Sul sito Classic Rock Revisited Kevin Dubrow e Glenn si intervistano reciprocamente!
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Kevin Dubrow Interviews
Glenn Hughes
A few weeks ago, Kevin Dubrow emailed me and asked if I would be interested doing something out of the ordinary for Classic Rock Revisited. He suggested that since Quiet Riot and Glenn Hughes both had new releases that we should feature interviews with each of them. The twist was that Kevin would interview Glenn and Glenn would interview Kevin. I thought this was a great idea and we set a date. The date came and went as Kevin was nowhere to be found. Some things just never change to they? The next day, the email came, followed by a phone call of an apologetic Dubrow who confessed his Friday night moved right along into Saturday. Glenn and I had been left hanging but decided to reschedule. Kevin explained something about an impromptu acoustic set he did with Tesla’s Frank Hannon followed by stories of a hot stripper.
We rescheduled but this time I took no chances. Kevin was going to be at Glenn’s home. Now, Glenn is 15 years removed from his parting days and very happily married so I knew he would not be distracted and forget to call. About an hour before our interview was scheduled to happen, the phone rang. It was Dubrow. Instead of stories of rock stardom and wild sex, I was shocked to hear the reason the interview needed to be pushed back a couple of hours: Glenn and Kevin were shopping. Dubrow confessed from his cell phone, “Glenn, and I have been shopping all day for his world tour. I have to say I am not sure about the pink fuzzy tutu.” Hughes chimed in “We like to shop. My wife says that because I am European and I love shopping that I am one chromosome away from being gay” to which Dubrow added, “We bring great entertainment to the shopkeepers of the greater Hollywood area.”
Once the boys were done shopping, they unloaded the goods from the car, went into Hughes home and called right on time! Dubrow wasted no time getting started and begin to talk to Hughes about his amazing release Soul Mover, as well as his upcoming new release with Tony Iommi. Soul Mover sees Hughes embracing all sides of his musical persona. He credit’s the musical freedom he feels to his new drummer on the CD, Chad Smith of The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Hughes discusses all aspects of his career and life openly although he never really answers the question Dubrow really wants to know: “How big is it?
- Jeb Wright, January 2005
Kevin: I want to start our talking the new Soul Mover CD, which has got great reviews. The reason it has got the great reviews is because it has great songs, great singing and great production. Those are all earmarks of a Glenn Hughes record but all have taken a shining step forward in terms of the quality. Glenn, tell everyone who has not heard the record what is different about it and what they can expect from it.
Glenn: This is the first record I have made -- and I have never said this in print -- it is the first record that I have taken control of and made for myself. Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer) forced me into not making a record for the old Deep Purple fan or any other fan of any genre that I have done. It is a very brave album. It is the funky Glenn, the soulful Glenn, the hard rock Glenn -- it is the Glenn we all know that has a hybrid of styles like I had when I started out playing in Trapeze. I want to garnish that again. I feel it necessary for me to do that. I said on the Sanctuary bio that this is the record for me at the right time. I am really, really excited by this release.
Kevin: We were talking earlier today about the term funky. When I hear that word I think of Earth, Wind & Fire or James Brown. Your standard of funk is a hybrid. Where does that come from?
Glenn: I grew up with the Beatles -- a white band. I went on to listen to Cream, The Move and The Moody Blues. When I was about 15-16, I started listening exclusively to Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding and later Stevie Wonder. When you swell those influences together in the mix then you get a British rocker who grew up with Motown and Detroit and Stax Memphis singers.
Kevin: Some people think you are funky but everybody has a different impression of what they see in the mirror or hear from the speakers. What they see and hear is not always what it really is.
Glenn: I write musically with things in mind that I can do with my voice that not many people can do. I just do it because it comes natural. You once asked me how I do it. I really don’t know how I do it. On “Soul Mover” I do a lot of things with my voice that may not be natural for others. It is, however, natural for me to sing dissident notes and 7ths and 9ths rather than 3rds; it is just the way I do it.
