of that short lived show "American Gothic" from a few years back about a small town with a sheriff who may or may not have been Satan. He also had something major to do with that cheerleading movie "Bring It On," and who didn't love that? I don't think I know a single straight guy who is into sports who didn't appreciate that movie. My brother in law worked on that flick - it was filmed in my hometown - and he actually got a picture and autograph of Shaun for me. Awww... I have no idea what I saw in him then, but I still love "Hey Deanie."
So here's the latest scoop on my boy... beware!
*******************************************
A Hollywood film studio security guard is recovering from a leg injury caused by a fender bender involving '70s heartthrob Shaun Cassidy. According to a police statement, Cassidy was driving into Warner Bros.' Burbank studio when he accidentally hit a vehicle already waiting at the security gate. Guard Conrad Perez was standing in front of the car that Cassidy hit, and suffered a major contusion when he was trapped between that car and a third vehicle. Cassidy wasn't criminally charged for the accident, which is still being investigated by Burbank police and the California Highway Patrol.
*******************************************
Um... yea... That's another thing I've learned about here in LA. Pedestrians get whacked. Even by a Hardy Boy.
Sunday, January 18, 2004
Lipstick & Rouge
"I love him, I worship him. I masturbate to Duran Duran videos." (Andy Warhol, responding to a reporter on Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran.)
Quoting Mr. Warhol two days in a row... Well, I found some good quotes. And this one couldn't be passed up.
I am a Durannie, and proud of it. There are still lots of us out there, and we wear our hearts on our shoulder padded sleeves. Well, the shoulder pads may have gone with the decade, but our love for the boys did not. I still wear the occasional Duran Duran pin to work, if I'm feeling frivolous. I have not one, not two, but five Duran Duran t-shirts, although my John Taylor-esque fedora is long gone. Only just today I picked up a greeting card with a sexy pic of Jane Fonda from the film "Barbarella" plastered on it's face, and this quote on the back: "Barbarella, your mission: Find Duran Duran and use all of your incomparable talents to preserve the security of the stars..."
I've seen Duran Duran live 8 times, and three times with the original lineup. The first time was when they were touring for Rio, again for Seven & the Ragged Tiger, and lastly this past July. They played six days after my birthday. I didn't get to see them play at the Roxy in July, which was their first club date in like, twenty years, but I waited outside the place for tix to go on sale for 6 or 7 hours. And it was 80 degrees or so, with the sunlight bouncing off the asphalt burning everyone in sight. I saw them in an ampitheatre from the 30th row, and danced my ass off for a couple hours. It was rad. They sounded... right.
I was 13 when I fell in love with Duran Duran a couple decades ago... John was my guy. There were three of us girls at St. John's who loved them madly, and we each had a favorite - I loved John, Angie loved Simon, and Maria loved Nick. We made nicknames for ourself based on their names: Tay, Bon and Rho. Dorky, I know, but who cares? We were young and obsessed. We even wanted to start a band and call it Bontayrho. That has a nice ring to it, don't you think?
My bedroom was plastered - floor to ceiling - with posters and articles and snippets of info about Duran Duran. I think that's where all my babysitting money went. My poor high school sweetheart... years and years of having all those mascara'd eyes staring down at us when we would just try to make out. (Don't worry, I got mine a few years into it when he got really into the Dead Kennedys and hung the Penis Landscape poster which came with an album up on his bedroom wall. Ick.) I bought the music too, because - believe it or not - I loved the music first. So I got the import singles of everything I could get my hands on, and the Japanese versions, and the remixes (which in those days were actually different recordings instead of just elongated versions, although that came along shortly). I only just got the last missing piece of my collection a couple years ago in a record shop in London: the UK single of "Rio" with "Blue Silver," the acoustic version of "The Chauffeur," on the B-side. I think I may have squealed loudly when I saw it.
I credit my obsession with Duran Duran for my obsession with music in general. I would listen to the songs so closely in order to pick out each instrument and learn all the words. The first time that Simon & Nick hosted MTV for an hour, I taped it and discovered new music I wasn't familiar with yet since I didn't hear it on my radio, like Japan and Kate Bush. And I blame John Taylor for the fact that I seem to keep getting involved with guitar players, but I'm working on that.
I even got to tell John Taylor that when I met him a year ago. That was after I had finished hyperventilating, of course. (I know someone who goes to AA at his house out in Santa Monica, but I'm not quite ready to fully realize my stalker tendencies just yet.) He was actually very sweet to me, and I got to talk to him about the reunion of the band before they played that show in July, and about the stuff they were recording and all that. And he said that if I were truly a fan, I'd be dating bassists and not guitar players. Heh heh.