Kevin: When we did the Quiet Riot III record, we had a guy named John Purdell, who was a huge fan of yours. He was writing songs with Chuck Wright for the record. John sang a lot like you. The songs they were writing had Glenn Hughes-like melodies. I said, “Hey guys, I like Glenn Hughes too but don’t give me this stuff to sing. It is impossible for a blues/rock singer to do.” It comes from a unique place musically. Moving on, I want to talk about Chad Smith being involved on this record. Chad is more of the current generation of alternative rock music. How did you get involved with Chad?
Glenn: I met him two years ago at the NAMM show. I was doing a show and he came and saw me. I am a huge Chad fan and apparently he is a huge Glenn fan. He came to rehearse with me. We were going to play “Mistreater” and “Stormbringer.” From the moment he sat behind the kit I could tell he was the best drummer I had ever worked with. Chad is also one the most generous human beings with his time and love that I have ever met. We make a great team. We go on holiday together and our wives have become best friends. He is a tremendous motivator for me in what I want to do in the soul hybrid funk thing.
For a number of years, I have hidden behind the Funky Glenn moniker. I am no longer going to hide behind that. I have to make records that make sense to me. In ten years time, I want to be remembered as -- if it’s possible -- not as the bass playing lead singer with Coverdale in Deep Purple but instead as the singer/songwriter who overcame tremendous difficulty in his lifestyle and did what he was supposed to do; make real, honest music.
Kevin: You played me the upcoming, not-yet-released Iommi-Hughes record today. I have to say that for a heavy metal record, it is just fucking huge.
Glenn: We finished it about a month ago with Kenny Aronoff. It is a mammoth, spectacle extravaganza record. It is a huge, huge album. It is classic rock and modern rock with Tony’s guitar sound and Big Daddy’s soulful overtones.
Kevin: The songwriting came together very quickly.
Glenn: It was written in Birmingham in October. Tony and I wrote about 18 songs. We realized we were missing something and we realized it so we brought in Kenny Aronoff. We didn’t want a session guy, instead we wanted someone who would play with us in a live setting. When we started playing with Kenny we knew we had what we wanted. The album was recorded between December 3rd and December the 20th at Monnow Valley in Wales. I think it really is a mammoth record.
Kevin: What are the touring plans for 2005?
Glenn: We start February 11th in the UK. We do 17 countries, ending in Russia. I will come back home for a while and then actually go back to Europe for some festivals during the last week of May. When I get home, Chad, JJ Marsh, Ed Roth and I are looking to do some venues in America. We hope to do this in May. It will be my coming out party in America. I have never played here solo. It is the right record at the right time. Chad Smith is playing drums and Sanctuary Records is behind me. Life couldn’t be any better at this time.
Kevin: Will you and Iommi be doing anything live?
Glenn: Tony and I will tour the album properly when we get the right release date and the right tour in front of us. This album is too big to ignore.
Kevin: When is the release date for the album?
Glenn: I have heard the press will be flown into New York and London and have a listening party. It is a big record and when the fans hear it then they will understand why I am making such a big deal out of it. It makes a big statement.
Kevin: This record sounds amazing, sonically. Sometimes you have a good record that does not hit the mark, sonically. When I heard this, I went, “Whoa!”
Glenn: It is going to be a contender; it is going to be a major release. I am building this record up but when it comes everyone will understand it is a huge release.
Kevin: Let’s go back in time to the Deep Purple era. I know many of your fans want all the information they can get about you. I have some questions that I don’t think have ever been asked. Leave it up to me to ask you, How big is it?
Glenn: [makes loud grunting noises]
Kevin: When you were offered the Deep Purple gig, it is well documented that you were not sure if you were going to be the lead singer or the bass player. As it turned out, you were the bass player and 2nd lead singer.
Glenn: Deep Purple were doing a gig in March of 1973 in New York. They did three nights. John Lord, Paicey (Ian Paice) and (Ritchie) Blackmore had been coming to see me play. They flew me in from Washington and I sat on the side of the stage and watched. I knew from the first night that something was wrong because Ian Gillan was in a very bad mood. That night, after the show, Blackmore, Lord and Paice asked me what I thought about joining the band. I said, “I’m going to sing in Deep Purple!” They said, “No, we want you to replace Roger.” They were getting ready to fire both Ian and Roger Glover. My band Trapeze were just knocking on the door. I actually told them, “No, I don’t want to do that.” In the next breath they told me, “We want to ask Paul Rodgers to sing.” I thought that sounded interesting. I love Paul Rodgers. When they mentioned Paul, it excited me. I thought that it would be great to sing with one of my favorite white singers of all time. I agreed to join but I told them that I would not sing oohs and ahhs. I told them I had to sing some lead vocals on the album they wanted to write.
Kevin: Not to take anything away from David Coverdale, but you are a totally unique singer. Coverdale is great but in no way is he as unique as you. To be onstage every night watching Coverdale doing the lion’s share of the vocals for three years must have made you feel like you wanted to bust out and explode.
Glenn: No it didn’t and I will tell you why. I had a job to do. I was established with Trapeze but David was not established with anyone. He came in and had huge shoes to fill. I was in a situation where I was the 2nd singer. People would look up at me when I sang and think, “What is going on? Who is that singing?” I knew I was going to get recognition. It was kind of like coming in through the back door. The stuff that I wrote and sang on Burn are some of the greatest rock songs that I have ever sang. I never felt jealous or resentful of Coverdale. I was very confident and very much at peace with myself during that time period.
Kevin: When Ritchie Blackmore left the group in 1975, you brought in Tommy Bolin. Was anyone else seriously considered for the job before Tommy?
Glenn: Clem Clemson was my first choice. I was a major Humble Pie fan. Actually, I was about to leave the band. David Bowie was living at my house at the time and David actually convinced me to stay in Deep Purple. I was hanging out with Bowie and he was doing “Young Americans” and it made me really want to do more funky stuff. Clem is from Birmingham, where I am from. He came over to my house and I got the guys together and we auditioned him. Clem just couldn’t fill the character of Ritchie Blackmore. Clem is a good guitar player but he isn’t a star guitar player like Blackmore was.
Kevin: Your fan base is extremely devoted. When you go on the internet illegal downloading sites, which everyone still uses, you find a ton of Glenn Hughes songs. The only other person I have seen on these sites with such rabid devotion from her fans is Tori Amos. There are others who have had more record sales but don’t garner such a loyal fan base. Why do you think you do?
Glenn: Did you say Tori Anus? [much laughter] Seriously, I don’t like bringing this up but I will. When I got sober in 1991, I looked back to the 80’s and I had a discography of maybe five records. I want the readers of Classic Rock Revisited to know that the truth of the matter is that I only made 18 gigs in the 80’s. I wasn’t well enough to play live. Five of those gigs were with Sabbath. Since I have been clean and sober, I have done many, many gigs, released nine solo records, two live records and a DVD. I have been on too many bloody tributes and too many B- grade type things. You may ask me why I did all the tributes. The answer is that I was so thirsty to sing when Mike Varney of Shrapnel Records called me to do those metal things that I would have sang on an Irish Polka album.
Kevin: I think I have that Polka album! [laughter]. Here is a question that I know your fans will want you to answer. Aside from Soul Mover, what is your favorite album that you have ever recorded?
Glenn: Play Me Out and Feel were two of my favorites. There are 11 cuts on Feel. I was eight cuts deep into it when the Japanese flew over and said {Glenn goes into a Japanese accent) “Ohhhhh, you tooooo funky!” I had to write a few more rock songs for them. Play Me Out would have been my favorite album of all time but I was inebriated on speed and cocaine the whole time. It is a grand piece of music but when I hear it, I think of the drugs and it sort of bothers me.
Kevin: What is your single most favorite vocal performance of all time? Your fans what to know this, Glenn. They talk about it on your website all the time.
Glenn: I would think the honestly of the whole record of Soul Mover is important.
Kevin: You have to pick one song.
Glenn: I would have to say “Nights In White Satin.” Chad and I have done a version that we flipped around to make it more Glenn. I think it is the best I have ever done. You will get to hear it this summer as it is going to be in a movie. I did things in it that I thought were impossible.
Kevin: Have you thought about doing an acoustic record.
Glenn: I would love to sometime in the next five years. I want to do an acoustic DVD with a big orchestra. That is really what I want to do.
Kevin: One last question: How big is it?
Glenn: [makes loud noises]
Kevin: Actually, I want to end with a Hughes/Thrall question. You were coming out of Deep Purple and Pat Thrall was fresh out of the Pat Travers band. You could have chosen any drummer in the world to do that album. Why did you choose Frankie Banali?