When the boys came to the US for the first time, the publicity manager at Capitol records asked them what they wanted to do. Nick Rhodes responded, "Go up the Empire State Building and meet Andy Warhol." She called the next morning and said they were going to the Empire State Building, and then Andy's studio. The publicist, Doreen D'Angelo, said, "I rang Andy up at Interview magazine and said, 'There's this English band that wants to meet you.' I might have mentioned one was into lipstick. Nick & Roger came, and Andy asked Nick if he shared his girlfriend's lipstick. After that, Nick and Andy became friends. You'd see them in the DJ booth together at Studio 54."
And I guess Andy really, really liked Nick a lot.
Quoting Mr. Warhol two days in a row... Well, I found some good quotes. And this one couldn't be passed up.
I am a Durannie, and proud of it. There are still lots of us out there, and we wear our hearts on our shoulder padded sleeves. Well, the shoulder pads may have gone with the decade, but our love for the boys did not. I still wear the occasional Duran Duran pin to work, if I'm feeling frivolous. I have not one, not two, but five Duran Duran t-shirts, although my John Taylor-esque fedora is long gone. Only just today I picked up a greeting card with a sexy pic of Jane Fonda from the film "Barbarella" plastered on it's face, and this quote on the back: "Barbarella, your mission: Find Duran Duran and use all of your incomparable talents to preserve the security of the stars..."
I've seen Duran Duran live 8 times, and three times with the original lineup. The first time was when they were touring for Rio, again for Seven & the Ragged Tiger, and lastly this past July. They played six days after my birthday. I didn't get to see them play at the Roxy in July, which was their first club date in like, twenty years, but I waited outside the place for tix to go on sale for 6 or 7 hours. And it was 80 degrees or so, with the sunlight bouncing off the asphalt burning everyone in sight. I saw them in an ampitheatre from the 30th row, and danced my ass off for a couple hours. It was rad. They sounded... right.
I was 13 when I fell in love with Duran Duran a couple decades ago... John was my guy. There were three of us girls at St. John's who loved them madly, and we each had a favorite - I loved John, Angie loved Simon, and Maria loved Nick. We made nicknames for ourself based on their names: Tay, Bon and Rho. Dorky, I know, but who cares? We were young and obsessed. We even wanted to start a band and call it Bontayrho. That has a nice ring to it, don't you think?
My bedroom was plastered - floor to ceiling - with posters and articles and snippets of info about Duran Duran. I think that's where all my babysitting money went. My poor high school sweetheart... years and years of having all those mascara'd eyes staring down at us when we would just try to make out. (Don't worry, I got mine a few years into it when he got really into the Dead Kennedys and hung the Penis Landscape poster which came with an album up on his bedroom wall. Ick.) I bought the music too, because - believe it or not - I loved the music first. So I got the import singles of everything I could get my hands on, and the Japanese versions, and the remixes (which in those days were actually different recordings instead of just elongated versions, although that came along shortly). I only just got the last missing piece of my collection a couple years ago in a record shop in London: the UK single of "Rio" with "Blue Silver," the acoustic version of "The Chauffeur," on the B-side. I think I may have squealed loudly when I saw it.
I credit my obsession with Duran Duran for my obsession with music in general. I would listen to the songs so closely in order to pick out each instrument and learn all the words. The first time that Simon & Nick hosted MTV for an hour, I taped it and discovered new music I wasn't familiar with yet since I didn't hear it on my radio, like Japan and Kate Bush. And I blame John Taylor for the fact that I seem to keep getting involved with guitar players, but I'm working on that.
I even got to tell John Taylor that when I met him a year ago. That was after I had finished hyperventilating, of course. (I know someone who goes to AA at his house out in Santa Monica, but I'm not quite ready to fully realize my stalker tendencies just yet.) He was actually very sweet to me, and I got to talk to him about the reunion of the band before they played that show in July, and about the stuff they were recording and all that. And he said that if I were truly a fan, I'd be dating bassists and not guitar players. Heh heh.
When the boys came to the US for the first time, the publicity manager at Capitol records asked them what they wanted to do. Nick Rhodes responded, "Go up the Empire State Building and meet Andy Warhol." She called the next morning and said they were going to the Empire State Building, and then Andy's studio. The publicist, Doreen D'Angelo, said, "I rang Andy up at Interview magazine and said, 'There's this English band that wants to meet you.' I might have mentioned one was into lipstick. Nick & Roger came, and Andy asked Nick if he shared his girlfriend's lipstick. After that, Nick and Andy became friends. You'd see them in the DJ booth together at Studio 54."
And I guess Andy really, really liked Nick a lot.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