Glenn: We auditioned 50 drummers. Pat and myself are mad about drummers. We auditioned Richie Hayward from Little Feat. There were many great drummers we listened to but the reason we picked Frankie was that there was something about him as a person that we liked. The Police were out at the time and we were kind of going with a guitar sound that was in the Andy Summers type of vibe. Frankie is way more of a percussive drummer that people think. Frankie made a big name for himself in Quiet Riot but he really understood the type of nuances that we were looking for with that album.
Glenn Hughes Interviews
Kevin Dubrow
Glenn Hughes and Kevin Dubrow truly form the Rock ‘N Roll version of the Odd Couple. Kevin would have to be Oscar Madison leaving Hughes to fill the role of Felix Unger. They come from opposite ends of the spectrum. Hughes hails from the industrial town of Birmingham, England and is famous for his funky vocal gymnastics while Dubrow is a party boy from sunny California who is more famous for derogatory words coming out of his mouth then any notes he sang. Hughes is the ex-partier who nearly died from his disease while Dubrow still likes to have a good time. Hughes is soft-spoken and somewhat reserved in interviews while Kevin will admit to having sex with dogs and tell you the length and girth of his penis.
As much as these men may be different, however, they each have several things in common. First and foremost is a love of music. Dubrow was a fan of Hughes before Quiet Riot was even a figment of his imagination. They also have a deep respect for each other and truly enjoy being around each other and exploring each others personalities. They also like to laugh. Kevin sums it up best when he says, “My experience with people from England is that they are reserved and eccentric. Glenn is eccentric but he is definatly not reserved. He is an outgoing Type A personality. He is also fucking hilarious. His character is only matched by the size of his heart. Glenn is also very spiritual, which is something I am not known for being. Glenn can make me look at things about myself that I don’t naturally look at. We have a natural chemistry. He is very sincere and I am very sincere with Glenn.”
Being so close with each other allows them to say things that they might not want to hear. Dubrow confesses, “I think I am one of Glenn’s biggest fans. Glenn has people who will tell him every single thing he does is great. I think everything Glenn sings is great but there are better ways to do certain things. I am honest with Glenn about it. I don’t know if he always appreciates it or not.” The flip side of the coin comes in Hughes being the older and wiser of the two men. Where Kevin may give Glenn musical advice, he takes in much deeper meanings from his conversations with Hughes. “What I have done with my life, Kevin admires. Not just singing but the other things. I am like a big brother to him. He tells me about things going on with him that he does not tell anyone else. I feel like I am a bit of a protector of Kevin in a way. He is a wild man and he has gotten a bit of a bad rap. I know the sweet, funny, intelligent Kevin. I feel very comfortable around Kevin; he is one of my best friends.”
After Part One of this interview, where Kevin interviewed Glenn, the tables were turned. It was now Hughes turn to interrogate his friend. The only problem was that Glenn could not find the questions he had prepared for the interview; they were lost. There was a temptation to cancel this segment but Dubrow told Glenn to throw caution to the wind and do the interview off the top of his head. Kevin stated that he knew what Hughes really wanted to know anyway,. “Glenn wants to ask me about life on the road. He is happily married so he just wants to hear all about my sexual technique.” Dubrow went on to admit Hughes friendship was about much more than locker room banter, “Glenn worries about me. I go nuts from time to time.” Hughes responds like one would expect an older brother to respond, “I let Kevin know that I am there for them. He knows he can’t fool me and he doesn’t try to fool me. I am not a cop around Kevin. I don’t tell him that he can’t do this or that. It is all up to him to figure out.”
- Jeb Wright, January 2005
Glenn: Was there a particular moment in your life when you realized that you wanted to be a singer?
Kevin: I saw The Faces in 1970. I was a photographer at the time. I had seen The Beatles on Ed Sullivan and that made me want to become a rock fan but when I saw The Faces it was different. I saw Rod Stewart having a lot of fun and I also noticed all the girls wanted him and all the guys wanted to be him. I was taking pictures of him at the time when I realized that I didn’t want to be the guy taking the pictures, I wanted to be the guy being photographed. I remember he was wearing a purple velvet suit. It was at that very moment that I knew I wanted to be a singer.
Glenn: When you were playing with Randy Rhoads, at what moment did you realize that he was a talented fellow. What was it like to actually know at that time that you may have a shot in the music business?
Kevin: The first time I ever heard him play, I realized how special he was. He was a combination of all my favorite guitar players. He looked like Mick Ronson, he played like a mixture of Ritchie Blackmore, Johnny Winter and Leslie West. Here was a 17-year-old kid that no one knew about so I globbed on to him at the time. I wasn’t even really serious about singing at the time.
An interesting side note to all of this is that the first time I ever met you, I was with Randy Rhoads. Do you remember that.
Glenn: I actually do.
Kevin: We were at a party in Malibu. Randy was already there and I drove there with Rudy Sarzo. I hooked up with Randy and he goes, “You are not going to believe who is here: Glenn Hughes.” You were wearing shoes we called The Toasters. You could only get them at this played called Let It Rock. They had that waffle soul. I thought you were such a sweet guy.
Glenn: You recorded “Cum On Feel The Noize.” Looking back, do you feel at all resentful that your most well known song was not one of your own? Did you ever feel like saying, “Man, we have a # 1 record. I wish we could have wrote it.”
Kevin: Especially in a financial sense. You knew where the royalties were going. We saw the accounting and knew what was going on. I never loved that song but at the same token, I never thought we were the greatest songwriters in the world. We were trying to be rock ‘n roll stars. All my favorite bands made great albums and didn’t really have hit singles, or maybe they had one hit per album. Slade’s version wasn’t even a hit. I think it went to # 85. I just wasn’t into bands like that. I was into Humble Pie. There biggest hit was “I Don’t Need No Doctor.” Free had “All Right Now” but you can forget that, I liked the album cuts. Growing up, I never thought about having a hit single.
Remember Foghat? They had three albums and then the fourth one went big. We skipped all that and went right to gold. We were gullible and I was an angry guy at the time. Booze and cocaine didn’t help that much. I was a guy from Hollywood who was a pissant. I made a lot of enemies along the way. Fueled by the chemicals and being the age I was didn’t help things a lot. But, there is a flip side to that coin. I got to live my dream. At 49 years old, I still get to live my dream. That song is greatly responsible for us having this conversation today. It was stupid of us to do “Mama, Weer All Crazee Now.” Doing another Slade song was a bad move. I now tend to look at the glass way more than half full. Because of that song we are still having this conversation.
Quiet Riot will go onstage before bands that have a greater back catalog of hits and a history of being more popular but we have those two songs -- “Cum On Feel The Noize” and “Bang Your Head” -- and most bands have a hard time following us because of those two songs.
Glenn: What was your biggest learning curve in 1983?
Kevin: I learned that I could drink, have sex and snort at the same time --and still talk!
Glenn: At what moment did you realize that you were gay?
Kevin: [much laughter] Do you mean extremely happy?
Glenn: How did you feel when Paul Shortino took your place in the band?
Kevin: I thought it was a joke.
Glenn: [laughs] I have to agree with you Kevin.
Kevin: They should have called the band something other than Quiet Riot. It was a very tumultuous period at the time. I wanted to fire Spencer Proffer, who was our management and our record label. Everyone said if we do that then it will get tied up in court and Quiet Riot would not be allowed to record. I wanted to just go out and play smaller clubs and make a bunch of money without all the nonsense that we had been having to deal with. Unfortunately, I fell under the spell of the Bolivian scientists. I became very aggressive. I angered everyone and got in their faces, the way that I can do. The band decided to get rid of me and find someone else. Joe Lynn Turner was actually up for the job and I thought that he would have been a good choice. Instead they got Paul Shortino and made that album, which does not sound like a Quiet Riot record. I thought it was foolish. We were an anthem oriented band. Does it bother me? Not at all. I thought the ride was over at that point. I thought it was all silly.
Glenn: Every band has a peak in their career. Howe did you cope with real life at the time?
Kevin: The cocaine and the booze were flowing nicely in the Hollywood Hills. In the early 90’s, I learned of the anger management issues I have going on inside of me. I can be much to much in-your-face. I am my own worst enemy on many occasions. I try to take time to think about things a lot more. Instead of saying one more thing, I just try not to say anything. It is the whole ‘count to ten’ type thing. I won’t let myself get the better of myself in many situations. In the last six years, I have learned that if I am unhappy about things that I need to end it and not let it fester. If I let it fester then I let it build up and I self destruct. If I am not happy with a bad situation then I am not going to suddenly wake up the next morning and become happy about it. I need to end it. If I don’t then I will self destruct, that is my nature.
Glenn: What did it take to make you wake up and gain this knowledge of yourself?
Kevin: When I self destruct, I hurt everyone else around me and that is never my intention. I never meant to hurt Frankie Banali. Frankie and you are my two best friends. If someone is going to get screwed in a situation then you certainly don’t want it to be somebody you love. I don’t want to have history repeat itself. The true definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. I don’t want to go back there.
Glenn: How do you feel about yourself as a person these days?
Kevin: I feel great. I got what I wanted. I love to sing. It is not just what I do, it is part of who I am. I am not the worlds greatest singer but I am not the worlds worst singer. I enjoy performing. I can’t do it in a situation that is not right for me. I have managed to hold on to what I love, which is the spirit of the original Quiet Riot with Randy Rhoads. Frankie and I retain the spirit of the original band. We no longer have forces that have their own agendas that want to take it somewhere else that I don’t want to go.
We have a new record out titled Live & Rare that is a compilation that we recorded in the 80’s. It is a stopgap until we finish recording the album we are working on now. I want people to know that you, Glenn Hughes, have been lending vocals melodies to me. You helped me with chord patterns that I am not used to singing. You heard it once and out came the right melody.
You may end up with a writers credit! I just love being able to go to the best and get something out of it. The plan I would like to do may or may not happen. I don’t know if you will have the time or even contractually be allowed to do it but I would like to do a Spooky Tooth song called “Evil Woman.” Time will tell if it happens or not. If the timing is right and you are not in Russia then maybe it will happen. Then I will have sex with your dogs -- I do anyway. I only do it because you asked me.
Glenn: Oh my God! [makes violent grumbling noises before erupting into laughter] Where do you see yourself in five years?
Kevin: I will be 54 in five years and I see no reason that I can’t still be doing this. I want to make a Quiet Riot record that sells in good numbers but I am being realistic about the industry right now. I want to have a really musical album. I want to have a little more depth in my music than the “Bang Your Head” type thing. I think we are on the right track. Right now, I am just living my life a year at a time.
Glenn: What do your want to be remembered for?
Kevin: I think that is for other people to decide. I don’t want to be remembered for being the one hit big mouth from the 80’s. I am aware that perception exists. I don’t lose any sleep over it though.
Glenn: We did a show together last year and we played “Bang Your Head” together. You tore it up. You blew me away. You are a great front man and a great singer. To me, you are the best front man to come out of LA in the 80’s. I have seen all those other chaps but you are committed and you are together. You don’t get high when you work and you don’t drink when you work. You are a professional.
Kevin: [makes snorting sounds]
Glenn: Can you expand on the demo recording that are bonus tracks on your latest Live & Rare CD?
Kevin: That was a four track demo, originally. In the band Dubrow, we did three separate demos and on this album we included the 2nd one. The one song missing is a song called “Any Time You Want Me.” Frankie is holding that back for Volume II. The “Thunderbird” demo was the 3rd one we recorded, there is actually another one somewhere that is not that good. The version on this album, is better than the one that is on Metal Health. I think this one is more heartfelt. I think the demo tracks are really cool to listen to as you can really hear where the band was at the time. There is still another demo that has not been released. It is the one we got singed off of. It has “Dangerzone” and “Save My Life” which became “Red Alert” on Condition Critical. There is also a song called “Take You To Hell” that became “Born To Rock” on Condition Critical. Frankie has them somewhere but wasn’t able to find them this time. We had enough for the album and they will likely be on Live & Rare Volume II. I hope that does not happen for a couple of years though as I want to release some new music.
Glenn: Before we go, I want to tell you that when you are on the road, I believe you can be a jackass but you are passionate. I admire passionate people.
Kevin: Thank you Glenn. Now if someone else believes you then I might get laid again.
